NEW ORLEANS — Two New Orleans restaurants were honored at the 2024 James Beard Awards.
Dakar NOLA was named the Best New Restaurant in the country, and the Jewel of the South won the Outstanding Bar award.
It was an emotional night for chef Serigne Mbaye and his staff, and he thanked them for all their hard work. Dakar NOLA is locared at 3814 Magazine Street. Their menu features dishes inspired by Mbaye's roots in Senegal, West Africa.
Dakar is a Senegalese restaurant and led by Serigne Mbaye. Mbaye said during his winning speech, "When I was learning basic technique at culinary school and cooking creole food at Commanders palace... I always knew West Africa has something to say."
Winning a James Beard Award is the highest honours for a restaurant or bar, Mbaye said his mother inspired his love for food, saying, "I really want to thank my mother for giving me the basic tools that I need, to help the food of my country speak through me to the world. I really want to thank the people of New Orleans who truly embraced me like one of their own."
Jewel of the South is an up-scale French Quarter tavern on St. Louis Street that serves cocktails and British cooking. Its co-owner, Chris Hannah, won the same award in 2017 when he was at Arnaud's French 75 bar.
Their website states the bar was ranked number six on North America’s 50 Best Bars list and dubbed “Best Bar in the South USA” for the second year.
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