Recently my wife Linda
and I traveled to famous New Orleans known for great Southern food and
fun. From our house in Danville, an early morning direct flight from San
Francisco can have you in this Southern “party” town for dinner to enjoy an
evening of great food and jazz.
We stayed at the Windsor
Court Hotel which is an elegant retreat in the heart of New Orleans. General Manager David Teich prides himself
with having the most lauded hotel in New Orleans. His attentive staff welcomes
you with a warm and friendly “I love my job attitude.” This Forbes
4 Star Diamond rated hotel features a world class restaurant, spa, roof
top pool and convenient location near the French Quarter, shopping and
casinos. We checked into an elegant and spacious suite on the top floor
complete with a balcony and stunning views of the downtown and Mississippi
River.
We then hired a bike
peddler to take us to the nearby French quarter and began our New Orleans
experience with the famous Hurricane drink invented at Pat O’Briens. They have
been serving this drink since 1933. “One is fun and 2 you are done.” We enjoyed
the vibrant atmosphere on the outside patio and the sunny 77 degree weather. It
reminded us of being in Dublin, Ireland. Pat O'Briens also has a
sensational piano bar in the evening that many rave about.
After being warmed up
with a famous Hurricane drink, we enjoyed a fabulous dinner at nearby Mr.
B’s owned by a member of the famous Brennan New Orleans food family. We
enjoyed a variety of carefully prepared Southern food specialties. We began
with a blood orange margarita and enjoyed fried oysters and truffle fries as an
appetizer. We then had the gumbo soup served with a loaf of warm French bread,
red fish, soft shell crab and praline pecan pie. Linda really enjoyed the soft
shell crab and I savored the gumbo and red fish.
After dinner we wandered
thru many stores and jazz bars including the famous piano carousel bar at the Hotel
Monteleone that makes you feel like you are in a very “Happy
Hurricane” as the carousel bar slowly spins around with patrons telling jokes
and smiling.
After a soothing nights
rest in our beautiful suite with sparking city light views, we walked to
the famous Cafe Du Monde and enjoyed the famous freshly made beignets and
coffee au lait. They have been serving these New Orleans delicacies since 1862.
The place was packed with smiling sugar dazed patrons being entertained by a
lively street side jazz quartet.
We then decided to take
the Hop
On and Hop Off bus tour to see the sites of the city. This is a great
way to be educated on the sites and history of New Orleans. We often take our
San Francisco visitors on this bus tour as it is a great way to learn about
interesting facts about any city. If you like what you see, you just hop off
the bus on one of the 18 stops. The buses return every 30 minutes to continue
your tour.
One “hop off ” was in the
French quarter where we enjoyed the original muffuletta sandwich at the Central Grocery Company. We met the
grandson and he told us his family has been serving this special New Orleans
Sandwich since 1906. It is a very large sandwich with homemade olive
salad and layers of meats and cheeses. A full sandwich can serve four people
easily The French Quarter has a market
where anything can be found. One end of
the market has a Cafe that plays Blues Music and the other has a Cafe where
Jazz music is played. What a nice way to shop, eat or people watch with music
playing all around.
For dinner on our 2nd day
in New Orleans, we had the pleasure of dining at historic Commanders Palace. Famous
New Orleans chef “Emeril” honed his cooking skills at this special
restaurant. The service was impeccable and the staff was very attentive and
professional. We had the opportunity to meet the owner Sally Brennan of the
famous Brennan food family who talked with us about the her family heritage in
the restaurant business.
We began our dining
experience sitting in the Garden Room overlooking the courtyard with the New
Orleans Sazerac Cocktail. It was a great way to begin this fun foodie
experience. For an appetizer, we enjoyed the demi 3 soup selection of
turtle soup, gumbo and soup of the day served with warm French bread that was a
fabulous way to experience all 3 of these perfectly seasoned creations. Our entrees included gulf pecan crusted fish
and tender wagu beef that were both presented and cooked to perfection.
For dessert, the chef SUPRISED us with a sample of 5
DESSERTS!! What a treat!
They included a hot fudge
sundae, creme brulee, chocolate pecan pie, assorted nut candy bar and the famous Bread Pudding Soufflé with a
warm whiskey sauce. These desserts
filled every square inch of our table. It was a spectacular ordeal that we will
never forget. The meal was completed with a New Orleans brandy milk punch
topped with nutmeg that was unique to us and a perfect ending to a fabulous
meal
Although we had several
other food and bar experiences along and around Bourbon Street , the final
foodie experience was an elegant lunch at the Windsor Court Hotel Grill Room. This award winning restaurant was a joy to experience. It has a bright
decor that feels fresh and fantastic just like their food selections.
Chef Vlad
Ahmadyarov gave us some great recommendations. We began with the hand shaken 2 dollar
generous gin martini’s( 3 maximum) that enhanced our appetites. The Windsor
Court Plate lunch for $19.84 included 1 main choice and 3 sides. Linda
chose the crab cake remoulade and Windsor Court salad, corn maque choux
and Rommel’s Hoppin John ( black eyed peas and ham). All were
fantastic. I ordered the crispy chicken with praline sauce, gumbo, Windsor
Court salad and grilled ginger asparagus that was over the top. For
dessert, we enjoyed Irish Coffee and tempura banana bread pudding with
butterscotch spread and dark chocolate cremeux with coffee ice cream and white
chocolate granache.
This was a “WOW”
experience. It was so great we went back again.
We would highly recommend
staying at the Windsor Court Hotel to enjoy this sensational southern city
filled with an abundant variety of food and fun.
In conclusion to our
Three Day Splurge we can say "New Orleans Rocks" and is a great place
for a fabulous get away. If you visit, there are several other restaurants that
we were told about including Clancy's, Galatoire's
on Bourbon, Upperline, Red Fish Grill, Acme and Felix Oyster Bars, Hermes Bar
at Antoines, Camellia Grill, Arnauds, La Petit Grocery. These are on our list for our next visit.
