Big Easy food feasts — spots you can’t miss
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NEW Orleans is considered one of the top culinary destinations in the world. The Crescent City’s fine cuisine is a tribute to its indigenous Creole culture and its unique blend of different nationalities’ heritage.
Here, people don’t eat to live; they seem to live to eat.
Southern, Cajun, Creole, French, Caribbean, Mediterranean, Mexican, American, you will find it all. Seafood, gumbo, steaks, Po-boys, small plates, big plates, from traditional to contemporary, homey to haute, there’s something for every palate.
One will find oysters on plenty of New Orleans menus and tables. Oysters, from the Gulf of Mexico, are available year-round but largest during cooler months. Oysters here are not only eaten raw but often with a dash of hot sauce or grilled or baked with a cheesy, buttery, garlicky topping and eaten with crusty French bread.
Boiled crawfish is another Louisiana staple. Very similar to those found in crawfish eateries in Shanghai, you eat with your hands when the crawfish are warm and suck up the juices. Delicious and spicy, you’ll feel a gentle numbness around your lips and tongue. Crawfish is also used to make etoufee, for which it is smothered and served with rice, or crawfish bread and other recipes.
Cajun cuisine is built around onions, bell peppers and celery, also referred to as the holy trinity of its cuisine. The three simple ingredients provide the base for a wide range of dishes inherent to New Orleans: gumbo, etouffee and jambalaya.
For New Orleans, cool weather means a steaming pot of gumbo on many home cooks’ stoves. The most essential component is the roux, the French-patented flour and oil mixture that serves as a flavorful base and helps thicken the broth. Gumbo can predominately features seafood like shrimp, crab and oysters, but it can also be a meat-based dish, with Andouille sausage and chicken.
Cocktail culture is an essential part of the local lifestyle. You may first notice it in the form of flashing signs on Bourbon Street, but there is a refined side to the city’s cocktail history. New Orleans is said to be the home of cocktails such as Sazerac, Ramos Fizz, Hurricane, Vieux Carre, and the Absinthe Frappe.
As the city is known as the “Big Easy,” there are hundreds of fun things to do in New Orleans. There is an array of choices for great food, and if you don’t plan to retire in the city, you won’t have time to try them all. If you want to be on the save side instead of tasting yourself through hundreds of restaurants, I can recommend the following — guaranteed, you won’t regret eating there.
Cafe du Monde (800 Decatur Street): It’s a legend, an institution, and no visit to New Orleans is complete without a stop at Cafe du Monde. In operation since 1862, it has a nostalgic vibe. Cafe au lait and the famous beignets (the local version of doughnuts) are a great way to get your day — and your trip — started.
Acme Oyster House (724 Iberville St. French Quarter): Acme is synonymous with oysters. Since 1910, Acme’s marble-topped bar ahs served up countless bivalves on the half shell. The grilled oysters are must-orders as well. Other regional specialties are available.
Sylvain (625 Chartres Street): It is a hip gastro pub with a very chilled vibe. Food is less traditional and diners love to sip on hand-crafted cocktails and nibble refined recipes. They offer daily specialties.
Cafe Amelie (912 Royal Street): The place is dreamy and romantic. A gorgeous courtyard and carriage house that was once home to Alice Heine, the American who became the Princess of Monaco, this is an ideal spot for a leisurely outdoor lunch on a nice day.
Lafitte’s Blacksmith Shop (corner of Bourbon Street and St Philip Street) Built between 1722 and 1732 by Nicolas Touze, Lafitte’s Blacksmith Shop is reputed to be the oldest structure used as a bar in the United States. Today, it is another New Orleans legend on Bourbon Street. Unlike most tacky bars on the street, Lafitte’s has kept a unique charm and an ultra-chilled vibe for a group of people to have beer and enjoy the music. Domilese’s (5240 Annunciation Street ) is a must-go eatery if you want to taste the authentic po-boys, a traditional Louisiana sandwich. A bit far from the main street in Uptown, Domilese feels like a down-to-earth neighborhood tavern. Once inside, grab a seat at the bar and simply order the most popular po-boy that is half shrimp half oyster: smoking hot from the fryer, heaped onto bread with shredded lettuce and pickles. Locals would tell you there is no better example of a quintessential New Orleans po-boy bar. Jacque-imo’s (8324 Oak Street) is another legend in town, there is always a line but try to look at the bright side — the wait will leave some extra time for a drink. Owner Jacques Leonardi fell in love with New Orleans and learned the basics of “Nawlins”-style cooking and has run this popular restaurant ever since.
Next to Jacque-imo’s, Maple Leaf Bar (8316 Oak St.) is a great bar open every day from 3pm until late. A “New Orleans music dive bar,” it is one of the longest continuing operation of the local music clubs with live performances seven nights a week.
Pay a visit to the lively Frenchman Street at night and you will find yourself immersed in music. This is where locals go when they want to have fun. For live jazz music, Spotted Cat (623 Frenchman Street) is the top choice, while Snug Harbor (626 Frenchman Street) is the only club strictly devoted to jazz music.
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