Wednesday, August 15, 2012

Wordless Wednesday: TOP does New Orleans

I am actually kinda sad to put this post together because it means my wonderful, amazing, delicious vacation is coming to a close.

Yes, PID and I spent the past week in the one-and-only N'AWLINS, bearing the heat and humidity for the sake of our appetites. We, quite literally, ATE our way through the southern city. I can't count high enough to put a number on the amount of oysters I ate, and pickled green beans are, without a doubt, my new favorite food.

So for today's "Wordless Wednesday," I'll give you a taste of what we tasted. This way, if any of you are planning to head down there to watch our Stillers kick some Superbowl butt, you'll have an idea of where to grub!



Breakfast

Blue Plate Cafe, 1330 Prytania (Central City)


Bello Breakfast: scrambled eggs, bacon cheese, scallions etc. stuffed in a portabello mushroom on a red pepper sauce

Crawfish Cakes: biscuits and over-easy eggs with a creamy crawfish sauce

Blue Plate Café on Urbanspoon
Restaurant Stanley, 547 Saint Ann Street (Jackson Square, French Quarter)

Hangover cures. Mimosa and (the best) Bloody Mary (I had in NOLA)

Blueberry pancakes with vanilla bean ice cream (the syrup was a brown sugar maple TO DIE FOR)

Eggs Stanley - cornmeal-crusted oysters, poached eggs, Canadian bacon and Creole hollandaise on a toasted English muffin

Stanley Restaurant on Urbanspoon


Lunch

Johnny's Po' Boys, 511 Saint Louis Street (French Quarter)

Fried Oyster Po Boy

Shrimp Po Boy
(THIS is where you should go for Po Boys.)

Johnny's Po-Boys on Urbanspoon
Somethin' Else Cafe, 620 Conti Street (French Quarter)

Boudin Balls: a fried-up hash of sausage and rice served with their "secret sauce"

The inside of a Boudin ball

Gator Po Boy (holy yum)

Fried Oyster Platter (with that secret sauce...just....wow)

Somethin' Else Cafe on Urbanspoon

We (VERY sadly) were too full to partake, but we hear that Guy's has THE best Po Boys in Uptown!

Cochon Butcher (not to be confused with Cochon, next door, of the same owners), 930 Tchoupitoulas St (Warehouse District)

Literally my ONLY complaint: beverages. "Meh" Bloody Mary and no refills on pop. Just get wine or a beer.

Brussel sprouts, marinated, roasted and grilled and, quite frankly, the most delicious vegetable I've ever eaten.

"Carolina Style" BBQ pulled pork with cole slaw and the herbiest, creamiest, "kick-iest" potato salad that's ever been made. Dear Cochon folks - if you could ship a vat of that tater salad to me, I'd be one happy 'Burgher.

Crispy pulled pork sandwich - served with mint soaked cucumbers on toasted white. Pork crunched, then melted, then cooled with the mint. I can't say enough good things about this sandwich.

Duck Pastrami Sliders with gooey Gruyere

Cochon marks the first 5-star lunch I've ever awarded. And likely the last. Brav-O.
Cochon Butcher on Urbanspoon
Crescent City Brewhouse, 527 Decatur Street (French Quarter)

Their brewhouse sampler. Tip: ask 'em to MIX the Red Stallion and the Black Forest. Trust me.

Fresh shucked oysters.

Baked Brie with Apples appetizer. Pretty tasty!

PID needed a break from all the Cajun, so he snagged a burger and loved it.

Oyster Club - the highlight. Who knew oysters, sauerkraut, avocado and bacon would marry so perfectly!?

The oyster club was out of this world, but this place is slightly overpriced. I still wouldn't avoid it though - if nothing else, go for the beer and the atmosphere.

Crescent City Brewhouse on Urbanspoon


Treats

Cafe du Monde, 800 Decatur Street (French Quarter)


Yummy yummy beignets! PID and I should have split an order, though.

Cafe Beignet is another gorgeous and delicious little pastry shop on Royal Street


Dinner

Pierre Maspero's, 440 Chartres Street (French Quarter)

Yummy chicken & andouille sausage gumbo!

Pan-fried Louisiana blue crab cakes with a spicy cajun sauce

Crawfish Pierre Pasta - spicy and delicious

Delicious homemade bread pudding - we ate every last bite


Original Pierre Maspero's on Urbanspoon
La Crepe Nanou, 1410 Robert Street (Uptown)

Nanou cat was my new best friend for a few minutes.
The ambiance in this place was OUTSTANDING. So romantic!

Though I love the taste of pop from a glass bottle, these 8 oz-ers with no free refils weren't practical.

French Onion Soup was rich and dreamy

Both PID and I had our first experience with escargot here! And it did NOT disappoint!

Crepe a la Crabe (crab and creamed spinach)

Crepe aux Crevettes (with shrimp in lobster sauce). Neither PID nor I were crazy about our savory crepes despite the fact that this is a "crepe house." We wish we would have gone with a true entree.

Dessert (Crepe Lucie) saved face. THIS crepe was perfectly executed to a golden brown and filled with fresh strawberries.
We both wish we would have chosen other entrees, because we loved the rest of our meal and the atmosphere was gorgeous and service stellar. Sadly the crepes just didn't cut it.

La Crepe Nanou on Urbanspoon

Acme Oyster House, 724 Iberville Street (French Quarter)

Chargrilled Oysters (Parmesan+butter+grill=yum city)

Fresh shucked oysters. The biggest I've ever seen.

Soft Shell Crab platter

Fried Oyster Platter
It may not be a 5-star dinner, but it's most definitely a "MUST-DO" in N'awlins.

Acme Oyster House on Urbanspoon

GW Fins, 808 Bienville Street (French Quarter)

Menus updated based on the daily catch - even on my birthday :)

Yellowfin Tuna Tartare

Cripsy pork belly with watermelon

"Scalibut" - an invented dish with scallop-crusted halbut on a lobster risotto. Holy wow.

Wasabi crusted Wahoo

Salty-Malty Ice Cream Pie (We could have each eaten two of these)

AMascarpone cheesecake with a raspberry coulis

A pricier meal (hey, it was my birthday), but worth every single penny. Not even a block off of Bourbon Street, I was NOT expecting such a beautiful and upscale delicious restaurant. I recommend this place to ANYONE willing to drop a few bucks on a great meal.

GW Fins on Urbanspoon


Just a few "must-do" drink spots:

Pat O'Briens, 718 St. Peter Street (French Quarter)

You MUST try a Hurricane here

Mojito

Dueling pianos
Their patio is hoppin' when the sun goes down!

You gotta get a frozen hand grenade at the Tropical Isle on Bourbon & St. Peter
Lafitte's Blacksmith Shop, 941 Bourbon Street  - the oldest bar in the US and, in my opinion, the best bar on Bourbon. Try a Voodoo Daiquiri

etched tables.

Electricity powers fridges, TV's and daiquiri machines, but absolutely no lights.
We also loved the atmosphere and service at Old Absinthe House at 240 Bourbon

So if and when you head to Creole country, we hope our list helps to guide your way!

  Pin It

No comments:

Post a Comment

Share this!