What are your favorite haunts in New Orleans?

[2bfree]

We are going next week! I would love to know what your favorite places to go, things to see and of course restaurants. It will be my husband, 19 year old son and myself. My son is interested in history and we love mid-priced regional cuisine. We will go to a few bars and would like to hear some good blues and jazz. Can my 19 year old go to the bars and drink? Thanks all!

[Tandalayo_Scheisskopf]

1. Well, back in my drinking and haunting days...

When I was in N.O., just about the only place you could find me was The Old Absinthe House. One of the great watering holes on the planet.

After 1:00am, of course you could find me at The Dungeon. ;-)

[TNDemo]

2. You hot mama, you.

I know your type! I am gonna tell my daughter to draw the blinds and lock her door next week!

[Mabus]

3. There was this place

near Canal Street called something like Star Diner. It was moderately priced and I later learned from the owners of the B&B we were staying at that it was a local favorite. Their remoulade sauce was our favorite (and we tried a LOT of them). It's near the Lounge Lizard.

My husband and I are JFK assassination buffs so we had to find the places where Oswald roamed. We ended up going to a used bookstore and getting some JFK assassination books and hunting down the addresses. A federal court house sits on the site of Oswald's old office. Anyway, on the way back towards the B&B we went into one of the ghost tour shops. We ended up talking to one of the guys there who told us some old New Orleans gossip concerning David Ferrie, Clay Shaw and the local mafia. This particular shop is also near Canal Street.

If you eat at one place in New Orleans, go to Brennan's. It is a great restaurant and it does cost some bucks. It was over a hundred a piece for breakfast but it was worth it. The restaurant is located in the former home of chess great Paul Morphy. The Morphy's lived across the street from the court house since the elder Morphy was a judge.

If any of you are into the MTV's "Real World" one of the houses they used is in New Orleans. My brother's girlfriend insisted we had to go by there.

There's also the voodoo cemetery.

[2bfree]

4. Anybody????

:(

[TNDemo]

5. I already told you my recommendations.

Do they have the ghost tours in NO? I took a ghost walking tour in Charleston and it was a lot of fun.

[2bfree]

6. The ghost tour is on the list for sure!

I wrote down your suggestions to take with us.

[Blue in a Red State]

7. If you're into plantations,

Oak Alley is pretty neat. Oaks are damn impressive. Be sure to have a beignet and cafe au lait at the Cafe du Monde, too.

[RetroLounge]

8. It's been a long time since I was there but...

Breakfast at Brennans, great, but $$$$.

Beignets at Cafe Du Monde.

Tour the Cemetary.

Take the streetcar into the garden district.

RL

[DemBones DemBones]

9. Lots of history in New Orleans, much of it in

the French Quarter. I've been there many times, in all sorts of weather, and please know that if it's cold and rainy next week, you are still fortunate not to be there in August!

Cafe du Monde, in the Old French Market, across from Jackson Square, is a place you must visit for the beignets and cafe au lait. To get a seat at one of the outdoor tables, don't be shy, walk around the perimeter and locate some tables where people look almost ready to leave and move in quickly when they do. Most mornings, there will be sidewalk entertainers playing music, making balloon animals, etc., to entertain people at Cafe du Monde. A great way to start your morning!

Get your pralines a couple of doors down from the Cafe du Monde (they're excellent!) but avoid the restaurants built onto the other end of the Market in recent years. There's an old, old restaurant -- I think the oldest in the Quarter -- across the street from the Market. The food is very good but I'm blanking on the name.

Not knowing anyone there to show you around, you should get a good guide book to help you find the historic sites, and/or take a tour or two. Definitely take a cemetery tour if you want to visit the old cemeteries. There has always been a lot of crime in New Orleans, so keep your eyes open and stay safe.

[hyphenate]

10. The Audobon Zoo

is one of the best zoos in the country. They have major programs to keeping many animals alive and breeding, and the zoological park itself is beautiful.

If you don't go to Jackson Brewery, you will be cheating yourself out of a fun experience. Remember back some years, probably ten or so, there was an accident in NO where a boat crashed into a building? That was Jackson Brewery. Jackson Square is right outside of it, which is a nice picture taking area. Just walk through the French Quarter after dark, and you will see a very high energy place.

I haven't been there since '89, but it was definitely interesting. You should also call or go to the website for the New Orleans Tourist Bureau, and they can give you brochures on some of the more popular places, and maybe even discount tickets for some of the attractions.

[Blue in a Red State]

11. Great zoo

And a great streetcar destination.

[ldf]

15. ship crashed into

the Riverwalk Mall, at the bottom of Canal Street.

[hyphenate]

16. Thank you!

I was trying to verify my memory and couldn't for the life of me remember that. Thanks. :)

[mr_hat]

12. Gautreaux. Uptown, out of the quarter

perfect blend of sophistication and Southern comfort.

[SlackJawedYokel]

13. A short list...

Breakfast
Begnaits and chicory coffee in the French Quarter.
Cafe' Du Monde
1039 Decatur Street

Corner Oyster Bar and Grill
Raw oysters.

Check out the street performers, but don't take the bet from the kids about your shoes.

Find the serious leather and sex toy shop just off Jackson Square not far from the St. Louis Cathedral.(may have closed/moved... it's been a while)
Oh, and check out the St. Louis Cathedral.

Lunch:
For the Po'Boys and SnoBalls.
Try the sloppy roast beef and the fried oyster.
Weaver's
800 Navarre Ave.
New Orleans, LA 70124
504-488-9267

For the Po'Boys
Parkway Bakery & Tavern
538 Hagan Ave
New Orleans, LA 70119
504-482-3047

For the muffalettas.
LUIGI'S
915 Decatur St. 529-4975

For the shrimp Creole omelettes.
MOTHER'S
401 Poydras St. 523-9656

For the pizza.
Louisiana Pizza Kitchen
95 French Market Pl
Near French Market.a

If there is a decent band playing, Tipitinas.
http://www.tipitinas.com/default.asp

My personal favorite... a loaf of fresh french bread, a wheel of brie/camembert and a bottle of white wine on the levee watching the Mississippi roll on by.

Ride the streetcars.
Take a carriage ride.
Ride the Steamboat Natchez.
Play the slots at Harrah's.

Louis Armstrong Park.(but not at night)

Jazz music:
Preservation Hall
Palm Court
Club Can-Can
Fritzel's Jazz Pub

Other food to eat:
Boudin(best if sandwiched between two pieces of white bread)
Gumbo(seafood if you're rich, okra, chicken and sausage if you ain't)
Crawfish Etouffee'
Boiled crawfish (if you can get 'em)
Dirty rice
Jambalaya (with Abita beer)
Pralines
Bread pudding
Abita beer

If you're not full to exploding when you leave, you didn't do it right.
:D

Good luck

Cletus

[2bfree]

14. Thanks!

I have cut and pasted your post to bring with us. :)

[SlackJawedYokel]

20. Addendum.

Dad said his favorite mmuffalettas shop is the Central Grocery( 923 Decatur Street @ Dumaine Street).

Cletus

[ChavezSpeakstheTruth]

17. The Lion's Den

http://mq-mapgend.websys.aol.com:80/mqmapgend?MQMapGenRequest=FDR2dmwjDE%3byt29%26FDJnci4Jkqj%2cMMCJ%3aHOEvq%3b01wg6b%3a%29f72h6y%3a%26%40%24%3a%26%40y%3aqyb%3al4b%3aTD%15JFE%3aHOHQJ%3b01wg6b%3a%29f72h6y%3a%26%40%24%3a%26%40%24x9%40

[warrens]

18. My favorite places

Molly's on Toulouse and Bourbon for drinking. Particularly Sundays, when they have cheap bloodies with celery and pickled okra.

Mother's. The best gumbo in town, full of oysters and crab. Expensive and worth every penny. They even have a website now.

The Gumbo Shop. I forget what street but near the Toulouse/Bourbon intersection.

The zoo. And go to the swamp exhibit. They have a snack shop with fresh boudin (liver sausage...looks and sounds horrible, tastes great) and jambalaya that is REALLY good. On weekends, they often have music there too.

KPaul's. Supposed tourist trap, but great food at reasonable prices. Not cheap, but reasonable.

And I think the drinking age is 21, but he can go into bars, I think.

[SlackJawedYokel]

19. Ha!

And I think the drinking age is 21, but he can go into bars, I think.
*Only* because they don't want to lose their Federal road money!

He can go in, definitely.
If he's with his parents he can drink, too.
Just don't anyone drive aftewards.
(I seem to recall some law about kids being allowed to drink so long as they were in their own home, with their parents... but don't quote me)

I worked in a convenience store there when La. passed the law that said it was legal to *buy* alcohol at 18, but not legal to *consume* it until you were 21!

Cletus

[amazona]

23. bar loophole was closed

There was a law that 18 year olds could drink if live music was played. The loophole has been closed, at least in my parish, and I suppose Orleans as well since they said it was due to the feds finding out that teens were still drinking.

In theory if anyone, including parents, serves alcohol to teens they can now be charged with contributing to the delinquency of a minor. The cops came out to a private home in my neighborhood where a teen was drinking.

[proud2BlibKansan]

21. Cafe du Monde is a must

restaurants:

Bubba Gumps

Mulattes

Landry's

Margaritaville


for good music:

House of Blues

Tipitina's

[Moloch]

22. Your 19 year old son can't drink...

Unfortunately, a couple of years ago the federal government threatened to take away Louisiana's highway funds if we didn't raise the drinking age to 21.

[AccessGranted]

24. I love New Orleans

It's fun to wander in and out of the bars and shops and mingle in the streets. My fiance and I went there during a time when it wasn't Mardi Gras, but I still had fun. Heard some great jazz and zydecko. Stayed at a gorgeous bed and breakfast in the Garden District. I think it was called Avenue Bed and Breakfast. I went to a restaurant called The Red Snapper, I think. I had Turtle Soup and Alligator Sausage....eeewww and Blackened Salmon or something like that. Whatever it was it was good. I went on the Riverboat twice while I was there. I think it's called the Naches. That was great. I took a ride through the French Quarter in a horse drawn carriage at midnight. I rode on the trolley several times, which was fun. I went to Bubba Gumps Restaurant, which is not too far from the French Quarter. That was really good. A lot of the voodoo and occult shops were fun. A really good one was called Rob's Voodoo Shop or something like that. I went to Ann Rice's beautiful home in the French Quarter and took some dirt out of her front yard. I still have it. I think she has since sold that home and moved elsewhere. New Orleans is a great place. The people are very pleasant. It has a nice vibe. If you're friendly and open, you'll meet some extremely interesting characters.

[Swamp Rat]

25. Make sure you tip the street musicians.

;)

Good suggestions on this thread, but few of the best places were mentioned. That's a secret you must come discover for yourself! Happy hunting! :D

OK, one clue: Go to Donna's Bar and Grill on Thursday night for Tom McDermott's show.