Compère Lapin
Chef Nina Compton is inviting guests to indulge in a special a la carte Mother’s Day brunch. Amongst starters are Buttermilk Biscuits with mango jam and whipped ricotta and Tater Tots with creme fraiche and caviar. Entree options include Shrimp and Grits with Creole sauce; Beef Bolognese with potato and ricotta gnocchi; and Fried Chicken & Biscuits with hot honey. Desserts include a Mango Crème Brûlée and Bread Pudding with stewed local berries, Chantilly Cream, and mint. Guests can also enjoy an array of boozy brunch cocktails. Reservations can be made on Resy. For more information and full Mother’s Day menu visit www.comperelapin.com.

Tujague’s
The second-oldest restaurant in New Orleans is celebrating Mother’s Day with a feast (pictured). On Sunday, May 14th, enjoy Executive Chef Gus Martin’s decadent Mother’s Day prix-fixe (priced $46 - $58, based main entree),  featuring elevated Creole dishes including Boudin Balls with pepper jelly; Crawfish Au Gratin - Louisiana crawfish tails folded into mornay sauce with gruyere cheese, baked and served with French bread crostini (+$3.50); BBQ Shrimp and Grits - pan sauteed shrimp simmered in a New Orleans-style BBQ sauce, served over stone ground grits; Veal and Crawfish - pan seared veal medallions, served with asparagus, new potato mash and a smoked tomato beurre blanc, topped with Louisiana crawfish tails; Grilled Filet Mignon - 6oz filet of beef, served with asparagus, roasted pearl onions and sauce chasseur. For dessert, indulge in a sublime Bread Pudding with rum sauce. Full menu can be viewed at https://tujaguesrestaurant.com/menus/#Dinner, and reservations can be made on OpenTable. 

Bakery Bar
Serving up savory dishes and craft cocktails, Bakery Bar wants to treat mom to a laid back brunch featuring Latin America-meets-Louisiana fare. Relish in the Mother’s Day Benedict -  mixed greens, fried tomatillo, grilled ham, poached egg, and jalapeno avocado crema; Fried Tomatillo Benedict; Basura Patatas - home fries, sautéed onions, bacon, beer cheese; and Fried Chicken Sandwich - with spicy relish on a bun. The cocktail program is as creative as the menu, with drink names nodding to pop culture. Inspired by the theme “PRETEND,” a cocktail to try during your visit includes Abolish the Monarchy! - Pimm's, Lillet Blanc, cucumber bitters, green chartreuse. For dessert, guests can satisfy their sweet tooth with the Peach Cobbler Flan made by Chef Solano or a slice of Pecan Praline Doberge – a pecan studded white cake separated by layers of caramel pudding and covered with a pecan praline fondant. Take home a whole doberge cake for Mom or order online at www.debbiedoesdoberge.com and GoldBelly. 

Jack Rose
The lively restaurant located inside the Garden District’s Pontchartrain Hotel, Jack Rose, will feature specialty offerings this Mother’s Day, curated by Chef/Owner Brian Landry. Mother’s Day specials include Admiral Oysters with pink lemon mignonette; Crawfish Benedict with buttermilk biscuit, and creole hollandaise; Halibut with baby vegetables and citrus vinaigrette; and Duck Confit Hash with sunny egg, and orange beurre blanc. Jack Rose is located inside the Pontchartrain Hotel at 2031 St Charles Avenue. Reservations can be made on OpenTable. https://www.jackroserestaurant.com/

Mister Mao
On Sunday, May 14th, Mister Mao will host a very special Mother’s Day Dim Sum BBQ. Perfect for those looking for an alternative to the traditional Mother’s Day brunch, the family-style menu will feature close to a dozen different small plates from the recently-returned “Here Comes the Chuck Wagon” roving carts. Price - $55per person (excluding tax and gratuity). Reservations available on Resy  

Birdy’s
This Mother’s Day, Birdy’s invites locals and visitors to indulge in favorite brunch offerings like Fried Chicken Biscuit with crispy chicken thigh, chicken sausage, jalapeño, and cane syrup country gravy, sunny side egg; Avocado Toast with farm radish, sunflowers seeds, orange, chili flakes, with a farm salad; Birdy’s Burger with two smash patties, Hook’s white cheddar, mustard aioli, lettuce, tomato, pickles, brioche bun, served with a side salad; French Toast; and the Birdy’s Brunch Board served with a donut, granola, slab bacon, hot coppa, bubble waffle, fruit, seasonal jam, mini cookies, mini pancakes, house syrup, triple cream cheese, and soft boiled eggs. www.birdysnola.com

Couvant
Couvant will be open early for normal brunch (9 am – 2 pm) and dinner service (5 – 10 pm) with a Mother’s Day Brunch Special, the Fried Oyster, Bacon & Brie Omelet: Crispy Fired Gulf Oysters, Triple Cream Brie, Hickory Smoked Bacon and a Lemon Bur Blanc. Couvant will also feature 20% off all sparkling and champagne bottle options on Mother’s Day. Couvant’s weekend brunch features $25 bottomless brunch cocktails (Bloody Mary, Mimosa, Paloma, Sangria and brunch punch) plus some amazing brunch dishes with French/Southern Flare including Duck Confit and Waffles, Croque Madame, Pain Perdue, Louisiana Crawfish Hash, Shrimp and Grits and more. 

Yo Nashi
Yo Nashi’s multi-course Omakase experience ($89) is the perfect intimate dinner experience to wow your mom on Mother’s Day (open 5-10 pm). Make the meal even more special with a Wagyu beef upgrade with the finest Wagyu Beef from Japan. For an earlier night, Yo Nashi offers daily happy hour from 5-6:30 pm featuring half-price beers and sake by the glass, with an a la carte menu for those not wanting a full Omakase experience.​ Those celebrating earlier in the week, Yo Nashi has teamed up with “The Sake Ninja,” aka Chris Johnson, to create a special omakase dinner with unique sake pairings this Thursday, May 11. The seven-course meal is $145++ and reservations can be made anytime between 5-10 pm (reservations via Open Table).
 
Saint John
Saint John will be open for normal business hours (brunch 11 am – 4 pm, dinner until 9 pm). Saint John now features Mumm champagne varieties at the lowest prices in town – Bottomless Mumm Mimosas: Choice of Mumm Napa Brut Prestige or Brut Rose for only $45, G.H. Mumm by the Bottle for ONLY $75 (Over $40 difference in savings when you dine for brunch). Saint John also offers Bottomless Bloody Mary’s featuring Kettle One Vodka and Zatarains to the brunch menu ($25). Saint John also added some amazing new menu items sure to make any mother happy: Crawfish Bread and Breakfast (brunch), Pork Chop Yakamein (dinner), Chargrilled Filet (dinner), Brown Butter Seared Scallops (dinner) and River Road Crawfish Etouffee (dinner).
 
Copper Vine
Copper Vine will be serving its regular brunch (10:30 am – 3 pm) and dinner service (3 – 9 pm).. Enjoy brunch on Copper Vine’s lush outdoor courtyard or indoor picturesque space with standout dishes including Creole Shakshouka, Cornflake Fried Chicken and Waffles, Gulf Fish Amandine, and Cochon de Lait Grits. Copper Vine also offers $25 bottomless mimosas throughout brunch.

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Couvant is excited to announce that starting this week, the restaurant will extend its weekend brunch service to Friday, now offering brunch Fri – Sun, 9am – 2pm! Couvant’s weekend brunch features $25 bottomless brunch cocktails (Bloody Mary, Mimosa, Paloma, Sangria and brunch punch) plus some amazing brunch dishes with French/Southern Flare including Duck Confit and Waffles, Croque Madame, Pain Perdue and more! Couvant has also added a few new brunch menu items, including:

DUCK AND BRIE SPRING ROLLS: Duck Fricassee, Apple, Pepper Jelly Aioli, Brie.
LOUISIANA CRAWFISH HASH: Sauce Nantua, Sweet Corn, Rosemary Garlic Potatoes, Sunny Side Up Egg.
SHRIMP & GRITS: Grilled Gulf Shrimp, Sautéed Onions and Peppers, Chorizo Sauce, Stone-Ground Grits
 
In addition, Couvant has also added new items to its dinner menu, including:
CRAWFISH GNOCCHI: Sauce Nantua, Sweet Corn, Chili-Garlic Crisp.
LEEKS VINAIGRETTE: Blanched Leeks, Eggs Polonaise, Fried Capers, Sauce Ravigote.
COUVANT OYSTERS: Lemongrass Velouté, Kaluga Caviar, Finger Lime.
BERKWOOD FARMS PORK CHOP: Pan Roasted Pork Chop, Dijon Panko Crust, Peas and Lima Bean a la Louisiane.

Bakery Bar has some special offerings for Cinco de Mayo. Known for its Latin American-meets-New Orleans cuisine, Bakery Bar is helmed by Costa Rican native Chef Lydia Solano. On May 5th, in celebration of Cinco de Mayo, Chef Solano will feature a special Taco Trio featuring a Boudin Ball & Latin Slaw Taco; Cajun Tongue & Mushroom Taco and an Alligator & Salsa Taco. In addition, the restaurant will offer a specialty dessert, Horchata Coffee Rum Gelato and $8 Spicy Margaritas all day long. Bakery Bar is located at 1179 Annunciation. www.bakery.bar. 

Heaven deadly sins: Closer To Heaven
Review by Paul Oswell

I once saw a touring Broadway production of Kinky Boots, a musical set in the factories of a provincial English town. Nothing in the musical references England (geographically or linguistically), though, and so the artistic decision to have the entire cast perform in strikingly bad British accents baffled me. 

Closer To Heaven is set in London, but with its script full of flats and birds and wankers, there’s nowhere to hide, and it would sound much stranger in American accents. Thankfully, this cast of UNO students do a better job than the Kinky Boots professionals, and likely only my fine-tuned British ear picked up on a few minor wobbles. 

With music by pop veterans the Pet Shop Boys and book by collaborator Jonathan Harvey, Closer To Heaven is a disco drama, framed by a London nightclub and populated by a sea of lost souls. Innocent Shell (Adrienne Simmons) arrives in the big city to meet aging raver and club manager Vic (Aaron Brewer), her estranged gay father. Wide-eyed barman Straight Dave (Mason Willis) is trying to make his way as a pop star and club host Billie Trix (Laurel Tannehill) is a chaotic, Teutonic diva dining out on past glories and narcotics. 

The plot strands (Shell and Vic fight, Dave falls in love but is sexually confused, Dave vies with a mercenary pop mogul) take place in variously seedy corners - the club, back offices, bedrooms, saunas. The world building is drug and sex fuelled, though I wish slightly more of it had evolved on the dance floor, as the chorus numbers with their more intricate choreography are where the lights shone most brightly for me. 

Adrienne Simmons and Laurel Tannehill stand out, the former with notably elevated dance moves and a note-perfect accent, the latter with spectacularly dramatic psychedelic breakdowns and rants, peppered with touching moments of maternal clarity. Mason Willis’ driven but naive ingénu is impulsive and charismatic, and there’s good energy between him, Shell, and Jose J Figueroa as Mile End Lee, the cheeky yet tragic neighborhood drug runner. 

I very much enjoyed (perhaps not ‘enjoyed’? You know what I mean) the Weinsteinian creepiness of Bob Saunders (Max Corcoran), an odious music industry boss, wielding predatory power from under a bath towel. Payton Wright as sidekick Flynn is also a treat, with some of the night’s best camp quips and a hilarious ketamine-tinged diatribe. Aaron Brewer handles Vic's redemption arc with graceful aplomb.  

The songs (not Pet Shop Boys singles, sadly, but numbers written for this musical) edge towards balladry rather than bangers, although second-half opener It’s Just My Little Tribute To Caligula, Darling! is a fun, hi-octane romp. The ambience is more atmospheric dinge and low-lit gratification than shiny, glitter-strewn dancefloors.   

Kudos to L Kalo Gow’s direction, and the lighting and set design for believable, near-seamless flits between shady city corners. The world feels aesthetically and emotionally consistent, and the dangers, inspiration, hedonism and tragedies of young love, queerness and urban life are creatively delivered. Shout out to the chorus, who danced and sang with entertaining gusto, and pathos when called for. 

There are some bravely-undertaken explicit scenes, and as they’re played for truth rather than titillation, it’s kind of an unsure, exploratory eroticism. It’s not an easy ask for young actors to perform love scenes in front of a live audience, but there’s an impressive honesty to it - sincere credit to Adrienne Simmons, Mason Willis and Jose J Figueroa for navigating these with artistic integrity. 

It’s a tricky show to pull off, what with the accents and the material and the choreography, but I left uplifted, and there’s a poignant celebration of queer legends as a finale. Come with an open mind, and you’ll surely get the most out of this show’s big heart. 

Closer To Heaven runs at the Robert E. Nims Theatre on UNO’s campus through May 6th. More info and tickets.