Square Root

I was super excited to try the overstuffed burritos that everyone raves about here, unfortunately they were out the night me and my girlfriend went. Instead we ate several courses of expertly plated food. I think it was food. Every plate looked like a physical food embodiment of the head chefs haircut. (Who was wearing a scarf behind the line BTW, bonus points for fashion chef.) We left on the fifth course because the couple sitting next to us kept dry humping and making dolphin noises. Apparently it was part of the experience. The bathrooms could have been cleaner, but I pee’d with the lights out anyway, so I could be wrong.

My bride and I went for our Anniversary. We both consider ourselves foodies so were anxious. First we went up stairs to the bar and had some cocktails (best Old Fashioned I’ve had). And good prices as well.
Then came the 12 course tasting menu. My bride opted for the mixed (cocktail & wine) pairing and I went with the reserve pairing. Fantastic choices. The meal was easily one of the best, if not the best, we’ve ever had. Every course was amazing. Every pairing was amazing. The staff was very informative and friendly. I can’t recommend this place enough.
As we were leaving to head upstairs for more cocktails 2.5 hours later, Chef Lopez was standing their, I told him I could give him a hug for that meal.
I told my wife that’s what I want for my birthday.

We’ve been in NOLA for about a week, and this has been hands down the best meal we’ve had. The chefs were friendly, the drinks were delicious, and the ambiance was perfect. We’ll definitely be back next time we’re in the area.

Writing this review from the second floor balcony of square root. Really enjoying this place. So far the drinks have been fantastic. I’m having an old fashioned and my girlfriend has had a beer and now the snake charmer signature cocktail. Christian made my first drink and was very welcoming when we arrived. Sitting outside we have been served by Mckenzie and Oscar (the bar upstairs bar manager). They have been very friendly and given great customer service. I was recommend square root by a friend and very happy with the recommendation.

A must on everyone’s list! If you love food, great service, and appreciate creativity the. You will fall in love with this restaurant. My party and I opted for the 12 course pairing. We have had pairings before, but nothing like this. The innovation, attention to details, and deliciousness never stops. If I lived in NOLA I would be a regular. This experience must be reserved in advance and menu changes. It seats 16 total and you are situated around the kitchen– like the chef’s table.

So, this has definitely be on one of my favorite places to go to for happy hour. The food and drinks are always wonderful. I decided to have my birthday get-​together here and we all had such a great time. The service was phenomenal and they were really accommodating to a larger group of people. I would recommend this place to anyone; I’ve never been disappointed and always can’t wait to come back!

Dinner here was my «birthday splurge.» And what a splurge it was! If the food isn’t memorable, the check definitely is.
Luckily, our meal at the chef’s table stood up to the hype, and we enjoyed 16 courses of generally fabulous food.
Some reviewers are calling Square Root the «greatest meal» of their lives. I would not go that far. Some courses were knock-​it-​out-​of-​the-​park home runs, some were just pretty good and a few sounded tempting but just weren’t my personal taste (example: Im just not a fan of fois gras in general, but my BF declared it the best fois gras he’d ever eaten.)
We got the wine pairing and the drink pairing (one of each) and I found myself savoring the drinks as much as the food. Artful cocktails, wines that complimented every dish. It was decadent.
Service was fabulous and non-​pretentious. Each course was described and, if we had questions about it, our server was able to give us lots of more detailed information. Courses flowed nicely from one to the next. By the third or fourth course, I was starting to sink into a happy little food coma, so it’s actually hard for me to remember even half of what we ate, but i do remember my mouth watering as the chefs fired up the cotton candy maker!
This is definitely a «foodie» restaurant. There are a lot of out-​there combinations, and innovative preparations. I would not suggest this meal for a «meat and potatoes» kind of person, who likes to stick to standards. I can’t imagine my dad being too excited about eating pureed fried chicken with savory cotton candy. But for the adventurous eater with a few hundred dollars to burn, definitely put Square Root onto your «must try» list.

Ok — I read several of the reviews and I feel bad giving a poor review.
First, the staff was very nice and friendly.
Second, the location was awesome. We sat upstairs and looked down Magazine towards the CBD/​FQ.
Third, drinks were good.
However, none of the 3 of us liked our food with the exception of a foie gras entrée… if it had been an app, it would have been perfect.
Our app was several things pickled, which was just not our thing… could have been a poor choice of ordering.
We got the lamb meatballs, Fritos, and foie gras — which was good — just not for an entrée… I just felt like they were trying too hard

Id have to say, having dined at Atera, Eleven Madison Park, Alinean and the like, id be surprised if Square Root wont recieve a star anytime soon. Best meal in my life, will come back anytime.

I love happy hour at Root Squared. Who wants $ 5 Pimm’s Cups? Me!
The food is also great. I have tasted the charcuterie/​cheese board and the deviled eggs. The meat and cheese on the board were great, but what I love the most about the board is the pickles. They had pickled peaches, Brussels sprouts, and other awesome things I now can’t remember because I have the worst memory.
The deviled eggs were delicious too, and I want to eat more things from this menu. I don’t know if it’s still available but when I was there a couple of weeks ago, they had a duck heart frito pie. WHY did I not order it?!

It seems that the LGD end of Magazine has become a hot spot lately for the latest and greatest food adventures in New Orleans. With «adventure» being the key word here, one spot that any foodie simply MUST try is Square Root.
The atmosphere of the place, for starters, is fantastic. If the weather is nice, I definitely recommend dining outside on the upstairs balcony. You will have great views of Magazine Street down below as well as the surrounding neighborhood and downtown New Orleans off in the distance. The inside bar is also very cozy and intimate.
Now, the food… the menu consists of small plates and also features a large selection of charcuterie and cheeses. The selection is constantly changing, which I’m guessing is why there is no menu posted online. So, what you might find on your visit will be a total surprise.
We started with small plates for our entrée: coffee-​cured salmon with pickled beets for myself; my friend ordered blue crab with grapefruit and avocado cream. The portions are small, yes, but they don’t need to be because the flavors are HUGE!
The charcuterie and cheeses looked too good to miss out on, so that was our «dessert». We asked the check to pair one meat and one cheese with our wine. What we got was an absolutely gorgeous board of black pudding and blue cheese along with the accoutremonts: pickled veggies, plums and peaches; blueberry preserves; bourbon-​poached pears. Everything on that board worked so well together, it was like a symphony of tastes and textures!
The most surprising part of dining here was that, for such innovative and intricate cuisine, the prices were not outrageous. Also, though my friend and I were dressed up for a night on the town, many of the other diners were dressed casually. So, the dress code can go either way.
All in all, I highly recommend Sqaure Root for a memorable dinning experience.

Having just missed the opening of Chef Lopez’s fine dining adventure, Square Root, on our last trip to New Orleans, I was thrilled to score reservations on our trip this April. I’ve long been a fan of Root, Chef’s lovely upscale eatery on Julia, so was looking forward to seeing him take it up a notch.
I was not disappointed. The crew works in tandem, and the setup is a «Chef’s Table» where all the diners can share in the experience of the preparation. Each course is presented like a tiny Cirque ballet, with beautiful dishes arriving in a flurry of fanciful cooking techniques, and packing a punch of unique and rewarding flavors in every bite. I won’t belabor the menu, as yours will almost certainly be different, but the experience of eating in his kitchen is bliss. Picking my favorites would be hard, but the chilaquiles, posole with pork belly, and foie gras with blood orange certainly linger in my memory.
Lopez’ spectacular crew, led by Austin (just look for the John Besh clone) are extremely talented and they run the kitchen like a well-​oiled machine. The guys rock that kitchen.
I’m back in California now, and counting the days until we can return. Bravo!

This concept is long overdue in New Orleans. I am reviewing both upstairs and downstairs in the review.
Upstairs, I have dined here and had cocktails and it is a wonderful experience. I love the use of the «toys» in the kitchen and all of the twists on the food. The duck heart salad was my favorite. Simply wonderful flavors from the duck hearts. The greens come from their project in the ninth ward with habitat for humanity. Really good stuff. The steak tartare was also a wonderful choice. The cocktails are quite good with mixologists that really know their craft. All in all a wonderful place to dine and have a cocktail!
Downstairs is truly a foodie delight. Our tasting menu was 16 courses, just enough food to leave happy, but not over full. Their use of molecular gastronomy techniques with every course really make it fun! Truly fit for any foodie! We had the wine pairings and they were very well done. Even the dishware was exotic and made the food look more amazing. I also loved the use of tweezers to add the small micro greens and finish the presentation. It certainly not cheap, but in my opinion well worth the cost!
Whether upstairs for a casual meal of small plates and a cocktail, or downstairs for the most amazing tasting menu, you simply can’t go wrong with Root Squared! The fabulous contemporary space, coupled with the most innovative cuisine in the city, make this restaurant a must for any foodie!

Gene is the shit! I’ll finish this review later. Southern hospitality at its best and he’s from California.

I like to think of myself as a fairly adventurous eater, in the sense that I’ll eat nearly anything except for foods slathered in mayonnaise. To take that idea further, I’m also a sucker for «interesting» dishes featuring exotic ingredients, layered/​nuanced flavors, innovative preparation, artful plating, or any combination thereof. Parade these plates in front of me in the form of a multi-​course tasting menu, and that’s the formula for a meal I will always remember.
There are two seatings per evening, at a bar that offers a full view of the kitchen. A seat at the table doesn’t come cheap, at $ 150 per person, but keep in mind that this is going to be an experience of at least 12 courses. Viewed from that perspective, I’d bet that many have probably spent more, for lesser quality or quantity. Beverage pairing options are available, for an extra charge — many around us opted for the $ 100 «Sommelier Pairing» option, but we still had to eat and drink our way around Louisiana for a few more days, so we decided to pass, in the interest of saving some money.
Here’s a brief rundown of some of our more memorable dishes, but keep in mind that these will probably be subject to change:
The «magical muffuletta» was a play on the classic New Orleans sandwich, but instead of using something so pedestrian as bread, the «loaves» were little savory meringues.
My favorite plate of the evening was likely the «Southern picnic,» which was fried chicken cotton candy with mustard seeds and fried okra. The plate itself was striking in presentation, but what made this tops for me was the dense chicken flavor of the cotton candy, which induced a bit of delicious cognitive dissonance.
Another awfully cool plate was the «passion fruit pisco,» a play on the pisco sour cocktail. I wish all pisco sours tasted like this. This dish was comprised of some cardamom apple, fennel and liquid nitrogen passion fruit with a nicely tart/​sweet yuzu meringue on top.
The most well-​executed dish was the lobster chilaquiles. These came stocked with a nice bit of Mr. Pinchy, green salsa, lobster mole, queso fresco and onion ash. While I love lobster, I’d have to say that the green salsa and mole sauces really made this dish, with complex layers of sweet, spicy and smoky flavors.
For dessert, there were a few bites, but the one that most stood out to me was a tarragon cake with satsuma ice cream and fresh satsuma, topped with a milk chocolate honey cremeaux. It wasn’t overwhelmingly sweet, instead driven by the light herbal flavors of the cake and mild tart satsumas.
This is just a sampling of the dishes I liked best… there were quite a few more courses! While they were all excellent, I cannot honestly say that the others were as memorable. Even so, this is still an easy 5 stars. I’d also like to note the pacing of the meal. Some of these multi-​course tasting menus can drag out for a long time, while others feel rushed. For me, Square Root hit that sweet spot, allowing more than enough time to fully savor each special course, but without feeling like the night was dragging. Any waits in between courses were spent observing the kitchen staff work, which is fascinating in its own right.
No boring meal, this. I’d recommend it to any serious eater.

This is long overdue.
My meal at Square Root was, truly, the most delicious thing I’ve eaten in my life and anyone who knows me is probably tired of me referencing it.
The fried chicken cotton candy with a fried okra that started the tasting was absolutely outstanding but nothing will ever top the short rib with bone marrow sauce that ended up labeled «Short Rib Heaven» in my tasting notes from the evening.
From start to finish, the service was absolutely impeccable. Chef Lopez hand delivering each course and describing them was a lovely touch for the evening and made it that much better.
We opted for the nicer of the wine tasting menus to pair and I am quite certain there were wines that I will never have the pleasure of tasting again — each of them paired perfectly and were so delicious.
By the end of the meal, we were full and in awe. And we knew that every meal would never be the same.
I highly recommend visiting if you get the chance.

Can’t speak for the downstairs restaurant, but the upstairs bar is a real treat.
Fantastic happy hour from 5 – 7 with $ 5 drinks. Prices for the regular cocktails and food can get a little pricey, but everything here is crafted with extreme care and creativity.
The charcuterie board at $ 55 is steep, but if you want to get a taste of the menu without breaking the bank, go for the deviled eggs. For $ 9, you get 6 egg halves with truffled shrimp remoulade topped with caviar. Rich and delicious.
This place is certainly worth a few visits and has one of the best happy hours I’ve seen anywhere.

1) Fried Chicken Wafer topped with fried pickled okra and mustard seeds.
2) Raw oyster sat on top of seaweed then topped with watermelon mignonette and nitroed buttermilk horseradish
3) Spinach Tarragon Gazpacho, duck egg & fresh shaved black truffles.
4) Foie Gras & Blueberry Balasamic
5) Mushroom Campanelle
6) Palate Cleanser; Blueberry, Fennel, Lemon, & Watermelon
7) Lobster Verde
8) Miso, Hazelnut, Bone Marrow Wagyu Short Rib
9) Almond Nitro Macaron with Caramel Icecream
I was surprisingly full to the point where I couldn’t finish my palate cleanse & the two savory dishes! That’s on an empty stomach filled with the wine tasting & a predinner cocktail.
SquareRoot is an unique experience. It’s really not just about the food. It’s about the social experience as well! Meet the chefs, talk & mingle. Get drunk and meet your seat neighbor as well! It makes the dining experience.
The food is so interesting. It’s pretty food. I really wish I saw more cooking though. The kitchen is so beautiful & I just saw a lot of plating. I loved the oyster dish for the overall experience. The play on textures & flavors. It was literally a party in my mouth. The palate cleanser was a bit off putting because the texture & temperature was so cold that it would dry my mouth out ! But once it melted some, it was easier to consume. I was very disappointed in the dessert. I felt that it was to bland/​plain.
The food is good but not great. So yeah, it makes you a bit hesitant to spend that kind of money on what could be. (Maybe, only a few items you may thoroughly enjoy.) But, it’s worth it at least once because of the overall experience.
Cocktail pairing was terrible & really held up the process. Plates were ready but sitting there for up to 5 minutes because the cocktail wasn’t ready. There has to be a better system for getting the cocktails, from upstairs, downstairs faster.
Wine pairing was alright too. Mainly whites. Enjoyed it a lot better because of how quickly it hit the table. I was disappointed in the pours though. No offense to them, I am just heavy handed & quite the drinker. What I’m saying is, I wish you was more generous!
Tasting & Pairings costed close to 400 $ for two diners on a slow night. Was it worth it? Just this once. So, what brings guest back a second time? I haven’t figured that out.

Hall & Oats.
Liquid nitrogen.
Wu-​Tang.
Immersion thermal circulators.
Led Zepplin.
Hydrocolloids.
Slayer.
20 month cured leg-​o-​pig
Outkast.
What the hell am I talking about?
Awesome shiz that can be found at Square Root.
Downstairs: pre fixe chef’s table for 14. $ 95 for 9 courses during the week and $ 150 for 14 courses in the weekends. The menu is over the top and constantly evolving. Can’t justify it? Then stop reading my review.
Upstairs: awesome bar with small plates. Their happy hour (5 – 7) is just plain wrong…$ 4 cocktails! You know what that means, d-​r-​u-​n-​k. The small plates are delicate and delicious. Order enough and call it dinner. I know we do. Side note: they use liquid nitrogen to chill their glasses for every cocktail. Why you ask? Who cares, it’s awesome.
The staff is mad cool. They make for good conversation (things discussed: food science, predator movies, weather and which direction to properly wipe your ass).
If or when you go, wave to me and my wife. We will likely be getting our gluttony on there.

Such an unassuming spot. Judging by the entrance area, you would not think the 2^nd floor was this cool. The bartenders were a little scatter brained, but I just figured they were all new. I like modern spots where you can eat dinner and have drinks or just socialize.
The sofa area is really nice to entertain guests (in your non house) LOL. We ordered a cheese and charterie plate and deviled eggs during Happy Hour. The bartenders mix nice handcrafted drinks. You can tell they are not the average bartenders, just a little nervous to have company!
You have to make a reservation to sit on the first level and eat dinner. I don’t like that. Wasn’t really crowded, so why harp on appointments.
I will be back because I really like the location. It’s really near the bridge AND it’s a great atmosphere.