New Orleans, LACrawfish

A Mid-City boil house on Bienville Street that New Orleans Magazine's editors call a fan favorite when it comes to the boil, and the format is the tray: grab a tray of boiled seafood and make a night of it. Order the boiled crawfish while the season is running, with the rest of the boiled seafood alongside. The dining room keeps daily hours through the week and stays open an hour later on Friday and Saturday.

New Orleans Magazine sends readers into Mid-City for crawfish by the go plate here, every day except Monday during the season. The go plate is the distinction worth knowing: the crawfish come portioned out rather than by the tray, and you eat them in the garden. Order a go plate. A bridge runs from this deck to the courtyard of Bayou Wine Garden under the same ownership, around the corner on North Rendon Street, so the range goes from burgers and beer to wine and cheese.

Upriver in Harahan, and the volume pick on New Orleans Magazine's list: twenty dollars bought a three pound platter of crawfish with all the fixings when the magazine ran the piece in March. The room books live music on weekends, so it is the one on this list built for a long sit rather than a quick plate. Order the three pound platter in season. The kitchen runs Tuesday through Saturday and closes Sunday and Monday.

The Uptown corner on Arabella Street that New Orleans Magazine hands over without argument, calling it a classic and telling readers to get their crawfish with the legend. It is a neighborhood seafood house that boils in season rather than a seasonal pop up, which is the distinction the magazine draws across the piece. Order boiled crawfish in season. The kitchen serves late morning to evening Monday through Saturday, an hour earlier on Sunday.