What to Order

Restaurant R'evolution: What to Order

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Compiled by the Restaurants for Kings editorial team · Sourced from Restaurant R'evolution, chefs John Folse and Rick Tramonto’s menu and diner reports · How we work · Corrections

The verdict: Order the Death by Gumbo and the shrimp-and-andouille étouffée, or the $145 tasting; Folse and Tramonto’s Quarter room still cooks with intent.

Restaurant R'evolution opened in 2012 inside the Royal Sonesta on Bienville Street, the joint venture of Louisiana’s John Folse and James Beard winner Rick Tramonto. New Orleans Magazine named it Best New Restaurant that year, and the kitchen still trades on both chefs’ pedigree. Here is what to order across the menu.

The Signature Order

The dish to open with is Death by Gumbo, a composition that runs through six iterations of the form and reads as the kitchen’s thesis statement. Alongside it, order the Creole snapping turtle soup, a plate not seen on a New Orleans menu in a generation, and a board from the holy-trinity charcuterie programme that runs Cajun smoke through a serious foie gras torchon.

For mains, the Gulf shrimp and andouille étouffée is Folse’s Cajun depth on a plate, and the wood-fired duck breast with Louisiana cane syrup is the confident non-seafood call. The death-by-pasta course nods to Tramonto’s Italian roots. If it is a first visit, the seven-course tasting menu at $145 per person is the way in, walking a table through Cajun, Creole and the chefs’ modern reinterpretations of both.

Not for: Not for a quick working lunch. The seven-course tasting runs long and the hotel-restaurant formality suits a celebration or a client dinner, not a fast bite before a meeting.

How to Build the Order

For a first visit, take the $145 tasting with the American-French wine pairing, weighted toward Tramonto’s Italian bench. If you would rather build a la carte, pair the Death by Gumbo, one charcuterie board, the étouffée and the duck across two people. For the morning after, the Sunday jazz brunch is the city’s most musical service after Brennan’s; open it with a barrel-aged Sazerac and book two to four weeks ahead through the hotel concierge.

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Frequently Asked Questions

What is the must-order dish at Restaurant R'evolution?

Death by Gumbo is the signature, a composition that runs through six iterations of the form and captures what John Folse and Rick Tramonto do best. Pair it with the Creole snapping turtle soup and a board from the foie-gras-driven charcuterie programme. For a main, the Gulf shrimp and andouille étouffée is the plate that shows Folse’s Cajun depth most clearly.

How much is the tasting menu at Restaurant R'evolution?

The seven-course tasting menu is $145 per person, and it is the recommended way in on a first visit. It walks a table through Cajun, Creole and the chefs’ modern reinterpretations of both, and the American-French wine pairing is well-priced for the format. A la carte, expect a comparable spend once you add charcuterie, a main and dessert.

Is Restaurant R'evolution still open in 2026?

Yes. Restaurant R'evolution is open and serving dinner nightly at 777 Bienville Street inside the Royal Sonesta in the French Quarter. The chefs’ joint venture has continued through ownership changes and a menu refresh, and its custom wine cellar holds more than 10,000 bottles. The Sunday jazz brunch also still runs and remains one of the city’s most popular.

What should you order at the R'evolution jazz brunch?

Open the Sunday jazz brunch with a bourbon barrel-aged Sazerac, then order across the Cajun-Creole menu that carries the dinner kitchen’s reinterpretations. The brunch is the city’s most musical after Brennan’s and draws the local regulars, so book two to four weeks ahead. It is the gracious morning-after option when you are hosting out-of-town guests or clients.