Neon lights, over-the-top decor, and a large, vibrant bar await at Mucho Mas, Oak Street’s new Mexican restaurant and lounge. Mashups like barbecue birria tacos and Mexican ramen as well regional Mexican dishes like carne asada tasajo and snapper a la talla are complemented by extravagant house cocktails and tableside pitchers of margaritas served with a ladle to share. Never tried a cantarito? Do it here, made with the oh-so-trendy Clase Azul — or order a whole bottle.

這新鮮rooftop lounge in Old Metairie boasts big-name businessmen backers and an open-air rooftop — the area’s only rooftop, apparently. Amenufrom chef Chris Wilson (who previously cooked at Emeril’s Restaurant) is a major draw, but the bar, along with its ample wine, beer, and cocktail selections, is central given iits rooftop setting. It’s a good place to watch a Saints game, and the bar stays open until midnight on Friday and Saturday.

Mosy over to the space adjacent to Alon and Emily Shaya’s flagship restaurant, Saba, for Israeli-inspired cocktails, natural wine, and select items from Saba’s menu, including salatim, hummus, and desserts. They’re calling itSaba’s Lounge, and it’s open from 4:30 to 9 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday, Friday and Saturday until 11 p.m., and Sunday from 2:30 to 9 p.m.

TheHerbalist Bar at Ginger Rouxin the new Canopy by Hilton Downtown is a swell spot for an Asian-accented libation. Chef Jonathan Hostetler is a wiz marrying Creole style and ingredients with Asian cuisine, and the bar program is equally inspiring. Try the Szechuan Fashioned for starters, rye spiked with five-spice simple syrup and cherry bitters.

The new bar taking up residency at the Selina hotel downtown is Odd Birds, an expansion of a St. Augustine, Florida bar. The small, downstairs bar formerly known as Pisco Bar remains, now complemented by an arepa bar, a brilliant idea. The rooftop has a fresh new look, with a rum and mezcal-focused cocktail menu.

This is Mark Latter and company’s revamp of the short-lived Claret Wine Bar space, an extension of the existing Bower on Magazine Street. While it serves food from the Bower kitchen, the focus here is drinks — the 20-seat bar serves sophisticated cocktails like the Hydrix—bourbon, mint-infused contratto, amaro, and aquafaba. The swanky bar shares an outdoor space with both of its sister spots, the Bower and Birdy’s.

The bar at Couvant is just beautiful, worth a visit to experience even for just one drink. The restaurant in the Eliza Jane Hotel, which returned in Spring 2022 after closing for two years straight, shines with its cocktail menu focused on lighter spirits, cordials from generational distillers, and classic techniques. Six house cocktails created by Couvant staff are rotated monthly but might include unexpected combinations like an absinthe margarita — for fall and winter, there are four warm seasonal cocktails.

American Townhouse is a new queer-owned bar and restaurant set in a renovated 1857 Greek Revival townhouse across from Armstrong Park. The bar is part of the Rampart street renaissance, home to a classic French Quarter courtyard and first-rate craft cocktails, not to mention first-rate bar food. Go for the Friday $5 martini happy hour and stay for the loaded waffle fries and kale caesar.

The largest Black-owned nightlife chain in the United States, Cru Lounge, now has a location in the French Quarter. The Atlanta-born “fast-casual hookah-hemp lounge” (founded by entrepreneur Dennis McKinley, who appeared onThe Real Housewives of Atlantafor a few seasons) serves a full menu of upscale bar food but focuses mostly on “Crutails” — over-the-top, brightly-colored drinks often topped with candy, and eventually, hookah, hemp, and CBD products.

The Will and the Way is technically a revamp — the space was previously home to Longway Tavern before the restaurant group behind it, LeBlanc + Smith, decided to rethink the concept amid the pandemic. In addition to shifting the focus to wine and cocktails, the group has redone the inside to expand the centerpiece L-shaped bar, add texture and moody colors, and create additional “nooks and crannies,” for patrons to post up in. The beautiful courtyard remains a draw, and the new food and bar programs are backed by serious talent.

This brand-new bar takes over the space formerly home to legendary French Quarter dive bar Johnny White’s. Calling itself an “upscale dive,” the St. Peter Street space has a new look thanks to blue-tinged lights and dark wood, along with a few neon signs and funky murals, but still has a classic dive bar feel. For some added excitement, High Grace is having fun lighting drinks on fire and topping them with mini rubber duckies.

A new springtime cocktail menu is enough to warrant a revisit, or a first-time visit, to Donald Link’s Four Seasons Hotel restaurant, just a little over a year old. Designed to complement a foodmenudrawn from Link’s travels tracing the roots and pathways of Creole cuisine through the Caribbean and Europe, the new drinks menu leans heavily on refreshing aperitifs, low-ABV cocktails, and European-style concoctions. Try a Parisian Cobbler made with Lillet, cassis, citrus, elderflower, and local strawberries, best enjoyed in the restaurant’s Purple Grackle lounge.

Anna’s opened in 2021, taking over the space that formerly held beloved neighborhood dive Mimi’s in the Marigny. As far as replacements go, it’s refreshing — it’s from two vets of the New Orleans bar and restaurant world, who are calling it a “locals’ spot turned destination dive.” Anna Giordano (Jewel of the South, Bar Tonique, and Longway Tavern, among others) serves as bar director, with chef Chris Hamm (Coquette, Cavan, Sylvain) in the kitchen.