Shaya, New Orleans, Louisiana

 This was a phenomenal Israeli restaurant to eat at, and if you are interested in great food and not just in regional food in New Orleans, this is a must try.  It is even better if you can go with a group of people because all the plates can be shared, and the restaurant encourages that.
The highlights for me started out with the pita bread.  The restaurant has a wood fired oven at the back, and the balls of dough to make the pita are stacked up next to it rising.  When we got our starters and paired them with this wonderful bread, we knew that we were going to have a special meal.  The lutenitsa (a red pepper and eggplant spread that comes from Eastern Europe) was the stand out winner, along with the Shipka peppers stuffed with a chevre-like cheese.  The Moroccan carrots were also delicious.  The one thing that this place does that I have not seen a lot of is putting a topping on the hummus when it is served--that is something that I will do at home.  This is a terrific place, don't miss it.