Iris

I am SO sad to hear that Iris has closed. One of my favorite restaurants :(

Food: mediocre. I ordered the steak frites «medium well» but it came practically burned and the steak part was the size of a hot dog, NOT at all like it looks in the Unilocal pictures! The whole plate was just fries.
Service: may have been the most annoying part. Our waiter took about 20 min to bring us some water, over forty minutes to bring the bread, didn’t know what was in the drinks, and in general was not up to par for a «sophisticated» kind of restaurant.
Ambiance: cool wall art

First off, if you want to eat here. eat here while you can, it is closing the end of May 2014. A new place called Latitude 29 is opening up in it’s place.
Our group sampled each others fare and all arrived at pretty much the same conclusion, they have quite trying or their cooking staff may have left already. Way too pricey for the quality of the food here. The quantity is fine, it is the quality that was lacking.

I wanted to love it so bad, but it fell short of my expectations.
PROS:
Bread presentation was amazing
Pork loin was so yummy. All the flavors on the plate complemented each other very well and you’re filled without being stuffed
Drinks were phenomenal.
Desserts were a perfect portion and, although not unforgettable, were a nice end to the meal.
CONS: Service was not what I expected for the restaurant. It wasn’t bad service, but it wasn’t outstanding either. Though I never felt rushed, I did feel intimidated by the waitress and she was very to thr point. It threw me off. I asked about different drinks and got short, brisk answers.
The steak frittes: steak was chewy, in a full of fat and nerves way and seasoned poorly.

So excited to have found a new place to enjoy great food!
We started off with the appetizer special, seared tuna with a cucumber salad! So delicious, the tuna was perfectly seared with a pepper crust and a very light and refreshing cucumber salad. Perfect start.
We ordered the steak frites and duck confit with pork belly. I don’t know what special magic they have but no one does steak like the french, it was juicy, perfectly seasoned and the frites were amazing, crispy, salty and cheesy. The duck confit was also amazing, the crust was very tasty and the rest of the leg was juicy. The pork belly was also very tasty, i just wish it had been a little crispier. 2 very strong recommendations to what you should order for dinner.
We ended the evening with a the cayanne chocolate crème brûlée…Don’t be scared of the cayenne. Its not spicy in the conventional sense but you end each bit with a warm and deep taste.
If you haven’t been able to tell… I had a great evening and it was a wonderful dinner.
Great spot if you want to have a really nice date night, a little more expensive but worth every penny.
Buen Provecho!

I really like this place! Great small plates, creative cocktails, nice wine selection and great ambiance.

Can’t speak on main courses but the cocktails were excellent as well as the lamb arancini, short rib bucatini & sweetbreads.

We went for a 5 course pre fixe NYE special and it was delicious! All the dishes were unique, fresh and tasty. Not to mention the glorious cocktails.

Perhaps we would have enjoyed this restaurant if it had not been our last dinner in New Orleans — after days of heavy indulgences. Additionally, coming from San Francisco, we were not really looking for a California twist on the cuisine. Compared to the other meals we had had, no one was very excited by the menu.
The waitstaff was very friendly and accommodating to our large group, although the drink service was pretty slow. We enjoyed all of our appetizers, but I would really strongly advise against getting the duck confit main course. Everyone found the duck to be far, far too salty. I should have paid more attention to Marcy S.‘s review!

We were looking for a nice bar for cocktails and appetizers, and the cocktail tour app we were following led us here. Perfect! The cocktails were wonderfully crafted (the menu changes a lot, but their gin fizz was amazing), the food excellent, and the atmosphere inviting. We’ll be back for dinner soon.

I really wanted to give this place a higher rating for a number really great things they did well… like
1) the host/​sommelier was extremely nice upon on our arrival, helped us in picking a good wine that wasn’t incredibly over priced and helped in our menu selections also
2) our waitress was so cute and attentive eventhough I’m fairly sure she had a few too many tables
3) the other waitstaff (bread, removal of items, pouring wine) were jovial and seemed to really enjoy their jobs
4) the non-​salted butter and sea salt with bread, is a perfect presentation (in my opinion)
5) my sweetbreads appetizer was one of the best preparations of sweetbreads I’ve had in New Orleans (including R’evolution)
BUT there was one thing that, during the meal I thought not that big of a deal, but essentially ruined everything else in retrospect.
My main dish, the duck confit was meant for horses… in that it tastes like a salt lick! I’m not someone to shy away from salt (to my bloated dismay many mornings) but this was inedible. The beautiful crisp skin was lost completely and even after trying the duck under the skin, I realized that they must have used too much salt in a brine solution because you could not get around it anywhere.
Luckily I was able to snatch a few bites of my date’s dish, the short rib. I was happy to have tasted this dish because eventhough I dispise coconut, it only added a slight sweet flavor to the Moroccan spiced meat.
With so many wonderful restaurants in New Orleans, I doubt I’ll be back to Iris… unfortunately.

The restaurant is soothing and really nice. Quiet, so not good for big/​loud groups. I had the bruschetta and it was delish. But there was only 1 piece of toast! I couldn’t even share with my dinner pal. Then I had the grilled grouper served with purple hulls peas. The peas weren’t cooked all the way and they were served in an off tasting vinegar-​type sauce. The fish was fine but that’s about all I can say…
Overall, it’s something to try. Doubt I’ll be going back.

The building where Iris Restaurant is located could easily be mistaken for an apartments but the menu posted outside the window makes its presence known. The interior, while painted the same colors as the outside of the building, is a classy upscale but not stuffy atmosphere. Whether you’re looking to wine and dine, cozy up on a first date or celebrate a romantic special occasion this restaurant is the place.
Our waitperson was a true professional and my trusted advisor throughout the evening. He interjected his opinion and made suggestions which is something a lot of waiters don’t do but that I find welcoming. His suggested cocktail for the evening was either the Prickle or The Count. I ended up choosing The Count and I couldn’t be happier with the choice. It wasn’t what I would typically order but it was a exemplary choice and a well crafted cocktail.
I was so please with my first cocktail and curious about what our waitperson said was his favorite cocktail that I ordered the Prickle. This is a gin based drink and I don’t drink gin. You could obviously taste the gin in the drink but its subtle sweetness and refreshing coolness made me like it.
Iris’s menu is small with about 10 main choices but most of the dishes sounded so good I was having trouble choosing just one. I offered up my choice and out of my picks, our waitperson recommend the Duck Confit. The skin was perfectly crispy and the meat was moist beyond belief. Combine that with the corn and the sweetness of the peaches and you have a delectable dish.
My boyfriend ordered his usual steak in the form their Steak Frites. It was very tender and tasty. The foie gras-​marrow butter was a brilliant touch and put this dish it over the top. The fries were incredible too, I reckon a Belgium would eat these fries and give them his/​her stamp of approval.
We finished off the meal with the Chocolate Soufflé Pistachio Cake. It was rich, chocolaty yumminess but if I am not mistaken, this was not a soufflé (unless it was a fallen one) and more like a flourless cake. I liked it anyways and the nuts added some texture to the dessert.
Iris was flawless, I can’t wait to come again!

What a swanky and classy way to get my drink on! Iris is both a bar and restaurant, and while I can’t speak for the food, the drinks are divine!
The bartender really took his time with each drink, and he made recommendations to both of us. He seemed both knowledgeable about his craft, and I liked the pride he had in the drinks he invented. Try the sangria, it is unlike any other sangria I’ve had. It was much more bold, like a glass of wine, than the fruity, girly concoction I’m used to.
My husband had a drink that was salty, but it was supposed to be salty! The bartender explained that he was inspired by Japanese food and sake, and now I am at a loss for what else he said… but the drink was different in a very good way! I would have trusted him to whip up something for me without telling me what it was.
Iris is located inside of a hotel, but you can’t miss their signage from the street. One of my favorite hotel bars in New Orleans, and truly awesome drinks worth the price.

Not sure about the food, since I just stopped here for a few drinks but I can vouch for mixologist Scot’s skills about making drinks and his hospitality skills.
I ordered a cucumber basil martini while my wife struggled with what to get. In her indecisiveness, Scot just whips her a drink on the house to get her started. Smooth move, Scot, because you know we’re cool and we’ll give you a nice tip.
We ordered assorted cocktails for a couple of hours and got to know Scot and his staff as well. I’ll admit I’m not all that big into cocktails, but you could tell the guy is passionate about his job just how he gushes over the details of his homemade bitters and any drink you ask him about.
Definitely worth a stop, just to have a drink and shoot the breeze with Scot.

Some of the city’s best cocktails are served here at Iris. Located inside the Bienville House Hotel this is truly one of the city’s best bars. The cocktails here are creative and made with great care and attention to detail. As a bartender myself I appreciate a well-​made drink and look actively for bars that stand out. Iris has some wonderful bartenders who are knowledgeable and personable.
This review is based solely on the bar. Try their Rosemary Melon Cooler (vodka, cantaloupe, watermelon) or the Basil Cucumber Martini. Both are stellar!
Iris’ bar would be a 5-​star review if they had a more extensive wine selection. It is pretty limited. FYI: the atmosphere at the bar is rather quiet. If you like a more lively bar scene (I do most of the time) than this may not be the best bar for you to spend hours at. But if you want incredibly well-​made and delicious cocktails then Iris is hard to beat.

Iris is located on a nondescript little stretch of Decatur but the décor is nice, service was outstanding, and the food & drink were very good. We’ll definitely be back.
Among other things Iris is a perfect place to dine if you’re going to the House of Blues for a show, it’s about a block away and I’m positive the food is much better than the HOB. Dinner started with a nice little amuse bouche and then hot homemade bread was brought to the table along with perfectly room temperature salted butter. Great start. We then received our cocktails which were very nice and within the fairly large wine list found a great value 2010 Rex Hill Pinot Noir in half bottle format for only $ 26. After living in Oregon I have to say 2010 is shaping up to be one of my favorite vintages and even Rex Hill made some pretty darn nice wine in 2010. Anyway, in terms of the food we started with pasta including the gnocchi which were excellent including some nice spice from chorizo and the squash «tortelloni» which would be more accurately described as large ravioli but were house-​made pasta with tasty filling in a nice (if overly generous) brown butter sauce. I love places that make their own pasta & gnocchi in-​house so this was a pretty good way to start the meal.
For main courses we ended up going with a duck confit salad — which was plenty large for an entrée — in addition to a duck breast Main course so we ended up with duck 2 ways. The salad was good on its own and had an entire large confit duck leg on top which might have been slightly too crispy on the outside for my taste but that’s just nitpicking, both the duck confit and the accompanying salad were very tasty. The duck breast was cooked well and very tender but for some reason the dish just didn’t have quite as much flavor or textures as I thought it would. Don’t get me wrong, it was still a pretty good dish (which went perfectly with the Pinot Noir) but I was hoping for more of a wow factor on our only Main course. All of the food was good, but the gnocchi was the only dish with much of a wow factor which is why I have to round down to 4 stars for the moment and see if future visits bump it up to 5.
Clearly Iris has a solid kitchen and great attention to detail including some of the better service I’ve had in NOLA recently. It rarely seems to be packed so Iris appears to be a nice under-​the-​radar option in the Quarter for those who might be looking for a last minute restaurant reservation. I would put it in the genre of Meauxbar and Café Amelie also located in the French Quarter which have nice upscale atmosphere and very good food. That’s pretty good company.

upon arrival, we were probably the only table next to the big top during a cocktail convention, so it was kind of bad indicator. But it wasn’t. I am glad that we ended up staying.
The service and food were amazing :) Not knock your socks amazing, but great for a hotel restaurant. It actually reminded me of pacific northwest food, so it wasn’t that much of a representative of new orleans. But I must say that I am totally into drum fish now. totally missing that local white fish right now.
All in all, it was delicious and the service was amazing. But I guess it’s because everyone in every restaurant in n.o. is nice. I love it!!!
I would recommend this restaurant to anyone :)

I came here with friends on a Fri or Sat night b/​Stella and Irene’s Cuisine were full. I couldn’t be happier w/​our luck.
I made a meal of starters b/​c none of the entrees were really firing me up. I had the pork cheeks, the gnocchi, and the duck leg confit for a little less than $ 30. The food was amazing and I was happy with everything. The portions were very large (especially the duck).
This is a great choice if you want a change from seafood (though they have seafood as well) without spending a ton of money or waiting behind crowds of people. Would definitely go back

I love the relaxing atmosphere at this classy restaurant. The staff is really nice and you feel like you’re eating dinner at home — a classy, more expensive home than mine. Plus the parking lot across the street makes parking really easy (and they will comp the first hour off your bill), I usually write off eating in the quarter for parking reasons alone.
I’m always a fan of places that serve bread and butter but there was a kind or two I didn’t care for. The Buratta Mozzarella Crustini was good but the tomatoes weren’t so fresh. I decided to go crazy and get steak — hey, it was my birthday, never mind that I’m normally a vegetarian. And they didn’t have a vegetarian option on the menu, but I also didn’t ask. Anyways, the steak came with a huge helping of yummy, crispy fries, and a big old pat of foie gras-​marrow butter. I should mention that we also ordered a chocolate (ganache, I think?) cake that was good but wasn’t the best I’ve had.
Yes, just writing out everything that was eaten is making me a little nauseous. Lay off me, it was my birthday. I had a good experience here but next time I’ll know I need to share my food.
I should mention that my friend had the duck and really liked it.