Who dat? It’s New Orleans and it’s amazing.
I sorely underestimated New Orleans. My friend Connie and I spent four and a half days there last week. While we had both been there separately in the past on shorter trips, this was the first time we had come to truly take it in, and this town is way more than beignets and crawfish.
This place FEELS special. I was surprised by all the friendly people we encountered - not just in establishments but simply on the street! Maybe it’s because we visited right after Mardi Gras, maybe it’s always like this, but this place was lively and the way that the people interacted with each other made me feel like we’re all connected. And isn’t that what it’s all about??
Day 1 - Thursday
We stayed in a cute little tucked-away Airbnb that put us within walking distance of the bustling French Quarter. On the first day, after a long day of travel (with a delayed red-eye and a subsequently missed connecting flight), we stumbled sleepily to Stanley for brunch. The corn beef hash and crab cakes benedict gave us the sustenance we needed for our Sazerac House tour. For anyone who likes learning the history of drinks, history in general, or drinking in general - this is such a great stop! The museum is 2.5 floors and though you need to reserve tickets, it’s free of charge. There are sample cocktails and interactive exhibits. (For us, the tiny sample cups were plenty of alcohol, so it was basically like getting 3 free drinks).
We walked 25 minutes to get fried chicken from Willie Mae’s at the downtown location because the main location was closed. To our dismay, the fryer was broken and so were our dreams of getting fried chicken that night.
Instead, we went to Napoleon House, which we had hoped to go to earlier in the day but didn’t, due to the delayed flight/arrival. The ambiance here was on point - soft warm glow over everything, just enough people to make it feel lively yet not crowded. We sat inside, but the doors were open to the back patio courtyard and our dinner was graced with a nice breeze.
We called it an early night after that, as I succumbed to the tiredness.
Day 2 - Friyay
We did a long morning stroll to the Bywater neighborhood, east of the French Quarter, for a phenomenal breakfast of praline bacon, fried oysters, fried green tomatoes, and grits at Elizabeth’s. (BTW a big thanks is owed to my friend Laura, who grew up here and recommended this place along with many others).
Our next adventure of the day was a swamp tour with Cajun Encounters that took off from Slidell, across the water. This 2-hour tour was given by a local that had grown up 5 miles away. It was informative and we saw plenty of gators, racoons, snakes, common egrets, and 1 wild boar piglet (boar-let?). There are about 50 gators per square mile in these parts; they do the count by drone!
We took the Cajun Encounters bus back to the city and took a coffee break at Petit Clouet cafe. Once we recharged, we walked to our dinner reservations at N7, which we nearly missed because it’s magic is hidden behind a nondescript wall in the midst of the residential neighborhood. The food (French cuisine with Japanese influence) was great and we dined as the sky grew darker. The garden patio lit up with string lights and lanterns in this place that used to be a tire shop, and a horse stable long before that.
A few blocks away was Studio Be, which is 30,000 sq-ft of art. The creativity in this neighborhood goes far beyond the walls of any studio - there are incredible murals scattered throughout.
Our plan was to walk back to our Airbnb at that point, but when we reached Frenchmen Street, our plans were debunked. A hoppin maker market drew us in and after getting our faces painted at the glitter bar and buying some geometrically pleasing pieces from Zil Jewelry, we were again rejuvenated. We ended our night out by listening to a killer sax player while chowing on beignets at Cafe du Monde.
Day 3 - Saturday
Another big day of walking ahead of us! We got a ride to the far end of Magazine Street and walked back slowly. There was a video exhibit that we saw at Studio Be the day before, featuring a woman that said her favorite day would consist of shrimp and grits at Surrey’s, New Orlean’s oldest organic juice bar…So that’s what we did! We also partook in biscuits and gravy, tomato habanero soup, and orange/pineapple/mango juice.
Special stops with photos and respective captions below — The Alligator House, Imperial Woodpecker Sno-Balls, Sucré, French Truck Coffee, Lula for dinner!
We pushed on with our aching feet so that we could visit some art galleries that were open for First Saturdays in the Arts/Warehouse District, and then closed the evening with live music on Frenchman Street.
Day 4 - Sunday
Nearly everyone recommended Ruby Slipper for breakfast and so it had to be done. We went to the closest location to us in Marigny. Apparently it used to be a bank and local legend says that in the 1930s, it was robbed by Bonnie & Clyde.
More than satisfied with our benedicts (Eggs Cochon and Chicken St. Charles), we made our way to the New Orleans Museum of Art. Connie’s highlight was a golden log cabin sculpture by Will Ryman called America, made of different materials intentionally selected to represent capitalism in our country. My highlights were 2 chairs - 1 Mies Van der Rohe and 1 Ron Arad.
Just when we thought the art was over - wait, there’s more. The visual and sensory stimulation continues outside in the extensive sculpture garden with large and impressive oak tree groves.
We weren’t quite done with City Park yet! We wanted to see the Couterie Forest, which was about 30 minutes away on foot. The heat we experienced on this walk wore down these two West Coasters, no longer used to humidity. When we got to the forest, Connie took a nap on a picnic bench and I stood on a bridge looking for alligators for half an hour. (I saw none).
Hungry and hot, we got a ride back to the French Quarter, where I had one of my favorite meals of the trip at Nola Poboys. Connie got her long-awaited shrimp poboy and I got spicy fried okra and chicken gumbo. My stomach just growled thinking about this meal again.
We went back to the Airbnb for a short break and refresh, where I actively resisted eating my okra leftovers. I had to resist because we had reservations at Cane & Table in short order. We ate on the outdoor patio, which was enclosed by neighboring buildings, decorated with large plants and soft lights. Another restaurant winning at ambiance.
Because vacation is about packing your days to the fullest, we booked a French Quarter Ghost Tour with New Orleans Ghost Adventures Tours. We wanted a tour with some history and at 8 pm, the only tours available are the haunted kinds. We got a bit of the history we were looking for - we saw the site of the Louisiana Purchase transfer, learned that the highest point of New Orleans is only ~6’ above sea level, and also learned a lot of scary things too.
As we walked back to our place at 10 pm, I couldn’t stop thinking about and looking out for, vampires.
Day 5 - Monday
This was it, the big finale. After our dreams of fried chicken were squashed on day 1, we planned to revisit Willie Mae’s on our last day.
As we stood outside the restaurant, I exclaimed, “I’m SO EXCITED!”, to which a fellow customer replied, “ME TOO!” We were all stoked and it did not disappoint. We got fried chicken, fried okra, red beans & rice, green beans, and cornbread. I had to be talked down from getting an order to take on the plane to bring home to my fam.
With our time nearing a close, we made 2 final stops recommended by our tour guide the previous night - Voodoo Authentica and Morning Call, which has arguably the best beignets in town.
Something worth mentioning
After a few days of roaming around and talking to folks, we learned that the neighborhood we were staying in - Tremé - is America’s oldest Black neighborhood. By the time we realized this, we had run out of time to properly experience it.
I wish I could be writing right now about things we learned from the culturally significant museums and places right around the corner from us. I know I definitely want to come back to New Orleans and dive into the deeply rich history here that deserves more time and a longer visit.
This late realization also made me question how to be a thoughtful and considerate tourist. Is it wrong to stay in an Airbnb if short-term rentals may be displacing long-time residents? Do I need to research the history of neighborhoods everywhere I go so that I can engage respectfully? Maybe to these questions and more.
I can’t say I won’t ever again be ignorant about the places I visit, but I do know that I will now always try to be more aware, to dedicate energy and time into learning about where I stay - before I elect to stay there, and while I am visiting.
Intersection near the place we stayed
New Orleans - you are beautiful and complex, and we’ll be back.
