We have traveled to New Orleans and its countryside over the last 25 years and my husband was born there.  I will save the Countryside for another post, NOLA has way to much to share it with anything else.  People often ask us for recommendations of things to do and places to eat and drink in Nola.  There are so many, it’s hard to even list a top ten, but we can tell you some of our favorite haunts.  However, places open all the time there so it’s fun to discover some new place on your own.  If you do, let me know what I may be missing.  This is in no way comprehensive.  Check out the site http://www.neworleans.com/plan to help plan your trip for local events and things to do.  You can also look up the music at http://www.offbeat.com or activities at http://www.gambitmag.com for all local music, event and food listings.  Great food, drinks and music is what this city is known for, so these websites will fill you with everything you need to know.  Here’s what we know:

NOLA – Things we like to do:

Depending on your time and desire, here are a few ideas;

• Swamp air boat or kayak tour (https://www.jeanlafitteswamptour.com/ ); kayaks swamp tours are for the more daring…..
• NOMA- New Orleans Museum of Art in City Park (https://noma.org/) Very nice museum in a phenomenal City Park.
• New Orleans Jazz Museum – Do not go to Nola and miss the NO Jazz Museum.  This jewel documents jazz history in this great city.  The black and white photography of the legends who have played there are a photographic testimony of the richness and soul of this city.  They have special exhibits on Women of Note and on their tricentennial. It’s worth the minor donation to see jazz come alive in this converted US Mint building.  There is an exhibit on the ground floor of the old US Mint operation.  This is truly a treasure to explore and learn.
• City Park– This lovely and expansive park is full of adventure!  Botanical garden, full golf course, Storyland, train garden, horse back riding, bike rentals, boat rentals, Carousel Garden and amusement park and a lovely way to bike around safely throughout the park.
• Jackson Square – a historic landmark park in the French Quarter, known as the place where Louisiana became part of the USA in the Louisiana Purchase in 1803.  Artists draw and sell their paintings there and fortune tellers can be found to give you a glimpse of what’s in store for your future. The St. Louis cathedral is there, the oldest cathedral in the United States (1718).
• Shopping: Well, there’s Royal Street for art and antiques and everything in between; Wise Buys – my favorite shop for women’s clothing on Chartres Street along with the other shops along Chartres for everyone; Magazine Street for shopping, eating, drinking – everything – an eclectic array of stores, restaurants and bars.  Then there is the Outlet Collection at Riverwalk has great stores and a food court (https://www.riverwalkneworleans.com).  Shops at Jax Brewery and all through town are stores galore.  The French Market is a great place to pick up souvenirs, face fans, silver jewelry, hats, etc. and they are more reasonable than Bourbon Street (www.frenchmarket.org). It’s right downtown and an easy walk in the French Quarters.
• Music: I’ll dedicate the last part of this blog to this.

Here are a few pictures of my experiences of things to do:

And yes, we did a swamp tour.  Groupon does have great offers, look them up for discounts.  Tiffany Haddish knows what she is talking about!  The alligators also love marshmallows.  I would not try this in a kayak, but others certainly do.  I was in an air boat that can operate at high speeds for quick getaways.

For  Girls Party in Nola, we went to the Rock and Bowl to swing it out with the locals.  This is a bowling alley with a huge stage and even bigger bar.  We danced the night away, learning the zydeco dance steps to a local zydeco band.  This was a lot of fun on a Thursday night.

Now, for my favorite part – eating in New Orleans.   Something like 80% if the domestic crawfish eaten in the US comes from New Orleans.  They have an array of seafood and places to eat it. Oysters are a common item here as well.  Often eaten either raw or fried, but try them grilled, there is nothing like the taste of a chargrilled oyster – I love them at Dragos in the Hilton Hotel.

The only other dish I am absolutely stuck on is the BBQ Shrimp at Mr. B’s at 201 Royal Street.  These are to die for!  They are not cooked in BBQ sauce as the name implies, but a savory, brown buttery seasoned sauce and served with freshlybaked, warm french bread.  This is a required stop on every trip I make to Nola.  They put a bib on you because these are messy – you remove the shells at the table, but trust me, they are worth every finger licking second of it.

We go to Elizabeth’s in the Bywater section for brunch, 7 minutes from the Quarters (www.elizabethsrestaurantnola.com).   I get the Eggs Florentine every time – my fried oysters, potatoes and eggs dish.  There is nothing like it.  A take home box is required – or great for sharing.  They make a mean Bloody Mary or Maria (with tequila instead).  It comes with what looks like a salad on top, quite creative.  The Bloody Maria on the left was at Del Fuego on Magazine Street (during National Tequila Day on July 24, 2018  – served with pork cracklins – only in Nola.

Now that I’ve got that out of my system, here is a listing of other places we enjoy:

• Bayona’s at 430 Dauphine St – great fine dining from the award-winning Chef Susan Spicer.  Not to be missed.
• Compere Lapin, 535 Tchoupitoulas, Chef Nina Compton was named Best Chef: South by James Beard Awards for 2017.  The food and drinks were delicious and creative, see for yourself:
  

  

  

  

  

  

Pesch was a nother great place.  I had a shrimp “Bolognese” type of dish and a smoked tuna dip; Patrick had a drum fish cooked in their own special sauce with bread for dipping.  Ummmm…..

• Make sure you go to a local favorite – Jacques Imos on Oak Street.  This is indeed real Nawlins food (jacques-imos.com).  We have never been disappointed here….

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• The Pythian Market – a new collection of restaurants opened at 234 Loyola Ave. in a newly renovated building that was once an integral part of the civil rights movement and center for African American commerce.  There are 19 food stations in this beautiful space serving everything from Vietnamese stuffed chicken wings that were to die for to pizza with collard greens, sausage and fontina cheese – to name a few.  The bar is large and welcoming, but my only regret is that I did not get the chance to sample some of the other stations.  This is indeed a great place right in town.  There are a few other food collectives like this that have popped up recently.  I’ll have to explore more next trip.
  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  I could go on and on like Commanders Palace (and their 25 cent martinis for lunch but do get the bread pudding souffle); Gene’s Po-Boys on Elysian Fields – open 24 hours thank heavens; Cafe du Monde (also open 24 hours) for coffee and beignets – those sugary, dusty donuts; Barrows only sells fried catfish and homemade potato salad/fries.  It’s a little ride but if you like catfish, this place is phenomenal, it’s all they sell and they are very good at it.

• Mother’s Restaurant at 401 Poydras – great local foods in a cafeteria style setting (get the ferdi with debris).  I have to save a little time for drinks and Dive Bars…..

DRINKS: You can go anywhere on Bourbon, Royal, Oak or Magazine to get cocktails.  The Carousel Bar is a fun place to go across from Mr. B’s to sip your cocktail on a rotating carousel bar.  The Saint Hotel has a gorgeous bar with wonderful cocktails and live music on the weekends.

However, if you want to have a different and authentic Nola experience, go see some dive bars!  In the Quarters, there is the oldest bar in the country, Lafiftes Blacksmith Shop Bar (941 Bourbon Street), built around 1722.  It was never a blacksmith shop, but a cover for a smuggling operation.  It’s well worth a trip to see and experience the oldest bar in the United States.  Tell Blake and Bree that Patrick and Wanda said hello.

Also in the French Quarters is the Chart Room (300 Chartres Street), a short stop down from Wise Buys.  They also make strong and reasonable drinks here.  Another old building with a warm and friendly bartender and currency from around the world posted on the walls.

What looks like a dive bar when you enter at B-Mac’s (819 St Louis St) is a very cool local place to visit just off of Bourbon Street.  Once you order your drinks at the huge bar, take them to the back, through the doors to a beautiful court-yard.  There is outdoor lounge furniture, a stage and tasteful decorations about the place.  You would never know it existed when you first enter the place.  This is a local haunt for folks in the hospitality industry.

Our last dive bar experience is the first one I ever went to in Nola – Vaughans (4229 Dauphine St in the Bywater).  I love this spot.  It looks like you could blow on it and it would fall down.  The bartenders are always a hoot and they make the place fun.  The signage inside and outside of the place is truly original and welcoming.

New Orleans nightlife and restaurants in Bywater neighborhood

New Orleans nightlife and restaurants in Bywater neighborhood

New Orleans nightlife and restaurants in Bywater neighborhood

Now, for the MUSIC….

We try to make it to Nola for the Jazz Fest, the last weekend in April and the first weekend in May (www.nojazzfest.com).  It’s a gigantic music event held on the Fairgrounds in New Orleans with at least ten music stages, parades every day, local food vendors and the largest collection of happy music lovers you have ever seen.  They have vendors selling crafts, clothes and memorabilia.  If you like jazz, rock, gospel and more, this is the place for you.

Notes:

Flamingo a Go-Go is a restaurant/bar/fun place to hang out at 869 Magazine Street.  We played bag toss, a gigantic game of Jenga and had cocktails and appetizers in their patio area in a private cabanna area – very relaxing.  Another local place is the Bayou Wine Garden at 315 N. Rendon Street, a real neighborhood spot.  They boil crawfish on the weekends and serve wine, beer, cocktails and other food all the time.  It’s an indoor and outdoor place that is very laid back and relaxing.  A must stop on any trip to Nola is the Nola Jazz Museum at 400 Esplanade Ave.  The collection of jazz photography over the decades is very impressive.  It’s located just behind the French Market, anohter stop on our trips.  You can get souvenirs, jewelry, hats, bags, etc at flea market prices and much cheaper than Bourbon Street.

If you want to hear a collection of musicians, get to Frenchmen Street.  It’s a three block area of pure jazz, reggae, blues, rock and more.  You can see a brass band perform in the middle of the street on weekends if you are lucky.  It’s safe, great music and food trucks appear to take that edge off the alcohol consumption, so they say….

Bourbon Street is the most famous street in all of Nola.  It’s something you should do at least once.  There are clubs along Bouron to hear music of all kinds as well as places to tantilize and arouse, no shortage there.  Royal Street, also in the Quarters, is a lovely street by day for shopping and at night for street musicians.  I have discovered real talent along Royal Street and enjoy the CD’s purchased to this day.

If you are inclined to have a jazz experience in a more formal lounge versus the steet scene, go to the Royal Sonesta at 300 Bourbon Street.  This lovely hotel has a Jazz Club that is free and performances seven nights a  week.  If you want a reserved table, there is a small charge for that.  Sunday nights go see Germaine Bazelle, a true legend in NOLA jazz.  She bellows out scat that reminds you of Sarah Vaughn.  This 80 something iconic vocalist could be mistaken for 20 years younger.  She is a NOLA treasure.

Another free place to see jazz in a private club is at the Ritz Carlton Hotel in the Davenport Loungeat 921 Canal Street to see Jeremy Davenport Wednesday – Saturday. There is a drink minimum and the seats are first come first served.   The food and drinks are classic Ritz Carlton style and the music is classic New Orleans.  A wonderful place to go see some great jazz and have a perfect martini.

The House of Blues at 225 Decauter Street has music of all types.  Check their listing to see who is performing when you go.