New Orleans | January 2017 | 5 Days in 1 Minute
Central Business District
· SAN to MSY | Direct flight. Stop-overs are unfun. Uber or cab, don’t shuttle.
· Hyatt Regency - Check out the spots in the hotel. Chef John Besh has eatery Borgne in the lobby. Woke up to the sight of the Superdome. Didn’t see Drew Brees.
· It’s a small city. Uber it. Or walk everywhere, but not at night…as suggested by one of our Uber drivers, Ayesha – “Tis daaangerous!”
· Cochon Restaurant – Lots of eateries established from abandoned warehouses. Fancy-ish pork-centric food by Chef Donald Link. Vague [hip] menu descriptions.
· Jackson Square – Music everywhere. Stop & listen to all the performers even for just a little bit. Hip hop brass, country blues, old skool jazz, 10 year old kids playing drums on plastic tubs w/ the cadence of pros 3 times their age.
· Café Du Monde | Beignets & café au laits…b/c you have to. Grab it to-go & eat on a bench next to the Mississippi River.
· The Presbytere | Louisiana State Museum – The horrors of Hurricane Katrina & the resolve of the people of NOLA. The history of Mardi Gras, carnivals & interesting costumes – some like whoa & some absolutely frightening. Fats Domino’s piano is there as well.
· Walk around the Quarter. Take in the architecture. See all the street performers. Notice all the ‘buzzed’ people. You can walk the streets w/ an open container of alcohol. Bars serve drinks in plastic cups. Horses. Tours on horse carriages - if that’s your thing.
· Laffite’s Blacksmith Shop | 200 year old blacksmith shop that is now a bar. Get a pint. Do not get a ‘Cup of Cherries’…cherries soaked in everclear.
· Marie Laveau’s House of Voodoo | Souvenirs & stuff.
· Doreen Ketchens aka Queen Clarinet | She plays w/ her band on the street. Rad.
· Carousel Lounge at the Hotel Monteleone | The bar seriously is a ‘carousel’ that spins. Or grab a posh lounge chair or couch w/ your significant other. Order a New Orleans classic – The Sazerac.
· The Faulkner House | Author William Faulkner wrote his 1st book ‘Soldiers Pay’ in this house. Now it is a bookstore. Neat.
· Emeril’s | Chef ‘BAM!!!’ Lagasse’s original resto. Hospitality was excellent. So was the boar.
o House made andouille & boudin sausages – braised collard greens, turbodog onions, whole grain mustard, house worcestershire sauce
o Andouille crusted gulf drum – grilled veggies, shoestring potatoes, glazed pecans, creole meuniere
o Local wild boar – fettuccine verde, cocoa tomato sauce, pumpkin, holy trinity salsa
o Emeril’s banana cream pie – graham cracker crust, caramel sauce, chocolate shavings
· Frenchmen Art Market | Street art, vendors, twinkle lights. Jazz clubs & bars surrounding.
· The Spotted Cat Music Club | Fun jazz club in a dive bar setting. Way rad.
· Hidden within the Erin Rose Irish Pub is the tiny sammich counter Killer Po-Boys. Grab a pint & a late nite pork belly po-boy.
Central Business District
· Mother’s Restaurant – A walk from the hotel. Stand in line at this old skool NOLA staple for non-fussy creole eats served by happy peeps.
o The Famous Ferdi Special Po-Boy – ham, roast beef, the original debris w/ au jus gravy.
o Shrimp + Oyster Po-Boy – cabbage, pickle, mayo, creole & yellow mustard, tartar & hot cocktail sauce on the side.
Arts District of New Orleans
· The National World War II Museum – See everything. Spend a few hours. Amazing museum.
· Walk around the Arts District. Museums and galleries. Rad graffiti. The General Lee statue. Walk into Louisiana’s own Rouses Grocery & check out the produce & meats. Pick up some seasoning spices as souvenirs.
· Restaurant August | Chef John Besh’s fine dining flagship restaurant. Order a la carte…OR SPLURGE and get both the tasting menus. See & taste what the best chefs in NOLA can do.
o Tasting of Farmers Market Vegetables
o The Restaurant August Degustation Menu
· The Lafayette Cemetery – Search for the undead or re-enact scenes from the action comedy “Double Jeopardy” starring Ashley Judd which was filmed here.
· Commander’s Palace| A NOLA institution since 1880. Old skool, elegant, kinda gaudy but fun. There was a Travel Channel camera crew filming when we had lunch. Our server said that they film so much in here that he doesn’t bother to ask “for what” anymore.
o Plaquemine satsuma citrus salad
o Creole gumbo du jour – Andouille & chicken gumbo, scratch stocks, dark roux, holy trinity & rum barrel hot sauce
o Cornbread crusted Des Allemands catfish – sauté of Cajun andouille, Vidalia onions, red beans, roasted tomato, tomato red butter & smoked corn grits
o Sugarcane lacquered south Texas quail – charred chili & popcorn rice boudin w/ tasso braised cabbage, sugarcane-rum vinegar glaze & Crystal hot sauce pepper jelly
o Ponchatoula strawberry shortcake – strawberries macerated w/ cane sugar, warm buttermilk biscuit & Chantilly whipped cream
o 25 cent martinis. A tradition & a must [limit 3 per person – you won’t need any more].
· Garden District Houses – Stroll around & check out the 19th century homes & try to burn off some of the butter, cream & calories you’ve eaten so far on this trip. Can’t believe the amount of butter that everyone serves just w/ the bread starter down here.
· Garden District Book Shop – Neat little shop. Signed copies of everything. Guest author events all the time. Also…Anne Rice everything…everything.
· La Petite Grocery | Another James Beard Award hype resto [like all the places in this list – minus Mother’s] by Chef Justin Devillier housed in a building that used to be an 1800s grocery store. Made from scratch elevated classics.
· Preservation Hall – Stand in line & wait to watch & listen to the legendary Preservation Hall Jazz Band. Mos def a highlight on this trip. Amazing 1 hour set of up-tempo New Orleans style jazz.
o They only let 100 people in per show. People watch while in line– it’s the best. We saw Satan trying to get into the Pat O’Brien Pub next door. There was also a dude selling beers from a cooler in the front of the line at the entrance of the building. “They don’t sell beer up in there, get it here!” People did. The hall did not stop him at all – good business trade.
Central Business District
· Willa Jean | A bakery & restaurant by Chef John Besh. He has like 12 restaurants.
o Roasted beet salad – arugula, pistachio, citrus, goat cheese vinaigrette [by this point in this trip, our stomachs were screaming for salads, salt & acid to cut thru all the butter]
o Smoked salmon tartine – fresh cheese, capers, red onion, hardboiled egg, marbled rye
o Fried chicken sammich – serrano slaw, Hawaiian roll
· MSY to SAN | Direct flight. Stop-overs are super lame. Sleep on the plane. Or watch ‘Deadpool’ on your iPhone.
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