pterostyrax

Where should you stop for what - food, lodging, sightseeing, etc?

One important thing to keep in mind is that paying with cash eliminates the possibility of someone swiping your credit card number. This scam was cleverly portrayed on the Sopranos, and I have been a victim of it. What I wish is that more restaurants would observe the practice of conducting the transaction at tableside - really no excuse not to do otherwise. I have been going round and round with American Express for the last three months precisely because of someone using our credit card to the tune of around $15,000. I am thinking long and hard about instituting a cash only policy for restaurant dining.

Yes, we have eaten there since Chef Sonnier took over. It is just not the same as it was BK. I also have tried the lamb chops and they were just about inedible. Our first times back to New Oleans were in November and then again in February right after Katrina and I cannot say enough nice things about the New Orleans Grill and all of the staff at the Windsor Court during that trying time. That said, my wife has had several entrees under Chef Sonnier's current reign that she liked, but there are other restaurants that, in my opinion, are much better options now. One nice additional change at the Windsor Court for the better is that they now have a Club level that was converted over from one of the Penthouse Suites offering a nice array of breakfast items, soft drinks and cookies during the day, and drinks and appetizers after 5 PM. The club level is more expensive, but we are always upgraded as another benefit from our American Express card, so it does not cost us additional. And, yes, congratulations are in order all around for Scott. John Besh has gotten a lot of press for what he accomplished right after Katrina. I think Scott deserves at least every bit if not more credit for what he did post-Katrina as well. Unfortunately, I haven't seen it, but I don't live there so I may not be aware of the praise he so rightfully deserves. Have you tried his Japanese squash soup yet? The only item of food I have had in New Orleans that was any better are the charbroiled oysters at Dragos, and it is a tossup between the two as to which I would eat on a day to day basis. If you haven't tried it, run, don't walk, to give it a try if it is still on the menu. If memory serves me correctly, I think this was originally prepared for one of the James Beard dinners when Scott was invited to cook for the participants and was very well received there as well.

I have eaten at the New Orleans Grill at least 10 times in the last year and would not recommend it. The reason why we have eaten there so much is that we get a free lunch and free dinner from our American Express card amenities. It is worth if for free. I cannot recommend Stella! enough. We were there a couple of weeks ago the day after the chef/owner had gotten married. Needless to say, all the waitstaff were incredibly hung over, but we never noticed even the slightest bump in the road in service during the meal. The squash soup is some of the finest food I have ever put in my mouth. The wine prices are very reasonable.

Steve has nailed Scott's cuisine dead on. Everything he prepares, to put it quite succinctly, is a joy to eat. For the last couple of years my wife and I have been on fine dining experiences in San Francisco, New Orleans, New York, Paris, London, Barcelona, San Sebastion, and Prague to name just a few cities. We have had comparable fare at Les Ambassadeurs in Paris, Ramiro's in San Juan, Campton Place in San Francisco (before the change of chefs), La Reve in San Antonio, and Restaurant August in New Orleans, but nothing that really surpasses any of the many meals we have enjoyed at Stella! (the two meals we had at Ramiro's may have been better, but at this stage of the game it is hard to decide if anything is "better", just different). In addition, the wine list is the most reasonably priced wine list I have ever seen. For example, when we were there a month ago, Stella! had the 2003 Quilceda Creek cabernet sauvignon for $195 - a whopping 45$ more than the Vieux Carre wine store was selling it for and $50 less than the best price you can find on the internet using wine searcher. For comparison, Cuvee, where we also ate at, had it for $250, which is still reasonably priced, but not nearly as reasonable (dare I say cheap) as at Stella!. Scott is a class act all the way around, particularly when you take into account what he has done since Katrina. I cannot recommend his restaurant highly enough.

:wacko: :biggrin: One of the best laughs I have had in a long, long, long time. FYI, eight of us will be spending February 17-19 at the Windsor Court and spending money at the New Orleans Grill, Drago's, GW Fins, Stanley, etc. in support of New Orleans.

My mother's were the best I have ever had - rolled dumplings (is there really any other kind?) with the key ingredient being chicken fat cooled down from the boiled chicken stock that was cut into the dough. No other seasonings except salt that resulted in, quite simply, the quintessence of chicken. When done correctly, one bite of one of these ethereal dumplings conjures up the image of a "chicken cloud". From my earliest memories, this was always my birthday meal.

I will point out that most people who live in Texas for any length of time, from thereon generally refer to themselves as a Texan - deservedly so.

The website for Stella! has announced that it plans on reopening sometime in December. This is great news! Scott Boswell has been at the forefront of the efforts to show that, never fear, the New Orleans food scene will rise out of the ashes. He also announced that the Iron Chef French with Chef Hiroyuki Sakai dinner is still on for this coming March. This is also great news! We attended the first one last January with Iron Chef Masa Kobe, and it was one of our most memorable food experiences ever. We will be there for the next one as well.

That and a fondness for bacon. ← How true....how true.....

They show a whole lot worse from the pantheon of animal slaughter on the Discovery channel every day. I am always amazed that when any species other than man is involved in the slaughter of an animal, the folks that decry the "brutality of mankind" instead see the "beauty of nature". After 56 years, I have come to the conclusion that what separates mankind from the rest of the animal kingdom is an incredible capacity for self loathing.

Except that the Port dominates the tourism industry in New Orleans in terms of impacts on the economy. This is where most of the effort to get New Orleans back on track should be focused. Luckily, the port is on high ground and was not directly impacted by the flooding.

As far as I'm concerned, you have to eat at fine dining establishments in order to determine what fine dining is all about. To this end, go no further than La Reve in San Antonio. My wife and I have been on a fine dining exploration for the past 15 years of NYC, New Orleans, Chicago, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Portland, Seattle, Vancouver, London, Paris, Singapore, Sydney, Tokyo, etc. Nowhere have we experienced a better fine dining experience than at La Reve......by a wide margin.

Yes - expensive, but worth every penny. Be advised, these are hard reservations to snag.

Truer words have never been spoken!!!!! Try Croissant D'Or and/or Camellia Grill for breakfast and/or lunch. GW Fins for dinner if you feel like seafood. I can also promise that dinner at Stella! will be a memorable dining experience (my wife and I will be celebrating our 10th wedding anniversary there at the end of this month). The best food deal in NOLA is the two for one dinner entre offer at Louis XVI. Do a google search for "New Orleans Coupons" where you can download the 2 for 1 coupon. Commander's Palace is NOT overrated at all. It is a quintessential NOLA dining experience. I have been eating there for over 35 years and have NEVER been disappointed - some meals have just been more memorable than others. Second the skipping of Bombay Club for dinner, but go there for pre-dinner drinks.

Also check out Croissant D'or at 617 Ursiline. Great sandwiches and pastries.

Round tomato sandwiches have been a staple appetizer in the Vicksburg party circuit for decades upon decades. Like most great southern food, they are amazingly simple, yet amazingly good. Just a slice of garden ripe tomato on round cutouts from white bread spread with homemade mayonnaise and sprinkled with fresh ground pepper. My question is, does anyone make them outside of Vicksburg?

If you just absolutely have to have a hurricane, Pat O'Briens is the place to get them, but only in the evening when the older than old waiter does his thimble finger tapping routine on his serving tray (He may no longer be there - it's been a LONG time since I went to Pat O'Briens - once you go you will know why). In terms of restaurants to visit, the Perleaux's have provided a lot of informative descriptions and photos of some great places to eat/slurp. Here is what I would recommend: Drago's - nothing else in the world like their charbroiled oysters; although only having been around for a relatively short time (for New Orleans), the charbroiled oysters are quintessential New Orleans food. Oh, by the way, did I mention that there is nothing else in the world like them. The gumbo ranks with the best, and the stuffed lobster or whole lobster are unbelievable values. Stella! - Scott Boswell is, in my opinion, the most creative, up-and-coming chef in New Orleans, and his concoctions have more of a New Orleans feel to them compared to Bayona or August. His restaurant is located in a beautiful, charming area of the French Quarter on Chartres Street - this is Old World New Orleans ambiance at its finest and most elegant. My wife and I will celebrate our 10th Wedding Anniversary there on July 29th. However, you cannot go wrong with Commander's Palace either and it's ambiance within the Garden District. If you are looking for a place to stay, the Soniat House is located a block away from Stella! and deserves its reputation as one of the fine old hotels in New Orleans (try and book rooms 60 or 64, but they won't be cheap). The Hotel Provincial is where Stella! is located, and is another charming old world style hotel with a number of rooms that will give you a New Orleans feel. Croissant D'Or - a short distance from Stella! on Ursiline Street - without a doubt the best pastries in the French Quarter if not all of New Orleans; a local hangout that also has some great croissant sandwiches for lunch as well as coffee in all its incarnations. If you want a quite place to drink coffee, eat pastries, and read your morning newspaper, there is no better place with a New Orleans ambiance to do it at. Additionally, 95% of your fellow diners will be French Quarter locals. Camellia Grill - located at the end of St. Charles Avenue, this classic diner has been around since 1946 and has a cult following of university students, locals, and frequent travelers to the city - deservedly so as you won't find a better breakfast if you like omelets or waffles. The burgers for lunch will take you back to the 50's when everything just seemed to taste better. Order a chocolate freeze to wash down the burger with and finish lunch off with a chocolate pecan pie - you will walk out thinking God is in his heaven and all is right with the world. Central Grocery - as a cook, you just have to go and look around the store, but they do have the best mufulettas in New Orleans. Additionally, you should try one of the stuffed artichokes which I think are even better than the mufulettas. You also need to stroll down Decatur from Jackson square and take in the artists/musicians/performers/assorted wierdos. There are actually some great artists (although not many) showing their wares there - in particular, Michael Smeraldo. You can take home a really great work of jazz watercolor art by him for less than $100. Napoleon House on Chartres makes another great, but different version (it's heated) of muffuleta. Try a Pimm's Cup drink here while waiting for the muffuleta - much, much better than a Hurricane and will actually help quench your thirst. Mother's - stroll along Decatur in the French Quarter across Canal Street towards Poydras and then walk along Tchoupitoulas Street going past Restaurant August, the Windsor Court Hotel, and the W Hotel and you will typically find a long line extending out the door of Mother's - another quintessential New Orleans eatery famous for its breakfast, po' boys, and blue plate specials. You could easily make a week long exploration of the various dishes served here. Last time we were there, the employees were almost exclusively eating the greens, high recommendation indeed. This is "southern/soul /whatever else you want to throw in the mix" food at some of its finest. Upperline - for a different take on standard creole fare, located a few blocks off St. Charles Avenue in the Garden District, is one of the more interesting restaurants in New Orleans. Proprietor JoAnn Clevenger will greet you at the front door when arriving and escort you out when leaving. The restaurant doubles as a local art gallery, and the food fits right into this artistic setting. The restaurant is famous for its fried green tomatoes with shrimp remoulade. I also love the New Orleans style veal grillades with mushrooms, peppers, and cheddar grits. Both of these exemplify the way food is treated here - tradition, but with quite a few unexpected twists. Finally, I highly recommend GW Fins on Bienville Street in the French Quarter. For my money, I have never eaten at a better seafood restaurant anywhere in the world, AND, get this, they are offering FRESH - not frozen - Alaskan King Crab from July 6th through July 31st. I can just about promise you that you will never have another chance south of Alaska to have never before frozen Alaskan King Crab. Another signature seafood is Gulf Coast Stone Crab claws, which I have never seen offered anywhere else before. This is a different species than the one found and commonly offered in Florida. The seafood is the freshest of the freshest, and the tables are separated far enough from each other that you can actually carry on a conversation.

In a similar vein, I have made them at home with both parmigiano-reggiano and Stilton Bleu cheese. I can't decide which is better. Currently I am favoring the Stilton.

Truer words have NEVER been spoken! I will go even further in my praise - they are the single best food I have ever put in my mouth - everything else is a distant second. I had tried in vain to get my wife to eat oysters for 15 years. We were heading towards NOLA on a trip to Ochsner's and my wife read a glowing review on Drago's in Southern Living. We went in (this was before the recently completed remodeling), I ordered a dozen of those delectable denizens of the deep, told my wife she had to at least try one (never figured she would, but I had to try), she tried one, and promptly told me it was one of the best things she had ever eaten. Again, this was after 15 years of telling me that that there oyster I was trying to get her to eat was never gonna pass between those two lips of hers that I had come to love. She now tries other oyster recipes including the gumbo at Drago's that we had this past weekend. She ordered a half dozen of the charbroiled oysters as well. We both raised a glass to her mother, who had to be smiling down on her daughter. Her mother was an oyster lover. One's first taste of them is, to put it succinctly, a religious experience. For others information, they also serve a 1.5 lb Maine lobster for $15.95. Yep. That's right - $15.95. Their stuffed half lobster is also an amazing deal.

FYI, according to the Zagat survey based on food, decor, and service, the only New Orleans restaurants with a higher total score than Louis XVI are Upperline, Bayona, Peristyle, August, Commander's Palace, and New Orleans Grill (lowest to highest score). That is some pretty rarified company for fine eating in New Orleans. To get a dinner for two for the cost of one using the coupon seems like a no-brainer to me, unless you just don't enjoy French cuisine. I am always at a loss as to why no one ever mentions Louis XVI on other travel, food, and wine forums when the "where should I eat in New Orleans" question is asked. Also, if you enjoy wine with dinner, go to the Vieux Carre winestore on Chartres street (next to K-Paul's), buy some good wine there, and then take the wine with you to your restaurants. Corkage is generally a very reasonable $20/bottle for most of the better restaurants. You can save a LOT of money this way, but call ahead and make sure that they have a corkage fee just to be certain.

Here are my recommendations. The Cafe Du Monde is a must, particularly since your husband has not been to New Orleans before. For Friday dinner, make a reservation at Stella!, currently our favorite place to dine in New Orleans, and we've eaten at all of them many times over. For Saturday breakfast, walk down Chartres street to Ursiline, cross over to the other side of Ursiline and take a left. About 1/4 of the way up the block you will come to a charming, out of the mainstream eatery called Croissant D'or that serves the best pastries in the French Quarter along with some very good coffee. An alternative is to take the St. Charles trolley all the way to the end of St. Charles and have breakfast at the Camellia Grill. You can't go wrong there either. If you really want to go to Mother's (and it is a good place to eat), I would suggest doing it for Saturday lunch. It is their best meal of the day. As an alternative and one in which I would recommend even more highly, I would take a car if you are renting or a cab if not to Drago's off North Causeway Boulevard and get the chargrilled oysters for an appetizer and then the stuffed lobster or whole lobster (unbelievably cheap at $15.95 for a whole one). I had been trying to get my wife to eat oysters for 15 years to no avail. I got her to try one and she will now readily admit that it is the best single bite of food she has ever put in her mouth and now orders a dozen every time we go to New Orleans. We ALWAYS eat lunch at Drago's at least once when we are in New Orleans. The charbroiled oysters are a religious experience, and that is not an overstatement. For Saturday dinner, I recommend Louis XVI. This is a really great restaurant that doesn't get much press. Even better, it has a coupon for buy one entree and get the second one for free, and we are talking about some seriously good entrees here. You can save some money for the other eateries here. The coupons can be obtained online at New Orleans coupons. You can also do a google search using "New Orleans coupons" to find other good deals such as a free drink at Margaritaville. For Sunday brunch, see if you can snag a reservation at Commander's Palace and take the streetcar and then walk the few blocks to the restaurant. If you can't get reservations at a decent time (they can be VERY hard to get), try the brunch at the restaurant at the Mason Dupuy hotel - one of our favorites in the French Quarter. A final alternative is the Sunday brunch at the Court of the Two Sisters - very touristy, but the food is decent and sitting in the patio area provides you with a quintessential New Orleans ambience. Mufalettas at Central Grocery is the perfect way to extend your New Orleans trip on the plane on the way back. If you want to shop, take a taxi to Magazine street. There are literally hundreds of interesting shops over many blocks. For a more touristy experience, Riverwalk and the Jackson Brewery have a lot of shops as well. As far as cultural experiences, the D Day museum is a must see. The aquarium is also a fairly interesting experience. However, my best suggestion would be to take a half day tour of the plantations on River Road - absolutely fascinating. We finally did this last year after 40 years of going to New Orleans. I can't believe we waited this long. Another possibility is one of the short tours of the Mississippi on one of the steamboats. Touristy, but interesting nevertheless.

I have Folse's book and it is indeed one of the best, but there is just something about Terry's book that is extra special to me. Have you tried any of her recipes? There aren't a lot, but each one is just simply a masterpiece. Next time you're through here, PM me and we can meet at Walnut Hills and eat at the roundtable - honest to God southern food at its purest, overcooked vegetables and all.

My mother cooked with the River Road cookbook almost 50 years ago, so I am very familiar with Classic creole-cajun cookbooks, but the best Cajun-Creole cookbook out there is the original Cajun-Creole Cooking cookbook by Terry Thompson-Anderson. Don't take my word for it - read the reviews at Amazon. Unfortunately, the new edition is not nearly as good as the original one published over 25 years ago. If you can find it, the original book published by HP books is worth every effort to find. It is hands down the best cajun-creole cookbook ever published.