By Flavor & The Menu
April 19, 2019

Evan Ingram and Brenna Sanders

The Avocado Lettuce Cups hit the perfect notes at Effervescence, an elegant French Quarter hotspot focused on Champagnes that pair with worldly plates. Format is important here: “Effervescence is a lounge and a restaurant, so it is a fun challenge to make our food work as both a snack or dinner item,” says Brenna Sanders—she and Evan Ingram are co-executive chefs. “These lettuce cups satisfy the essence of both a salad and a snack.”

But unique global flavors are what really make this a standout dish. Bibb lettuce cups are filled with a wedge of avocado and radish, then topped with a creamy tamari-almond dressing and crunchy pistachio dukkah—a mix of pistachios, sunflower seeds, almonds, sesame seeds, cumin, coriander, thyme and crisp crêpe flakes.

Indulgent, global flavors make this salad craveable and unique, while its deconstructed format makes it a modern salad application that is perfect for sharing. Says Sanders, “We think people order this to be healthy, then they see how refreshing and exciting it actually is.”