JoAnn Clevenger

Early work across French Quarter businesses gave JoAnn Clevenger a broad reading of front-of-house life before Upperline ever existed. As owner/operator of a folk music bar, a flower cart, and a vintage clothing store in French Quarter, New Orleans, Louisiana, she moved between different kinds of trade: music, seasonal retail, and the sale of old clothing. Later, as a bartender at Bourbon Street venues in New Orleans, Louisiana, she worked closer to the city’s nightly tempo.

Those roles did not point in a straight line, but together they built the practical range that would later define her as owner and founder at Upperline Restaurant in New Orleans, Louisiana (1983–2021).

Upperline, founded by Clevenger in 1983 and led by her until 2020, became the anchor point of her career. Over nearly four decades, the restaurant held the place where her approach could settle into repetition, discipline, and continuity. That long run matters in trade terms: it shows a body of work with enough duration to establish its own standards. No current role is listed with the material at hand.

JoAnn's signature dishes include lamb tasso served over crispy merliton slaw. The plate works through contrast: the depth of lamb tasso set against the crunch of the slaw, with merliton giving the dish a recognizably New Orleans frame. It is a composition that relies on balance more than ornament, which is often where the work shows.

JoAnn's honors include Craig Claiborne Lifetime Achievement Award (2015).