Try the Best Coffee in the French Quarter and Nearby
Beignets and cafe au lait at Cafe Du Monde by Selena N. B. H. on Flickr
As befits one of the most European and Caribbean cities in the country, New Orleans loves coffee. This city was sipping on the stuff long before it became popular across the rest of the USA, and some of our oldest cafes remain destinations in and of themselves. Of course, there are some modern coffee houses here as well that you don’t want to pass up. Here are a few of our favorites.
In the French Quarter
New Orleans can be a romantic place for a cup of coffee, but there are parts of the French Quarter where the balconies and street music make for pure caffeinated magic.
Cafe Beignet
334 Royal Street
There’s plenty of ridiculous debate over who serves the better beignet, Cafe Fu Monde or Cafe Beignet (just have both and decide for yourself), but when it comes to the venue, it’s hard not to make the case for the Royal Street location of Cafe Beignet (there are three more across the French Quarter). It’s shady, relatively quiet, and you can get some excellent people-watching in.
Cafe Du Monde
800 Decatur Street
What, you thought we’d let you go without recommending one of the world’s most iconic cafes? If we’re being brutally honest, the lines here can be a little much when they stretch almost a city block, but the chicory coffee and beignets are truly excellent, there’s live music all around, and the service is efficient.
Envie Espresso Bar & Cafe
1241 Decatur Street
The people-watching at Envie Espresso Bar & Cafe (also referred to as Cafe Envie) is some of the best in the city, and that’s saying something. Pull up a chair at an outdoor table, order a coffee drink (or a drink drink, or both; Envie has good cocktails and can do an excellent Irish coffee), and just watch life in the Quarter: musicians, lovers, poets, rowdy folks on a weekend trip, and everyone in between.
French Truck Coffee
700 Canal Street
French Truck is one of the city’s most well-known brands, with multiple locations across New Orleans. The company roasts its own beans and also has an extensive wholesale operation (you might have seen the products in local stores). The Canal Street location is super convenient if you’re staying in the French Quarter.
Outside of the French Quarter
Many of the best coffee shops in New Orleans are located within easy walking or biking distance from the French Quarter. Here are some of our picks.
Coast Roast Coffee & Tea
2381 St. Claude Avenue (Bywater)
Located within St. Roch Market, Coast Roast produces some fine pour-over coffee and espresso drinks. With all of that said, frozen coffee is quite simply the best frozen coffee we’ve had anywhere, full stop. That sort of superlative statement gets thrown around a lot in these sorts of articles, but we really will stand by this assertion: Coast Roast frozen coffee is sweet, strong and stupendous. It’s good whatever the external climate is, but on hot, humid days (which, let’s be honest, aren’t unheard of in New Orleans), it’s seriously heaven in a cup.
Coffee Science
410 S. Broad Street (Mid-City)
The business’ motto is: “We’ll brew with science, you enjoy the coffee!” The fact that Coffee Science is helmed by Tom Oliver, who’s been in the coffee business for over 30 years, truly backs it up. The space is generous, there are weekend flower popups from a local vendor, special events are held in the big backyard, and the wi-fi is strong. Coffee Science is located on a busy thoroughfare near the courthouse complex at Tulane and Broad, and there’s plenty of parking.
HEY Coffee Co.
2606 St. Louis Street (Tremé)
The Uptown favorite HEY! Café & Coffee Roastery recently expanded to the edge of Tremé, right on the Lafitte Greenway bike path and park, also moving all roasting to the new location. HEY’s progressive stance is manifested in such touches as the eco-friendly pasta, not plastic, straws — and the coffee speaks for itself.
Flora Gallery & Coffee Shop
2600 Royal Street (Marigny)
The atmosphere can’t be beat. The overgrown lushness of the outside trees, fading paint and cracked walls are like the Platonic ideal of the sort of space where you’d expect to find a local musician or writer.
Satsuma Cafe
3218 Dauphine Street (Bywater)
Whether the owners like it or not, Satsuma is one of the most recognizable icons of the “new” Bywater, which is ironic, as old neighborhood locals and transplants alike tend to congregate here. That’s because Satsuma is simply a lovely place: they’ve got good coffee, excellent breakfast and lunch food, a pretty outdoor courtyard, a cool, airy interior, and they’re totally family-friendly. Bring the kids, and don’t leave without trying the quiche of the day. (Satsuma has two more locations in New Orleans.)
The Bean Gallery
637 N. Carrollton Avenue (Mid-City)
This Mid-City favorite remained popular over the years, while many other coffee shops have come and gone. The reasons, to name a few, are good wi-fi, ample outdoor and indoor seating, staying open till midnight Thursdays through Sundays (it also opens at 6:30 a.m. every day), and a long menu of bagel and croissant sandwiches, panini, specialty teas, and sweets.
The Orange Couch
2339 Royal Street (Marigny)
This spare, minimalist cafe is nonetheless populated with warm, inviting staff. The coffee is made with care and attention, and the menu is more creative than your average espresso outpost; mochi ice cream sits aside a delicate, moist tea bread that makes for a fairly perfect light lunch. This is also a popular spot for those looking to get some work done or just to enjoy the wi-fi.
The Station Coffee Shop and Bakery
4400 Bienville Street (Mid-City)
This Mid-City joint is inviting, with interesting architecture and decor. All baked goods are made in-house with high-quality ingredients, and the coffee menu is varied.
Who Dat Coffee Cafe
2401 Burgundy Street (Marigny)
While there’s not a ton of space to bust out a laptop and be all professional in this little Marigny cafe, if you can score a comfy seat in the little alcove room, you’ve got one of the best little workspaces in New Orleans (or if you’re in a group, an excellent spot for a caffeine-fueled discussion). Bonus: The attached restaurant is pretty excellent; try the corncakes.
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Light My Fire: The Spectacle and Tradition of Café Brûlot
Photo courtesy of Antoine’s Restaurant on Facebook
A lot of towns have dinner theater, but in New Orleans dinner is theater. This is especially true in the old-line Creole restaurants where locals and visitors partake in dining experiences as cultural and theatrical as they are culinary. In these terms, the New Orleans postprandial libation known as café brûlot can be considered a special effect, or maybe even pyrotechnics.
What Is Café Brûlot?
This is no ordinary after-dinner drink, nor is it readily available at ordinary restaurants. It’s made with specialized equipment, in portions large enough for at least several servings, and it comes with a choreographed tableside preparation sure to temporarily supersede conversation not only at your table but usually at all those within earshot.
The name, of course, comes from the French: café, or coffee, and brûlot, which can mean either “highly seasoned” or “incendiary,” both of which prove apt for this singular drink. A list of ingredients in the classic café brûlot recipe helps illuminate its elaborate nature. Most preparations call for an orange peel cut precisely as one long, intact spiral; a lemon peel cut into strips; sugar, cloves and cinnamon; cognac or brandy and hot, strong black coffee. Most importantly, the drink requires fire.
The Flaming Finale: How Café Brûlot Is Made
It ends up tasting like very thick, sweet coffee with the deep citrus and clove flavors mellowing the sweetness. Many diners say they prefer the second cup to the first, since the concoction has had time to steep a little more. Though the drink is ordered year-round, café brûlot’s hot temperature and rich, bold flavor make it a particularly enjoyable way to end dinner on a cooler winter night. It is especially popular as a finale to a big holiday meal, such as the New Orleans Reveillon feast.
However delicious and reviving it may be, getting there is more than half the fun when it comes to café brûlot.
The recipe is so special, it requires its own exotic equipment to make. This includes a silver bowl, a circular tray and a long-handled ladle. The brandy mixture is poured into the bowl, which is surrounded by a small amount of alcohol in the circular tray. The coffee is brought to the table steaming hot and added to the brandy. In many cases, the lights of the dining room will then be dimmed to accentuate the impending dance of flame that accompanies the final steps of this drink’s dramatic preparation.
The waiter ignites the alcohol with a match and allows the fire to heat up the contents of the bowl, which grows increasingly aromatic. The waiter then dips the long ladle into the mixture, ignites it from the flame surrounding the bowl, and carries the flame back to set off the brandy.
Quickly, while the mixture is still flaming, the waiter will hold the spiraled orange peel over the bowl with a fork and proceed to ladle the flaming coffee mixture down the peel repeatedly. The technique creates a mesmerizing ribbon of blue-gold flame that inspires choruses of oohs and ahhs around the dining room whenever it is done right.
Where to Try Café Brûlot in the French Quarter
The spectacular preparation gives the term mixed drink a whole new meaning, and it is certainly a job best left to experienced professionals. Want to try café brûlot? Here are our top recommendations for the French Quarter.
Antoine’s Restaurant (713 St. Louis St.) lays claim to the invention of café brûlot, and gives the credit to Jules Alciatore, son of founder and namesake Antoine Alciatore, sometime in the 1890s. The drink enjoyed special popularity during Prohibition, when coffee provided cover for the then-contraband alcohol.
Café brûlot also became a house specialty of other old-line Creole restaurants, as it remains today, including Galatoire’s Restaurant (209 Bourbon St.), Broussard’s (819 Conti St.), and Arnaud’s Restaurant (813 Bienville St.), which happened to open for business the same year the federally-mandated deprivations of Prohibition began.
Restaurant lore at Arnaud’s holds that special coffee drinks were also used there to disguise liquor libations. Today, however, ordering a café brûlot with all its attendant ceremony and ritual is one of the worst ways to be inconspicuous in a formal New Orleans dining room. It is also one of the most memorable ways to cap off a glorious New Orleans meal.
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Best Pizza in the French Quarter
Photo courtesy of Louisiana Pizza Kitchen on Facebook
Good pizza isn’t hard to find in New Orleans, although it’s not one of the city’s signature offerings, like gumbo or a po-boy. There’s no loyalty to any specific style (deep dish vs. thin crust, for instance), and the pizzerias run the gamut of high-end to classic parlors to casual neighborhood spots to the late-night after-party soakers.
The French Quarter has its share of restaurants that serve decent to excellent pizza, with a wide variety of vegetarian options and specialty pies that highlight the local ingredients and take advantage of the abundance of Gulf seafood, Cajun meats, and other culinary staples New Orleans is known for. Here are several options in the French Quarter we recommend.
Crescent City Pizza Works
407 Bourbon Street
At this late-night Bourbon pizzeria pies have names like Big Cheesy and Chicken Bacon Krunch. The BBQ pork pizza will chase your hangover away with pulled pork, two types of cheese, cinnamon apples, and a generous serving of Sweet Baby Ray’s BBQ sauce. The ever-popular Chizzaburger combines Angus beef, onions, mozzarella, pickles, ketchup, and mustard.
Louisiana Pizza Kitchen
95 French Market Place
Each location of this local chain is owned and operated separately, and this Louisiana Pizza Kitchen fires its gourmet pizzas in a wood-burning stove. Many ingredients are locally sourced, all the meats are organic and free-range, and a whole-wheat crust is available. The restaurant also has an extensive wine list and a selection of specialty beers from local microbreweries.
Specialty pizzas showcase the local cuisine with their takes on staples like crawfish etouffee and jambalaya. The standouts are a fried oyster pizza, topped with P&J oysters, artichokes, and grilled eggplant; and a smoked salmon pizza that inventively combines tomatoes, capers, caviar, red onions, and cream cheese.
Mona Lisa
1212 Royal Street
This is a great dine-in option if you want romantic and laid-back with some New Orleans flair. The building that houses the restaurant has undergone many reincarnations, housing a machine works business and a cigar shop at one time. It still retains its charm and historic elements. The restaurant’s walls are adorned with dozens of paintings and drawings of the Mona Lisa, some of which came from the patrons. Mona Lisa has been in the neighborhood for several decades, earning a loyal local following with its simple and solid Italian fare.
There are four vegetarian pizza options, plus the seafood one with tilapia, shrimp and baby clams. The Mona Lisa Special is a meat-lovers bliss — with pepperoni, ham, Italian sausage, and loaded with vegetables. Another popular specialty pizza is the Da Vinci, with Italian sausage, bacon, artichoke, and sun-dried tomatoes.
Vieux Carre Pizza
733 St. Louis Street
This pizza joint uses housemade dough and its own marinara sauce. Besides pizza, it has an affordable menu of pastas, sandwiches, salads, and more. One of the most popular specialty pies, the Bourbon Special, is loaded with chicken, feta cheese, spinach, and pesto. The Vieux Carre also has basic specialties like vegetarian and Hawaiian pizzas. It’s open late (3 a.m. Monday through Friday and Sunday; 4:30 a.m. on Saturday). Delivery and online ordering are also available.
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Proof is in the Bread Pudding—Chefs Add Variety to New Orleans’ Classic Dessert
When most bread goes stale it gets tossed in the trash or fed to the birds. But for some lucky loaves, going stale is just the beginning of a transformation into bread pudding — the ambrosial dessert that is a mainstay finale at many restaurants across New Orleans.
A Quick History of Bread Pudding
Though its roots go back centuries to the thrifty domestic kitchens of Europe — where a variety of sweet and savory pudding dishes evolved from the recycling of stale bread — the distinctively Southern-style bread pudding is a dessert New Orleans has embraced and made its own.
Most such recipes start with bread soaked in a mixture of milk, eggs and sugar, which is then baked and sliced into squares or wedges. Served warm, bread pudding is usually covered in a rich, sweet sauce containing a strong dose of booze — most often bourbon.
The main appeal of the dessert, however, goes back to its first ingredient. The bready foundation nicely sops up any sauce paired with it so that each bite is infused with its flavor. The bread base — soaked in milk and eggs — also lends a soft, spongy texture to the pudding that contrasts deliciously with toppings of pecans, walnuts or raisins that often accompany the dish.
Although bread pudding is not a New Orleans (or even American) invention, it’s offered at many restaurants in the French Quarter and nearby, both the fine-dining and casual establishments. With a steady supply of French bread and no shortage of creativity, the New Orleans chefs have been concocting variations of the dessert ranging from traditional to new interpretations.
Most local chefs keep the bread pudding bread-based and sweet. Others may add their own twists to the sauce. You may also come across the savory versions, with cheese and chicken and Andouille sausage. One interpretation served in restaurants like Muriel’s is pain perdu (the “lost bread”), a Creole cross between French toast and traditional bread pudding.
Since there’s no “right” way to make bread pudding, New Orleans’ own unique versions are worth exploring. Here are our recommendations for the best bread pudding in the French Quarter and nearby.
The Traditionals
Gumbo Shop
This French Quarter casual eatery offers lots of other Cajun staples beyond its three types of gumbo and has a lovely courtyard. The bread pudding here is the traditional version, served warm, with whiskey sauce. Try it a la carte, or as part of the prix fixe Creole dinner.
Mother’s Restaurant
This legendary eatery is located outside the French Quarter on Poydras Street in CBD. Mother’s has a casual, cafeteria-style approach and had been around since 1938, becoming a famous hangout for the working crowd. The “Ferdi Special,” a baked ham and roast beef po-boy, was named after a loyal patron, and the Creole-style “Jerry’s Jambalaya” belongs to chef Jerry Amato, who had ruled Mother’s in the late 80s. The bread pudding is the traditional version, with brandy sauce.
Oceana Grill
The casual French Quarter eatery at the corner of Bourbon and Conti Streets is a solid choice for Creole and Louisiana fare like crab cakes, po-boys and gumbo. It’s open late for dinner and has a lovely courtyard. Oceana’s traditional bread pudding is served with the restaurant’s own praline rum sauce.
The Original Pierre Maspero’s
With its huge, always-open windows, this casual Cajun restaurant on the corner of St. Louis and Chartres Streets is a prime spot for people-watching. The building that houses the restaurant is one of the oldest in the French Quarter, dating back to 1788. Legend has it Andrew Jackson met with the Lafitte brothers here when it was a coffee house, to figure out the plan for the Battle of New Orleans. The traditional caramel bread pudding here consistently gets rave reviews.
Tujague’s
The iconic gem on Decatur Street hardly needs an introduction. The second oldest restaurant in the city, it was founded in 1856 and has since been offering traditional, fixed-price Creole menus to many a president and celebrity. Its famous bar takes credit for inventing the Grasshopper cocktail, and the restaurant may or may not take credit for creating brunch. Tujague’s white chocolate bread pudding is served with Maker’s Mark caramel sauce.
A Category of Its Own
Antoine’s
The Pudding de Pain de Noix de Pecan (pecan bread pudding) is as timeless and classic as the restaurant that serves it. This French-Creole fine-dining establishment probably needs no introduction. Let’s just describe the pudding: It’s a cinnamon, golden raisin, and pecan concoction topped with warm butter rum sauce. The bread used is Leidenheimer French bread. It’s also on Antoine’s famous jazz brunch menu.
Brennan’s
You probably know of Brennan’s world-famous Bananas Foster dessert, but the bread pudding at this fine-dining Creole landmark is a classic that is served with ice cream and is worth trying.
Muriel’s Jackson Square
The pain perdu version at Muriel’s comes with candied pecans and rum sauce (here’s the recipe). Enjoy it a la carte or as part of the prix fixe dinner menu. Muriel’s is elegance personified and won’t steer you wrong if you want contemporary Creole cuisine. (The menu has quite a few gluten-free items too.) The restaurant opens up onto Jackson Square, so you can enjoy people-watching in the heart of the French Quarter.
Palace Cafe
This Brennan family-owned restaurant on the busy block of Canal Street is known for its upscale Creole bistro menu and ample sidewalk seating. The restaurant’s original white chocolate bread pudding is as unique as it is popular. The chunks of white chocolate are baked inside the bread, and the whole thing is covered with warm white chocolate ganache and shaved dark chocolate. You can take a stab at the recipe from the Palace Cafe: The Flavor of New Orleans Cookbook.
Red Fish Grill
Ralph Brennan’s Red Fish Grill has been around for more than 20 years, offering a child-friendly respite in the middle of the Bourbon Street chaos. It’s known for its seafood-heavy menu and good happy hour deals on the drinks and the oysters. The well-reviewed double chocolate bread pudding is made with dark and white chocolate ganache (sauce) and chocolate almond bark. It takes about 20 minutes to prepare but it’s worth the wait.
Bread Pudding Recipe
Can’t wait until you make it to New Orleans? Try this recipe at home.
Serves 6
Ingredients: 1 loaf stale French bread 1 cup raisins 2 cups milk 3 eggs, beaten 1/2 cup melted butter 1 teaspoon vanilla 1/4 teaspoon salt 1 tablespoon cinnamon 1/2 cup brown sugar
Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 350 F
2. Rip the bread into small pieces
3. Place in a mixing bowl and cover with the milk, letting it soak for 20 minutes
4. Mash the bread into a consistent texture with no chunks
5. Add the eggs, vanilla, cinnamon, sugar, raisins, butter, and salt and mix well 5. Pour into a buttered nine-inch square baking pan and bake for about 45 minutes, until browned on top and set in the center
6. Cut into squares and serve with whipped cream
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Bananas Foster in the French Quarter
Bananas Foster, a type of dessert made with bananas and vanilla ice cream, was made famous by way of New Orleans. Today, this decadent dessert remains a staple, impressively served flambéed tableside as it was intended, or in many delicious variations (as a pie, ice cream, or French toast) in some of the best restaurants in the city.
Bananas Foster’s rise to fame was quick and glorious. Its creation in 1951 is credited to Paul Blangé, a Brennan’s Restaurant chef. In the early 50s, New Orleans served as a major port of entry for bananas coming from Central and South Americas. Wanting to promote the imported fruit, the restaurant’s owner Owen Brennan asked Chef Blangé to include bananas in a new dessert.
Chef Blangé then came up with sautéing the bananas in butter, sugar and cinnamon, and then adding rum and igniting the concoction. The dessert was named after Richard Foster, a friend of Owen Brennan and the then chairman of the New Orleans Crime Commission, on which Brennan served. The dish is usually set aflame tableside and served over ice cream.
Here are our favorite places in and around the French Quarter to try Bananas Foster, both the traditional version and one of its many scrumptious incarnations.
The traditionals
To this day, the original-recipe Bananas Foster at Brennan’s Restaurant (417 Royal St.) is its most-ordered item. The restaurant reportedly flames 35,000 pounds of bananas for the famous dessert every year. The dramatic, tableside-flambéed original remains a standalone draw for the post-dinner crowd, visitors and locals alike, who flock to enjoy just the dessert, maybe with a cocktail, at the restaurant’s lush, iconic courtyard.
Keep in mind that Brennan’s Roost Bar emphasizes the bubbles for its happy hour, with premium bottles and half bottles available at half the price, plus several specialty champagne-centered cocktails. There’s also champagne sabering Thursday-Sunday starting at 5 p.m. in the lush courtyard, which is a sight to behold in itself. Bananas Foster and bubbles. We can’t think of a better combination.
Arnaud’s (813 Bienville St.) churns out its own take on the traditional version of Bananas Foster, which has been the menu’s mainstay long enough to get on Tom Fitzmorris’ “500 best dishes in New Orleans area restaurants” list. The grand dame of Creole cooking offers its version with a little more cinnamon, in a portion that’s big enough to be enjoyed by two people.
The sprawling Court of Two Sisters (613 Royal St.) made the traditional version of Bananas Foster part of its dinner and jazz brunch menus. The dessert fits right in with the restaurant’s luscious Creole and Cajun cuisine like jambalaya and gumbo, and is served with brandy and banana liquor over French vanilla ice cream. It is set aflame tableside (here’s a Facebook video demo posted by the restaurant).
French Toast and Pain Perdu
Chef Scott Boswell, Owner and Executive Chef at Stanley (547 St. Ann St.), created a very popular Bananas Foster French toast for Stanley’s breakfast and brunch menus. The battered French bread is topped with sliced bananas, toasted walnuts and Foster sauce, and served with vanilla ice cream.
Stanley has a lot going for it as it — the airy, sunny, inviting dining rooms; prime location (it overlooks Jackson Square); a nod to Tennessee Williams in its name; and a long menu of classic New Orleans comfort food that emphasizes regional cooking and local ingredients. The fact that breakfast and brunch are served all day doesn’t hurt either.
The locally owned and operated brunch queen Ruby Slipper Cafe does a Bananas Foster pain perdu across its six New Orleans locations, one of which is in the French Quarter (204 Decatur St.) and another in the adjacent Marigny (2001 Burgundy St.).
Pain Perdu means “lost bread,” referring to the dish’s ability to resurrect stale and otherwise lost to most purposes bread. For this version of French toast French bread is soaked in eggs and milk and then fried (sometimes deep-fried) or grilled. This breakfast and brunch staple usually sports a crisp and buttery exterior and is soft and custardy inside.
The Ruby Slipper has been consistently winning the title of best breakfast and brunch spot on the local dining scene and in reader polls. What’s the secret? Fresh, upscale ingredients and surprising twists on local flavors for starters. The restaurant’s version of pain perdu fits right in with eggs cochon and the acclaimed house specialty, BBQ shrimp and grits. It’s made with French bread, of course, and is served with rum-flambéed bananas and applewood-smoked bacon.
Pie and bread pudding
If you like bread pudding, the Bananas Foster bread pudding at Irene’s Cuisine (529 Bienville St.) is a must. The upscale Irene’s has been one of the hottest tickets in town, with its elegant Italian classics like shrimp and crab pappardelle or their famous duck St. Philip, a piano bar, and a homey vibe. Irene’s is family owned operation, helmed by the owner Irene DiPietro and her son, chef Nicholas Scalco. The restaurant relocated seven blocks in early 2018 to its present location, while remaining a solid New Orleans tradition and a beloved dining destination.
Finally, if you’re jonesing for the pie version of Bananas Foster, the mini-chain Mr. Ed’s Oyster Bar & Fish House has Bananas Foster cream pie at its French Quarter location (512 Bienville St.). This Bananas Foster-inspired riff on the classic banana cream pie recipe features a layer of rum-spiked sautéed bananas under the traditional pudding filling, plus a brown sugar-mascarpone cream topping. Goes great with Mr. Ed’s famous charbroiled oysters!
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Best Daiquiris in the New Orleans French Quarter
Big Easy Daiquiris by AngryJulieMonday on Flickr
Is there a more refreshing drink on a hot New Orleans Day than a daiquiri? Well, that depends — are you looking to get refreshed and, y’know, refreshed? Just sayin’: If you want to take the edge off the day and enjoy a bit of neon slush that will put you in mind of an old-school slurpee, the “daq” can’t be beat. By the way, while a daiquiri does the job in the summer heat, make no mistake, they’re delicious no matter the weather.
Fair warning: The daiquiri is delish partly because they usually (but not always! See below) come with a serving of sugar that would give most nutritionists nightmares. As a result, the daiquiri comedown is a thing of infamous legend. Imagine if a sugar crash got married to a hangover — and you’ve got an idea of what to expect. Ward this away by drinking some water and not going too crazy on the daqs.
Now, as if to refute that entire last paragraph, here is our list of some of the best daiquiris in the French Quarter and around.
Photo courtesy of Beachbum Berry’s Latitude 29 on Facebook
Beachbum Berry’s Latitude 29
321 N. Peters Street
There are plenty of places that are trying to revive the great tiki drinks of days gone by, but few are as dedicated to the craft of the tropical tipple as Jeff “Beachbum” Berry. The man has opened an excellent bar on Peters Street that serves some fine beverages — you can taste fresh fruit and real sugar here, as opposed to an overprocessed syrup profile. While there may not be a drink officially deemed a “daiquiri” when you visit (although there sometimes is), many of Berry’s drinks would, to our palette, fulfill the requirements of an unfrozen daiquiri.
Big Easy Daiquiris
409 Decatur Street, 216 & 501 Bourbon Street, 617 Decatur Street
No, you’re not in some ‘80s neon riff on a washeteria or a psychedelic power plant — those spinning turbines generate sweet daiquiri goodness, not electricity. It’s hard to go wrong here, but we’ve got a thing for the Peach Bellini, although others swear by the 190 Antifreeze. Bartenders will add an extra shot, because why not?
Photo courtesy of Cane & Table on Facebook
Cane & Table
1113 Decatur Street
Now we’re getting into the fancy daiquiris. Cane & Table has an ever-shifting drink menu, but their libations are always inspired creations meant to comfort the sipper as they lounge in the tropics. Your daiquiri may not be frozen, but it will be, by all means, amazing.
Gazebo Cafe
1016 Decatur Street
By name alone, you’d think you were about to drink at a fancy garden party. Well, if fancy garden parties have live jazz, outdoor tables and ice-cream daiquiris, sign us up.
Kingfish
337 Chartres Street
Here’s another contender for the fancy daiquiri crown. Kingfish prides itself on constantly churning out original, Southern-inspired cocktails, so it’s hard to say what kind of daiquiri will be offered here, or indeed, if they will even be serving them. But in our experience, when the bar team here is on a daiquiri tip, it’s best not to pass them by.
Manolito
508 Dumaine Street
This French Quarter ode to Havana’s El Floridita bar is the ultimate daiquiri destination, with its creative, extensive list of fantastic frozen libations. We recommend trying any and all of Manolito’s signature cocktails. The standouts are so many. All cocktails are made with high-end ingredients and are accompanied by the small-plate menu.
Molly’s at the Market
1107 Decatur Street
We suppose this is cheating, as the slushy drink served here is deemed ‘Frozen Irish Coffee’ as opposed to a daiquiri, but whatever — it’s basically a daiquiri, and for what it’s worth, it’s delicious. Plus, it has a practical application — namely, waking you up so you can have another daiquiri.
The Organic Banana
1100 N. Peters Street
If you want to feel good about your daq and its impact on your body, order from this fruit stand and juice bar, located in the French Market. Again, you’re getting real fruit profiles here without an overwhelming wave of sugar. Plus, they use locally made Old New Orleans Rum. The Pina Colada is one of the coolest things in a cup in the entirety of the Quarter.
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Late Night Dining: Where to Turn in the Quarter When the Midnight Hungries Hit Hard
The French Quarter is truly a 24-hour neighborhood where “making a night of it” can easily mean greeting the daybreak in last night’s clothes. But even the most spirited reveler must eat, if only to keep up stamina. Fortunately, late-night Quarter restaurants offer a wide variety of options for noshing round midnight, whether you’re hankering for a burger and fries, need to sample jambalaya before your red-eye flight back home or are looking for something a little more upscale to polish off the evening in style. Below is a list of favorite Quarter spots to turn to when midnight cravings hit, even if they hit quite a bit after midnight.
Buffa’s
1001 Esplanade Ave.
A funky mainstay that exists just on the other side of the Quarter in the Marigny, Buffa’s is essential for eccentric servers, New Orleans locals, great burgers and etouffee, and live music (offered in no particular order). We’ve never had a night here that didn’t get delightfully weird. Open till 2 a.m. every day.
Clover Grill
900 Bourbon St.
Both the staff and clientele of this Bourbon Street burger joint look like a casting call for a John Waters movie, and the atmosphere is just about as fun. Located across from a thriving gay nightclub, the tile-and-chrome diner is as heavy on camp as it is on calories. Everyone from drag queens to cab drivers keep the orders for burgers, fries and omelets coming in all night. Open 24 hours.
Coop’s Place
1109 Decatur St.
What appears to be another of the many dark barrooms along Decatur Street reveals an excellent late-night menu of local dishes, including the best inexpensive jambalaya around. Look for pasta dishes loaded with local seafood and tasso (a flavorful Cajun ham smoked on premises), blackened redfish, and a fried alligator appetizer that for once actually tastes like something besides batter. Open till 11 p.m. Friday-Sunday.
Deja Vu Restaurant and Bar
400 Dauphine St.
This 24-hour full-service restaurant and bar in the French Quarter is always available and ready to accommodate. You will find a wide variety of options on the menu ranging from traditional New Orleans fare to downhome comfort food, all reasonably priced. Deja Vu serves breakfast, lunch and dinner all day long and is available for dine-in, carry out or delivery.
The Bombay Club
830 Conti St.
Located in the elegant Prince Conti Hotel, the Bombay Club offers some of the most refined food you’ll find in the French Quarter after 9 p.m. Ribeye, seared Gulf fish and curried cauliflower are a few examples of the dishes served in a British imperial setting of polished wood and well-made cocktails. Dinner is served till 11 p.m.; the bar is open till midnight Wednesday-Sunday.
Three Legged Dog
400 Burgundy St.
This place is an unassuming bar with classic pub grub and really good crawfish boils, when in season. Open 24 hours.
Turtle Bay
1119 Decatur St.
The 24/7 Turtle Bay is famous for its 20-ounce rib eye served with potato skins and garlic bread, big enough for two to share and still a little over $20. The thin-crust pizza comes with lots of toppings, and there is a handful of signature burgers on the menu along with the classic pub grub like wings and nachos.
Verti Marte
1201 Royal St.
A miracle of space management, this tiny corner deli serves an enormous array of sandwiches, po-boys and hot plates ranging from blackened catfish and creamed spinach to a dense block of utterly comforting macaroni and cheese. There is barely enough room to stand and order, never mind sit and eat, so all orders are “to go.” Free delivery is available in the French Quarter, Marigny and the CBD. Open 24 hours.
Don’t miss out on all the excitement the French Quarter has to offer all year round, round the clock! Book your room at any of these historic hotels today.
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French Quarter Food Delivery
Photo courtesy of Oceana Grill on Facebook
After a long day of New Orleans sightseeing — or after a long night out listening to music, downing cocktails, and sampling beer at local breweries — it’s nice to have your food come to you rather than the other way around. To that end, you need to know who is delivering food in the French Quarter. This is especially relevant given that many historic hotels may not possess a refrigerator, a microwave, or other food preparation facilities en suite.
To that end, don’t forget that our recommended hotels allow for front desk food delivery, and that online platforms like UberEats, Grubhub, DoorDash, and Postmates are all available within New Orleans. If you use one of those apps/websites, a ton of restaurants that aren’t listed here come into the food delivery range, although you’ll generally have to pay more of a delivery fee if the food is coming from further away.
Daisy Dukes
121 Chartres St., 504-561-5171
Daisy Dukes has several locations in New Orleans, including one in the French Quarter. Don’t expect a light meal — they crank out burgers, chili cheese fries, po-boys, and a bunch of variations on fried seafood platters; a full breakfast rounds out the menu. Delivery in the French Quarter and the CBD.
Matassa’s Market
1001 Dauphine St., 504-412-8700
It’s an iconic destination for French Quarter locals and tourists alike: a family-owned market where you can grab everything from a sausage po-boy and a six-pack to paper towels and bananas. Plus, they deliver. Is it any wonder Matassa’s business has been booming for decades?
Meals From the Heart Cafe
1100 N. Peters St. #13, 504-525-1953
This is a beloved French Quarter source of mobile calories located at the French Market. You can order on the phone or online. Take a look at that menu — it’s one of the healthier ones in the Quarter, and includes a ton of salads, vegan crab cakes, vegan beignets, and vegan blueberry pancakes. If that’s not your style, no worries — there are po-boys, loaded scrambled eggs for breakfast, and gumbo to scratch that New Orleans food itch.
Oceana Grill
739 Conti St., 504-525-6002
Need some seafood delivered to your doorstep? Give the folks at Oceana a call (or order online). The menu, which includes a kids menu, has crabmeat in a crawfish and mushroom cream sauce, barbeque shrimp, grilled tuna, and other seafood specialties (plus ribs and pasta dishes) that you may not normally associate with delivery cuisine.
Verti Marte
1201 Royal St., 504-525-4767
This tiny counter stand/convenience store is famous for cranking out some of the best po-boys in town, including the gloriously sloppy All That Jazz (grilled ham, turkey, shrimp, cheese, mushrooms, tomatoes, sauce, amazing). They also sling a full menu of hot dishes (brisket, lasagna, etc); there are even a few vegetarian options, including the wonderful Mushroom Mountain (basically a lot of mushrooms and a lot of cheese). Verti Marte offers free delivery to the French Quarter, the Marigny and the CBD.
Vieux Carre Pizza
733 St. Louis St., 504-529-1999
Sometimes, a pizza is the only thing that will do. If it’s late at night and some hot cheese, tomato sauce and a good crust is what you’re in the mood for, give a call to Vieux Carre Pizza, and let them do the rest of the work. Open till 4:40 a.m. on Saturdays and till 3 a.m. the rest of the week.
Are you planning to spend some time in New Orleans soon? To stay close to all the action, book a historic boutique hotel in the French Quarter at FrenchQuarter.com/hotels today!
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Diet Another Day: New Orleans Must Eats in the French Quarter
Amazing food is everywhere in New Orleans. From the Creole grand dames to the contemporary wonders helmed by the award-winning chefs, you can easily check a few famous renditions of the New Orleans and southern staples off your must-try food list — without leaving the French Quarter. Here are some suggestions to get you started.
Gumbo and Jambalaya
Gumbo is one of Louisiana’s most famous dishes, but there’s no single recipe to prepare it. In New Orleans, excellent gumbo is easy to find. The chefs tend not to deviate too much from the classic Cajun and Creole recipes, and even the beaten paths would often lead you to the best gumbo you’ll likely ever taste. The difference is whether you like your gumbo laden with meat or seafood; and with dark roux or a lighter roux. Most restaurants include at least two versions on the menu — the meat and the seafood.
Appropriately enough, the French Quarter restaurant that includes the dish in its name is a great place to try several of its varieties. Gumbo Shop (630 St. Peter St.) serves seafood and okra gumbo that is thick with shrimp and crabmeat, a smoky chicken and andouille sausage gumbo, and even gumbo z’herbes, a rarely-seen vegetarian gumbo made with greens. Cup-sized portions are available for easy sampling.
Staying true to the classic Creole cuisine since its inception in 1918, the fabled Arnaud’s Restaurant (813 Bienville St.) offers seafood gumbo on both its dinner and jazz brunch menus (and chicken and andouille gumbo on the jazz brunch menu).
Another beloved local institution, Galatoire’s (209 Bourbon St.), also serves two classic Creole gumbos. The seafood okra gumbo is made with shellfish stock and light roux, and is packed with Louisiana jumbo lump crabmeat and shrimp. The shredded duck and Andouille sausage gumbo is made with a dark roux and duck stock.
Gumbo Ya-Ya, a house specialty at Mr. B’s Bistro (201 Royal St.), is a Cajun country-style gumbo made with a dark roux, lots of Creole spices, chicken, and Andouille sausage. The seafood gumbo is a satisfying classic with shrimp, crabmeat and oysters.
Don’t be discouraged by the line at Acme Oyster House (724 Iberville St.): its classic menu of oysters, po-boys and gumbo is that good. Plus, you can get a cup of gumbo with half of po-boy, or as part of the New Orleans Medley, a hearty combo of gumbo, jambalaya, red beans and rice, and grilled smoked sausage. Go ahead and chase yours with an oyster shooter of vodka or an oyster-topped Bloody Mary.
Jambalaya is right up there with gumbo for international fame, but this flavorful rice-based dish is cooked more often at home than at restaurants. The one-pot local staple has absorbed French, Spanish, African, and Native American influences, and traditionally incorporates stock, meat, seafood, long-grain rice, and vegetables (like the “holy trinity” also used in gumbo — bell pepper, onion and celery). The main distinction is that the Creole version has tomatoes and the Cajun recipe doesn’t.
You can find one of the best versions of jambalaya at Coop’s Place (1109 Decatur St.), a local watering hole that serves excellent food until quite late at night. Coop’s rabbit and sausage jambalaya can be upgraded to “supreme” by adding shrimp and tasso, a spicy Cajun ham smoked on premises. Because Coop’s offers video poker, children under 18 are not allowed inside.
To sample jambalaya in a more upscale setting, try the version cooked up at the Pelican Club (312 Exchange Pl.), which uses the traditional ingredients of sausage, chicken and shrimp.
If you just want a taste, the spicy Creole jambalaya at Napoleon House (500 Chartres St.) comes with chicken and sausage and could be ordered as an appetizer or as a side. Consider pairing it with the restaurant’s famous muffuletta and washing it down with its signature drink, Pimm’s Cup.
Don’t Call It a Sandwich
A po-boy — the French-bread sandwich that is to New Orleans what the cheesesteak is to Philadelphia — comes in as many versions as there are ingredients to stuff inside a loaf. But one of the classic favorites is the fried oyster po-boy, which takes advantage of Louisiana’s abundance of bivalves and indigenous local skill in frying anything.
Johnny’s Po-Boys (511 St. Louis St.) has been dishing them out since 1950 and, in addition to a first-class sandwich, the popular lunch spot offers a glimpse of a truly down-home po-boy joint packed with character and characters. Ask for your po-boy “dressed,” and it comes with chopped lettuce, tomato, pickles, and plenty of mayonnaise.
If you want to depart from the traditional po-boy, pop into Killer PoBoys (219 Dauphine St.). They play around with the ingredients here — the black beer beef debris, served with pickled peppers and green beans, is to die for, while the roasted sweet potato sandwich with pecan spread is great for herbivores — and the results would make a purist’s mouth water.
Killer Poboys has another branch in the back of the excellent Erin Rose bar (811 Conti St.). Or venture to the very edge of the Quarter, into the orange bomb shelter that is The Orange Store (1700 N Rampart St.), also referred to as the Rampart Food Store. This neighborhood convenience store has all the atmosphere of the moon, but the fried shrimp po-boy is the stuff of culinary legend.
New Orleans’ other famous sandwich is the muffuletta (sometimes also spelled as “muffaletta”), the Italian answer to the po-boy: a round, seeded Italian loaf crammed full of cold cuts and cheeses and a big oily pile of the indispensable olive salad. The definitive version has been made since 1906 at Central Grocery & Deli (923 Decatur St.), where the only menu choices are a whole or a half muffuletta (half is plenty for most appetites). When the weather is nice, many people take their muffuletta and a Barq’s root beer to the nearby Riverfront or Jackson Square.
Like with most signature New Orleans creations, opinions run strong when it comes to any deviation from the tradition. Some maintain that muffuletta is a cold-cut sandwich, period. Yet Verti Marte (1201 Royal St.; 504-525-4767), for example, serves its Mighty Muffuletta cold AND hot (on the hot grilled Italian bread). Napoleon House also serves its traditional muffuletta warm. It’s one of the specialties, and is big enough for two people (you can also get it in half and quarter sizes).
And, just down the block from Central Grocery, Frank’s Restaurant (933 Decatur St.) has been winning fans for close to 60 years with its “World Famous Original Muffuletta” — which is baked and served with toasted bread and melted cheese.
Looking Forward to Mondays
Back in the old days, Monday was laundry day in New Orleans, and while the clothing was soaking so were the kidney beans for traditional red beans and rice. Laundry schedules may have changed, but a plate of red beans and rice with sausage is still the Monday special at diners and finer restaurants around town.
A delicious version is served every day at Buffa’s (1001 Esplanade Ave.), a New Orleans mainstay and a popular live-music spot. Like all good renditions of this classic dish, the red beans are cooked down to utter softness and seasoned for big flavor. And, like in many other local restaurants, you can get either a cup or a plate, and add meat (Buffa’s choice is smoked sausage).
Finales Fatales
You can usually tell when someone has visited Cafe Du Monde (800 Decatur St.) by the traces of powdered sugar that inevitably sprinkle their clothing. This means they’ve indulged in the bite-sized New Orleans tradition called beignets (pronounced “ben-yea’s”), square donuts covered liberally in powdered sugar and served piping hot. At Cafe Du Monde, a true New Orleans fixture in the French Market that closes only for Christmas and hurricanes, the automatic accompaniment to a plate of beignets is a strong cup of café au lait.
Most visitors to New Orleans have heard of Cafe Du Monde and its beignets, but don’t miss out on another dessert New Orleans is famous for — Bananas Foster. This decadent dessert remains a staple, impressively served flambéed tableside, or in many delicious variations (as a pie, ice cream, or French toast) in some of the best restaurants in the city.
If you want to try the classic version, Brennan’s Restaurant (417 Royal St.) is the place, since it was the restaurant’s Chef, Paul Blangé, who came up with it in 1951. Chef Blangé’s version remains the original go-to recipe and is made by sautéing the bananas in butter, sugar and cinnamon, then adding rum and igniting the concoction tableside, and served over ice cream. Arnaud’s is another notable version, with more cinnamon, and big enough to share.
With all the po-boys in this town, there’s bound to be some leftover French bread. Happily, this is the main ingredient in the Creole dessert called bread pudding. At the elegant and picturesque Court of Two Sisters (613 Royal St.), the bread pudding is served traditionally, spiked up with a hot whiskey sauce over the top, while the Palace Cafe (605 Canal St.) serves an excellent modern take on the dish with white chocolate baked inside. Either way, the dish makes a pleasing end to a rich dinner and an absolutely decadent finale to a courtyard brunch.
Are you planning to spend some time in New Orleans soon? To stay close to all the action, book a historic boutique hotel in the French Quarter at FrenchQuarter.com/hotels today!
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Co-Working in the New Orleans French Quarter
Photo by Brooke Cagle on Unsplash
If you are staying in the French Quarter during a business trip, you are in luck. The area is teeming with some of the best places to meet over coffee, have a business lunch or dinner, hit a happy hour with your co-workers, or just park somewhere, chill with your laptop, and put in a day’s worth of work, uninterrupted, and, often, in a historic setting. Here are our recommendations if you must bring your work on the road.
Co-Working Spaces
While there are none located in the French Quarter, there are plenty of shared spaces to choose from nearby, in the Central Business District (CBD), Bywater, Uptown, etc. These few are closest to the French Quarter and are easily reachable by streetcar or car.
Located near Crescent Park in Bywater, The Warehouse is outfitted with exposed brick and shared and private offices. There’s a weekly co-working option, indoor bike parking, and lots of cafes and restaurants within walking distance.
Located at the edge of Broadmoor, Propeller is known as an incubator for local startups, especially those focusing on social and environmental issues. The 10,000-square-foot building also provides collaborative working space.
The beautiful and contemporary workspace located on the third floor of the Contemporary Arts Center on Camp Street, The Shop features concrete floors and exposed brick walls.
Coffee Shops
Any number of coffee shops in the French Quarter is well suited for a business breakfast or a quick business meeting, or if you just want to sit somewhere with a non-alcoholic beverage and put in a few hours of work. Cafe Envie (1241 Decatur St.) is an airy coffeehouse with comfortable sidewalk seating, popular with the locals. It has a full bar and a big breakfast menu, plus small plates and excellent coffee.
Croissant D’Or, will make you feel like a kid in a candy store. The tiled old-world gem that is Croissant D’Or is a must for breakfast as well as a chill spot for a cafe au lait.
And if you want an only-in-New-Orleans experience (and beignets), head to Cafe Du Monde or Cafe Beignet (with four locations in the Quarter). Cafe du Monde is probably too hectic to linger at, but its beignets and cafe au lait are legendary. The Royal Street Cafe Beignet location is especially airy and roomy, with a lovely courtyard.
Business Lunch
There are so many excellent restaurants to choose from as your business lunch destination, at every price point, but few stand out for the quality of their food, a historic setting, great prix fixe lunch specials, and the ability to accommodate large groups. At the casual Cafe Maspero, the always-open enormous windows provide a great view of the busy corner, and the heaping seafood platters won’t break the bank.
How about an upscale lunch with cocktails? You’re in New Orleans! Brennan’s has the New Orleans classics like shrimp remoulade and seafood gumbo, plus specialty cocktails. Another storied Brennan establishment, Mr. B’s Bistro, is the weekday business lunch destination, and its New Orleans-style barbecue shrimp is to die for (you’ll also get to wear a bib). Mr. B’s pours $1.50 martinis (and bloody Marys) during weekday lunch; there’s no limit on how many you can order.
And the grand dame of elevated Creole cuisine, Antoine’s, offers prix fixe lunch deals at prices that, for this type of unique New Orleans experience, should be considered a steal. Lunch also comes with bottomless wine and sparkling if you buy an entree.
Happy Hour
Whether you’re hitting a happy hour in the French Quarter solo or with a bunch of co-workers, the possibilities are virtually endless. We don’t even know where to begin, but if you want a classic cocktail with high-shelf spirits in an iconic New Orleans setting, check out the award-winning French 75. The bar (located at Arnaud’s) also serves delicious small plates nightly, starting at 5:30 p.m. If you like martinis, The Bombay Club has the largest selection in town, plus an inventive and varied bar menu.
Happy hour starts at 3 p.m. at the bar of the Vacherie Restaurant, accompanied by a Cajun-flavored bar menu of boudin balls and Cajun mac and cheese (diced andouille is the Cajun part). The $6 draft beer flights and wine specials can certainly accommodate a thirsty traveler.
For a casual hang, try Bar Tonique (with daily specials like whiskey flights Tuesdays and caipirinha Thursdays). It feels more like a neighborhood bar with specials chalked on the board (no food, no live music), but provides like a serious cocktail lounge, with a drink menu divided on the bar’s website into a staggering eight categories.
If you’re into tiki, Beachbum Berry’s Latitude 29 features loads of island-themed exotic cocktails. From a Mai Tai to a long list of cocktails with names like Missionary’s Downfall and Pontchartrain Pearl Diver, expect a lot of rum and pineapple. You can also bond with your co-workers over small plates like chickpea curry and sambal shrimp and grits.
Finally, both Brennan’s and Effervescence feature champagne-centric happy hours, accompanied by high-end small plates.
Dinner
For the reliably excellent New Orleans must-try dishes head to the Red Fish Grill or Palace Cafe. Chef Susan Spicer’s flagship restaurant Bayona serves high-end Louisiana food with a few modern twists in a gorgeous setting — we recommend everything on the menu.
Same goes for the prix-fixe Creole classics at Tujague’s, the second oldest restaurant in the city that hosted many a president and celebrity. And if you’re lucky to score a reservation at the jackets-required, 112-year-old Galatoire’s, you’re in for an unforgettable experience that’s as boisterous and old-school New Orleans as they come.
If you want a local brew and a quick burger, we recommend the popular Crescent City Brewhouse. See you if can get a table on the balcony that overlooks Decatur Street — there’s people-watching for miles.
We hope you enjoy your visit to Crescent City while you get some work done! And If you’re planning a stay in the French Quarter, be sure to check out our resource for French Quarter Hotels.
