With his Sicilian heritage and fine dining chops, people have long asked chef Michael Gulotta if he’d ever open an Italian restaurant. Finally, his answer is yes and this one is a stunner.
TANA officially opened Thursday after a long build-out and a furious few nights of trial runs (one of which I attended).
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The dining room at the Metairie restaurant TANA blends rustic and elegant touches. (Staff photo by Ian McNulty, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune)
It stands on a stretch of Metairie Road where there’s been so much commercial development lately that the white box of a building the restaurant calls home seemed to blend in as its new construction took shape.
![tana ext](https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/7/24/7249ce08-9aba-11ee-b557-5b6af10da8db/657b5d6a02f82.image.jpg?resize=150%2C107 150w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/7/24/7249ce08-9aba-11ee-b557-5b6af10da8db/657b5d6a02f82.image.jpg?resize=200%2C143 200w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/7/24/7249ce08-9aba-11ee-b557-5b6af10da8db/657b5d6a02f82.image.jpg?resize=225%2C161 225w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/7/24/7249ce08-9aba-11ee-b557-5b6af10da8db/657b5d6a02f82.image.jpg?resize=300%2C214 300w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/7/24/7249ce08-9aba-11ee-b557-5b6af10da8db/657b5d6a02f82.image.jpg?resize=400%2C286 400w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/7/24/7249ce08-9aba-11ee-b557-5b6af10da8db/657b5d6a02f82.image.jpg?resize=540%2C386 540w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/7/24/7249ce08-9aba-11ee-b557-5b6af10da8db/657b5d6a02f82.image.jpg?resize=640%2C457 640w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/7/24/7249ce08-9aba-11ee-b557-5b6af10da8db/657b5d6a02f82.image.jpg?resize=750%2C536 750w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/7/24/7249ce08-9aba-11ee-b557-5b6af10da8db/657b5d6a02f82.image.jpg?resize=990%2C707 990w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/7/24/7249ce08-9aba-11ee-b557-5b6af10da8db/657b5d6a02f82.image.jpg?resize=1035%2C739 1035w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/7/24/7249ce08-9aba-11ee-b557-5b6af10da8db/657b5d6a02f82.image.jpg?resize=1200%2C857 1200w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/7/24/7249ce08-9aba-11ee-b557-5b6af10da8db/657b5d6a02f82.image.jpg?resize=1333%2C952 1333w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/7/24/7249ce08-9aba-11ee-b557-5b6af10da8db/657b5d6a02f82.image.jpg?resize=1476%2C1054 1476w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/7/24/7249ce08-9aba-11ee-b557-5b6af10da8db/657b5d6a02f82.image.jpg 2008w)
The Metairie restaurant TANA adds an upscale Italian destination to a growing restaurant row for Jefferson Parish. (Staff photo by Ian McNulty, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune)
Step inside though and it is immediately clear this is a restaurant conceived and designed to stand out.
![tana gulotta](https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/a/f7/af792152-9aba-11ee-92c3-177b9463a8c5/657b5dd988859.image.jpg?resize=150%2C113 150w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/a/f7/af792152-9aba-11ee-92c3-177b9463a8c5/657b5dd988859.image.jpg?resize=200%2C150 200w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/a/f7/af792152-9aba-11ee-92c3-177b9463a8c5/657b5dd988859.image.jpg?resize=225%2C169 225w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/a/f7/af792152-9aba-11ee-92c3-177b9463a8c5/657b5dd988859.image.jpg?resize=300%2C225 300w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/a/f7/af792152-9aba-11ee-92c3-177b9463a8c5/657b5dd988859.image.jpg?resize=400%2C300 400w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/a/f7/af792152-9aba-11ee-92c3-177b9463a8c5/657b5dd988859.image.jpg?resize=540%2C405 540w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/a/f7/af792152-9aba-11ee-92c3-177b9463a8c5/657b5dd988859.image.jpg?resize=640%2C480 640w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/a/f7/af792152-9aba-11ee-92c3-177b9463a8c5/657b5dd988859.image.jpg?resize=750%2C563 750w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/a/f7/af792152-9aba-11ee-92c3-177b9463a8c5/657b5dd988859.image.jpg?resize=990%2C743 990w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/a/f7/af792152-9aba-11ee-92c3-177b9463a8c5/657b5dd988859.image.jpg?resize=1035%2C777 1035w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/a/f7/af792152-9aba-11ee-92c3-177b9463a8c5/657b5dd988859.image.jpg?resize=1200%2C900 1200w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/a/f7/af792152-9aba-11ee-92c3-177b9463a8c5/657b5dd988859.image.jpg?resize=1333%2C1000 1333w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/a/f7/af792152-9aba-11ee-92c3-177b9463a8c5/657b5dd988859.image.jpg?resize=1476%2C1107 1476w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/a/f7/af792152-9aba-11ee-92c3-177b9463a8c5/657b5dd988859.image.jpg?resize=1662%2C1247 2008w)
Chef Michael Gulotta and his partners developed TANA as a showplace upscale Italian restaurant in Old Metairie. (Staff photo by Ian McNulty, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune)
The culinary end of TANA is the domain of Gulotta and his business partner, Jeffrey Bybee, who together also run the New Orleans restaurants MoPho and Maypop.
They’ve had the idea for TANA drawn up for years. To bring it about, they teamed with a business partner who is big on new development in Old Metairie.
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The dining room at the Metairie restaurant TANA blends rustic and elegant touches. (Staff photo by Ian McNulty, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune)
That's Gabe Corchiani, the local businessman who started his Fat Boy’s Pizza brand nearby among other projects (Note: Corchiani is partners in other companies with John Georges, owner of The Times-Picayune | The New Orleans Advocate).
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The dining room at the Metairie restaurant TANA blends rustic and elegant touches. (Staff photo by Ian McNulty, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune)
Corchiani said he was determined to make a showpiece restaurant that in style and elegance could stand next to the best in the city, and with a lounge that can serve as an independent destination from dinner for before and after outings. For the design, he brought in Audra Brewer, owner of the local firm Distressed Rentals.
Italian blend, add pasta cart
The opening menu is a blend of three influences: Liguria, the Italian coastal region near the French border where Gulotta trained as a young chef; Sicily, where he traced his roots; and Louisiana, for a dash of local ingredients.
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Meatballs, salad and flounder crudo start a meal at TANA, the Italian restaurant in Old Metairie. (Staff photo by Ian McNulty, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune)
The cuisine of Liguria tends to be lighter and brighter than Sicilian, drawing influences from neighboring Provence. The pesto sauce for a red snapper entrée and a fried calamari interspersed with fried zucchini are representative.
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Pork chop parmesan is a dish for two at upscale Italian restaurant TANA in Old Metairie. (Staff photo by Ian McNulty, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune)
The Sicilian side of things comes through in radiatori pasta in red gravy, veal marsala and a king-sized, bone-in pork chop parmesan, deeply breaded and coated with cheese and about as subtle as a St. Joseph's Day parade in the French Quarter.
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Flounder crudo with smoked trout roe starts a meal at the Metairie restaurant TANA, which blends rustic and elegant touches. (Staff photo by Ian McNulty, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune)
Louisiana has its say not in the familiar Creole Italian way but with dishes like pasta with clams and a hit of Patton’s hot sausage, or the extravagant barbecue lobster done in the buttery style of barbecue shrimp sauce.
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Dayle "Pasta Mama" Thornton (left) and Dorothy Doughty make fresh pasta at dedicated station in the dining room at TANA in Old Metairie. (Staff photo by Ian McNulty, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune)
House-made pasta is a cornerstone of the menu, and the pasta-making station is situated right in the dining room. Dayle Thornton has been making pasta with Gulotta for seven years at Maypop, and has earned the nickname "Pasta Mama." She preps here during the day, with the tools of the trade on display at night.
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The upscale Italian restaurant TANA in Old Metairie is equipped with a pasta cart for tableside preparations of cheese wheel pasta. (Staff photo by Ian McNulty, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune)
There’s also a cart that can roll right up tableside for a preparation of tagliatelle alla ruota, better known as cheese wheel pasta, with the hot noodles finished within the "bowl" of the parmesan wheel.
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Butter imbued with pork fat is ready to spread on Italian bread at the Metairie restaurant TANA. (Staff photo by Ian McNulty, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune)
More subtle details add to the full picture of the chef's ambition for TANA. The butter for bread service, for instance, is larded with pig neck fat, and yes that really does make a difference in its savory succulence against a seeded Italian bread twist.
Rustic meets elegant, starting in lounge
![tana bar lounge1](https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/8/f9/8f991b50-9ab8-11ee-9654-a3a5fc7743a4/657b5a8c2da0a.image.jpg?resize=150%2C107 150w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/8/f9/8f991b50-9ab8-11ee-9654-a3a5fc7743a4/657b5a8c2da0a.image.jpg?resize=200%2C143 200w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/8/f9/8f991b50-9ab8-11ee-9654-a3a5fc7743a4/657b5a8c2da0a.image.jpg?resize=225%2C161 225w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/8/f9/8f991b50-9ab8-11ee-9654-a3a5fc7743a4/657b5a8c2da0a.image.jpg?resize=300%2C214 300w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/8/f9/8f991b50-9ab8-11ee-9654-a3a5fc7743a4/657b5a8c2da0a.image.jpg?resize=400%2C286 400w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/8/f9/8f991b50-9ab8-11ee-9654-a3a5fc7743a4/657b5a8c2da0a.image.jpg?resize=540%2C386 540w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/8/f9/8f991b50-9ab8-11ee-9654-a3a5fc7743a4/657b5a8c2da0a.image.jpg?resize=640%2C457 640w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/8/f9/8f991b50-9ab8-11ee-9654-a3a5fc7743a4/657b5a8c2da0a.image.jpg?resize=750%2C536 750w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/8/f9/8f991b50-9ab8-11ee-9654-a3a5fc7743a4/657b5a8c2da0a.image.jpg?resize=990%2C707 990w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/8/f9/8f991b50-9ab8-11ee-9654-a3a5fc7743a4/657b5a8c2da0a.image.jpg?resize=1035%2C740 1035w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/8/f9/8f991b50-9ab8-11ee-9654-a3a5fc7743a4/657b5a8c2da0a.image.jpg?resize=1200%2C858 1200w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/8/f9/8f991b50-9ab8-11ee-9654-a3a5fc7743a4/657b5a8c2da0a.image.jpg?resize=1333%2C953 1333w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/8/f9/8f991b50-9ab8-11ee-9654-a3a5fc7743a4/657b5a8c2da0a.image.jpg?resize=1476%2C1055 1476w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/8/f9/8f991b50-9ab8-11ee-9654-a3a5fc7743a4/657b5a8c2da0a.image.jpg?resize=1703%2C1217 2008w)
The bar and lounge at TANA in Old Metairie was designed to be its own destination for before and after events. (Staff photo by Ian McNulty, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune)
Before even cutting into the menu, TANA makes a striking impression through a flow of different spaces. That starts in the lounge with deep, scalloped booths, a glowing marble bar, a vault locking away prestige whiskeys and rustic-seeming rafter beams high above.
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The lounge at the Metairie restaurant TANA can serve as its own destination apart from dining room meals. (Staff photo by Ian McNulty, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune)
The lounge is just that, with small tables for drinks only. In the lounge, the full restaurant menu is served only at seats at the bar.
![tana booths1](https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/e/02/e02294d4-9ab8-11ee-b926-8f9e27129fb9/657b5af5df546.image.jpg?resize=150%2C107 150w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/e/02/e02294d4-9ab8-11ee-b926-8f9e27129fb9/657b5af5df546.image.jpg?resize=200%2C143 200w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/e/02/e02294d4-9ab8-11ee-b926-8f9e27129fb9/657b5af5df546.image.jpg?resize=225%2C161 225w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/e/02/e02294d4-9ab8-11ee-b926-8f9e27129fb9/657b5af5df546.image.jpg?resize=300%2C214 300w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/e/02/e02294d4-9ab8-11ee-b926-8f9e27129fb9/657b5af5df546.image.jpg?resize=400%2C286 400w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/e/02/e02294d4-9ab8-11ee-b926-8f9e27129fb9/657b5af5df546.image.jpg?resize=540%2C386 540w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/e/02/e02294d4-9ab8-11ee-b926-8f9e27129fb9/657b5af5df546.image.jpg?resize=640%2C457 640w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/e/02/e02294d4-9ab8-11ee-b926-8f9e27129fb9/657b5af5df546.image.jpg?resize=750%2C536 750w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/e/02/e02294d4-9ab8-11ee-b926-8f9e27129fb9/657b5af5df546.image.jpg?resize=990%2C707 990w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/e/02/e02294d4-9ab8-11ee-b926-8f9e27129fb9/657b5af5df546.image.jpg?resize=1035%2C739 1035w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/e/02/e02294d4-9ab8-11ee-b926-8f9e27129fb9/657b5af5df546.image.jpg?resize=1200%2C857 1200w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/e/02/e02294d4-9ab8-11ee-b926-8f9e27129fb9/657b5af5df546.image.jpg?resize=1333%2C952 1333w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/e/02/e02294d4-9ab8-11ee-b926-8f9e27129fb9/657b5af5df546.image.jpg?resize=1476%2C1054 1476w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/e/02/e02294d4-9ab8-11ee-b926-8f9e27129fb9/657b5af5df546.image.jpg?resize=1703%2C1216 2008w)
Deep booths line the dining room at the Metairie restaurant TANA, which blends rustic and elegant touches. (Staff photo by Ian McNulty, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune)
The dining room continues the rustic-meets-elegant blend of styles with custom built furniture, designs traced into the floor, woven basket light fixtures and gorgeous serving ware and utensils. A partially frosted window gives a glimpse into the kitchen and it’s a beautiful new one built for high volume.
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A second dining room can serve for private events or regular service on busy nights at TANA in Old Metairie. (Staff photo by Ian McNulty, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune)
In addition to the main dining room, there’s a private dining room with a clean-lined Mediterranean look that can also serve as the restaurant’s second dining room on busy nights. There's also a small open-air patio in back. The restaurant has about 110 seats in the dining rooms, and another 40 in the lounge.
Deep wine, Old Metairie beginnings
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The wine cellar at TANA in Old Metairie runs deep, with choices from the $40s to four figures. (Staff photo by Ian McNulty, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune)
Behind the bar is TANA’s wine cellar, glassed in for display and overseen by sommelier Steve Russett. His résumé includes rebuilding the wine program at Emeril’s Restaurant after Hurricane Katrina and he was later wine director at Restaurant R’evolution.
![tana list](https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/3/1b/31b06ec6-9a9a-11ee-a80d-670b6342a4e4/657b2753f2fdb.image.jpg?resize=150%2C107 150w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/3/1b/31b06ec6-9a9a-11ee-a80d-670b6342a4e4/657b2753f2fdb.image.jpg?resize=200%2C143 200w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/3/1b/31b06ec6-9a9a-11ee-a80d-670b6342a4e4/657b2753f2fdb.image.jpg?resize=225%2C161 225w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/3/1b/31b06ec6-9a9a-11ee-a80d-670b6342a4e4/657b2753f2fdb.image.jpg?resize=300%2C214 300w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/3/1b/31b06ec6-9a9a-11ee-a80d-670b6342a4e4/657b2753f2fdb.image.jpg?resize=400%2C286 400w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/3/1b/31b06ec6-9a9a-11ee-a80d-670b6342a4e4/657b2753f2fdb.image.jpg?resize=540%2C386 540w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/3/1b/31b06ec6-9a9a-11ee-a80d-670b6342a4e4/657b2753f2fdb.image.jpg?resize=640%2C457 640w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/3/1b/31b06ec6-9a9a-11ee-a80d-670b6342a4e4/657b2753f2fdb.image.jpg?resize=750%2C536 750w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/3/1b/31b06ec6-9a9a-11ee-a80d-670b6342a4e4/657b2753f2fdb.image.jpg?resize=990%2C707 990w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/3/1b/31b06ec6-9a9a-11ee-a80d-670b6342a4e4/657b2753f2fdb.image.jpg?resize=1035%2C739 1035w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/3/1b/31b06ec6-9a9a-11ee-a80d-670b6342a4e4/657b2753f2fdb.image.jpg?resize=1200%2C857 1200w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/3/1b/31b06ec6-9a9a-11ee-a80d-670b6342a4e4/657b2753f2fdb.image.jpg?resize=1333%2C952 1333w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/3/1b/31b06ec6-9a9a-11ee-a80d-670b6342a4e4/657b2753f2fdb.image.jpg?resize=1476%2C1054 1476w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/3/1b/31b06ec6-9a9a-11ee-a80d-670b6342a4e4/657b2753f2fdb.image.jpg?resize=1703%2C1216 2008w)
The wine list is displayed on hand-held computer pads at TANA, the upscale Italian restaurant in Metairie. (Staff photo by Ian McNulty, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune)
Much like that latter restaurant, the wine list at TANA arrives on a handheld computer pad, illuminating the selection (the dinner menus also have a subtle illumination behind the pages, intended to keep the cellphone flashlights at bay).
This is a deep wine list that ranges from the $40s to the four figures (for an easy starting point, try the Michele Chiarlo Barbera d'Asti, which plays well across this menu).
![tana dining room2](https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/b1/4b1d08fa-9ab9-11ee-8118-9fbe664efaee/657b5b6a5536f.image.jpg?resize=150%2C113 150w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/b1/4b1d08fa-9ab9-11ee-8118-9fbe664efaee/657b5b6a5536f.image.jpg?resize=200%2C150 200w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/b1/4b1d08fa-9ab9-11ee-8118-9fbe664efaee/657b5b6a5536f.image.jpg?resize=225%2C169 225w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/b1/4b1d08fa-9ab9-11ee-8118-9fbe664efaee/657b5b6a5536f.image.jpg?resize=300%2C225 300w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/b1/4b1d08fa-9ab9-11ee-8118-9fbe664efaee/657b5b6a5536f.image.jpg?resize=400%2C300 400w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/b1/4b1d08fa-9ab9-11ee-8118-9fbe664efaee/657b5b6a5536f.image.jpg?resize=540%2C405 540w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/b1/4b1d08fa-9ab9-11ee-8118-9fbe664efaee/657b5b6a5536f.image.jpg?resize=640%2C480 640w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/b1/4b1d08fa-9ab9-11ee-8118-9fbe664efaee/657b5b6a5536f.image.jpg?resize=750%2C563 750w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/b1/4b1d08fa-9ab9-11ee-8118-9fbe664efaee/657b5b6a5536f.image.jpg?resize=990%2C743 990w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/b1/4b1d08fa-9ab9-11ee-8118-9fbe664efaee/657b5b6a5536f.image.jpg?resize=1035%2C777 1035w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/b1/4b1d08fa-9ab9-11ee-8118-9fbe664efaee/657b5b6a5536f.image.jpg?resize=1200%2C900 1200w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/b1/4b1d08fa-9ab9-11ee-8118-9fbe664efaee/657b5b6a5536f.image.jpg?resize=1333%2C1000 1333w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/b1/4b1d08fa-9ab9-11ee-8118-9fbe664efaee/657b5b6a5536f.image.jpg?resize=1476%2C1107 1476w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/nola.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/b1/4b1d08fa-9ab9-11ee-8118-9fbe664efaee/657b5b6a5536f.image.jpg?resize=1662%2C1247 2008w)
The dining room at the Metairie restaurant TANA blends rustic and elegant touches. (Staff photo by Ian McNulty, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune)
Gulotta named TANA for his grandmother, Gaetana. He and Bybee have had this concept cooking for years, and indeed we got an early taste of it a few years back when they introduced a much smaller version of TANA from the kitchen at the Tulane Avenue lounge Treo. That concept ran its course, and Treo has since closed.
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The dining room at the Metairie restaurant TANA blends rustic and elegant touches. (Staff photo by Ian McNulty, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune)
But anyone who visited back then will recognize the approach now on a much more ambitious scale and vastly grander stage.
It arrives now in an Old Metairie restaurant scene that is really hitting its stride, with the impressive Garrison Kitchen + Cocktails just across the street and casual new additions turning up nearby (see Las Cruces Tex Mex and the latest Felipe's Taqueria).
The idea may be to give people more dining choices close to their own neighborhoods. But with this kind of cooking, in this setting, TANA is contributing to Old Metairie as a dining destination in its own right.
2919 Metairie Road, (504) 533-8262
Dinner Wed.-Thu., Sun.-Mon: 5-9 p.m., Fri.-Sat. 5-10 p.m.
(lounge opens 4:30 p.m.)