I recently visited "The Big Easy". New Orleans was one of the most exciting and wild places I've had the pleasure of visiting. Along with the generous collection of beads I acquired, I also learned so much about the region's unique culture. I've created a New Orleans "cheat sheet" based on my experiences.
Best Museums: National
World War II Museum
Mardi Gras World
Best Hot Dogs: Dat
Dog (We’re talking a duck dog in plum sauce, an alligator dog, and crawfish
etouffee fries…yumm)
Dreamy Weenies (Their hand
dipped corn dogs are to die for)
Best Places to buy
art from local artists: Jackson Square
Frenchmen St. Art Market
Best Places for Jazz:
Preservation Hall (Prepaid bench tickets are worth it)
Irvin
Mayfield’s Jazz Playhouse (only cost is drinks) Snug Harbor Jazz Bistro (cute, cozy, café-like locale. The performers are hit and miss)
Best Traditional New
Orleans Faire: Mr. B’s: the BBQ Shrimp aren’t to be missed
The Little Gem Saloon: live music
most nights, pulled pork with fried green tomatoes, crawfish
cheesecake, ribs in a peach mustard
BBQ sauce, and brandied
mashed sweet potatoes.
Red Fish Grill: amazing crab cakes. Their signature red fish is
also excellent.
The Ruby Slipper: great for breakfast. Get the shrimp and grits!
Olde Nawlin’s Cookery: it has gumbo, jambalaya, bbq shrimp, red-fish, all the classics, and it’s all good!
Best Dessert:
Laura’s Candies: amazing pralines, made fresh daily. Pralines are available in
traditional, coconut, and rum flavors along with lots of other delicious
confections
such as Mississippi mud.
Mr. B’s: pecan pieThe New Orleans Cooking School: for pralines, best after a cooking demonstration
while
they’re still warm, melt-in-your-mouth goodness.
The Buttermilk Drop Bakery and Café: their name sake buttermilk drops
are dense,
moist, and worth every single calorie.
Café du Monde: Worth a visit just for the iconic location. Their
beignets can’t be topped, and I fell in love with the chicory coffee.
Olde Nawlin’s Cookery: they have a Banana Foster’s ice cream cake. Yes,
you read
that right!
Best of Drink:
Just about anywhere on Bourbon Street
NOLA Tropical Winery: sweet wines out of every
fruit imaginable such as blueberry, pear, banana, apricot, the list goes on! They also make “smoothies”
with their wines if you aren’t interested in purchasing a whole
bottle, or your looking for a drink to easily walk around with.
Jester’s: makes reasonably priced shots and daiquiris conveniently located on Bourbon
St.
Anywhere that serves coffee with Praline Liquor John Lafitte’s Black Smith Shop: one of the oldest bars in America. It was once
frequented by Pirates and never closed for Prohibition.
Irvin Mayfield’s Jazz Playhouse: has a nice
selection of drinks and cocktails (and non-
alcoholic mocktails) to sip on while you take in the jazz.
Best Parks: City
Park: beautiful Spanish moss covered oaks surrounding a pond with modern
sculpture art mixed into the foliage.
Louis
Armstrong Park: interesting history and beautiful sculptures.
Most common scam to avoid: If anyone approaches you and asks you
this question, “If I can tell you the city and state where you got your shoes,
will you tell me if I’m correct?” You’re about to be conned unless you play the
next few moments correct. This person is a shoe shiner who will pour shoe lotion
on your shoes and will then ask for $20 to rub it off. The correct answer to
the question posed above is, ”I got my shoes on the bottom of my feet right here
on Bourbon St. in New Orleans, Louisiana.” The cunning shoe shiner uses this
rhyme to distract you while he douses your feet in goo. You could attempt to
outsmart him by saying his rhyme, but it’s probably safer not to engage.