STARTER
Columns NEW ORLEANS
Words: Jenna Campbell Photography: © Arnaud Montagard
IN A BITE Owner: Jayson Seidman Operator: Sandstone Interior Design: Jayson Seidman F&B Consultant: Porch Swing Hospitality Head Chef: Paul Terrebonne Executive Chef: Michael Stoltzfus F&B Manager: Meghan Pecoraro Head Bartender: Carlos Quinonez www.thecolumns.com
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onceived by hotelier Jayson Seidman in
knowing I was going to get a unique dining
collaboration with chef Michael Stoltzfus,
experience regardless of the season or menu.”
the bar and restaurant at the newly
Overseen by Stoltzfus – known for his James
renovated Columns hotel – now, simply referred
Beard Award-nominated eatery Coquette – the
to as Columns – in New Orleans’ Garden District
new food and drink concept centres on dinner
pays respect to the property’s storied past and
classics and cocktail fare focused on Southern
its promising future.
American and global cuisine. With extensive
Built in 1883, the property was acquired by
open-air seating on the hotel’s sprawling
Seidman in 2019 and has been has sensitively
porch, Columns’ dining experience nods to the
renovated, preserving many of the building’s
innovative and seasonal nature of southern
original architectural details including a
cooking and its location’s laid-back character.
mahogany stairwell and stained-glass skylight.
Menu highlights include small plates of Roast
Layering on the existing 19th century aesthetic,
Gulf Oysters and Broadbent Country Ham, with
the 20-key property is punctuated with
entrees such as the Columns Burger with pepper
furniture, a whimsical mix of Mid-Century and
marmalade, andouille and ricotta, as well as
Art Noveau lighting and original wallpaper.
chicken with boudin blanc, smoked oyster and
“I wanted the new concepts at Columns to be
marinated kale.
a seamless balance of design and restoration,”
“Maintaining a sense of place has always been
explains Seidman. “Over the years of both
a guiding principle in our food and service,”
visiting and living in New Orleans I found
says Stoltzfus. “Columns presents a unique
myself attracted to what Mike accomplished
opportunity for us to reinterpret some classic
at Coquette for those exact reasons. I enjoyed
flavours and dishes of South Louisiana while
the neighbourhood environment, while also
paying homage to a St. Charles institution.”
