OT: New Orleans for the next two nights: Suggestions?
You guys have never done me wrong. In New Orleans until Saturday afternoon for a Federal Defender conference. Where do I "have" to go? Looking for traditional New Olreans food, and cool live music spots.
Went to Parasol's for PoBoys for lunch today in the Garden Distict. Cool dive bar with good food.
Also, big fan of breweries if you have suggestions for that.
Thanks in advance!
Are you staying near the Quarter, or uptown?
Hilton by the river, right next to conference center, so Quarter. But have transportation.
- Lock your doors.
- Don't get herpes.
Wish I had this advice last night.
Drink heavily. Which is easily accomplished in the Big Easy.
Hang on to your kidneys
Solid advice,
It came from a Buckeye but reasonable minds can agree.
It’s not Ohio
Also, this is perhaps less helpful for Angry-Dad given that he's already there, but anyone have recommendations on what neighborhoods to target for lodging? I've never been, but am going to LSU-Florida in November and will be staying in NO. I'm prioritizing good food over heavy revelry, as I expect there will be plenty of the latter in Baton Rouge...
One of the people in our company came to UT/LSU last year. I will check with them. I will say the new airport is much nicer than the old one.
Stay uptown near Tulane,St Charles adobon park
Happy hour at Royal House Oyster Bar is fantastic. Great drink and N.O. food specials.
For dessert - get a Hand Grenade at the Tropical Isle. Still best slush drink ever.
Bourbon Orleans hotel has a great location. Near Cafe DuMond (sp?) and the Cathedral. A 30 meter walk to Bourbon street. I book there each time. Go to the WWII museum. It’s fantastic.
Trying to make the WWII a priority. I have heard that several times.
The WWII museum is awesome! Highly recommend if you are history buff. Went in just after opening in the morning and they had to kick us out at closing, time went by so fast.
You are actually really close to two of my must hit places to eat every New Orleans trip. One is right in your lobby, Drago's, makes the best charbroiled oysters, which works wonders for the meaty gulf oysters. Also, just a couple of blocks up Poydras St is a small home-style restaurant called Mother's Restaurant, awesome home style gumbo, jambalaya and po' boys. D0n't let the looks fool you, you'll probably have to wait in line a bit to get in the place at meal times. Also one of my favorite full breakfasts just make sure you wash 'em down with an Abita Strawberry Lager.
Other place that is a must is Willie Mae's Scotch House. Best Fried Chicken on the planet. But it is a good 2 miles from that hotel, so you'll need to uber but VERY worth it. Central Grocery & Deli for their muffuletta. (Bring a friend as they are quite large.)
1) Best restaurant? In my opinion, its Jacques-Imos. Its on Oak Street in Uptown, not too far from Tulane's campus. We got married in New Orleans back in 2017 and had our wedding catered from these folks. In my opinion, best restaurant in the city, but its also picking from a city with a lot of really stinking good food, so we're not talking about a place that is head and shoulders above the rest. Its just a personal preference for me and an emotional connection. If you go there, expect to wait. They don't take reservations. Get the Alligator Sausage Cheesecake and thank me later.
2) Best Po Boy? Domilise's, also in Uptown, not too far off Tchoupitoulas. Very unassuming place, not a lot of parking, but its been around for decades and I go there every time I'm in town. If memory serves, either the Manning brothers worked there as kids or it was their favorite po boy shop in New Orleans as well.
3) Pascal's Manale on Napoleon Street is really stinking good, too. If you like shrimp, this is the place to go. When they say BBQ shrimp, its not like actual BBQ. Its New Orleans BBQ, which is essentially boatloads of butter, spices, and shrimp as big as your hand.
4) I'm at that point where I really don't care for Bourbon Street anymore. If you've never been I'd say its worth going just to experience it, but at a certain point all the bars, to me, are largely the same. They certainly all smell the same, but Pat O'Briens is a fun experience. And then Lafitte's is a cool stop, too. Considered the oldest bar in America, and they have a frozen grape drink there which is extremely good.
5) Cochon is another really good restaurant, right in the Warehouse District. And then the Carousel Bar in Hotel Monteleone is a cool place to grab a drink. Its what it sounds like. A bar built out of an old carousel, but its classy as all get out.
Second time here. Did Bourbon St. last time. Looking for more hidden gems "less" touristy stuff this time.
Bourbon was fun and worth going to, just getting a little old for that environment. Thanks for the tips!
Former NOLA resident here (was there for college) and agree with Perkis' recommendations. Uptown/Riverbend area is great for less touristy type things. The only place he recommended that I can't vouch for is Cochon, but I have tried Cochon Butcher near the convention center and it was amazing. Can't imagine the mothership being bad.
If you're stuck in the CBD/Quarter area then I'd recommend Deanie's. The crawfish quartet is pretty damn good imo. If you can get out to the original location in Bucktown, I'd say go there instead of the Quarter location. Mmm...frosted schooners of beer.
I always recommend going into the (I think) Lower Ward 7, at least in that direction. Taking Bourbon St. north through the French Quarter and look for all the great music venues north of Esplanade Ave. Some of them are more crowded than others and some require cover charges, but they're worth it. It's fun to contrast it with the French Quarter. If you head for Washington Square, you'll find just about everything.
Agree. The Marigny is fun and there's lots to do on Frenchman and Esplenade. I do love Port of Call and their burgers. Pairs well with their Monsoon!
Walking up and down Magazine St is a great option as well, certainly away from the tourist traps. Lot of great shops and restaurants to stop into. One of our favorite bars in town, The Bulldog, is on Magazine. Cool little patio to sit on as well.
Only issue is how stinking hot it usually is in New Orleans this time of year, so if you walk around Magazine much, I’d expect to sweat. Probably a lot.
Erin Rose bar in the quarter. Great local hangout with a fantastic Jameson iced coffee!
Frenchmen street has awesome live music, and more classic NO throwback before Bourbon street became so commercialized, or at least that's the story.
Enjoy!
Last time I stayed in NOLA, I was at the Royal Frenchman Hotel, which is at the corner of (you guessed it!) Royal and Frenchman. A nice taste of the Quarter without being in the middle of all of the drunk touristy stuff. Pascal's Manale literally hasn't changed in over 50 years, and I do like to go to Felix's for oysters. The Camilla Grill at the riverbend has changed hands over the years, but still is great (have a Mocha Freeze!). Beignets you are pretty much limited to the touristy Cafe DuMonde, Morning Call was better but left a long time ago. I lived there from 83-87, much has changed, much has stayed the same. Strange thing, I don't see any Popeye's Fried Chicken anywhere...
If you can swing brunch/lunch:
Commander's Palace (reservations and dress code required). Very old Southern style service and great food/drink. The experience is heightened if you ride the streetcar into the Garden district and back.
Court of Two Sisters in the Quarter is good too, I went on Red Dress Run day last year and sat directly next to the jazz band, it was great.
There is no way someone who is in NO right now hops the three month reservation wait at Commanders. But you might be able to get to Atchafalaya for brunch. Which is my favorite place where mortals may get a table in the city
The Grill Room at the Windsor Court Hotel trumps both.
Have a great trip, Angry-Dad. I'm not up-to-date on New Orleans dining, so no recommendations there. (Plan on traveling outside the city? I might have a few.)
I don't know of another U.S. city that's a stranger combination of overrated and underrated (depending on the topic).
For beer, take the Canal streetcar to Bayou Beer Garden., but stop at Neyow's first for traditional New Orleans food (get the chargrilled oysters too). After the garden, when your appetite is worked up again, walk to Parkway and get the James Brown poboy (imo the best in the city). You can get a streetcar pass on the Le Pass app for cheap if you haven't already.
If you are feeling spry, you can ride back to downtown from there on the Lafitte Greenway via Blue Bike.
Enjoy your trip!
Crescent City Brewing is great place and surprisingly good food. Always enjoyed Mr. B’s Bistro for French Quarter Cuisine. Enjoy!
MUST do Cafe du Monde in the morning for cafe au lait and beignets. (Which is all they serve).
Brennan’s for brunch is the must go-to.
The World War II museum might be just about the best museum ever. You need separate 2-3 hr times for the Pacific and European halves.
Yep!
Go to Drago's in Meterie, not the one downtown. Order at least a dozen of the grilled oysters. They are incredible. Here's the address.
3232 N Arnoult Rd, Metairie, LA 70002
I eat there every time I get to town.
I make a point of strolling down Royal off of Canal to check out their collection of antique stores. The most remarkable collection of oddities I’ve ever seen for sale.
I did my bachelor party there. I went to a lot of…interesting places. With that, Acme Oyster Bar is fantastic. I went to it about 20 years ago when it was not such a tourist trap. Now, everyone knows about it. It’s still worth the visit.
It’s in the French Quarter BTW.
overall, I think the cuisine in the New Orleans is the best in the nation. You really can’t go wrong.
Bat Tonique
Bat Tonique
Bar Tonique
if you like gumbo, Lil Dizzys on Esplanade or Liuzza by the Track are phenomenal. Heard good things about Dooky Chases but never been.
that’s all I got because I have been to NO a number of times for work and don’t remember much after work ended each day because of the availability of hard liquor and beer. and I love a good gumbo.
Frenchmen Street - Faubourg Marigny area for live music and its just outside of the French Quarter. great music both inside the clubs and out on the street and good late night food too. Also ask around and see if you can find a second line
As a fellow defender you might want to try one of the tours that gets you out of the quarter and shows you history of different parts of the city and the effects of Katrina and racial inequities. too many people go there and don't make it out of the french quarter.
A cool spot for authentic breakfast and lunch is Elizabeth's in Bywater.
great city with great people have fun!
Respect to a fellow defender. Challenging gig but I love the fight.
thanks!
The Maple Leaf is an excellent live music venue. It’s a little west of Tulane in the 14th Ward.
I always go to Central Grocery for a muffuletta sandwich, but unfortunately they're still undergoing repairs from hurricane Ida. If you go to their website, though, they do have their sandwich available at several outlets in the area.
A few years back, I was in the line that snaked through the grocery store. The guy ahead of me appeared to be homeless and was stuffing items from the shelves in his pants. A lot of these were imported from Italy and pricey. When he got to the checkout, I signaled to the clerk what he was doing.
They caught him and ran him out of the store. The two clerks, 20-30 something Italian fellows then carried on how they would have handled him if he tried to fight them. It was quite entertaining to hear them one-upping each other on the nature of the violence they would have used.
It almost reminded me of how this board can get when posters feel the need to prove their moral outrage is stronger than whoever posted before whenever there's some alleged wrongdoing perpetrated by a sports figure.
Ultima, liquid IV, or drip drop
We moved from the area about five years ago, but a couple spots we recommend. Echo the WW2 museum, and go to Cochon Butcher for lunch, short walk from the museum, awesome food. Save our Cemeteries does guided tours of St Louis #1. Learn the history of the vault graves, see Nic Cage's future burial spot, and the money goes to preservation of the cemetery. Not Cajun food but Shaya might be my favorite restaurant in the city. Go catch some music at spotted cat or DBA on Frenchman street.
Courtyard brewing was our favorite brewery in the city, kind of divey but the beer was great. NOLA, Urban south, Port Orleans and Royal brewing are all in the same part of the city and pretty good. Barrel proof if you like bourbon. Hot Tin for cocktails and a great view of the city. These are all in the garden district/Irish Channel area. Parleaux Beer Lab is in the Bywater if you want to see a different part of the city.
Prytania bar used to be the Michigan alumni bar (might still be?). If you go there they used to allow outside food, I recommend the duck fries from Delachaise around the corner as you enjoy a day of football.
I second Perkis's recommendations, plus Galatoire's. It's been around so long people could say "it's coasting on its reputation" but it's not. Their desserts are great too, but you may want to skip it for Angelo Brocato's on Carrollton (it's *only* been around since 1905).
Peche is our current favorite restaurant.
Commander’s Palace is old New Orleans but still a ton of fun.
I visit on business.
1) Avoid Bourbon Street and Most of the French Quarter. Unless you like stupid drunks and muggers. Avoid northeast of Bourbon Street near the park. More muggers.
2) You need to experience great food. Which place depends on your budget. I can’t remember a bad experience but I had a great local host. Plenty of lists are available, but avoid the touristy places/brands. Of all the places I have been recently, I really remember Irene’s (high end Italian), not too far from your hotel. I prefer eating at (at not in) the bar. Not a long wait without a reservation. Staff is super nice.
3). Definitely visit a Jazz club. Just about any small club will have great musicians. Preservation Hall is probably worth it if you can get in. I stopped at Mahogany, dive, recently and it was good. Here is a list:
The Ace Hotel has a friendly fun bar and is a great place to stay. People are friendly if you are. More upscale. There are great dive bars all over. Just walk in.
Preservation Hall is in the Quarter but you can avoid most of it. The places I recommended, Irene’s and Mahogany, are near each other and between you and Bourbon Street. The neighborhood north of the quarter can be fun (Marigny and Bywater). Some parts south of the quarter and down by Tulane is fun. I try to avoid the tourist restaurants that try to stand out based on New Orleans traditional food. Most restaurants will have a local influence.
A waiter told us on a bachelor's party, "whatever you do, DO NOT GO TO THE Artist Cafe". I only wish we had listened... I give you the same advice....
Jesus man! I just read about that place. I am down for a good time, but my god.