Blue Giant

Visitors don't come to New Orleans, generally speaking, to eat Chinese food. But locals love it and there has long been a dearth of the cuisine, save for corner store fry palaces that serve dubious versions of dishes like shrimp fried rice and frozen egg rolls. That's been changing - with places like Bao & Noodle, Red's Chinese and Dian Xin leading the charge. Now there's Blue Giant, an unabashedly Chinese-American restaurant newly opened in the red hot Lower Garden District. Owned by two pals who loved eating Chinese food as kids and worked together at Cochon. They seek to recreate those memories, reimagining dishes like egg foo yung and crab rangoon with quality, local ingredients from South Louisiana. A recent lunch delivered the goods, from a crispy well-packed pork egg roll to salt and pepper catfish and pork dumplings held together like lace. Ma Po tofu, made with beef instead of pork, was a wonderful shade of mahogany, dark with fermented spicy black bean sauce and vibrating with toasted Sichuan peppercorns. A sprightly cocktail menu includes a damn fine Mai Tai, along with a range of imported and local beers and wines designed to pair well with Chinese food.