So I went to New Orleans over the weekend for my last single friend's bachelor party. These were my experiences/takeaways:
First, I'll say that NOLA has always been one of my favorites places, and loved it when I was 22, 25, 26, and 29. Each of those times I either stayed on Canal or Bourbon, but now, it's painfully obvious to me that I have outgrown setting up base camp on Bourbon. I know I'm getting older, but it also seems a little trashier than it was 10-15 years ago. The shooting early Sunday morning only cemented my opinions. So, I look forward to returning, but staying elsewhere.
As far as restaurants/bars/entertainment went, I didn't have much say in the matter for this trip, but of the places I went:
Johnny's Po-Boys - been a favorite of mine for years. I thought this visit was only okay, but I also went near closing time so that might have affected the quality of the bread.
Antoine's - good, but not great. The pompano was solid, as were their chargrilled oysters, but oysters rockefeller, which they claimed to have invented, were very mediocre-to-bad.
Erin Rose - frozen Irish coffees were fucking excellent. Really hit the spot on the hot and humid mornings.
Parkway Bakery & Tavern - in the Mid-City area. Excellent. One of the best po-boys I've ever had. Outside the Quarter, but would absolutely have again.
Jacque Imo's - in Uptown. Solid, although, like Johnny's, don't feel like I got their best. They told me they were having to shut down for a couple weeks soon, so maybe they were low on stuff/effort. My panned rabbit wasn't particularly noteworthy this time around.
Felix's - very good chargrilled oysters, probably better than Antoine's and certainly more affordable.
Harrah's - fucked me hard. $25 minimums, but I actually had better luck at the $50 tables with fewer riff-raff.
Looking forward to my next trip when I can hit up GW Fins, Commander's Palace, and more of the places y'all have recommended... but hopefully staying in the Garden District from now on.