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LOCAL FAVORITE: K-PAUL'S LOUISIANA KITCHEN

Chef Paul Prudhomme is the hero of the post-Katrina New Orleans restaurant scene. He reopened just a few weeks after the storm, and his indefatigable personality brightened the beleaguered city as he cooked up his restaurant's favorite classics, hired Dixieland bands to play every night, and signed autographs. As a result, K-Paul's has gone from a tourist must-see to local favorite. Start with his smoked Gouda-and-Cheddar cheese sausage, a slow-roasted pork delight served atop a red Creole sauce. Paul's rabbit entrée shows off his sauce-making genius: The pan-fried hasenpfeffer comes with fettuccine in a shrimp sauce made from Chef Paul Prudhomme's Pork and Veal Magic Seasoning Blend, veal bones, chicory coffee, and brown sugar. To complete your civic duty in New Orleans, you must order the creamy, rich white chocolate bread pudding. It's an amazing French Quarter institution, just like Paul. 476 Chartres Street; (504) 524-7394. Dinner entrées: 528.95-535.95. -MORGAN MURPHY

Hero of New Orleans: Chef Paul Prudhomme never gave up on his beloved Big Easy.

UNDISCOVERED FIND; BOZO'S

Like the perfect oyster plucked from a watery fate, Bozo's has risen from the flooding of Metairie. It took three months for Bozo Vodanovich to rebuild his New Orleans restaurant, but he's back, and the locals now flood the joint every day for lunch. While you wait for a table, slide up to the bar and ask Mr. Eddie to shuck you a dozen oysters. "They get the freshest and the best in the city," says Adolfo Garcia of RioMar (see page 38). "I don't know how Bozo does it." A simple cup of chicken-andouille gumbo here becomes a thing of beauty when served with Bozo's toasted French bread-the latter melts in your mouth like cotton candy. Each shrimp is butterflied and fried in its own oil in a small pan. Likewise, the fried oysters on the unforgettable po'boy are plump and juicy. Bozo's is a classic that will make you look like a native when you take your friends.

3117 21 st Street, Metairie; (504) 831-8666. Lunch entrées: $4.75-$14.75.

Back from the flood: Bozo still cooks the best fried shrimp, oysters, and catfish in New Orleans-each in its own skillet.

DRACO'S SEAFOOD RESTAURANT

A meal at this Metairie restaurant will fill your belly and your heart. Drago's began serving free meals on September 5, 2005. By the end of November, the popular spot-owned by Drago, Klara, and Tommy Cvitanovich-had served 78,300 free meals to rescue workers, the National Guard, and storm survivors. "We were fortunate enough to be in a position to do something, so we did it," Tommy told me after I'd stuffed myself on his most famous dish: charbroiled oysters. Don't leave New Orleans without trying these butter-and-garlic-covered bivalves, charbroiled on the half shell. They are perfect with a beer or Barq's. 5232 North Arnoult Road, Metairie; (504)888-9254. Dinner entrees: $ 73-527.

RIOMAR

"Folks obviously holed up here during the storm," says co-owner Adolfo Garcia, who managed to get RioMar open just five weeks after Katrina. It's where I'd go in a storm: The intimate spot gives a European feel, but the seafood menu is pure Spanish, Mediterranean, and Latin American fun. Begin with the ceviches. They are the most inventive I've tasted, with the tangy Peruvian variety-made with Louisiana black drum, cilantro, tomatoes, and jalapeno-good enough to bottle. You might want to also order the Escabeche of Grilled Gulf Fish. Green and black olives, onions, pepper relish, and capers give the grouper, normally a mild white fish, a Mediterranean kick in the gills. Finish with the sweet and crunchy bananas empanada for dessert, a lush choice drizzled with gooey caramel. 800 South Peters Street; (504) 525-3474. Dinner entrées: $18-$22.

Though convention center evacuees used RioMar as a makeshift shelter, co-owner Adolfo opened the doors again in a mere five weeks.

BACCO

Ralph Brennan re-opened his French Quarter restaurant before it had power, gas, or water. Diners in the weeks after the storm ate off of paper plates and drank from Dixie cups, but no one complained. In October, two famous guests enjoyed the fare at BACCO: George and Laura Bush. The restaurant is back to its more sophisticated cutlery and delicious Northern Italian fare. Opt for the lobster ravioli, a creamy and buttery dish of homemade pasta, Maine lobster, and Gulf shrimp topped with caviar. Then have a "Katrina Rita," the Big Easy's newest hurricaneinspired drink. 310 Chartres Street; (504) 522-2426 or www.bacco.com. Dinner entrées: $16.95-$32.

RESTAURANT AUGUST

Chef John Besh's commitment to local produce and flavors means more to New Orleans now than ever before. The night I visited, Moroccan-spiced duck wowed me with delicious polenta and heavenly foie gras alongside preserved quince. Banana-rum cake with cream cheese icing is a sophisticated sweet finish, perfect in this northernmost Caribbean town. 307 Tchoupitoulas Street; (504) 299-9777. Dinner entrées: $26-$29.