Hotel restaurants are notoriously finicky endeavors. The mandate to run room service and provide bre

Mark Wyant, san francisco car rental owner/developer of the new boutique French Quarter hotel The Saint, didn't waste any time replacing the short-lived Sweet Olive, which Coquette chef Mike Stoltzfus closed in April within months of its opening. The new restaurant, re-named Tempt, is run by executive chef Marcus Woodham, who has worked at Patois, TrüBurger and Ste. Marie.
The dining room hasn't changed – it is an intriguing model of chic, clean modern design, which is fitting for Woodham's polished, contemporary southern food. Like other ingredient-driven menus in town, Tempt's changes with the seasons and hinges on locally-sourced products. The dinner menu shows the best of Woodham's talents, which runs minimalist but with flourishes that turn simple dishes into sublime: roast chicken is glazed in the classic southern sweet tea; an unusual artichoke and preserved lemon vinaigrette appears on a daily fish dish; shrimp-enriched veloute and roasted corn grits elevate the otherwise humble shrimp and grits.
Hotel restaurants are notoriously finicky endeavors. The mandate to run room service and provide breakfast and lunch to hotel guests can be tough on a kitchen trying to create a modern New Orleans dining destination that lures both local diners and discerning travelers. Tempt deftly walks the line of casual fine dining with upscale comfort food, and the talented Woodham appears to be up to the task.
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