Happy Thursday, New Orleans food-lovers! Online rankings have us shaking our heads this week, and we look at legendary local restaurants that closed and reopened since the pandemic began. Plus, restaurant expansions, a championship and more. Let's dig in... 1. New Orleans tops for barbecue? Please. By now, everyone's seen the claim that New Orleans was rated the best city in America for barbecue by certain reviewers online. In a tweet, the city of Houston responded with uproarious laughter. While food is our calling card, BBQ is new here, and we don't pretend to be the best at everything. Ian McNulty takes a look at this goofy online ranking. 2. Legendary restaurants reopen. For the restaurant industry, it's been months of takeout, curbside pickup, staffing issues and roller-coaster restrictions. Here's a look at how more than 30 historic local restaurants got back into business. 3. And more headlines... In other news, the Metairie restaurant Boulevard is expanding again, this time to the north shore; Paulie Gee's opens in the CBD selling Brooklyn-style pizza by the slice, a New Orleans pitmaster wins a national championship; and Dooky Chase's uses a historic restaurant grant to invest in the future. 4. Sage advice! It's time to use those fresh herbs flourishing in our gardens. Food columnist Judy Walker suggests these herb-infused recipes for lemon basil chicken, chimichurri and salad. 5. A sandwich? Or an outrage? A national sandwich chain is advertising something it calls a muffuletta. Members of the Where NOLA Eats Facebook group are not happy. Join the discussion here. That's it for the food newsletter, but in New Orleans the food news never stops. For more, visit us at NOLA.com. Have a great day, and thanks for reading! --AS Are you a NOLA.com subscriber? If you are, thanks so much. But if you’re not, we’ve got a great offer for you. Check it out! | 