French Quarter Dining
One week on the beach in some sun-kissed location or maybe a ski resort high in the mountains sounds blissful. However, not all of us have the time to make those dreams come true. Maybe you only have a short, three-day weekend and want some away time.
Recently, my wife and I spent a weekend visiting one of the most exciting cities in the US: New Orleans. While we were there, we ate at three French Quarter restaurants.
How did this whole adventure start? Well, I wanted to do something memorable for my wife’s birthday. While we were talking one day, I asked if she wanted me to take her out for seafood for her birthday, about a month away.
Of course, she agreed, and then I asked her where she thought the best seafood was. Thinking I meant our local town, she named a couple of restaurants. I told her she was wrong. The best seafood was in New Orleans.
We qualify for the Southwest Companion Pass, which is probably one of the best reward programs offered by any US airline. My ticket is full price, and my wife’s ticket only costs the taxes and fees, under six dollars per leg.
This trip was doable, with New Orleans’s airport only about three hours away from Albuquerque. We flew out shortly before noon on Friday. Our plane landed in Houston to discharge and pick up passengers. What was supposed to be a quick 40 minutes on the ground turned into over two hours. We landed in New Orleans around 6 p.m.
Knowing the airlines’ tendency to be late, I made our dinner reservations for 8:30 p.m. That gave us plenty of time to get to our Central Business District hotel from the airport. Instead of renting a car and driving through the narrow streets of the French Quarter to find parking spaces, we used Lyft for all our transportation needs.
After arriving at our hotel, we changed for dinner. We had to change because, as with many classic restaurants, jackets are highly recommended for gentlemen during dinner at Arnaud’s, our Friday night dining destination.
When most people think of New Orleans’ food, they think of super spicy food prepared by chefs like Emeril Lagasse or Paul Prudhomme. New Orleans has grown up and become a restaurant mecca with flavors from around the world.
However, the roots of New Orleans cooking are Creole and Cajun. To understand the difference, a little history is needed. Don’t worry. This is not your high school history class. For centuries, New Orleans has been an important port for Spanish, French, and American traders. When Spain was in charge, they used servants, mainly slaves, from their Caribbean possessions. The food served was a fusion of Spanish and Island flavors. This can be seen still in many of the islands. When the French took over, they added their cooking to the mix. The result is known as Creole—subtlely spiced and prepared in a French tradition with ingredients from the Spanish influence.
Cajun cooking originated with the French, who were kicked out of Acadia in British Canada and settled in the bayous and islands of coastal Louisiana. They became known as Cajuns, a corruption of Acadia. The cooking was from the rural areas of the state. A lot of game, fish and vegetables. It seems Cajuns fell in love with the cayenne pepper from the area. They added it to all their dishes. This is the origin of the notion that all New Orleans food is spicey. Cajun food can be very spicy, depending on the cook and seasoning. True Creole food is not spicy and is a more refined cooking style.
Arnaud’s is classic Creole, as were the other two restaurants we would dine at during the weekend.
Open since 1918 and in the same family, since 1978, located just off the world-famous Bourbon Street, Arnaud’s easily classifies as a Classic French Quarter Restaurant. You know this will be a treat from the moment you walk up to the entrance. Most patrons honored the requested dress code, lending an air of sophistication—the interior of the building added to the ambiance.
The dinner menu was heavy with seafood choices, which was fine for my wife. I, on the other hand, am not a lover of seafood. I started with a bowl of Chicken and Andouille Gumbo. For the main course, I had the Chicken Hefner. My wife had Arnaud’s Crab Cakes. Later, she would declare that it was the best meal of the trip. For dessert, we shared an order of Strawberries Arnaud.
The food presentation was tasteful, not overly showy. The portions were acceptable; this is fine dining, not a buffet. As with French-inspired cooking, the food was subtly spiced and well prepared.
The tables on either side of us went for more showy desserts. The first ordered the New Orlean’s staple, Bananas Foster. The show did not disappoint them or us. Later, the table on our other side ordered Arnaud’s original Cafe Brulot. It is a combination of citrus, spices, and flaming brandy, which is poured over an orange peel and flows into a bowl. Finally, coffee is added to the mix.
The service was impeccable and consistent with classic New Orleans restaurants. There was a team of servers, including the head waiter, room captain, waiter, and assistant waiter, and I’m sure I am missing someone.
What struck us was the price. With the atmosphere, service, and food, it was very reasonable. I know from a recent trip to Las Vegas that trendy restaurants with celebrity chefs can cost way over $150 for a meal for the two of us, and we don’t drink. We ate in a classic restaurant, in a foodie (I hate that word) city, and paid around $80 for both of us. This is a trend we notice everywhere we eat. We never spent over $100 for two.
After dinner, we returned to our hotel for a night’s rest. The next morning, we were up early and ready to go. Our goal was beignets at Cafe Du Monde, Jackson Square. We had our first and only disappointment of the trip.
With our many trips around the US, the Caribbean, and Europe, we have found many places that are no cash, only cards. And except for a taxi in Dominica and some market stalls in Belize, we never needed cash until we went to Cafe Du Monde. It is hard to believe that in 2023, in a major US city, at a famous, and very busy restaurant, they don’t take credit cards. We never carry cash, maybe a few dollars for a bellman’s tip, but that’s it. The only good thing was I saw the sign before we had waited more than a few minutes in line. We decided that they did not need our money, and we went on to discover some of the French Quarter.
We made our way towards Royal Street, about two blocks from Jackson Square. Our brunch reservations were at Brennan’s, located on Royal Street. However, they were for 1:00 pm, and it was only around 10:00 am. That gave us plenty of time to look through some of the antique stores along Royal. Of the various shops we visited, including a touristy souvenir shop, M.S. Rau, Antiques was by far the most impressive.
This was not your typical ‘antique’ store with items from the last few decades and an occasional item from the late 1800s. M.S. Rau has true antiques and fine art. We saw art objects costing more than $400,000, a 12-carat ruby set in a gold ring, and the original art of Erte at around $16,000. I must have good taste. A cane I looked at and loved was about $1300. Needless to say, we didn’t purchase anything.
After spending the morning roaming the shops along Royal, we entered Brennan’s for our brunch reservation—another Classic French Quarter restaurant that has been in the family since 1946. Brennan’s is known as the restaurant that invented the New Orleans staple, Banana’s Foster.
The afternoon light made the interior bright and cheerful. We were led to a table with a pink ribbon (more on that later). I don’t know if it was the time or the Brennan’s vibe, but it felt more alive and festive. It was not as upscale as the previous night but still with an old-style charm.
As expected, the menu was heavy on egg dishes and other breakfast favorites. I ordered the house original, Eggs Hussarde, which is similar to Eggs Benedict but with a different sauce. I also added a Buttermilk Biscuit, which was served with Apple Butter. I found both dishes to be wonderful.
Continuing her seafood journey, my wife had Eggs St. Charles, another take on Eggs Benedict, this time with fried fish and Blood Orange sauce. She was not impressed. She did not like the combination of eggs and fish. The service was, as expected, impeccable. Like Arnault’s, there was a team to see to our every need.
I had forgotten that when I made our reservations, I had mentioned we were celebrating her birthday. We were seated at a table with a pink ribbon. We found out that the ribbon notified all the staff that someone was celebrating a birthday. She received many well wishes.
In addition, after we ate, the wait staff brought a special birthday cake, a two-foot-high pile of cotton candy. They set it down in front of her and tied an apron on her. After a few pecks at the cotton candy, they revealed the surprise. They removed the mound, and under it was a piece of cake with ice cream. These little touches made the brunch special and something we will remember.
Our Saturday was not finished yet. We returned to the hotel to get ready for our final meal in New Orleans—dinner at Galatoire’s on Bourbon Street in just a few hours. We hurriedly changed for dinner, another restaurant with a dress code. We called Lyft and met them for the trip to the Quarter.
I didn’t consider that we visited New Orleans on Halloween Weekend. A typically wild and loud Bourbon Street was even wilder than normal. This was a Saturday night, after all. People in all types of costumes, including at least one that was painted on, strolled the street. We weaved our way through the crowd to our dinner location, Galatorie’s.
Once again, the ambiance was classic fine dining. Some were dressed in costumes, but the majority honored the dress code. It was busy, a well-orchestrated chaos. We were seated in the main dining room.
Because of late brunch and early dinner, my wife was looking for something a bit lighter than a full meal; She settled on an Avacado Crab Salad. I was not so restrained. I started with the Potatoes Souffle with Bernaise Sauce, a house specialty. The dish consisted of large wedges of potatoes with a crisp crust and a light, fluffy interior, almost like mashed potatoes. I had a double grilled pork chop in Clemaceu for the entree.
My chop was the thickest, meatiest pork chop I have ever seen. The waitress even commented on how large it was. Even with the thickness, it was perfectly cooked in the middle. There was a crust of spices that put the chop over the top. The Clemaceu was a combination of peas and potatoes in a sauce. It added to the flavor of the meat. My wife’s salad was a huge pile of crab meat on a bed of lettuce with a dressing. She enjoyed it, but not as much as I enjoyed my meal, which for me was the best of the trip. Neither of us had any room for dessert.
It goes without saying that the service was impeccable, like our dining experience on the trip. If anyone says that customer service is dead in the US, send them to one of the three restaurants we visited. They will change their mind.
After dinner, we returned to our hotel and packed for an early morning departure. We were leaving during the early Sunday morning of a sleeping city. The classic charm, ambiance, and food we enjoyed at the three places we ate at were unforgettable. This is what dining should be. Not some hype-of-the-week celebrity chef where you get three pieces of something on a plate and are charged $75. And the wait staff let you know that you should be honored that they have decided to serve you.
If you are looking for a quick weekend trip and want to enjoy fine dining in a vibrant city, there can’t be many places that surpass New Orleans.
