It’s actually “Suck The Head” but no one but an obsessive wierdo like myself would ever care about something so trivial…
This x 10.
I’d go to the “Old Coffeepot” for breakfast/brunch. Really, really good. It’s also on St. Peter next to Pat O’Brien’s.
Also go to Johnny’s for po-boys on St. Louis a block north of Decatur st. Get an oyster po-boy.
I like the bar at Arnaud’s, but that may not be for you.
The burgers at the Clover Grill are pretty tasty, and it’s an entertaining place if you’re comfortable with gay men. It’s on Bourbon @ Dumaine.
The Carousel Bar at the Monteleone is pretty interesting too.
Try their Eggs Conti. There is also an egg dish made with poached eggs and chicken livers that is very good.
… deleted… migraine isn’t letting me think straight.
You’re right of course. When I thought of “shucking”, I was thinking of a restaurant in Dallas, I think it was, which served crayfish, and whose slogan was “shuck me, suck me, eat me raw”.
Four kids and four adults, New Orleans, August. Lived there for ten years with four kids, so here’s what I’d do that kids and adults will like. Some will duplicate what others in the thread have suggested.
The Louisiana History museum is in the Cabildo, which is right next to and left side of St. Louis Cathedral. Next door and to the right is the Mardi Gras museum. Better, IMHO and way cheaper than MG World. Both stops keep you in the FQ for a good portion of the day and are near Cafe du Monde where the beignets are, and kids love beignets. Go to the river side of the cafe and there’s a window looking into the kitchen and you can watch the cooks at work.
Across the street and downriver from Cafe du Monde, adults will enjoy a half muffaletta sandwich from Progress Grocery, 900 Block of Decatur. Get a sack of Zap’s chips and a Big Shot cream soda or root beer and eat on the river levee.
Swamp Tours the tours that are doable in a day are in the Pearl River Swamp east of NOLA. Pearl River Eco-Tours has a good rep. You might also check out the Insta-gator Alligator farm. Cajun Tours to the Atafalaya Swamp are good too, but it’s further out and makes a very very long day. Reward is not that much greater.
D-Day / WWII museum is neat. Don’t try to see the whole thing as it’ll wear you down. My kids enjoyed the European D-Day exhibits; the Pacific Theatre section is rather grusome in comparison.
Audubon Zoo is fantastic. Go early in the day. Pack a swimsuit and towel and change of clothes for the kids and let them play in the water features at Monkey Hill. As long as you’re Uptown, afterwards go by Plum Street Snowball stand on Plum Street in Carrollton / Riverbend. It’s in a safe suburban neighborhood. Other snowball stands around town are good too; DON’T GET THE ONES AT THE ZOO! Ice should be shaved and not chips!
Kids and adults will enjoy eating at Mandina’s - 3800 Canal Street. Cash only, no reservations, go early. Afterwards, it’s a must to go over another four or five blocks to Angelo Brocato’s Gelato store. Old school; great ice cream, sodas, and Italian pastries.
Avoid Bubba Gump’s restaurant. Do try Gumbo Shop in the French Quarter. Also worth trying is Deanie’s Seafood.
We found MG World a letdown. First, it’s frighteningly expensive. Second, there’s not much to the tour, third, it’s a working warehouse/art studio and the folks are often pretty busy. The Kern family, who own the studio and floats, are making insane money on Mardi Gras and I didn’t like further feathering their nests. YMMV, of course.
Edit window timed me out, sorry for the dupe - some new info here amid a correction or two.
The swamp tours that are doable in a day are in the Pearl River Swamp east of NOLA. Pearl River Eco-Tours has a good rep. You might also check out the Insta-gator Alligator farm. “Cajun” tours to the Atafalaya Swamp are good too, but it’s further out and makes a very very long day. Reward is not that much greater.
D-Day / WWII museum is neat. Don’t try to see the whole thing as it’ll wear you down. My kids enjoyed the European D-Day exhibits; the Pacific Theatre section is rather grusome in comparison. The cafe in the new museum is good. The movie in the new theater is good also. The Confederate Musuem is near the DDay / WWII Museum and is worth the visit. It’s small and there are lots of unique things on display. Younger kids may not get much out of the trip, though. FWIW, it doesn’t glorify the “Lost Cause”.
Audubon Zoo is fantastic. Go early in the day to minimize heat exposure. Pack a swimsuit and towel and change of clothes for the kids and let them play in the water features at Monkey Hill. As long as you’re Uptown, afterwards go by Plum Street Snowball stand on Plum Street in Carrollton / Riverbend. It’s in a safe suburban neighborhood. Other snowball stands around town are good too; DON’T GET THE ONES AT THE ZOO! Ice should be shaved and not chips!
Aquarium of the Americas is good, good fun, and the IMAX theater is the full sized one. It and the zoo are owned/operated by the Audubon Institute and you can get packages tickets that save you some bucks.
The paddlewheel riverboat tours are fun. It’s nice to get on the river and the kids will enjoy it. Some have sunset offerings that come with dinner and jazz. Not exactly cheap, but they are enjoyable.
Jean Lafitte National Park has two good units for kids and adults. The Chalmette Battlefield is where Andrew Jackson and crew fought the Brits. Cannons and a visitor’s center. Barataria (bear-uh-tare-EE-uh) Swamp is across the river and south of town a ways. Need your own car or a rental to reach. Boardwalk and trails and nature center and good rangers.
If you’ve never seen Bourbon St., and don’t have younguns with you, you should swing by once for posterity’s sake then get out; it’s overhyped, smelly, and frankly only those “not-in-the-know” really hang out there.
Frenchman Street is a great neighborhood for live-music-bar-crawling.
If you like sandwiches, go to Central Grocery at 923 Decatur St (where the french quarter meets the Mississippi) and order a muffaletta. I can only describe the experience as “OMFGOMFGOMFG, this is so good, OMFG.”
Yeah, Frenchman is cool.
There’s another place I’m thinking of that’s a great hangout. I think it’s on Rue something…
For family, go to the Aquarium.
Not for family, troll the bars around the French Quarter that are not on Bourbon Street. You will hear magnificent music. If you don’t like what you hear, than just walk 50 yards to the next bar.
Summer is the off-season due to the heat. I went there during summer because the price was right. I wound up in a tourist bar one evening that had room for 100, but there were only 4 or 5 tables taken when me and my buddy sat down for a drink. The band was fantastic. By 11 PM, my buddy and everbody else had cashed in and I was the only customer left in the bar. The band didn’t give a shit, and kept playing like they were making a record. They barely spoke to one another, just kept playing like demons.
The trumpet player sat down with me when his job was done. I declared open bar at that point, because I am not an idiot. The bartrendress poured for us all, then came around the bar to join us.
The next 30 minutes were the best of my life. That band played music that I had never heard, and they played it for the sake of showing me, the trumpet player, the bartendress, and each other just how well they could play.