New Orleans Help

[okiealdawg]

I have a wedding to attend in New Orleans in two weeks and need some help with restaurants near the Quarter and downtown. We have another couple joining us from Austin and none of us have a lot of experience there.

Best place to get boiled crawfish
Best place for poboys
Best overall restaurant - expensive or not

Thanks in advance

In turn I promise to get my well paid brother in Houston to get season tickets this year or give to LTAC...

[daybreaker3]

to me, the best place for poboys is Johnny's po boys, at 511 St Louis St in the French Quarter (across from Jax Brewery). Prices are normal poboy prices (which means in terms of the FQ, it's cheap), and they are delicious. They are cash only.

As far as crawfish in the FQ? Hmm... the only non-touristy place I know of is a bar called Yo Mama's right by Pat OBrien's at 727 Saint Peter St... Last time I saw, they had prices equal to normal seafood restaurants. A lot of FQ places will be epensive and not so good, because tourists wont know better. You could also probably try Deanie's or Acme Oyster House, both on Iberville.

I know Yo Mama's had crawfish at one point earlier this year, but I dont know if they always do... but they also have GREAT burgers. Huge, and they come with a loaded baked potato. The one that my friends like is the Peanut Butter Bacon Burger. They also have over 50 tequilas there.

Thats about the best I can offer... If youre flying in, you can get some good crawfish by the airport, about 5 minutes away in Kenner, at Williams and W. Esplanade at Smitty's Seafood. Thats where we get all our crawfish.

[okiealdawg]

What's your favorite higher end restaurant downtown? We can also head down St. Charles since we are going to drive down - thanks for the help.

[daybreaker3]

What's your favorite higher end restaurant downtown? We can also head down St. Charles since we are going to drive down - thanks for the help.

I've heard good things about Cochon. I've been wanting to try it out, and they also have their own specialty butcher/deli/wine bar behind it. http://www.cochonrestaurant.com/

I've only been down here for a few years (lived in a suburb 40mins away growing up, so I didnt get down here much as far as the fancy restaurant scene goes), so there's still a whole bunch of higher end restaurants I havent tried yet.

There's actually a thread on saintsreport.com about this right now... someone collected all the posts about various restaurants and made them into a list:

Clancy's
--a fine choice for an authentic New Orleans experience from a local perspective. Awesome restaurant that would be wonderful for romantic occasions
--one of my personal favorites
--top notch

Jacques-Imo's
--You cannot go wrong there. My favorite in the city. Great atmosphere, even better food. Trust me
--is a blast on tuesday and the food is pretty damn good!!!
--This is EXACTLY what you are looking for

Dragos
--The charbroiled oysters is a must
--one of my personal favorites
--very good

Brigtsens
--Trust me on this one
--excellent

Mr. B's
--good
--excellent

Christians
--good restaurant but I'm not sure it re-opened since Katrina
--very good

Commander's
--it sucks. It tastes like a over-rated Yankee restaurant
--the service is horrendous
--the best place in town
--consistently serves great food. I've been there for brunch, lunch, dinner, rehearsal dinners, chef's table, and I have never walked out of there unhappy.

Emeril's
--a tourist trap. You'll no doubt be hungry when you leave there
--The food isn't bad...but I've seen fly's eat more
--very good
--I've eaten there twice. Both times the food was excellent and I could barely finish the plate.

Brennan's
--mediocre IMHO
--highly overrated, but not terrible
--one of my personal favorites. If I want a sure-fire no mistakes dinner it will be Brennans.

Galatoire's
--mediocre IMHO
--one of my personal favorites

Gautreau's
--a fine choice for an authentic New Orleans experience from a local perspective. Awesome restaurant that would be wonderful for romantic occasions

Mat and Naddie's
--don't know if its the best - but its my favorite

Delmonico on St. Charles
--no explanation

K-Paul's
--one to look at

Dante's Kitchen
--no explanation

Cafe du Monde
--no explanation

Popeye's
--no explanation

Commander's and Galatoire's are two places where it seems like you either have the best meal of your life, or you feel very let down... Most people seem to have a great meal there, but they can be very pricey.

[Bigdog13]

As far as the nicer joints the wife and I like Antoines. Lot's of good ones down there though.

[SpaceDawg]

There is a Deanie's in the FQ. That's probably your best crawfish place.

I've been to Emerils, Galatoires, and Antoines. All were nice. If you go to Galatoires, remember there's a dress code for men (jacket required).

[Ktulu7]

MAAAAN, if you're driving/riding in from the airport and want a po-boy... Someone can argue with me on this one, but I personally think that a po-boy at Short Stop at Airline and Transcontinental in Metairie is the best damn po-boy there is. As for other nice places to eat, I don't think you can go wrong with Brennan's or Galatoire's either, and I also saw crawfish at Yo Mama's and I wanna say one of the oyster places off of Royal St. in the Quarter.

By the way, DB3, have you eaten at Korea House in Fat City? Holy crap am I addicted to that flamin', spicy Korean goodness! Haha! My buddies and I drive down there from BR just to eat at that place sometimes.

[Dawgbitten]

Broussard's is pretty good. High priced, but service is outstanding. It is one block off Bourbon St. on Conti.

[Dawgbitten]

You can probably get crawfish at Mulates near the convention center. It is a designed tourist trap, but I am sure they know how to boil some bugs.

[marketdawg]

Love me some Crescent City Brewpub! On the riverfront just off the quarter-across from the mall. Good food and really great microbrew beers. Worth the walk. Nice place with very reasonable menu.

[daybreaker3]

By the way, DB3, have you eaten at Korea House in Fat City? Holy crap am I addicted to that flamin', spicy Korean goodness! Haha! My buddies and I drive down there from BR just to eat at that place sometimes.

I need to try it out... Everyone at work loves korean, vietnamese, anything Asian, but since we work downtown, the places we mainly go are Nine Roses, Pho Tau Bay, and....some Thai place I cant remember (since I dont like Thai)... Lots of choices for great Sushi too.

[okiealdawg]

Thanks for all the help! Has anyone ever eaten at GW fins before? We heard it was good and also heard that the Bourbon Street something was good as well?

[Dawgmatic]

Have the BBQ Shrimp at Deanies. The best.

[bulldawg03]

GW Fins is good, but overrated and expensive. There are many more (and much better) hole-in-the-walls.

As a native born and raise and still live here, anything in the Quarter is going to be overpriced and overrated, really. So you're best bet is going to be to find the hole-in-the-walls. Two places to avoid: Court of Two Sisters and Pat O's for food definitely not worth the money.

Port of Call has amazing burgers on Esplanade and is a must-do for tourists and locals, alike. Cochon is a great place, as is Cafe Adelaide and Mother's — another must-do for tourists and locals. Maspero's on Decatur is a great value — but cash only — as is Johnny's Po-Boys (mentioned earlier).

Crawfish in the Quarter? Don't even waste your time. The best places are going to be in Bucktown — R&Os, Deanie's of Metairie, and pretty much any bar on a Friday. If you're looking for some great boiled seafood, your best bet is to make the drive to Belle Chase to Salvo's. They have an all-you-can-eat platter of shrimp, crawfish, crab and the fixins for cheap.

[bayouboyz]

the sizzling steak at Charlie's is hard to pass up!