If New Orleans doesn’t represent the most wonderful concentration of restaurants in the world, I don’t know where does. And believe me, I’ve looked long and hard – only to return to NOLA with greater appreciation for its graciously crafted cuisine and the profound depth of its food culture. Get ready, y’all. It’s time to eat!
An opportunity to visit the Crescent City and take a significant bite out of its dynamic dining scene came my way back in September and I relished every edible moment of it. This was not my first time in New Orleans and I certain it won’t be my last. But it was the most delicious to date.
I’d rather not incriminate myself as an absolute glutton by saying just how short my trip was with respect to the obscene preponderance of restaurants I visited. But if you saw me soon after, you’d have noted the bigger paunch than usual. It was the best-fed and happiest paunch I’ve ever sported.
How the blogger got his paunch
What is to follow in the days to come is a series of posts about the 18 New Orleans eateries I visited. I hesitate to label these posts as reviews, though because I’m pretty much just gonna rave about every place where I ate. Of course, I may have a finicky criticism here and there about a few of them, but only a very few.
Each bite during my days there was not just full of distinctive local flavour but of history and a continuity of culture that’s increasingly hard to come by.
Hotels
While in New Orleans I spread my downtime between two hotels: the Old No. 77 Hotel & Chandlery on Tchoupitoulas Street, and Hotel Le Marais on Conti Street in the French Quarter. I loved them both, am happy to recommend either, and would be hard pressed which to choose over the other.
The Old No. 77 Hotel & Chandlery
Straddling the border of New Orleans’ Warehouse and Arts District and its Central Business District, this ex-tobacco warehouse cum super convenient and rather glam crash pad, the Old No. 77 Hotel & Chandlery was a comfortable home away from home. The hotel is home to Chef Nina Compton’s Compère Lapin, one of the 18 restaurants I made a point to visit for this series. More on that is to come. For details about the Old No. 77 Hotel & Chandlery and to book, go to old77hotel.com.
Hotel Le Marais
This top rated boutique hotel situated made an ideal base for exploring the French Quarter. To be set so snug in the ever throbbing and always teeming heart of the Quarter, Le Marais was remarkably quiet and serene hotel. The occasional dip in its heated (if ever need be) saltwater pool helped with the retreat from the crowds and heat as well. Find out more at hotellemarais.com.
Follow Your NOLA
The scrumptious extent and breadth of my New Orleans sojourn would not have been possible without the kind support of the New Orleans Convention & Visitors Bureau.
Follow your NOLA and start planning your own trip to America’s most delectable destination at neworleanscvb.com.
See you soon with more reports about New Orleans in 18 Eats.
