This was one of the two greatest dining experiences of my entire life. When we made the reservations, we told them it was our honeymoon so they put us in a beautiful room with a garden view next to us. We decided upon the seven-course tasting menu without the wine-tasting, although we had a few wines that were outstanding.

The first few courses were like appetizers, with fresh seafood prepared in an elegant Creole style with delicious sauces. The best dish was a "deep dish" rabbit and fois gras pie. It was very rich, but the fois gras was absolutely amazing. The entrée dishes were beautiful presentations of broiled scamp and then Mississippi quail. The quail was a little tough, but that would be my only complaint of the evening. The cheese plate was also one of my favorite parts of the evening. You had to eat the cheeses in a certain order, from light in taste to extremely powerful. I had never experienced anything like this before. The desert was a phenomenal bread pudding soufflé, and they also added a lovely chocolate plate and candles for our honeymoon.

The servers were very down to earth and not stuffy. Two servers put each dish in front of us at the same time and explained each one in very fine detail. The chef also signed my menu, which I still have to this day. It was a beautiful experience.

Best value in New Orleans is to go to the Commander's Palace for lunch. My all-time favorite restaurant anywhere. Top service. This restaurant is often named one of the best in the country. It is located in the Garden District of New Orleans. Easy to get to by taking the trolly and stopping at Washington Avenue. The restaurant is only a few blocks away. Commanders Palace is owned by the Brennan family. Emeril once cooked there. Try the Bread Pudding Souffle with whiskey sauce for desert. You'll be dreaming about it when you get home. The day we went they had a special of $.25 martini's!

Commander's Palace is a definite splurge. Our meal was by far the most expensive of our trip, but worth it. The wait staff is incredibly accommodating. We were seating by an obnoxious Atkins droid who insisted on knowing the carbohydrate content of each dish. We were amazed at how politely the waiter answered his questions, even going so far as to call the chef for information. Speaking of Atkins, if you're on a diet, Commander's Palace (or New Orleans for that matter) is not the place to visit. Whatever you have for lunch or dinner, don't miss out on the bread pudding -- it's fab. It's more of a bread soufflé or bread meringue.

CP's interior looks like it was decorated by someone's Jr. League mom -- tasteful and bright. It also appears to be popular with the locals. There were a number businessmen and girls celebrating grade school graduations while we were there.

Just a tip: If you're on a budget, go for lunch.

In the Garden District across from the Lafayette No. 1 cemetery, you''ll find Commanders Palace. This is a fine dining experience worth seeking out.

After going on a self directed walking tour of the neighborhood (the restaurant will provide you with a map of homes that gives details about the architecture), we entered the main dining room with its butter yellow walls and pressed tin ceiling. Since we dined during a jazz brunch, colorful balloons were tied in bunches to the tiny lamps in the center of the tables. Therefore, while this is a fine dining restaurant---shorts are not allowed---the Sunday atmosphere here felt more festive than stuffy to me. We loved the jazz musicians: the trumpet player, the banjo strummer, and the round man with a Louis Armstrong voice and a cello who let out playful growls as he sang, "Oh, that tiger! Oh, oh that tiger!"

I ordered a Bloody Mary, leaned back, and soaked it all up. A series of nature paintings adorn the walls, and a manager pointed out that each of these original by Marilyn Carter Rougelot has a white heart hidden discreetly somewhere within the picture. We amused ourselves looking for these until our waitress returned with our drinks.

Note: Each dining area in Commander''s Palace has unique and different decor. While booked literally months in advance, patrons can actually have a table in the kitchen where they can watch the gourmet chef at work.

Of course, the menu here is the main attraction. Widely acclaimed as one of the best restaurants New Orleans has to offer (and this is high praise indeed!), Commander''s Palace is sure to live up to its reputation at any meal. It was extremely difficult for me to settle on any one thing with the likes of shrimp cognac and andouille grits, muscadine and chicory coffee lacquered quail, and pecan-crusted gulf fish as choices. I settled on a Creole spiced filet mignon that seemed to melt in my mouth. After a spinach salad dotted with candied pecans AND a generous praline parfait for dessert, my appetite was satisfied on every level.

Perfect!

We decided on lunch at Commander's Palace to go easy on the pocketbook, and it was perfect in every way. The service was excellent. As soon as we sat down, they presented a plate of garlic bread. Who would have thought that garlic bread could be so delicate and delicious. They brought a second serving (without us asking) when they saw we inhaled the first.

For an entrée, I had a seared yellowfin tuna in a large bowl surrounded with a variety of legumes and a delicious broth. I though I might just pick at the legumes, but they all disappeared along with the delicious tuna. I can't remember what my wife had for an entrée, but she was very happy ending with a unique bread pudding souflée.

The owner/manager gave us a tour of the kitchen before we left.