It’s the juxtaposition of old-world charm with new-world diversity that continues to make the Crescent City so compelling. “After Katrina, everyone started to dig deeper,” says Susan Spicer, chef at Bayona and Mondo. “People recognized what could be lost, and the notion of preserving our traditions became even more important.” Take the cocktail experience of the moment, Bellocq, in the hip, new Hotel Modern on Lee Circle, where suspender-clad bartenders serve cobblers, elixirs popular in the second half of the 19th century.