Title says it all. Want to eat somewhere with good local Cajun food that’s solidly reliable for quality, and don’t want to miss any true places of the “Whaddya mean you went to Nawlins and didn’t go to X?!?” type. No particular interest in drunken crowds but will go through the French Quarter.
Dopers: Go!! I’m on 190E already.
Oh, and recommendations for a cute (and preferably not super expensive B&B) for tomorrow night will be highly appreciated.
Commander’s Palace in the Garden District is a classic. Not cheap, but good.
Emeril’s French Quarter joint NOLA is excellent (if it’s still there; it’s been awhile).
Don’t know any B&Bs. I usually stay at the very quaint Maison DuPuy in the Quarter.
Preservation Hall is a well-known destination.
As for restaurants, K-Paul’s Louisiana Kitchen is a touristy place but I liked it.
One good way to see the city is to take a streetcar. The St Charles route is a thirteen mile loop around the city that takes about ninety minutes and lets you see a good part of the city.
Adolfo’s 611 Frenchmen Street
It’s in the Frenchmen Street district near but not in the French Quarter. The district is where my host said residents went while tourists did the French Quarter. It’s in the upstairs of an old house. It’s small, quaint, and has a limited menu focused on fresh seafood. Everything I had was amazing though. It wasn’t cheap but I don’t remeber it being wildly expensive. I do remember thinking for the quality it was a great deal. The downstairs of the house is a separate tiny bar that features live music and is the only waiting area. There’s plenty of clubs featuring live music (with different atmospheres and without as many drink to oblivion tourists) in the district along with an open air art market and small galleries, if you are there anyway.
Jacque-Imo’s Restaurant: excellent and authentic.
I like the Hotel Royal, (not actually a b&b), the Parkview Guest house, (uptown), La Cochon Butcher to eat. Within the quarter: Magazine St for shopping. If getting beignets, I prefer Cafe Beignet over Cafe Du Monde, but Cafe Du Monde is the quintessential place to go for the experience. Just, go early. There’s a little place in the French market right across from the oyster bar, sadly I forget the name, but it’s got great Cajun food cheap. I’m not native but tons of my friends live there and we go all the time. My husband lived there for years.
I liked Coop’s on Decatur St. I had the jambalaya which was great, and pretty cheap.
Drago’s charbroiled oysters are amazing. Pricey, but well worth it.
Cochon in the warehouse district is an excellent Cajun place. You can also try its sister restaurant Cochon Butcher.
For breakfast hit Ruby Slipper.
http://www.therubyslippercafe.net/wordpress/home/menus/
It has two locations, one on Magazine Street and the other is (I think) on Canal. It’s not Cajun but it is AWESOME.
Ask the driver to let you off at the stop near Cooter Browns if you would enjoy a cold beer and fresh oysters.
Drago’s (locations in Metairie and New Orleans) has perhaps the single best dish in New Orleans – their charbroiled oysters are magnificent. I grew up in New Orleans, and it’s still the dish I remember most fondly.
Frankie and Johnny’s. Excellent crawfish, among many other great items.
If I found myself in NOLA right now, I’d saunter down Bourbon to Conti and walk into The Erin Rose.
Appears to be some sort of little shindig going on this weekend. :o http://fqfi.org/frenchquarter/fests/faqs/
Go check out the Old New Orleans Rum distillery!
I’m hearing lots of good things about the French Quarter Festival. Friends who feel JazzFest has gotten “too big” are moving over to it.
Who Dat Cafe was my absolute favorite restaurant in New Orleans when I was there for Mardi Gras. Amazing food, good vibes, great staff, just all around fantastic. We actually went there THREE times during our not-quite-a-week there, it was that good.
Fiorella’s Cafe on Decatur has phenomenal food, but give yourself plenty of time, because the service can be spotty. We went there when the line for Coop’s was too long - it’s just down the street on the other side.
Port of Call has the WORST service, it’s loud, it’s full of drunken idiots spilling drinks on you, the wait for a table took well over an hour, and it was totally worth it for the best burger I’ve ever had. Also had an amazing baked potato, and a huge potent drink for just $10… They’ve absolutely nailed the balance between making great food to attract people and a miserable environment so you don’t want to linger and take up a table too long.
I’ll second the recommendation for Port of Call, and I’ll own up to possibly being one of the drunken idiots she observed. 
ETA: try the fries!