Restaurants, a Bar, and Dessert (New Orleans) - 5/12-13/15

Amanda has become a real foodie and always has a list of restaurants that she creates by talking to friends that have lived in the city she is visiting or through research on the internet. I have never been disappointed in the interesting places she finds for us to try. We had our fancy, expensive dinner at Antoine's Monday night. These were all reasonably priced options.

On Tuesday, May 12, we had lunch at Johnny's Po Boys after the St. Louis Cemetery tour.  Opened in 1950, Johnny still has the same basic menu and recipes.

The place is small but does a brisk business with lots of folks getting orders to go. We found four seats at a small counter. I had a shrimp po-boy; the shrimp were very lightly breaded and delicious. Amanda had a catfish po-boy and a cup of seafood gumbo. The gumbo was divine and not too spicy for me (as it usually is!) Check out that crab!

Website: www.johnnyspoboys.com

After some more sightseeing around the French Quarter, we stopped in at the historic Lafitte Blacksmith Shop Bar located at the east end of Bourbon Street.

It is believed to be the oldest remaining structure used as a bar in the U.S. (built between 1722 and 1732). It escaped two major, devastating fires in the French Quarter due to is slate roofing. Legend has it that the Lafitte brothers used this place as a base for their New Orleans smuggling operation.

We had several rounds of drinks here before continuing our walking tour of interesting houses in the area. Their hurricanes were great and reasonably priced. The bathrooms...not so nice.

Website:  www.lafittesblacksmithshop.com

After more sightseeing (honestly, Amanda, has boundless energy about the things she wants to see!), we ended the day with dinner at Deanie's Seafood on Iberville in the French Quarter (they have a second location in Bucktown). In business for the last 50 years, it is a popular restaurant for locals and famous for its fresh Louisiana seafood served with their signature Creole seasonings.

John and I had a fried shrimp and fried catfish dinner respectively.

Amanda and Justine shared a Seafood Platter. Their batter was so light that the seafood was delicious. We left there stuffed as they serve large dinner portions! Yum.

Website:  www.deanies.com

Wednesday, May 13, we went to the well-known Cafe du Monde for their beignets. Established in 1862 as a coffee stand at the New Orleans French Market, they are open 7x24 all year except Christmas Day. Their menu consists only of coffee, beignets, white and chocolate milk, and fresh squeezed orange juice. In 1988 they added iced coffee and soft drinks to the menu. We had walked past the famous coffee shop several times and visited the gift shop next door, but had not stopped in for anything to eat or drink. We grabbed an order of beignets to go.

They were as fabulous as everyone said they would be. Served warm, they literally melt in your mouth! Notice that I had to have a bite before I took this photo...just couldn't wait another second!

Amanda and Justine had stopped in earlier for coffee and beignets and sat at a table. They were not happy with the service (waitress got their order wrong). And they said it felt like they being pushed out as soon as they got their order to make way for other guests. The place has become such a well-known tourist attraction that I guess it's impacted the way they conduct business. A shame. I would recommend a "to-go" approach!

Website:  www.cafedumonde.com

For dinner the four of us met at The Company Burger on Freret Street. We drove from the French Quarter RV Park (about 3 miles) and Amanda and Justine took a streetcar from their hotel, the Wyndham, in the French Quarter. This place has a simple menu consisting of burgers (beef, lamb, turkey fries, onion rings, salads, milkshakes, beer, and a small selection of wine and mixed drinks.

This place was another recommendation from a friend of Amanda's who lives in Chicago now. You can get a very reasonably priced dinner here. You place your order and then your name is called when your order is ready. John, Amanda, and I all ordered the Company Burger (double cheeseburger) with the trimmings, but Amanda also added bacon and an egg on top! Justine had a turkey burger. The fries were great, but the onion rings were the best I think I have ever had!

Website:  www.thecompanyburger.com

Even though we were all pretty full, Amanda had just one more New Orleans traditional dessert for us to try, a sno-bliz. We all rode together in our car to Hansen's Sno-Bliz on Tchoupitoulas Street.

John and I ordered cream of strawberry. They were prepared by these friendly guys using the original ice shaving machine that the founder Ernest Hansen invented in 1939.

The flavored syrups are also still made from his wife's (Mary) original recipes. This is like "fluffy" ice infused with a large selection of flavors. I was shocked at fabulous a sno-bliz is! You absolutely have to try one if you are ever in New Orleans.

Ernest and Mary Hansen invented the sno-bliz and opened their first stand in 1939. They moved the operation to this location in 1944. They have since passed away and their grand-daughter owns the business today. She is continuing the tradition and has many, many loyal customers.

Website: www.snobliz.com

We usually only eat out about once a week, but this was a special few days because Amanda and Justine were visiting from Chicago. We loved the diversity of the food at all of these places! We all left New Orleans with full bellies!