Meril
Once you taste the Crispy Turkey Necks at Meril, Emeril Lagasse’s new Warehouse District place, you’re never going to want to toss out the one stuffed inside your Thanksgiving bird again.

I know, I know — turkey necks? But trust me, these are life-changing. Marinated and fried in sofrito, they’re a pick-em-up-with-your-fingers treat, and one of the first things Lagasse said I should try when I asked for a recommendation. (It was a pleasant coincidence that he was in the kitchen on the day I stopped by.)

The menu at Meril — which is named for his daughter — reflects the current trend of small plate dining.

Candied Pork Ribs were another highlight. Fall-off-the-bone tender with a sweet sort of Asian spiced note.

The Muffaletta Flatbread was a real surprise. Muffaletta, of course, is the iconic New Orleans sandwich that features salami, cappicola, mortadella, mozzarella and provolone with a green olive relish on a round loaf of Sicilian bread. I was skeptical that it would translate to a flatbread platform; few traditional dishes reinterpret well — think pasta based jambalaya. But this was a winner. It had all the flavors of a muffaletta right there on a crispy crust.

Meril, which opened in late September, occupies an open space that had a dirt floor when Lagasse’s organization took it over. It now has a beautiful inlaid wood floor, and the brick walls have what Lagasse called New Orleans grafitti — black and white paintings of a crab, fish and geese. When Lagasse isn’t in the kitchen — and with 13 restaurants now, don’t count on seeing him there often — Will Avelar, who previously was executive sous chef at the company’s Delmonico, is in charge.

Meril is at 424 Girod St., New Orleans.