New Orleans dining suggestions - please read OP before suggesting

Cafe Society
1

I know this has been done a bunch of times before, and I think I’ve read just about every thread from the past couple years. The problem is that all of the suggestions are very scattered - geographically and genre-istically (I made a new word!)

I don’t mean to sound snippy in the thread title, but I’m looking for some very targeted suggestions and I hope to avoid people just popping in and listing their favorite restaurants. There is plenty of that in the other threads I’ve read.

I’m getting into NO on Saturday, Dec 22nd in the afternoon. I’m staying at the Country Inn & Suites on Magazine St., a couple blocks from Canal. We leave Monday morning, so I don’t have all that much time. We won’t be renting a car either.

I’ll be with my wife and 12 year old son. While I’d like to hit the bars and the Hustler Club and Casino, I can’t do that in good conscience while leaving my wife in the hotel with our son. Nor can we head out and leave my son alone. We’ll have to come back for an adult’s weekend sometime. :smiley:

I live in the Chicago area. We have lots of great restaurants around here representing almost every ethnicity under the sun (and then some…). But not many that I can find that are Cajun or Creole. And, besides, when I travel, I like to experience the local cuisine.

I was thinking of possibly heading out to the Garden District and checking out Lafayette Cemetery, since that is featured in a lot of movies and I think my son might get a kick out of it. But other than that, I think we will be sticking around the French Quarter for most of our stay.

Therefore, I am mainly looking for Creole and/or Cajun food in the French Quarter or near my hotel on Magazine St. I guess there are some pretty fancy restaurants in that area. We’re kinda on a budget, so please keep that in mind. My son is a picky eater, but please don’t let that limit your suggestions. We already told him he has to try some different food. If he absolutely cannot eat it, we will get him some Popeye’s (that’s cajun, right?)

So far, I only have Cafe Dumond on my list.

I would like to try some gumbo, crawfish etouffee, oysters and maybe a po’ boy if I have room in my belly.

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Not meaning to be snippy back at ya’, but if you’ve read those threads you’re “near” almost everything. You can pretty much walk/take the trolley to all the good places. Honestly, I don’t know what you might be thinking by Cajun or Creole absent your last sentence. If you think that such cuisine necessitates blackening or whatnot, then try K-Paul’s which is pretty tourist trappy and mediocre. I know a shit-ton of restaurants on Magazine have been mentioned specifically, and, IIRC most of them have food unique to New Orleans.

The Quarter is close enough and there are places there to go that are acceptable to locals. Oysters and po’ boys at Acme are fairly good and close. You can get a peacemaker po’ boy–half fried oysters, half fried shrimp, and it’s wonderful. Mr. B’s is lovely but pricey, and the locals I know who work around there like to lunch there. The gumbo is delicious.

For a truly unique New Orleans experience, try to get to the Hilton near the river. It houses a branch of Drago’s that makes wonderful charbroiled oysters. Many have tried to duplicate them but never quite gotten there. However, if that is too far, try Acme, they have a version that is close to Drago’s.

As for Canal, I have always been a sucker for the Palace Cafe. It’s owned by the same folks who own Commander’s and has some similar dishes, but cheaper. Yes, you can get creme brulee in other places in the world, but I swear, theirs is the best. Their duck dishes are great, and they have this thing called crab cheesecake that sounds nasty, but is one of the most wonderful things on this earth, and here’s the menu: http://www.palacecafe.com/menus.html

There are a million great places and most fit what you think are very specific needs. Pull up some more threads and read carefully as most mention the trolleys and nearly all recommendations are very New Orleans-specific food. Oh, and it’s Cafe Du Monde, and it’s worth a one-time visit. So is Pat O’s for a hurricane. I think you can bring the kid in to parts of it–maybe all during certain times.

3

Shit, don’t forget to drink some Abita beer. For all I know it’s available to you where you live, but for a long time it was hard to get even in next-door Texas. I hate fruity beers, but draft Purple-Haze is not really fruity, is a wheat beer and is wonderful. Last time I was down there most places were pitching Turbo Dog, but it’s bitter to me, and not in a hoppy way.

4

Try Johnny’s PoBoys on St Louis St. You’ll pass it up on your walk to Cafe Du Monde. The line will make you think it’s a tourist trap but they have awesome PoBoys.

5

Take the trolley through the garden district and get off at Cooter Brown’s. Great oysters, po boys, beer, etc.

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Great cheese fries too…but I guess that’s not exactly cajun.

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I lived in SW Louisiana before Cajun food became popular, and I was in New Orleans over Christmas. Don’t even think about Cajun food there. K-Pauls, which I went to when it was still hot, is not really Cajun either. My wife managed a bunch of real Cajun ladies, who talked about food all the time, and no one ever blackened anything.

I agree with Acme and Cafe du Monde. When we were there we did a lot of special Christmas menus, so I can’t speak to the normal restaurant food.

8

Ralph and Kakoos in Jackson square has a great selection of platter meals. The hush puppies are to die for.

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Although to each their own, Ralph & Kacoos is a chain. There used to be more locations here in Texas, but they closed for a reason. And the food was not that different from the one in Jackson Square.

Forgot one, Stanley: http://www.stanleyrestaurant.com/ near Jackson Square is great for breakfast/brunch and not too pricey. Their versions of eggs Benedict with soft-shelled crab and fried oysters are yummy. Plus they have good pancakes for your son.

10

Cochon shouldn’t be too far away from you, on Tchopitoulas. It’s fantastic. Mostly small plates, so you can try a lot of interesting things. If you just want lunch, go around the side to Cochon Butcher for a sandwich.

Herbsaint, the more upscale restaurant by the same chef, is also good, especially if you can sit outside and hear the streetcars roll by. But if I were picking one of the two, it’s Cochon.

Bayona is great, if a bit of a splurge.

I heartily second Johnny’s Po-Boys, especially for breakfast.

I like Coop’s Place on Decatur for jambalaya. And touristy though it may be, The Gumbo Shop is tasty and inexpensive. Ditto Acme Oyster House, which is where my wedding reception was.

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Wot, no muffalettas? This is the Emperor of Sandwiches. (A good BLT is the King of Sandwiches.) Franks, across the street from Café du Monde, has good ones. There’s also Central Grocery (said to be the originator of the sandwich) just down the street from there.

I haven’t had a shrimp and oyster po’boy since my… third? trip to New Orleans. Nowadays I always go for oyster po’boys. We’re going to The Big Sleazy in a couple of weeks. I’ll have to have a Peacemaker while we’re there.

Friends and I went to Ralph and Kakkoo’s in 2008. They’d recently married, so I bought them dinner at their choice of restaurants. I can’t remember what we all had, but I remember it being good. The waiter advised against the oysters since it was late in the season and he said they were not up to par. We had the alligator chunks instead.

…

I have a question. As I said, we’re going in a couple of weeks. The SO is not as enamoured of the seedy underbelly of places as I am, so I suspect we’ll be going to some ‘nicer’ places. (Although I’ve been to the city many times, and she’s going to go to a couple/few dives whether she wants to or not! Muwahahahahaha!) Anyway, there’s a place uptown that serves up some good breakfasts. It’s in what looks to be a large house common to the area, and is white and I think it has columns. I think there is a U-shaped or serpentine counter for breakfast, though they have tables as well. ISTR it’s not far from the end of the trolly line, or at least where it turns around. It might be fun for us to take the streetcar up there for a bite one morning. Can anyone tell me the name of the place?

12

Cafe Maspero is cheap and good. ALso the aforementioned Johnny Po’Boys. DOn’t forget Cafe DuMonde.

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Buy coffee mugs from Cafe DuMonde. I’m drinking from one now!

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Incidentally, I’ve always enjoyed the coffee in New Orleans. Many places use Community Coffee. (ISTR that they helped us out with caffeine supplies during our first film there, too.) For years I bought French Roast from Trader Joe’s. Nowadays I’ve been ordering multiple 32-ounce bags of Dark Roast from Community Coffee. I like it better than Trader Joe’s. They have frequent 20%-off sales, and free shipping promotions. (They have free shipping if your order exceeds a certain amount as well.) Since I stock up when they have these promotions, my coffee – and I drink a lot of coffee – comes out to about five and a half bucks a pound. And I don’t have to remember to buy it at the store. The UPS guy just brings it to my door.

Anyway, try Community Coffee at whatever restaurant you happen to be in. If you like it, it’s easy to have a little bit of New Orleans sent to your home later.

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If you don’t mind paying a little extra, a bunch of restaurants around town do a special prix-fixe Reveillon menu during December. Here’s a link - maybe you can show it to your son and ask him what looks good to him (a lot of these places are in the Quarter or an easy taxi/streetcar ride away): http://www.nomenu.com/joomla1/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=5282&Itemid=217

You’re not going to get good Cajun food anywhere in town, so stick to Creole and New Orleans Italian food (served at neighborhood restaurants like Mandina’s and Liuzza’s) if you want an “authentic” dining experience. :slight_smile:

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Great breakfast in the French Quarter at The Coffee Pot!

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  1. Leave your iPhone in your hotel. Trust me on this. :mad:
  2. Breakfast or Brunch at The Ruby Slipper on Magazine. You can sit outside and drink your brunch cocktail while you wait for your table!
  3. The Bon Ton Cafe for dinner is meh…but if you don’t try their bread pudding you will always regret it forever and ever. It’s amazing.
  4. Mother’s on Poydras–bring your appetite to that one. The sides alone are awesome. Great collards. Awesome po boys.
  5. Definitely get Abita beer, Zapps chips (crawtators and pickle!), and Aunt Sally’s pralines
  6. Down by the Garden District–Tracey’s is great (casual, outdoor seating, good grub). There’s also another place near there, which had beer taps on the outdoor courtyard wall, as their fountain. Awesome.

Enjoy! It’s a great place. Just be safe and aware of your surroundings, and again–no iPhones!

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A favorite place of mine that often gets overlooked in these threads is Lil’ Dizzy’s, which is located in the Whitney Bank Building (there’s a Wyndham hotel there now) on Poydras St., just a 5 minute walk from Canal St. The original Lil’ Dizzy’s location is still open on Esplanade, but that’s a ways from where you are staying.

If you go, be sure to get the house specialty, trout baquet, which is a fillet of speckled trout topped with fresh lump crab meat covered in a decadent lemon butter sauce.

Johnny’s Po Boys is a true New Orleans institution, and Maspero’s is excellent, reasonably priced and casual enough for a vulgar old hoon like myself, who doesn’t like dress up when enjoying yet another wild Crescent City debauch…

Drago’s chargrilled oysters are sublime, a garlic lovers delight.

19

I’ll second DoctorJ’s recommendation of Cochon and Cochon Butcher.

You can get good Creole food at Mr. B’s Bistro, and it’s very close to where you’ll be staying. Their gumbos are very good, as is their BBQ shrimp.

If you like oysters I recommend Drago’s. They’re best-known for their char-broiled oysters, and it can be fun to sit at the bar and watch them cook.

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We did Reveillon at The Pelican Club last year. Very good, but I’m sure there are plenty of other good places.

Has Brennan’s improved any? While we lived in Louisiana we saw Brennan’s go from a good place to a travesty.