New Orleans recommendations/info please?

[Deleted]

Thinking of going next month.

It would be just my husband and me (I think), so it will be a laid-back trip.  I've never been, and he's only been for a bachelor party so the only things he saw were strip clubs and the stadium.

We're thinking of flying there on Friday morning and coming home on Monday -- that's enough, but not too much, time, right?

Do we need to rent a car?  We'll be staying in the French Quarter.

Restaurant recommendations please?  Yumminess is a priority over fanciness.  Willie Mae's Scotch House is already on my list.  

What should we do when we're there?

Thanks for any info!

[cransplash]

DH and I were there for a week in June, and it's my 2nd time there! We had a blast. Since you're staying in the French Quarter, you won't need a car. Since you're from NYC, you'll be fine walking everywhere. A car would be more of a hassle!

With that said, here are where I'd recommend:
- Cafe Beignet (much better than Cafe du Monde, in my opinion. Alton Brown wasn't lying when he said Cafe Beignet was one of the best things he's ever had)
- Sylvain (delish)
- Parkway Bakery & Tavern (Good enough for Obama, good enough for me! DH ate here twice, he loved it. Need a cab though)
- Mr. B's Bistro- Supposed to be phenomenal, but we didn't get to eat here (BBQ shrimp)
- Croissant D'Or- Another GBCNer recommended this place to me. The croissants (almond, choc) were amazing, and we ended up picking these up 4 of the 7 days we were there
- Ruby Slipper Cafe- OMG. So freaking delicious. We came here for breakfast. Get the Bananas Foster Pain Perdu. OMGood and YWIA
- Make sure to try some local Abita beer! Abita amber is my personal fave
- The Joint- Never knew I liked brisket/BBQ until I came here. I still think of our meal here. Nothing fancy, just delish
- New Orleans School of Cooking- DH was at a conference, and I love cooking so this was great. Had a lot of fun, and the food was so yummy!

Bourbon Street was... well, Bourbon Street. DH and I aren't big drinkers, but we still had fun taking in the sights/craziness of it all. I personally loved Cat's Meow (right on the corner).

Walk around the French Quarter (though not sure what the temp will be like now...)

This makes me realize I need to finish my NOLA posts for my travel blog. Have so much fun!!!!!!

[genet313]

You don't need to rent a car, but it makes it easier to go to more local restaurants that aren't in the French Quarter. That way you can travel to suburban areas more easily.

Restaurants:

Dick & Jenny's 
Commander's Palace ( go for lunch, they have 25 cent martinis. also, their pomegrante martini is amazing)
Arnaud's
Brightsen's 
Dommilese (spelling is wrong, but these po boys are amazingly good)
Port of Call - amazing burgers. OMG, yum

People will tell you Galatoire's, but I really think it's overrated and not good.

Bull Dog is a lot of fun for beers if you want to relax one afternoon. I don't even drink beer and I enjoy it there.

Shop on Magazine St - antiques, great little shoe and clothing stores, lots of fun stuff.

I'll update more later.

[womet]

I'll add Jacque Imo's. I know that miso has a review of it in her blog.

Dick & Jenny's is great too.

[cajunmom]

I'll second the Cat's Meow. That's really the only bar I go to on Bourbon.

Shop at Fleurty Girl...she has a shop on St. Peter in the FQ and on Magazine Street. Super cute local stuff.

If you want a legit New Orleans muffuletta you MUST go to Central Grocery. It's on Decatur Street, just a little ways down and across the street from Cafe du Monde.

[Curlysue]

Saving these.

[Deleted]

You don't need a car - taxi is the easiest/most cost effective way in/out.

My favorites -
Bayona
Sylvain
Ruby Slipper Cafe
Cafe Beignet - try Cafe du Monde too
Domenica
MH loves Mr. B's BBQ shrimp
Carousel Bar is fun

I, too, went to the New Orleans School of Cooking - it's not terribly expensive and was a great way to spend a rainy afternoon. The crab and corn chowder was particularly yummy!

When I was there last December the cathedral had free evening concerts. MH was at a conference so I was on my own pretty much the whole time. It was a great way to kill time before dinner and they were very very good. A Marsalis family jazz quartet was one night, Creole opera another. I was impressed and the acoustics in there are great.

I took a donation based tour - it was like free tours by foot or something that was really well done. My guide was a big history buff and had some fantastic stories of the French Quarter.

There's a small museum on Royal Street run by the historical society - for a few dollars they'll give you a guided tour of the house and courtyard - it was neat to "go behind the walls." 

[cosmos]

Jacques Imos!

You don't need a car.

Go to Frenchmen street for live music and smoke free bars

[cosmos]

And the cats meow was really fun but that's because the band was awesome, I was with girlfriends and drunk.

[Pom]

Cafe Amelie in the Quarter. Romantic, good food.
Deanie's Seafood. (Behind the Ritz)
Agree go for lunch at Commander's Palace.

[pamela]

Dec 1, 2013 19:11:39 GMT -5 cosmos said:

And the cats meow was really fun but that's because the band was awesome, I was with girlfriends and drunk.

I spent many nights there in college, but I can't imagine going there as an adult.  

[Deleted]

Wow, thanks so much guys!

[winnied]

Ruby Slipper - so good we went there two mornings in a row for brunch. The french toast and corned beef hash are awesome
Snug Harbor - jazz club. Visit Frenchmen's street (where SH is at) for the local vibe
Pat O'Brien's piano bar - order a hurricane and hang out in the piano bar. It's worth the line.
Commander's Palace - go on a weekday and order the turtle soup and some $0.25 martinis. Dress code enforced. Walk around in the garden district afterward.
Jacque Imo's
Cochon
Go on a swamp tour

No rental car is needed. It's about a $30 cab ride from the airport and it's just not worth it to deal with parking. I think a long weekend is perfect and it's what worked well for us.

[ESF]

I loved Coop's Place for po' boys, fried craw dads, etc. I don't love creole food (okra makes me gag), but appear toy the gumbo, etc there is supposed to be good.

The best fancy food I ate there was at Restaurant August.

[womet]

Dec 1, 2013 20:03:35 GMT -5 winnied said:

Go on a swamp tour

I'd also suggest trying to squeeze in a cemetery tour. I found it fascinating. 

[cransplash]

Dec 1, 2013 18:47:36 GMT -5 womet said:

I'll add Jacque Imo's. I know that miso has a review of it in her blog.

Dick & Jenny's is great too.

How could I forget Jacques Imo's? My good friend attended Tulane, and she said if there is ANY r'rant to go to, this is the place she recommended. We loved it- so unique! We did have to wait 2.5 hours and no reservations. And forewarning, the waiting area is a long booth and hardly any seating. Most people were waiting outside.

Also, like womet said, I would try a cemetary tour too (though I don't know what the temps are like in January). We did this and had a lot of fun!~

[cosmos]

Dec 1, 2013 19:15:06 GMT -5 pamela said:

Dec 1, 2013 19:11:39 GMT -5 cosmos said:

And the cats meow was really fun but that's because the band was awesome, I was with girlfriends and drunk.

I spent many nights there in college, but I can't imagine going there as an adult.  

I think we were among the oldest there. Like I said, it was 2 am on a Sat night and we were drunk when we got there, and the band was amazing. Best cover band I've ever seen.

Oh yes Pat Obriens piano bar was fun. That's where we got drunk before going to the cats meow.

[cransplash]

Dec 1, 2013 20:04:41 GMT -5 ESF said:

I loved Coop's Place for po' boys, fried craw dads, etc. I don't love creole food (okra makes me gag), but appear toy the gumbo, etc there is supposed to be good.

The best fancy food I ate there was at Restaurant August.

Oh yes, Coop's Place! Kind of a hole in the wall, but it was good. I will say that we both thought Parkway Bakery & Tavern's po'boy was better (but you'll need a cab ride there).

My 1st trip, I also had a muffaletta sandwich at Central Grocery. It was good, but I thought it was overrated. I truly thought my muffaletta at Cochon Butcher was better (SO YUM!)

[cransplash]

Dec 1, 2013 20:23:01 GMT -5 cosmos said:

Dec 1, 2013 19:15:06 GMT -5 pamela said:

I spent many nights there in college, but I can't imagine going there as an adult.  

I think we were among the oldest there. Like I said, it was 2 am on a Sat night and we were drunk when we got there, and the band was amazing. Best cover band I've ever seen.

Oh yes Pat Obriens piano bar was fun. That's where we got drunk before going to the cats meow.

DH and I are in our early/mid-30s and we didn't think we were too old to be there. Though, it was during DH's IT conference and there were a TON of people our age and older there- could have been due to that. The band was AWESOME. And the DJ there (dark hair, pretty cute) was pretty good as well. We had a blast there (and we're not the "clubby" nor get drunk type.)

I tried a Hurricane (again). Why I thought it was good the first time I tried it (when I was 23yo), I have no idea. It was so sweet, and I couldn't even finish it. Abita beer all the way!

[cransplash]

Oh! We also had brunch at the Court of Two Sisters. It was good, but the other meals were more noteworthy IMHO.

[shortstax]

Bike tour!
www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g60864-d1059866-Reviews-Confederacy_of_Cruisers_Bike_Tours-New_Orleans_Louisiana.html

[Deleted]

cransplash - I ordered a hurricane and immediately regretted the decision - it was like drinking cough syrup! French 75s on the other hand, I could drink all day.

[cransplash]

Dec 1, 2013 20:58:17 GMT -5 @bonsoirlune said:

cransplash - I ordered a hurricane and immediately regretted the decision - it was like drinking cough syrup! French 75s on the other hand, I could drink all day.

Yes, ITA. I even don't think I loved it when I was 23yo and did drink/go clubbing. Waste of money, but now I know better!

eta: Actually, now that I think about it, I had it around 2pm and was going in and out of shops around the FQ, getting more drunk as I continued sipping it. I eventually did throw 1/2 of it away, and regretted even drinking it at all. I stumbled my way around back to my hotel. Klassy party of 1.

[cransplash]

OMG, v, how could I forget Southern Candymakers? They made the best pralines I have ever had in my life.
Some of the shops sold another brand of pralines (Magnolia? It was in a red wrapper), but the ones from Southern Candymakers blew them out of the water. I am just salivating now thinking of all the wonderful food we ate while we were there.

All I did was eat. Like every few hours, even if I wasn't hungry. So many options and so little time.

eta: Oh, I really liked Zapp's kettle style potato chips. I picked them up at the CVS on Decatur? It was right on the same street at Cafe du Monde near Jackson Square. They had some unique flavors like Spicy Cajun Crawtators and Voodoo. Both were yummy! Such a unique treat.

eta #2: We like to pick up little fun ornaments from places we visit, so we picked up a fleur-de-lis ornament, a voodoo cartoon ornament from Jamie Hayes Gallery, and this really cute "king crown" porcelain decoration. 

Now I really want some pralines and some croissants.

[tacokick]

Sylvain! I want to go back l just to go there again.

[Deleted]

Commenting so that I can come back for ideas. We're contemplating a NOLA trip in March.

[wanderlustfoodie]

The only time I've been was ten years ago so I can't remember most if the restaurants where we ate. I do remember going to Emeril's in the warehouse district. If was good but there were others I liked better (too bad I can't remember their names!) so I'd go with all the other recs you've gotten which I'm filing away myself, too.

We enjoyed preservation hall, the aquarium, wandering the garden district, doing a swamp tour, and touring Oak Alley.