A Weekend in New Orleans
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Almost two years ago, I painstakingly planned my bachelorette party to New Orleans, only to have to cancel it (and my June 2020 wedding) last minute because of the pandemic. When Conor and I finally rescheduled our wedding for September 2021, I began to look into replanning my bachelorette for August and every discussion board, website, acquaintance and friend told me, to put it bluntly, that we would sweat our clothes off if we went in the summer. The city in August looked fun, with lots of festivals and apparently less crowds, but after researching a lot, and reading over and over again that we’d probably have to find refuge indoors in the AC during most of the day, I decided to save my New Orleans trip for when it was a bit cooler (check out my blog post about my bachelorette I did up planning to Austin, Texas). Fast forward to November, two months after Conor and I were finally married, and I finally got to experience all that New Orleans got to offer!
We still had a deposit down on the Airbnb we were going to use for my bachelorette, so we decided to make a fun, couples weekend out of our trip. There were eight of us in total, and the apartment fit eight perfectly, though two couples did have to share a bedroom and bathroom.
Panorama Penthouse 360 View of Mississippi River on Vrbo
The apartment was absolutely gorgeous and was within a fifteen minute walk of everywhere we needed to go in the French Quarter. For a large group, the living room was a perfect place to hang out, especially after coming home at night. We were in New Orleans on a Sunday during football season as well, so it was a great place to relax and watch some of the games between activities. However, as a heads up, there are trains that go by right next to the building and unless you are an extremely heavy sleeper or you bring heavy-duty earplugs, you will be woken up approximately three times a night by seemingly endless train horns. Conor and I were in the master bedroom, where the noise seemed to be worst, and we probably wouldn’t stat here again just because we never truly got a good night of sleep because of the train. Also worth nothing that the price for this apartment has also skyrocketed since we originally booked it for my bachelorette in 2019.
Here were some other AirBnb’s I had considered. My criteria at the time for an eight person trip were 1) that no one would have to sleep on a pull-out or in a common area 2) that it was within walking distance of the nightlife on Bourbon Street and Frenchmen Street 3) there was a large common area for everyone to hang out in.
Located on the QUIET end of BOURBON STREET near Frenchmen Street jazz clubs!
Luxury, Historic, & Authentic Marigny & French Quarter; Saltwater Pool & Spa
Live like a New Orleanian with a view of the river
We arrived in New Orleans on a Friday night. Due to a Saints/Falcons game that weekend, and it being a Friday night, traffic was heavy and we did not anticipate the hour long drive to our apartment. So if you are arriving for a weekend trip, check the football schedule and for any events in the area and be sure to plan accordingly.
We had reservations for Cafe Amelie on Friday for dinner. If your group is larger than seven, you will have to email them, but they got back to me relatively quickly and we were able to snag a reservation. You enter the restaurant through a large iron gate and we were lucky enough to be seated in the courtyard. You can’t reserve courtyard seating from my understanding, but can request it once you arrive and they’ll accommodate you if there is a table available.
Under the twinkling string lights, out in the courtyard, Cafe Amelie was the perfect way to kick off our weekend. For cocktails, Tequila Mockingbird, Amelie and The Old Man And The Sea were group favorites (all pictured below) and our servers were fantastic at keeping the drinks flowing. For food, we all had the spinach and artichoke dip to start which was a hit. Braised Beef Short Ribs and the Amelie Pasta were also delicious as entrees, and our one friend said the gumbo here was her favorite of the whole weekend (and she tried quite a few gumbos).
After dinner, we wandered over to Bourbon Street to see what all the hype was about. There are no open container laws in New Orleans, so there are cocktail to go stands everywhere on Bourbon. We went total tourist and go hand grenades, obnoxiously large, frozen cocktails. Caution: these taste dangerously good and they don’t skimp on the booze.
We headed first to Boot Scootin’ Rodeo on Bourbon, because we had all placed bets with each other to see who could stay on their mechanical bull the longest. The bull is upstairs and it costs $7 per person, for three attempts. We all timed each other and the winner got to choose which shot the loser would take. In a not-so-surprisingly ending, all the ladies ended up beating the men, with a two-person tie for last place. I also compiled a TikTok of all our amazing dismounts from the mechanical bull.
We finished the night at Pat O’Briens, where we had an absolute blast. We were able to dance outside in their courtyard the whole night, where there a DJ and cigars for sale (which the guys in our group loved because they could smoke since it was outdoors). There was a wedding afterparty also at the bar, which made for a fun night. Many a conga line and dance battle were had.
The morning, Saturday, we all woke up ravenous. We wanted a more casual breakfast, since we had a fancier brunch the next day, and reservations for breakfast places were slim picking in my planning research. Instead, as soon as I woke up, I put our large group of eight on the wait list for The Ruby Slipper Cafe (we went to the one in the French Quarter). You can add yourself to the waitlist through their website. For us, the wait was almost two hours, but by the time we got everyone up and ready and walked over to check-in, we only had about a fifteen minute wait left. We went one street over to pick up coffees from French Truck Coffee while we waited for a text to let us know when our table was ready. Almost all of had the New Orleans Iced Coffee, which many of us added to our lists of best coffees we’ve ever had.
The Ruby Slipper Cafe was perfect because it had cocktails (for anyone who might need a bit of a hair-of-the-dog) and a large menu, so everyone in our group could find something they liked. We ordered the French Toast Bites as well as just a few small plates of fried chicken for the table as well (hey, when in Rome, right?).
After breakfast, we went for a walk around Jackson Square, where a bunch of artists set up their work for sale. St. Louis Cathedral overlooks the Square and is the large church you probably recognize if you’ve ever looked up photos of New Orleans. We stopped here for a photo opp before heading over to meet our guide for our food and cocktail tour.
As a group of people who love to eat and drink, we decided to do a Combo Cocktail and Food History Tour. The four-hour walking tour took us all around the French Quarter and included 4 full-sized cocktails and nine items of food. Our tour guide, Ben, was a gem who told us all about the many different cultures that have converged in New Orleans and how that influenced the amazing food and cocktail scene in the city. We tried everything from Creole to Cajun to Caribbean food, and even had the chance to a hot sauce that required you sign a waiver before have a taste (our friend, Azoulas, took on the challenge and let’s just say they were not messing around with that waiver). This was an amazing way try all the amazing food and drinks New Orleans has to offer in one afternoon, and learn something along the way (Ben even taught us that the term “sugar daddy” comes from New Orleans and the history behind it). Even members of our group that don’t consider themselves “tour people” thought this was a 10/10 experience. They fed us so much that after the tour, we all headed back to our apartment to relax and recover from our food comas.
Our original thought for Saturday night was to go to Frenchmen Street, but most of the bars we wanted to go to seemed to be permanently closed due to the pandemic. So instead, we headed out in search of some drinks and a poboy sandwich. One of our Uber drivers had suggested we try Lafitte’s Blacksmith Shop Bar, so this was our first stop. Honestly, we weren’t impressed and I would recommend to skip it if it’s on your list. Not only was it super crowded, but the frozen hand-grenades we bought on the corners of Bourbon were better than the drinks they had here.
Our next stop, NOLA Poboys, was a huge success. We all split some sandwiches, as most of us were still a bit full from the food tour. Conor and I had the fried shrimp poboy and it hit the spot as a late night snack after all the drinks we had that day on the tour. The next day, we tried another place for a poboy, and were disappointed that it didn’t live up to NOLA Poboys, so would definitely recommend this spot for a sandwich if you’re in the French Quarter.
After our midnight snack, we ventured back down to Bourbon Street, cocktails in hand. We honestly didn’t even need to go into a bar, because on Saturday night just walking down the street is entertainment enough. After a run in with a snake, popping into a few shops (including one with a kitten we fell waaaay too in love with) and trying out Saints and Sinners bar (would not recommend), we headed home for the night as we had brunch the next morning.
We had an 11:30AM reservation for the Jazz Brunch at Commander’s Palace on Sunday. Commander’s Palace is in the Garden District, so we all piled into Ubers and headed on over. The brunch is a prix fix menu, where you get an appetizer and dessert included in the price of your entree. Known to be one of the best brunches in the country, we’d gotten multiple recommendations to try out Commander’s Palace from friends and online. And it did not disappoint.
The restaurant itself is beautiful. We were seating in an amazing room with floor to ceiling windows and were greeted by a jazz band, that went around to all the tables asking for song requests. That, coupled with the bouquet of balloons at every table, made for a festive and fun brunch to kick off our day.
The food itself is worth all the hype, so come hungry for three courses. I started with the Turtle Soup (because where else was going to be able to try turtle) and found that I loved it, so if you’re curious, make sure to go for it. The Braised Pork Belly was another big hit among the appetizers. For an entree, me and quite a few others went with the Cochon De Lait Eggs Benedict which might be one of the best breakfasts I’ve ever had. I ate every last bite, even though I swore I’d leave room for dessert. The Creole Bread Pudding Soufflé was the icing on top of the cake for this meal - I finished that too, even though I was full. The Creole Cream Cheese Cheesecake and the specialty mint ice cream they had were also to die for. Everything was too good not to pass up.
After the second food coma of the weekend, we all went for a walk down Magazine Street, just a few short blocks from Commander’s Palace. We refueled with another New Orleans Iced Coffee from French Truck and then popped into a few shops before trekking over to see the American Horror Story house from season 3, Coven. This is purely a photo opp, so I’d skip it you’re not a fan of the show.
After an afternoon out, we headed back to our home base to catch up on some football and relax before our last night in New Orleans.
We had reservations at Sylvain for dinner. Known for their cocktails, most of us got their most famous drink, the Mexican Firing Squad. I have to say, this might be one of my favorite cocktails I’ve had to date and I already have plans to try and recreate it at home. For entrees, we also all went in a similar direction with either the burger or chicken sandwich, neither of which disappointed for our last meal in Louisiana.
We had our final tour right after dinner, and since as I mentioned there are no open container laws, we all asked for some more Mexican Firing Squads to-go, which our waiter happily made up for us. This is definitely the way to go about drinking in the city, instead of hitting up the hand-grenade and frozen drink stands where you’re more likely to get more juice then booze.
Drinks in hand, we met up with our guide for our Haunted AF French Quarter Tour. Our tour guide Cynthia was fantastic and we were super happy we picked this tour because each of us go our own headset, so we could hear Cynthia even if we were lagging behind a bit. We passed a few other tour groups and their tour guides had to almost scream so everyone could hear, so I highly suggest that, even if you don’t book this one, you find one that will give a headset. It made the whole experience a whole lot more enjoyable.
New Orleans is known to be one of, not only the most haunted cities in the United States, but also the world. Ghosts, vampires, voodoo and murder are all deeply ingrained in the history of the city, so if you’re going to do a ghost tour anywhere, this is the place. Cynthia was a great story teller and I’ve already repeated almost all of the stories she told to us to on the tour to friends and family because they were so interesting. Some beers and wine were provided when we arrived, and there was a stop at a bar to refresh your drinks as well, so you’ll be well hydrated on this tour. It was the perfect way to wrap up our Sunday night.
We had a 1PM flight on Monday morning, so it didn’t leave us much to do on our final day in New Orleans. So, since I’d heard the lines could be excruciatingly long during the afternoon and weekends, we save our trip to Cafe Du Monde for that morning. We arrived at 8:30AM and didn’t have to wait at all to grab some beignets and the cafe au lait coffee everyone said to try.
I thought that the coffee was disappointing. Better to skip and honestly get the New Orleans Iced Coffee from French Truck. On the other hand, the beignets were to die for, but be sure to not wear black! The powdered sugar gets everywhere, no matter how hard you try to keep yourself clean. My final opinion when it comes to Cafe du Monde is its worth it if you don’t have to wait in line. Timing it for off-peak hour is the way to go. Or there’s also a to-go line next to the main line. Grab a bag of beignets and go sit in Jackson Square instead. It’s the beignets you go for specifically, not the ambience.
Overall, I’d say New Orleans is one of my favorite cities in the United States. Though we stayed mostly to the French Quarter, for a first time trip I did really feel like we got a good sense of the culture, history and vibe of the city. I’d add New Orleans to my list of places I’d go back to, but next time I’d love to spend some more time outside the French Quarter to see what else the city has to offer!
