Sometimes people tell me they can’t get enough time off work or that a weekend isn’t long enough to take a vacation somewhere. Well, I can prove both of those points wrong! And I have many times. I had the opportunity to take a trip to meet up with my friend, Sydney, in New Orleans for 48 hours at the beginning of April. She was there from Atlanta for a few days presenting at the AOTA conference with two of her classmates from her graduate program. I didn’t have to take any time off from work and flew in late on a Friday night and back to Tampa Sunday evening. In between we saw a lot, ate a lot, and best of all I got to hang out with one of my best friends that I rarely get to see!
I got to our hotel around midnight Friday but the city was still very much alive so we decided to paint the town! We ended up grabbing drinks on the infamous Bourbon Street until 4am that night. I usually can NEVER stay up that late, especially while drinking, but there is so much to see on Bourbon street that it is almost impossible to get bored or tired. We got ourselves some Huge Ass Beers (literally), threw some mardi gras beads from a balcony, line danced at Boot Scootin’ Rodeo, and finished the night with a few slices of pizza by the slice.
The next morning we rolled out of bed after 9am, which is late by my usual standards but considering the festivities of the night before, I was pretty pleased. We tried to go to the The Ruby Slipper for brunch but there was over an hour wait and we were starving. I had been there once before on a trip to NOLA and had one of the best breakfast sandwiches of my life! It’s one of the most popular spots in the French Quarter and not the slightest bit overrated. Instead, we opted for one of the many restaurants on the strip where Syd and I split a duck confit entree with a shrimp cream sauce and a side of collard greens. I convinced her to try duck for the first time and it was a success!
Afterwards, Syd’s friends had to make their way to the airport so we went back to the oyster bar at our hotel, TackleBox. We met up there with Syd’s parents, who were in town for the conference, to try some raw oysters before her friends hit the road. I think Syd’s dad and I were the only ones who had tried oysters before and I wasn’t a big fan of raw ones in the past. The oysters at TackleBox were a different story; they were so tender that they just fell apart in my mouth without even having to chew. These were by far the best oyster’s I have had and TackleBox is definitely on my list of go-to restaurants for my next trip to NOLA. Washed it all down with a Bloody Mary, of course.
We spent the rest of the day walking the city, stopping at bars along the way for a drink and an appetizer to share. There was a ton of art on display in Jackson’s Square and after we walked browsed through it all, we stopped to watch some street performers that had drawn in a pretty big crowd. It’s one of those things that’s a little corny but actually pretty fun to watch if you take the time to stop.
We also walked through the French Market, the home of the original Cafe du Monde location, and were impressed by how many shops and foodie stops there were! We didn’t stop for beignets at Cafe du Monde, but I made it a point to go during my first trip to NOLA, as it has been coined one of the most popular attractions in the city. Instead, we stopped at one of the stands inside and got some amazing Pina Colada’s! I think I liked them so much because you could actually taste the rum and it didn’t feel like I was just downing a cup of frozen sugar.
We decided to stop for dinner at Deanie’s, which had been recommended to Syd’s parents and seemed like a somewhat unlikely stop. Picture a throwback diner-style atmosphere with server’s in slacks, a button down shirt, and a tie. Don’t let the diner atmosphere fool you – they are known for their incredible seafood offerings and for good reason! Since none of us could decide on our own entree’s for fear of risking food envy, we opted for getting a few starters and entrees to share. We landed on the Shrimp & Crab Dip, Barbeque Peel & Eat Shrimp, Crabmeat Au Gratin, and their Stuffed Flounder Special of the day. Everything was SO good and I wish I could remember all the ingredients stuffed inside the flounder because it was one of the best meals of my entire life! It was like a heavenly, creamy crab cake stuffing rich with flavor. Instead of bringing dinner rolls before the meal they brought out crawfish boil potatoes that were super good! I think we even had to ask for a second order. Unfortunately, I didn’t get any pictures of our meal at Deanie’s (because I was too busy devouring it), but trust me it is a must if you are visiting New Orleans!
After dinner, Syd’s parents called it a night and we ventured back out to Bourbon Street for our last night of people watching. We had one or two beers but they really weren’t necessary after our long day of eating and drinking our way through the city. We witnessed an entire wedding party accompanied by their guests walk down the middle of the street with a police escort. It was cool to see a sea of people crowding the streets part to cheer on the newlyweds in this wild scene.
The next morning we woke up early and grabbed breakfast sandwich’s at Merchant near our hotel. I obviously got the Loxsmith. It seems that lox for breakfast is slowly becoming my go-to on vacation; it’s just not every day you get smoked salmon! We walked down Canal Street and browsed some vintage shops nearby before finding our way to Armstrong Park. There isn’t a ton to see in the park, but it’s nice to get away from the crowds for a few minutes and walk the bridge over the pond.
We stopped for a beer at Lafitte’s Blacksmith Shop, which was built in 1722 and is supposedly the oldest structure in the U.S. to be used as a bar. It has an authentic and grungey feel to it. We also made it a point to check out the Carousel Bar since Syd hadn’t seen it before, but we just took a few pictures and left. I went there on my last trip to NOLA and didn’t get a drink there that time either. It’s a pretty cool concept but a bit overrated in my opinion. The carousel turns sooo slow that you can hardly tell it is moving. It’s still a carousel in a bar though, so I guess that’s pretty cool!
We had spent the day before talking about finding a rooftop bar and surprisingly, there aren’t a ton of reputable ones in the city. We walked several blocks from the French Quarter and settled on Monkey Board. They had a decent beer selection but were pretty dead when we got there. It was still cool to look out over the city and catch up in a bit quieter of a setting.
For our last stop before heading to the airport, we enjoyed one final, incredible and indulgent, meal of the trip. I can’t remember the name of the restaurant we stopped at, but I ordered the cajun seafood pasta and we split an oyster sampler that was noteworthy! We split the sampler between one order of raw oysters and two kinds of baked oysters; spinach/artichoke and cajun.
NOLA isn’t the city I would recommend if you are minding a diet. Most of the meals are greasy, creamy, and heavy – but all around delicious and good for the soul!
Fun Fact: My first time in NOLA was in 2015 when I went with four friends for college spring break. We went for five days/nights! We had a blast on that trip but I think 48 hours is a perfect amount of time in this city for me anymore 🙂
April 2019
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