My fiancee and I had their jazz brunch during our last visit to New Orleans, and we were highly impressed. The food as service were top notch (as expected) and the jazz band was wonderful. Our waiter Chad, was spot on. While Brennan's is nice for brunch, Commander's Palace actually feels like it is worth the price.

We were greeted by a very cordial host and only asked to wait for a minute or so before our table was ready. When we were taken to the table by a very nice young lady I noted we were at the top of the stairs and would need to endure more traffic than I preferred. She very efficiently and politely took us right to another table that suited us just fine.

Our Captain was polite, professional and attentive but not overbearing, his name is Hugo if you have a choice! The wine list was plentiful …and I remember thinking the 97 Cab we ordered (can’t for the life of me remember which one now …) was quite underpriced! It was delicious by the way!

Our meals were superb! She had the Gulf fish – Sheepshead and I had the scallops which were both fantastic! I also had the turtle soup which is a must! Desert …Bread pudding soufflé was heavenly!!!

I noted Robert De Niro and his wife were in one dining room we passed through and John Goodman and guests were sitting 3 tables from us so they definitely got the memo- don’t miss this dinner! I’m told their Jazz brunch is not to be missed either, enjoy!

This was my third trip to New Orleans with my husband, and each trip we have had one "fancy meal" that we planned and anticipated eagerly as we are both "foodies." When we planned a long weekend during the President's Day holiday, one of the first things we decided to do was make reservations for brunch at Commander's Palace. We had tried one of the other famous brunch restaurants in another neighborhood for both dinner and brunch, but we felt our dining experience in the Crescent City was not complete without visiting the blue-and-white-striped mansion in the Garden District.
We were so glad we did! The room was decorated with balloons and they commented that it was all for my husband's birthday (he recently celebrated a birthday, so I mentioned that when making the reservations). We originally thought we'd try the set menu option, but after Jose described the other mouth-watering options, we decided we had to go out on our own. Our first course choices were the Oysters Absinthe in cream sauce with a puff pastry top and the basket of shredded potatoes with pulled chicken topped with a poached egg. Both were over the top. Next, I was impressed by the delicious, creamy, corn sauce my pecan-crusted white fish sat in, topped with micro greens. My husband enjoyed a scrumptious crawfish and goat-cheese frittata. For dessert, his classic pecan pie was executed masterfully with a thick, carmellized crust of pecans covering the custard. My bread pudding souffle was a unique, light and airy finish to a perfect meal with all the flavor of traditional bread pudding but none of the heaviness. This was worth the splurge!

If you only had one meal in NOLA, I would recommend that you consider having it here. Commander’s Palace has great food, classy atmosphere, and exceptional staff. This is not a meal but an experience.

We go every year or two to celebrate a birthday with Sunday Brunch. It is 3 courses with the price of the entrée determining the price of the set menu. You really can’t go wrong with any of the selections, but the seasonal strawberry salad (2/16/13) was delightful as a first course. In my opinion, the fish dishes really stand out as the freshest and most interesting entree dishes on the brunch menu. All of the deserts are great but the Creole Cream Cheese cheesecake is my personal favorite. Pretty good strawberry shortcake and pecan pie as well!

Tip- Although you would think that sitting by the window wall facing the garden is nice, it got really hot and was almost unbearably bright last time we were there. It got to the point where we almost put on our sunglasses. Next time I will recquest being sat away from the window wall.

Bonus tip- Don’t wear jeans or they might seat you outside in the courtyard (that is if they even will agree to seat you). I like to dress very casually but will put on slacks and a jacket for this place. I recommend that you (men) do the same or you may feel a bit under dressed here.