Vanessa Ferlito Shares Her Favorite New Orleans Restaurant

By Randy Yagi

Prior to the highly anticipated season 4 premiere of NCIS: New Orleans, Vanessa Ferlito — one of the stars of the hit CBS show who appears as Special Agent Tammy Gregorio — sat down to talk about one of her favorite memories in NOLA.

A Diner's Paradise

Not surprisingly, the first topic the Brooklyn-born actress brought up was about the phenomenal food and service at her favorite restaurant, Peche, an award-winning seafood restaurant in the Warehouse district. However, she also adds that there are many great places to dine in the city. Indeed, with a wealth of culinary options, New Orleans might just be the very best foodie city in the country and certainly one of the world's finest.

Famous New Orleans Dishes

In fact, no trip to this fascinating food mecca would truly be complete without sampling some of its most famous and most savory New Orleans-styled dishes, such as jambalaya, gumbo, po-boys and red beans and rice. But certainly, the food list goes on far much longer, with other tasty treats like crab cakes, Andouille, shrimp rémoulade, crawfish etouffee, muffulettas, the incredibly delicious beignets — particularly at the legendary Café du Monde — and so much more.

Restaurants To Try

While every visitor may have already decided upon what they're eating and where, some restaurants and eateries stand out because of their fame, history and of course, popularity. Recommendations include Bayona, Commander's Palace, Dooky Chase Restaurant, Emeril Lagasse's namesake establishment and last but certainly not the least, the four legendary Creole restaurants collectively known as the Grand Dames: Antoine's, Arnaud's, Broussard's and Galatoire's -- all of which are guaranteed to offer an unforgettable dining experience.

For a few more ideas to visit and start your own story, don't miss NCIS: New Orleans on Tuesday nights at 9 p.m./10p.m. Central Time on CBS.