Best Restaurants Open Monday in New Orleans 2026

Why a Monday list matters in New Orleans

New Orleans is not a Michelin city, so its hierarchy runs through the century-old Creole houses, the Garden District grandes dames and the Donald Link group in the Warehouse District. The famous closing day is split: Galatoire's rests on Monday, several chef-driven rooms close Sunday and Monday both, and a visitor who lands at the start of the week can find the marquee tables harder to read than on a Friday.

The order below leads with the institutions that anchor a Monday dinner, then the Warehouse District seafood rooms that hold a full week. A note on the local clock: dinner runs early by coastal standards, prime tables fill 6:30 to 8, and Monday is also the day for red beans and rice, the washday plate still cooked across the city. Hours are checked against each restaurant's published schedule. Every name links to its full review with the score and booking mechanics. For the rest of the week, start with the New Orleans dining guide.

The Monday list

Commander's Palace

Haute Creole · Garden District, New Orleans · $80–150 per head

Monday hours: Monday, 17:30–21:30 (dinner)

The turquoise Victorian at 1403 Washington Avenue has run the city's grandest Creole room since 1893, and chef Meg Bickford now cooks the turtle soup and the bread pudding soufflé that regulars order on sight. A dinner lands around $80 to $150 a head. Monday is dinner from 5:30, and the famous 25-cent martini lunch returns midweek. This is the Garden District room for a Monday celebration or a deal that wants the city's most polished service.

GW Fins

Seafood · French Quarter, New Orleans · $70–120 per head

Monday hours: Monday, 17:00–21:30 (dinner)

GW Fins at 808 Bienville Street prints its menu daily around whatever the boats land, a format chef Michael Nelson keeps tight. The lobster dumplings and the Scalawag, a whole fish for two, are the order; a meal runs $70 to $120 a head. Monday dinner starts at five, earlier than most of the Quarter. It is the Monday seafood pick for a table that wants the catch rather than the courtyard, and the room is calm enough to talk business.

Antoine's

Creole French · French Quarter, New Orleans · $60–120 per head

Monday hours: Monday, 17:30–21:00 (dinner)

Antoine's at 713 St Louis Street has been family-run since 1840, the oldest such restaurant in the country, and Oysters Rockefeller was invented in its kitchen. The oysters and the baked Alaska are the markers; a meal runs $60 to $120 a head across fifteen dining rooms. Monday dinner is 5:30 to nine. Ask to see the back rooms and the wine cellar. It is the Monday booking for history and a long, room-by-room evening rather than a quick supper.

Arnaud's

Creole · French Quarter, New Orleans · $60–120 per head

Monday hours: Monday, 17:30–21:00 (dinner)

Arnaud's has held its mosaic-tiled corner at 813 Bienville Street since 1918, and the Shrimp Arnaud in remoulade and the soufflé potatoes are the dishes to start with. A dinner runs $60 to $120 a head. Monday is dinner from 5:30, with the French 75 Bar next door taking walk-ins. It is the Monday choice for old-line Creole grandeur and a nightcap at one of the city's best cocktail bars without leaving the building.

Brennan's

Creole · French Quarter, New Orleans · $70–130 per head

Monday hours: Monday, 09:00–14:00 and 18:00–21:00

The pink façade at 417 Royal Street has been Brennan's since 1946, the room where Bananas Foster was created tableside. The turtle soup and the flamed Bananas Foster are the order; a meal runs $70 to $130 a head. Monday splits into a morning service to two and a dinner from six to nine. It keeps the longest Monday window on this list, which makes it the flexible pick for a late breakfast, a courtyard lunch or an early dinner.

Herbsaint

Creole-French · Warehouse District, New Orleans · $50–90 per head

Monday hours: Monday, 11:30–14:00 and 17:30–21:00

Donald Link's first restaurant sits at 701 St Charles Avenue on the streetcar line, a sharper room than the Quarter grandes dames. The muscovy duck leg confit with dirty rice and the house-made spaghetti with guanciale are the markers; a meal runs $50 to $90 a head. Monday covers lunch and dinner, an easy weekday table. It is the Monday pick for serious cooking at a gentler spend, and a strong solo seat at the bar.

Pêche

Coastal seafood · Warehouse District, New Orleans · $50–90 per head

Monday hours: Monday, 11:00–22:00 (lunch and dinner)

Pêche at 800 Magazine Street cooks Gulf seafood over a wood fire, the James Beard-winning room from Donald Link and chef Ryan Prewitt. The whole grilled fish and the ground shrimp toast are the order; a meal runs $50 to $90 a head. Monday runs all day from eleven. It is the liveliest Monday seafood table in the Warehouse District, best for a group that wants a long, shareable dinner rather than a hushed dining room.

How to book a Monday table in New Orleans

On a Monday the grand Creole rooms book up first, especially Commander's Palace, so reserve the moment your date is set. GW Fins and Herbsaint clear a Monday table more easily and make the safe choice for a Monday business dinner on short notice; both are natural picks for the best seafood restaurants worldwide shortlist. For a solo Monday, the bar at Herbsaint or a counter seat at Pêche are the easiest tables and a strong solo-dining move. Entertaining clients? Commander's Palace and Antoine's carry the most weight for an impress-the-client dinner. Most of these rooms take bookings on OpenTable or Resy; for the wider city, the close-a-deal guide maps the power tables.

Frequently asked questions

Which fine-dining restaurants are open on Monday in New Orleans?

Seven upscale New Orleans rooms keep a confirmed Monday service: Commander's Palace in the Garden District, GW Fins, Antoine's, Arnaud's and Brennan's in the French Quarter, and Herbsaint and Pêche in the Warehouse District. Galatoire's, the Bourbon Street grande dame, is the notable closure, since it takes Monday as its day off. A confirmed Monday list saves a wasted trip at the start of the week, when several chef-driven rooms close Sunday and Monday both.

Is Commander's Palace open on Monday?

Yes. Commander's Palace serves dinner on Monday from 5:30 to 9:30 at 1403 Washington Avenue in the Garden District, and its weekday lunch with the 25-cent martini runs midweek. Chef Meg Bickford's turtle soup and bread pudding soufflé are the dishes to order, and a dinner runs around $80 to $150 a head before wine. It books out first among the Monday options, so reserve well ahead for a Monday celebration.

Why is Galatoire's closed on Monday in New Orleans?

Galatoire's, the 1905 Bourbon Street institution, simply takes Monday as its weekly closing day, a common rhythm among New Orleans grandes dames that trade hard through the weekend. If you want that old-line Friday-lunch Galatoire's experience, plan for Tuesday through Sunday instead. For a Monday with the same Creole grandeur, Antoine's and Arnaud's in the French Quarter are open, with Antoine's running from 5:30.

Where can I get red beans and rice in an upscale New Orleans restaurant on Monday?

Monday is the city's traditional red-beans-and-rice day, the washday plate, and most of the Creole houses on this list run a version. Commander's Palace, Antoine's and Brennan's all cook the dish, and the Warehouse District rooms keep it on the Monday menu too. It is comfort food rather than a tasting-menu course, so pair it with the turtle soup or a Gulf appetiser for a fuller Monday dinner.

Do I need a reservation for Monday dinner in New Orleans?

For these rooms, yes. Commander's Palace, Antoine's and GW Fins all book out for Monday evening, and walk-in space is limited to the bar. Brennan's, Herbsaint and Pêche hold more last-minute room, and their bars take walk-ins, but a reservation through OpenTable or Resy is still the safe move for any party larger than two, especially during festival weeks and Jazz Fest.

Hours verified against each restaurant's published schedule as of June 2026; confirm directly before travelling. Restaurants for Kings is editorial, not sponsored. Some reservation links may earn an affiliate commission, which never affects a ranking or a score.