In which we return to New Orleans for Carnival!
Erin and I had planned to go to New Orleans for Halloween 2024, but Duran Duran’s touring schedule compelled us to change our plans and we celebrated in New York. I have been desperate to get back to New Orleans and my close friend, Andy Cana
Friday
Creole House
The road trip was uneventful and we arrived in time for dinner and our first parade. We checked into our condo, had a quick drink at the bar downstairs, and caught-up with Andy. We walked down Canal Street and grabbed a table at Creole House, where he briefed us over how the weekend would go, while we picked over his uneaten raw oysters.
Krewe d’Etat, Krewe of Morpheus
Saturday
I wake-up earlier than Erin, so each morning, I would venture out for coffee and bring it back to the room. The idea was to try a new place each morning. On Saturday, I found a little shop attached to a hotel just around the block, so it was mostly an exercise of speed and convenience. But it was nice to walk through the city in the quiet, early morning stillness.
Downtown at TaTa’s
We walked to Camp Street to have breakfast at the popular Cafe Fleur de Lis, but there was a 45-minute wait. So we walked a block over to try Majoria’s Commerce, but as we approached, we could see the queue was out the door. We walked back Cafe Fleur de Lis and put our name on the list and then walked next door and sat at a shaded table in front of Downtown at TaTa’s, which appeared to be closed.
Chef Joe came out and let us know that they were open and welcomed us to have breakfast. I ran back to Cafe Fleur de Lis to cancel our place in line and we opted to sit inside at TaTa’s. I was slightly nervous that we were the only customers, but I think it was just because TaTa’s isn’t as upscale as its next door neighbor, which most tourists would probably prefer. But I’m just as happy with simple, unfussy food. We shared a delicious breakfast poboy and met some nice people, including TaTa herself.
Krewe of Iris, Crewe of Tucks, Little Bar on Gravier
We parked our camp chairs along the parade route, at the corner of Gravier St and Tchoupitoulas St, outside of the elegant Restaurant August, which I would love to visit for a special occasion someday. After claiming our ground amongst the gathering throng, we left our chairs for the first of several visits to Little Bar on Gravier, which was just a block away. Little Bar ended-up being one of our favorite places. This modest dive bar was essentially our base of operations for the whole trip. It was a good place to rendezvous with Andy, who knew the bar as Chuck’s from back in his day. Then we spent the day watching the parades until we needed a break and then we would walk to Little Bar for rest and refreshment. Rinse and repeat.
We got into the spirit of the event and participated in the bead collection, but it didn’t take long to realize I didn’t know why I was collecting them. I wore so many that they became cumbersome and annoying. We collected so many overall that we ended-up with two luggage-sized bags full of beads destined for the landfill, which didn’t feel very good. From then on, I toned it down to just a few strands and by Mardi Gras, I was down to wearing just a single necklace of nicer glass beads that I liked.
Fiery Crab
It was an exhausting first day and we didn’t eat properly after breakfast, so we wandered back near our condo and filled-up on a delicious crawfish boil at Fiery Crab.
Krewe of Endymion
After dinner we walked down to Canal Street for the Krewe of Endymion parade.
Sunday
Cafe Beignet
On Sunday morning, I walked to Canal Street and brought back proper beignets and cafés au lait from Cafe Beignet’s new Sheraton location.
Downtown at TaTa’s
We made our way to the correct side of Canal Street and to Downtown at TaTa’s for a second breakfast. But even better than the breakfast sandwich was talking to Chef Aaron and Chef Joe, while they prepared a crawfish boil for the big day.
Chef Joe’s name is on the sign, but it was clear that Aaron runs the kitchen. I asked if I could get some photos and he obliged by welcoming me into his makeshift outdoor kitchen, all the while happily answering our questions saying, “This is a teaching kitchen.” He told us he was 75 years old and had been cooking for 57 years.
Chef Joe asked where we were from and when I told him Austin, he said that he had gone to school there and played football for Fred Akers.
Little Bar on Gravier
The Bourbon Pub & Parade Disco
Bon Ton Prime Rib
We wandered around looking for a nice place to eat on our anniversary and stumbled upon the 3rd oldest restaurant in New Orleans – Bon Ton Prime Rib. Prime Rib is my favorite type of steak, so I was very excited about this prospect. We walked in, but the maître d’ told us that he couldn’t seat us for at least an hour and it was already late. I told him we would come back later in the week and headed off down the street. Suddenly, the maître d’ caught us and said that two seats had opened at the bar, if that was acceptable to us. That is exactly the kind of service from a restaurant that I value and reward, so we gladly accepted.
We took our seats and perused the menu over a couple of drinks. We split the Prime Rib, or Prime Prime Rib, as they call it, which is USDA Prime, aged 40 days, and served with horseradish sauce and au jus. We also split a loaded baked potato and the crawfish mac & cheese, finishing with the butter cake & ice cream.
It’s an expensive meal, but we split everything, including the smaller of the two cuts of prime rib, and we couldn’t finish the mac & cheese, nor the dessert. The food was delicious and the service from the bartender/waiter was excellent. I could not think of a better way to celebrate our day.
Lundi Gras
French Truck Coffee
The next morning, I walked to French Truck Coffee and got us cafe au laits and parfaits.
Little Bar
Luke’s – terrible “Seersucker” drink, oysters, schnitzel, bread pudding
Orpheus
I got this football, thrown by 2026 Orpheus Monarch, Noah Wyle, but I gave it to the kid next to me Mean Joe Green-style. I don’t think that kid watches “The Pitt” like I do, but I did it anyway.
Mardi Gras
Harry’s Corner
We met Carolyn and her in-laws at Harry’s Corner. Erin needed to sit down after our long walk, so we found a seat in the bar at a high table, right next to an open window that allowed us to see and talk to passers-by.
We met this young man and his friends, who would occasionally break out into a chant, loudly exclaiming, “We…are so…ANNOYING!” But I found them to be delightful, as the young man tried to startle me with bawdy tales from his life.
A couple standing near us told us they were getting married that day, so of course we congratulated them and the woman took a stem of flowers from her bouquet and stuck it in my unadorned jacket pocket, which I found to be a beautiful gesture and a perfect representation of the spirit I saw on that day.
Billy’s Bus
Billy’s specialty of the house is a nefarious concoction called Jet Fuel. The recipe is a closely guarded secret, but thanks to my seasoned and highly sophisticated palette, I can tell you it’s primarily coffee and booze. For something called Jet Fuel, I found it to be remarkably smooth, so much so that I had at least six full cups of it.
Frank’s
We needed something to temper the Jet Fuel, so we walked across the street to Frank’s and had our first ever muffuletta. This version was heavy on the olive salad and light on the cured meats and cheese, so wasn’t to my taste, but based on other online photos, I think it was a ratio issue and I would like to find a different restaurant and try this famous sandwich again.
Fritzel’s European Jazz Club
Carolyn led us the through the French Quarter with remarkable, but unsurprising authority.
After a spell, the younger people went off to go do younger people things, so we poured ourselves out into the Quarter and its increasing mass of vibrant humanity.
Sazerac Bar
We made our way back towards our hotel and tried to get into Dominica, but they were booked solid, so we wandered next door into the beautiful Sazerac Bar, also located in the Roosevelt Hotel, and had a drink.
TackleBox
Ash Wednesday
Sick!
Yellow Truck Coffee
Yakamein House
Domenica
We had an outstanding waitress, who was willing to give strong opinions about the menu. After some debate, we shared the bitter greens and lasagna. For the lasagna, they substituted the traditional ricotta cheese with a béchamel sauce and the result was perhaps the best lasagna I have ever tasted.
Thursday
I still wasn’t feeling well on Thursday and knew I would have to make the eight-hour drive back home the next day, so we took it easy again. I mostly stayed out on the sofa and tried to find decent movies, but I had a surprising treat as I was scrolling through cable channel hell and suddenly saw my Audi V10 engine! So even the TV hot rod guys have trouble with that thing.
Zesty Creole
That evening I gathered myself up and we walked to the nearby Zesty Creole for our last meal of the trip. Nothing fancy this time, just simple favorites like shrimp pasta, red beans and rice, and creole boudin balls.
Epilogue
The next morning I was feeling much better and we drove home. By Saturday, Erin was very sick with what turned out to be Covid. I have always claimed to have never had the ‘Rona, but the evidence was piling-up that Nicole was right all along and I just get an asymptomatic version of it, in which I just lay on the couch for two days watching TV and I’m fine. No fever and more importantly, especially when visiting New Orleans, no smell or taste issues. As long as those important faculties are intact, I will always love visiting this town and its rich feast for the senses.
Next Time: Majoria’s Commerce for breakfast, Cafe Fleur de Lis for brunch, and wherever Andy tells us to go.
