New Orleans: Bayona (September 2000)

My spouse and I dined at Bayona for dinner in September 2000. Defying definition or simple classification, Susan Spicer's team creates food that moves across a spectrum of styles and influence. Using the freshest local ingredients to craft flavorful, balanced yet complex dishes is Bayona’s specialty. With inspiration from the Mediterranean, Asia, North Africa, France, Spain, Italy, and all around the United States, you will always find something new and innovative on our daily specials. Featuring Susan's favorites over the last 25 years, Bayona's classics menu continues to delight. A pioneer of the slow food movement, relax in the 200-year old French Quarter Cottage, or unwind in the courtyard while dining. Susan Spicer began her cooking career in New Orleans as an apprentice to Chef Daniel Bonnot at the Louis XVI Restaurant in 1979. In 1982, she opened the 60-seat bistro “Savoir Faire” in the St. Charles Hotel as Chef de Cuisine. In 1985, she worked at the New Orleans Meridien Hotel’s “Henri”. In 1986, she left to open the tiny “Bistro at Maison de Ville” in the Hotel Maison deVille. In 1990, she opened Bayona, which soon earned national attention and has been featured in numerous publications from Food and Wine, Saveur, and Food Arts, to Travel and Leisure, Bon Appetit, and The New York Times. In 2000, Susan opened Herbsaint, a casual award-winning contemporary bistro-style restaurant in the Warehouse District of New Orleans. Susan has been the guest chef at The James Beard House, The Oriental Hotel in Bangkok, the Lanesborough in London, Cunard and Crystal Cruise Lines, as well as appearing on local and national television, including an appearance on the finale of the popular Bravo series Top Chef in 2009. In May 1993 she was the recipient of the James Beard Award for Best Chef, Southeast Region and, in 1995 was chosen for the Mondavi Culinary Excellence Award. Bayona was featured as one of Restaurants and Institutions 1996 Ivy Award Winners, as well as being named to Nation’s Restaurant News Fine Dining Hall of Fame in 1998. One of the 1989 recipients of Food and Wine’s Best New Chefs award, Chef Spicer was inducted in the summer of 2008 into the magazine’s Best New Chef Hall of Fame. In March 2009, the John Folse Culinary Institute honored Chef Spicer with the Lafcadio Hearn Award given to “…culinary professionals who have had a long term positive influence on the cuisine and culture of Louisiana and the nation…” In addition Bayona received “5 Beans,” the highest rating from the New Orleans Times- Picayune., Since 1995, Bayona has been listed in the Zagat Guide for New Orleans as one of the top 5 restaurants in the city, receiving a rating of 28 points out of 30, and has repeatedly received 4 stars from Mobile Star Awards, one of two restaurants to receive this rating in New Orleans. In May 2010, Susan was inducted into the James Beard Foundation’s Who’s Who of Food and Beverage in America. In May of 2010 Susan was inducted into the James Beard Who’s Who of Food and Beverage in America. Her latest project is the opening of MONDO, a casual, family style restaurant which opened in June of 2010 in Chef Spicer’s neighborhood of Lakeview, where she has lived for 20 years.