New Orleans 72hours

[Daniel]

We continued walking down the street torwards Clover Grill.. We sat at the counter and were really upset to hear that they no longer make Onion Rings.. We werent going to get anything much, just an order of rings.. But after hearing they didnt have any, our decision was made..

We walked into Herman's Jewelry Store where I bought Miss A's ring and Mr Herman was in there.. He is a real character.. He reminds me of Kevin Spacey in that movie.. Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil... We sat on these beautiful antique chairs and he told stories about New Orleans, gave restaurant suggestions (cafe de gaulle for dinner and Brocato's Italian Pastry Shop) and spoke about the Faulkner Society and various families around town..

We then walked to this place called Bottom Of The Barrell.. Its a great spot even for you locals to go and look for things.. Every Tuesday they get a shipment of Antiques.. This is when many of the local Antique Shops come in and buy for their own stores.. Because there prices are so cheap they are able to mark it up even after buying retail.. Got an awesome chandeler that was pretty and less expensive then things we had almost purchased in the past..

Next stop: Cochon (Part Deux)

First dish Eggplant with shrimp dressing:

Dish was excellent.. Whats not to love about this.. It was Miss A's Bday and she loves herself some eggplant.. She was really happy..

Fried Boudin with pickled pepper..

These things were ridiculously good.. I could eat this all day.. Perfectly cooked... Rice and pork and spices.. Oh baby..

Pickled pork tongue salad..The menu says that the pork tongue is to be served with grilled beets.. However, they had picked up these wonderful heirloom tomatoes that day.. First good tomato since last summer.. Really nice combo..

Pork cheeks with cornbread bean cake & mustard cream.. These cheeks were also fried.. With wonderful silky meat inside.. The best pork cheek dish I have ever had.. Bean cake was such a great side..

This was hot sausage with grits, peppper, and creole cream.. This was really nice. The sausages are made in house as most of the things are.. I went home with close to 6 pounds of this. They were nice enough to sell me..

When we had come here the first night, we had seen in the couple hours we ate, maybe 20 or thirty orders of this dish come flying out.. A perfectly cooked filet of redfish.. I was surprised to see the left the scales on the fish purposely..It was heavily salted so this was another indication not to eat the skin.. But the flesh was wonderful.. One of the better fish I have had in a long time..

Louisianna Cochon with turnips, cracklin, and cabbage..

I am starving just looking at this.. This was wonderfully cooked pork.. It was fall apart and wonderfully rich and flavorful.. They then shape and fried the ball.. As you hit into it, it falls apart.. Outstanding!

After dinner, Miss A's bday dinner, one of the chefs, Bill came out from behind with a few shots of moonshine.. He was super nice and super cool.. He offered to show us around a little bit and to stay and drink awhile with the staff..

He took us in the back and showed us the meat on top of allowing us to buy some to take with us.. Some aging..

We left with a whole one of these guys.. These is cajun smoked pork loin..Tasso

I could go on showing you various shots of meat but, you get the pictured.. Though I was very impressed the first night we went, the things we ate the second night were over the top good.. If you go, get the Pork Cheeks, get the Cochon, get that fish.. Everything else is really, really good but, those things were spectacular.. Some of the better pork dishes I have ever had.. Really special.. This restaurant really captures the local energy.. I am really so greatful to Bill and the rest of the staff there.. This will be our first stop when we return..

Miss NO, last night I cooked up some of the sausages Bill gave me..

Edited June 17, 2008 by Daniel (log)

[Timh]

Great report, and my ass got bigger just looking at the photos. Donald link is the man fo sho.

When I was cooking in Houma, we would leave the scales on the grilled redfish, grilling only on the scale side,tented with foil, sliding a spatula between the skin and flesh to remove. It made for a moister fish.

Edited June 18, 2008 by Timh (log)

[Daniel]

Ok, so here we are on the last day... Woke up to a rain storm around 8 am... It was great.. Rain pouring down, lightening right outside our window, nothing to do but lay in bed and fall back asleep.... We woke around 11 am put our bags with the bell desk..

Next stop thanks to your suggestions:

Time to start getting ready to be an upstanding citizen..

Ice cold it was a beautiful thing.. I didnt know they had soda out here..

Since it was father's day, Miss A's dad requested she eat an Oyster Po' Boy for him.. And what a beautiful one it was..

Beautiful little nuggets of perfectly fried oysters bursting with the juicy sea..

My sandwich was not as elegant.. I went with the 24 Hour cooked roast beef po'boy with pepper jack cheese, fried shrimp, gravy, fully dressed..

I have never had a better roast beef.. It was so flavorful with crispy little bits along the edges.. The fried shrimp broke up the texture and flavor of the sandwich.. Fantastico!

I would not eat this on a motorcycle.

Cheese fries with gravy, Jerzy Style.. The gravy was awesome, fries were really good Diner style.. A thing of beauty.. I confess you caught us, there might have been a few bloody mary's too..

After talking to Megan C our bartender server for awhile and contemplating staying, she directed us 10 minutes up the road to Pandora's Sno Ball spot..

Unfortunately it was closed for Father's Day..

We caught a taxi and headed over to Hansen's..

Will look for Hansen's photos and finish this thing already, I seem to be dragging this thing out..

Edited June 18, 2008 by Daniel (log)

[docsconz]

Go ahead, drag it out...it isn't bothering me

[BrooksNYC]

Manhattan-based New Orleanian here, and this thread is KILLIN' me! I am lovin' every syllable.

By all means, drag it out as long as you can, then go back and fill in the blanks. If you can't find any blanks to fill in, make some up.

And promise to take me with you on your next trip, 'cuz y'all know how ta do it RITE!

Edited June 18, 2008 by BrooksNYC (log)

[Daniel]

Haha thanks Brooks.. I wonder when our next trip will be.. I am thinking some time this winter.. I am looking to go back ASAP.. Need to regroup and get my liver together..

I just read over a lot of this thread.. Sorry for all the mispelling and whatever.. I wrote it with no proofreading and mainly early in the morning with a headache..

[Daniel]

As I walk in, I am met by Ashley, the owner, and third generation of the Hansen Family Business.. I see on the wall they have a Zagat's Sign hanging with a rating of 29.. "Wow, 29, I say, thats unbelievable" "Yup, just us and The French Laundry," she smiles..

Snow-balls or Sno-bliz is something I have never had before.. Sure I had my Snoopy Snowcone machine when I was little.. And I have tried the scraped ice from the Carts in Spanish Harlem, or the rainbow colored pre-packaged snowcone from the Good Humor Trucks but, this is something special..

Step 1:

Get you some ice

Step 2:

Get you a homemade metal ice scraping machine built from your GrandFather 80 or so years ago.. And shoot some ice into the cup.

Step 3: Make a variety of small batch, expertly made toppings to put on top of the shaved ice..

This here is Coconut Cream poured in on the ice when the cup is half full and once again when the cup is fully filled with ice.. Topped with fresh strawberry syrup..

The most refreshing wonderful thing I have ever seen done with ice.. This is truly a wonderful thing.. I am almost happy I went here on my last day because it would have caused us to spend most our trip taking a taxi's to and from here..

One more shot:

Eat and repeat..

Miss A had Cream of Almond or Almond MIlk topped with Condensed Milk.. This was truly spectacular.. She was in heaven..

After finishing our first one a line grew from nowhere.. We decided to finish the rest of our Sno-blitz in line and re-ordered.. I got a chocolate with marshmallow topping, Miss A got a chocolate with the condensed milk again..

Truly phenomenal.. Often times I am disappointed by people hyping something up.. Or by an amazing rating like 29 from Zagats.. This is truly woth it..

They are like Zen Masters.. The sno-blitz is comprised of ice and flavorings.. The ice is perfect, the flavorings are perfect.. Hence, this place is perfect..

I have a few shots here and there I will throw in here, if I find them..But thats my trip in a nutshell..

Truly a wonderful weekend with a wonderful girl.. This rated in the top trips of my life.. New Orleans is a magical city.. The people and the culture go far beyond the silliness of Bourbon St..

Thanks again for everyone's help..

Edited June 18, 2008 by Daniel (log)

[docsconz]

Sweet! Thanks for sharing, Daniel. Those ices look and sound fantastic.

[Mayhaw Man]

That ice is truly magic. And, Miss A got my favorite flavor combo. I had one today. It's hot here. That place makes it bearable and it's conveniently located. A medium is just right to get me home with just enough to sit on the front stoop of my little shotgun and finish it.

[taryn]

Thank you so much for this. I will be spending a month there in July for work, my stomach is looking forward to this city!!

[Daniel]

Hey thanks for your kind words.. I really appreciate the fact that so many people read this.. Anyone have any questions or whatever, I will try to answer.. New Orleans is so special to us and we are glad to not only share but, TO have this to look back on..

[JeAnneS]

Daniel;

Great reviews and pictures. My husband and I lived in NJ and worked in NYC for the better part of 12 years. We honeymooned in New Orleans in 2000 and apart from 2005, returned to this fantastic city every year. Last year we decided to make our fantasy a reality and we bought a little place in the Marigny in December and just moved here three weeks ago!! I am still pinching myself I can hardly believe it!! The weekend we closed on our house, our real estate agent took us to Parkway and I nearly died over the roast beef po boy. I had half to take home and savor the next meal along with a slab of their banana pudding.

Next trip I highly recommend Coop's on Decatur...it's nothing pretty but their beans and rice (with sausage natch) and Cajun Fried chicken are finger licking good.

Best wishes and hope you come back!

JeAnne

[philadining]

So, we sit at the back counter at Cochon, and get chatting with the guys in the kitchen. Eventually, we end up discussing people that come in and eat prodigious amounts of food. The ultimate story is: "we had this couple from NY - they were here three times! I think they ate everything!"

I'm thinking, this sounds familiar...

Daniel, you and Miss A are legends.

[philadining]

As I travel, I often ask myself, what would Daniel do? So when the possibility of a three-day weekend presented itself, I decided to do 72 hours in New Orleans: fly in thursday night, back out sunday evening.

I didn't retrace Daniel's footsteps exactly, but certainly took his report, and all of the wonderful posts giving advice, into account while wandering, quite pleasantly without a real schedule.

After a late flight in, the quickest/closest place seemed to be the Verti Marte, so we headed over to see what we could find to eat.

When the guy t the counter asked what I wanted, I just said, "I don't know, what DO I want?" It was suggested that I have the ribs, the potatoes au gratin and broccoli.

Awesome, really. Well at least the ribs and the potatoes. I don't think I've ever had ribs quite like this before, clearly cooked long and low in liquid, they were barely holding together, but had perfect tenderness and amazing flavor. The potatoes were buttery, cheesey, creamy, and utterly addictive, I couldn't stop eating them. The broccoli was, well it was broccoli from a steamtable with an average cheese sauce. Edible, but not a thrill.

The second recommendation from the counter was for Chicken, Mac and Cheese and we asked for the brussels sprouts.

This was only OK. The chicken isn't really the kind that keeps in a case like that, it was probably lovely right after it was cooked. The Mac and cheese was really spaghetti in a creamy cheese sauce, which is fine, but we didn't love the texture. And I think I've just become convinced that roasting is the only way to cook brussels sprouts, these were OK, but didn't have much flavor beyond a boiled cabbage.

So it wasn't a complete success, but the ribs and potatoes were SO good that I was feeling really happy to be in New Orleans.

Edited July 16, 2008 by philadining (log)

[philadining]

Friday:

It seems inevitable, one must start the day with a stop at Cafe du Monde. Yep, it's touristy, it's crowded, it's formulaic, and it's totally delicious.

I can't figure out why those beignets are so good, but they really are incredible.

After doing a bit of wandering around in what I'm pretty sure was 203 degree heat, we found ourselves up Esplanade, and within striking distance of Little Dizzy's. I stuck to my tactic of asking my server what to order, and I got an expected answer: Pot Roast. I don't think I ever would have thought of the pot roast.

It was incomprehensibly good. I've never had any pot roast like this before. It was very moist and tender, with a deep flavor. Even the seemingly plain-old steamed vegetables had a lots of garlic playing off the sweetness of yellow carrots, red peppers, broccoli and beans. Potatoes were simple, but somehow exactly right.

My buddy was too obsessed with photographing up at the St Louis Cemetery #3 that he missed closing time, but I managed to order him some gumbo to go before they closed. It looked incredible, with big chunks of crab and andouille, and he said it was delicious. My shrimp allergy kept me from tasting it, the waitress was nice enough to warn me off of it, even though there was no shrimp in the description of it on the menu board.

It took a lot more walking around to work off that lunch, but we finally felt like dinner around 9pm.

We managed to sneak into the last two seats at the kitchen bar at Cochon.

We ordered entirely too much food, but I'm glad we did, because every bit of it was just spectacular. Seriously, this was one of the best meals of my life, and I've been lucky enough to have a few good ones...

Fried Boudin

Crispy outside with an earthy pork and rice filling: just the right balance of crunch and big flavor.

Crawfish Pie

This had a nice stewy filling inside the light flaky crust, like an etoufée empanada.

Pork cheeks

Words cannot describe how sensually pleasing this dish is. Slow-cooking broke down the collagen in the cheeks, but a hint of that richness remained, amplifying the intensity of the pork. The falling-apart texture, the vivid meatiness, the tang of the mustard, all combined onto something that had me just shaking my head in amazement.

I think if you order the cheeks willingly, the chef figures you might be receptive to some other parts of the pig, so he was nice enough to send out a plate of house-made Head-Cheese.

This was very elegant charcuterie, it had an unexpected lightness, just perfect on a little toast with a slice of pickle and a dab of mustard.

Heirloom Tomato Salad with Pork Tongue

Either one of these elements would have been wonderful on its own, but together they made for the best summer salad ever conceived-of. The tomatoes tasted like tomatoes-squared, the tongue like subtle bacon.

Pork and Hen Gumbo

Incredible dark-roux funk, creamy texture, nuggets of pork and chicken, awesome.

Their signature dish: Louisiana Cochon, with Peaches, Turnips, Cabbage and Cracklings.

This one nearly made my head explode. The caramelization from a long, slow roast mingled with the sweetness of summer peaches. This kind of dish is why the word "sublime" was coined.

A special of Pork Loin with mushroom gravy

I couldn't imagine anything competing with the Cochon, but this dish made a valiant effort, playing the other side of the coin with a dark, earthy, salty sauce that made a nice foil for the other pork's sweetness.

Smothered Greens

I really wish I'd had more room to eat more of these, because they were the best greens I've ever had: tender but not mushy, sweet but not candied, brightly acidic and porky.

It was totally insane to order dessert, but we felt like a little dose of sweetness to finish things off, so went with a lemon buttermilk pie, which was mercifully airy and light. Oh and the chef sent out some moonshine, which somehow went really well with the pie, and brought the meal to a perfect end.

They were afraid that they'd have to roll us out of there in wheelbarrows, but we managed to make it out under our own power, although just barely.

If they'd been open for lunch on saturday I would have been back there, and I was seriously contemplating returning on saturday night. I totally understand why Daniel and Miss A were back multiple times.

Everyone was super-nice, and sitting at the kitchen counter was great fun. We traded stories with the chefs and cooks, which is when one of them started telling of this one wild couple from New York...

This was a very fine meal. The restaurant is casual and friendly, but they're cooking at a very high level. I'm seriously considering another trip mainly to return here.

OK, so at this point, I suspect Daniel would have gone out and pounded a few hand-grenade cocktails, but I did learn something from his travelogue and skipped that part and went to bed. I wanted to be sharp for more eating on saturday.

Edited July 16, 2008 by philadining (log)

[docsconz]

If I wasn't sold on it before (and I was), this latest account of Cochon makes it absolutely certain that I have to hit Cochon with my son when we visit NOLA to check out Tulane next month! Don't expect us to eat as much as these reporters did, though!

[philadining]

Saturday:

Still in a bit of a food coma from friday night, we skipped breakfast and moved ahead to lunch. We found ourselves hungry around noon a bit uptown, and Parasol was nearby.

Boudin Balls are always a welcome way to start the day...

as are Gravy Fries. OK the boudin balls weren't quite as rocking as the ones the night before at Cochon, but that's a high bar to set. These were still pretty good, if maybe featuring a bit too much breading compared to filling. The fries were fantastic, due primarily to the excellent gravy, but also to the carefully-made, promptly-delivered fried potatoes.

They're famous for their Roast Beef Po Boy, and I can see why. It's sloppy, full of drippy, wet roast beef, but worth the inevitable drips on the shirt. I'm sure I'm going to start a regional war here, but I'd really love to have this sandwich on a Sarcone's roll from south Philly...

The Catfish Po Boy was quite good too, the freshly-fried fish remaining crispy beneath the dressing.

The place itself is a bit rough around the edges, but we liked it a lot. One orders food at a window in an upper room, drinks (including a full bar) in the lower bar area. Seating is at long tables in the upper room, which works out fine, even leading to some nice folks handing off their surplus cheese fries and onion rings to us when they finished.

Parasol

2533 Constance St (at third, one block south of Magazine)

It does not seem like the kind of place that would have a web site, but it's a crazy world: www.parasols.com

After a Po Boy, when it's a bazillion degrees out, what's required? A Sno Bliz, of course.

On the right is my combo: Cream of Peach and Lemonade. Apparently this was a shocking juxtaposition, because they were completely amazed that I wanted those two flavors together, and insisted that I sample it immediately and tell them how it was. In fact it was a pretty good combo, although the lemonade flavor bullied the more subtle peach a bit, so it was important to have some peach first, then some lemonade, then pause, then some more peach, repeat...

In the middle is a strawberry-lemonade combo, which was apparently not quite as avant-garde, or maybe they were still reeling from the first order, because they didn't comment on that one. The little one on the left is a coconut flavor on its own.

As for the Sno Bliz, I'd have to say that it is indeed worth all the fuss. On one hand it's just shaved ice, and they're pretty slow, and the store is ridiculously hot. On the other hand, there's something special about the texture of the ice, surely due to the clunky-looking machine grinding away at large blocks of ice, each chunk fed into the blades by a hand-held lever. Additionally, everybody is super nice, and they have a vast array of unusual flavors. I'd meant to get something with condensed milk, but became overwhelmed by choices, panicked and forgot. The one I got was quite enjoyable, I'd go back out there, even though it was a bit of a haul.

We headed back into the quarter with the idea of grabbing a muffaletta, just to have experienced the prototype. But alas, after trudging down to the Central Grocery, we find that they're sold out, and not making any more. Oh well, next time.

Along the way, we stumble across a really fun wedding party, emerging from St Louis Cathedral on Jackson square, and heading up the street, a jazz band in the lead. I can't say that I've ever seen this before: a a bride and groom strutting up the street with parasols, the assembled friends and family waving white handkerchiefs behind them. Very charming.

We decided we could overcome the bitter disappointment of being denied a muffaletta with the help of booze. Luckily we were in the right place for this. We grabbed a quick beer at Coop's place, then headed over to Napolean House to indulge in a Pimm's Cup or two.

Very refreshing, and the bar is pretty cool.

But what we're really looking for is a Mint Julep. And not just any Mint Julep, we want THE mint Julep, mixed by Chris McMillan.

Chris is no longer at the Library Lounge, he's now ensconced at the Pere Marquette Renaissance Hotel at 817 Common. The lobby bar there seems a little incongruously modern for Chris's vibe, but wherever he is mixing, I'm happy to follow to go get a drink he makes. The Julep he makes is indeed as amazing as its reputation. I couldn't help thinking that I was really having a mint and bourbon Sno Bliz, but that silver cup, the care and precision of Chris's technique, made for a transcendent cocktail, one that got better and better as it went along.

(The bottom-lit bar made for tricky photography, but it was a lovely drink in person! )

We also sampled Chris's take on the Pimm's Cup, very different from the Napolean House version, employing a variety of fresh fruits, but I think we liked it even better.

From there, we wandered a few yards over to the bar at Mila, looking to sample a few tastes of the work of chefs Slade Rushing and Allison Vines-Rushing. (The lighting was REALLY not conducive to photography, and I just refuse to use flash in dim public places, so apologies in advance, most if the photos aren't worth looking at. )

We had a great time talking food with the bartender, and had a chance to try a few of the appetizers from the restaurant.

We really loved the "Deconstructed Oysters Rockefeller."

This was a pleasingly light, delicate revision, offering-up all the flavors of the classic, but in a way that let each element shine.

We also quite liked the Tian of Crab, which was cool and vibrant and summery. We also had the Pan-Roasted Sweetbreads with Creamy Truffle Grits. There was nothing at all wrong with this dish, everything was good quality and well made, yet all three of us found it a little bland. I think it might be a personal thing for me: several times I've had sweetbreads on polenta or risotto, or some other similarly creamy foundation, and it's just not my favorite combination. The sweetbreads are creamy enough in texture, I'd rather have a contrast. That said, we ate it, and liked it.

I was very excited about the Barbecue Lobster. I can't eat shrimp, and was even taken to Pascale's Manale a few years back, forced to observe, and smell, what seemed to be a delicious dish. So this version, updating that classic dish with lobster sounded perfect. And again, not bad at all, it featured very good lobster, but the sauce was a touch too elegant, not conveying that spicy garlic punch that distinguishes the dish.

Even with our mixed reactions, I'd have dinner at Mila any time, there were enough indications in that small sample that there's some serious cooking going on.

But we were feeling like moving, so we agreed to reconvene at Herbsaint.

Sadly I somehow walked right by it, and ended up FAR down St Charles before I realized I was going the wrong direction. (The really embarrassing part was that I had a GPS thingy with me, but it just wouldn't lock onto the satellites. Are you locals jamming the signals to mess with the tourists?) By the time I got back to where I needed to be, my dining partners had already ordered some food at the bar. They're such nice people that they saved some tastes for me, but the plates weren't too photogenic at that point, so descriptions will have to suffice.

Lamb ribs were intensely flavorful, and spiced just right. Duck prosciutto was silky and tender, with a vivid taste. A Pork Gumbo was full-bodied and rich. The Duck Leg Confit was meltingly tender, with just the right level of salt. And I could eat the dirty rice underneath it all day. I need to go back there just for an order of Dirty Rice. All of it was just fantastic, I was tempted to order another round of everything, or whatever else the kitchen felt like making. But we were thinking of moving on, so we held to dessert, which I managed to photograph before we snarfed it down.

Green Tomato Pie, with Cream Cheese Ice Cream. This was like a buffed-up Hubig's pie, with sweet tomato inside an airy glazed pastry. I loved it.

The bar at Herbsaint also made my favorite Sazeracs of my visit, I suppose that's appropriate...

Next visit, the Herbsaint/Cochon folks are probably getting all my money...

But we were on the move. I probably would have been interested in eating more, but I was surprised to discover that there's not a ton of late-night eating options, even on a saturday night. Sure there are a few places that will give you food, but real dining destinations? Please let us know if there's someplace we should go after 11 or midnight, we'll be back...

Drinking and music can distract us from any worries about whether we were missing another dining opportunity, so we headed out to Frenchmen Street, and d.b.a.

That's a really cool bar, with just about any libation you can imagine, available at a reasonable price. It's a little loud when the band is blowing, but hey, it's a happening bar. Things are a little quieter across the street at the Spotted Cat, although the band is no less hot. (I hope that sax player got that strap untangled from his face by the time he had to pack up...) But it was packed in pretty tightly, so we just listened from the street a bit. I used to be a little cynical about the walking around with drinks thing, but I really love it. I'm afraid I'm going to get arrested back home because I won't be able to resist walking out of bars with a cocktail. I'll risk it.

After a few rye whiskeys, I had to call it a night, and get ready for one last day in the city...

Edited July 16, 2008 by philadining (log)

[philadining]

If I wasn't sold on it before (and I was), this latest account of Cochon makes it absolutely certain that I have to hit Cochon with my son when we visit NOLA to check out Tulane next month! Don't expect us to eat as much as these reporters did, though!

←

Oh come on Doc, you guys can do it!! Seriously, which of those dishes are you NOT going to order??!

[philadining]

After sleeping off those cocktails from the night before, we were finally ready for one last taste of New Orleans, before having to head back home. It really was down to a coin-flip - whether to do something simple and funky, or to just throw the rest of our money at an iconic experience.

It's tails. We head to Brennan's.

Turtle Soup. Fantastic. Really, it's balanced, complex, with great texture and flavor. Couldn't be better.

Seafood Gumbo. My friend likes it a lot.

Grillades and Grits. It looks a bit like a plate of something at a diner, but underneath that Creole sauce are three of the tenderest, most delicate veal cutlets I've ever had the pleasure of tasting. The grits are creamy, buttery, just the right compliment to the tangy sauce. It's a great dish, buffed-up a bit from its origins I'm sure, but still delivering that primal pleasure.

Eggs Nouvelle Orleans. Poached Eggs, lump crabmeat, Brandy-cream sauce. This is rather blah. There's a ton of good crab, but the sauce is sparse and not that great. Kind of a disappointment.

Bread Pudding. It's impossibly light. I'm going to guess it's made from croissants, but whatever it is, it has a wonderful airy texture, while still being sweet and creamy and decadent. I loved it.

And what, you think we're going to do breakfast at Brennan's without Bananas Foster? Are you nuts?

It's a classic, it's a cliché, it's one of the greatest things to eat on the planet.

All in all, mostly a very good meal. Service was very good, but not quite as polished as I was expecting. And we were stuck in a side room, making for not quite as nice of an atmosphere as we'd have gotten in a room overlooking the courtyard. Still, a very elegant, pleasant way to spend a sunday afternoon.

Was it worth the over $100 per person? I really don't think so, yet I'm perversely glad to have done it. Once. But I think I am going to dream of those grillades and grits...

Heading back to the hotel, we can't resist one last drink, this time at the Carousel Bar in the Hotel Monteleone.

The carousel is full, but we get to watch, which is almost as much fun...

Then, off to the airport, and back to reality.

We really had a wonderful time, thanks to everyone who posted in response to Daniel's original query, it was very helpful to us too.

I can't wait to get back, and hit the other 3,285 places I'm dying to try. Or to just camp out at Cochon.

Edited July 16, 2008 by philadining (log)

[PopsicleToze]

You definitely know how to live. And Brennan's was worth it -- once. You're right on the money.

I'll be there tomorrow nighat at Cochon's. Can't wait. But I'm having the fried rabbit's liver

Oh, and, of course, some head cheese

Rhonda

[Daniel]

Wow phila I am just seeing this thread now.. What wonderful photos.. Looks like you had a great time.. I need to get back there quickly..

[Daniel]

So, we sit at the back counter at Cochon, and get chatting with the guys in the kitchen. Eventually,  we end up discussing people that come in and eat prodigious amounts of food.  The ultimate story is: "we had this couple from NY  -  they were here three times! I think they ate everything!"

I'm thinking, this sounds familiar...

Daniel, you and Miss A are legends.

←

Haha..

[mattohara]

I only have 48 hours! I'm headed down for a work trip and decided to stay an extra day and a half.

Here's my plan of attack:

etouffe, jambalaya, gumbo, at least two types of po'boy, andouille, blood sausage, muffaletta

Cochon (the restaurant)

Sazeracs, Pimm's Cups (the gf loves them), Mint Juleps

and what i have available and best guesses:

Monday the 6th:

Dinner: Herbsaint

Cocktails: Bourbon House (and oysters)

Tuesday:

Breakfast: Brennan's

Lunch: Central Market (Muffaletta)

2nd Lunch: Pere Marquette Renaissance Hotel (Mint Julep)

Dinner: Cochon

Cocktails: Carousel Bar

Wednesday:

Breakfast: Antoine's

Lunch: Parasol (Gumbo and Po'Boys)

2nd Lunch: Napoleon House (Pimm's Cups)

I've created a Google Map and made it public. Anyone can add on to it I think.

mattohara New Orleans map on Google

I'm sure these all could move around depending on what's closer to what. I'm still looking for a good place to get blood sausage and good old fashioned street food. Are there carts or what? Thanks to all who have posted, Daniel and philadining especially, and thanks in advance for all help offered. Anything I'm missing? Still looking for that etouffe...

Edited September 30, 2008 by mattohara (log)

[docsconz]

I used this topic as inspiration for my own quick trip to NOLA with my son this past August. I see that you are planning a mint julep during a second lunch at the Pere Marquette. I would make sure that Chris McMillan will be there at the time you are thinking. That is not to say that no body else there would be able to make a good one. They probably could. It is just that Chris, in addition to being a damn good mixologist, also happens to be one of the finest barkeeps around. It would be worth sitting at his bar even without the cocktails just to absorb his knowledge, wit and banter.

Another distinctive new Orleans element that you shouldn't miss is Hansen's Sno-Bliz if they are still open for the season.

Your itinerary looks pretty good to me.

[mattohara]

Thanks doc, the point of the mint julep was to get McMillan's. I'll remember to check up on that! and yes Hansen's is on the map. I grew up in York, PA though and my first job was at the Snow Palace. It's another shaved ice place with toppings and hundreds of flavors. I used to run a machine like that. But if it's hot and we have the time we'll definitely head in that direction!

I forgot to mention that we're staying at one of the two Omni hotels in town. My gf works at the Omni here in Philadelphia so we got a killer hookup there. Also it's pretty centrally located!