If you're looking for classic Italian comfort food, this West Bank spot has a menu for you. Specialty Italian Bistro (2330 Belle Chasse Highway, Gretna, 504-391-1090; www.specialtyitalianbistro.com) is a family-owned restaurant that brings Old World Italian food into the modern age.

Opened in 1991 by Patrick Himel's father, the restaurant now has an app that customers can use to find coupons or place orders. With "25 years' worth of menu tinkering," there is quite a lot to choose from. A CPA by trade, Himel learned about the food service industry from his father, who once owned a restaurant called Bayou Barn Bistro in the late 1970s.