New Orleans March 28 - April 1

MARCH 29

My preferred way of exploring a city is by walking through the streets. Coincidentally, the temperature (50-60 degrees F) was perfect for walking. Melissa and I headed down Jefferson Ave from Liz's place and along Magazine Street until we reached the French Quarter. One of the first things that struck me was how there was greenery everywhere, in sharp contrast to the brown grass and bare trees in Boston and New York. Sweet flowers perfumed the air, magnificent oak trees lined the streets, and lizards scurried across the sidewalk. The grand houses along Jefferson Ave turned into the cute shops of Magazine Street and then the bars and overhanging balconies of Bourbon Street. Along the way, we hit up spots like Lafayette Square, Harmony Circle, St. Louis Cathedral, Jackson Square, Woldenberg Park, and the French Market.

Fairy tale house along Jefferson Ave

Colorful (smaller) houses along Magazine Street

Huge oak trees...

...that can also be sprawling

Jefferson Square and St. Louis Cathedral

MOTHER'S RESTAURANT

Local and tourists alike stood in line for some comfort food at this cafeteria-style joint. Once we placed our orders, we sat down at a table and an employee took our receipts to the food counter - an old-fashioned but reliable POS system. 

• Shrimp po'boy - fried shrimp with cabbage and remoulade sauce. Crispy, not greasy shrimp. Perfect amount of sauce, just a little on the bun but enough to add flavor and creaminess. Ratio of bread to shrimp was on the higher end, but is appropriate for this low-key restaurant
• Jambalaya - rice flavored with tomato, spices, Andouille sausage, etc. Has a kick! Also saltiness from the sausage
• Turnip greens - more mild, not too salty, tame the saltiness and spice of the other two. Cooked with lean pork shoulder - tastes homey!

• Bread pudding - leftover po'boy bread, cinnamon, nutmeg. rum caramel sauce added a hint of maple fragrance/sweetness

Melissa got a biscuit from Mother's and then a sweet potato po'boy from Killer Po'boys.

During our stroll along Woldenberg Park, we noticed some people forcibly shining tourists' shoes (even if they weren't leather) and asking for a tip. The New Orleans version of New York car washing lol.

SOUTHERN CANDYMAKERS

Famous praline candies! Sugar, butter, pecans. Airy texture, almost like honeycomb candy

The French Market had food stalls with iconic New Orleans food, as well as jewelery, landscapes painted on glass, and other souvenirs.

CAFE DU MONDE

The iconic New Orleans experience. Beignets were fried up perfectly - not greasy at all. If you avoid choking on powdered sugar (by moistening it with saliva before swallowing) and wash it down with a cafe au lait, it's perfect. Cafe au lait (unsweetened) had a good balance - it was neither bitter nor too dilute.

On the way back from the French Quarter, we took the St. Charles Streetcar. It looked pretty much like the same model as the trolleys in Milan!

SUPERIOR SEAFOOD

We met up with Liz and her friend Ethan, along with Clara and Manny. 

• Pinot grigio - First slightly sweet and slightly acidic. Then aroma of apple, finished with a little bit of bitterness and tannic at the tip of the tongue
• Oysters on the half shell - I had raw oysters for the first time! I liked them with a little bit of lemon, as opposed to the cocktail sauce which covered the flavor of the oyster. That way, there was still a taste of the sea. I didn't think about the texture too much, so it wasn't really off-putting.

FRITZ EUROPEAN JAZZ CLUB

After a failed attempt to get into Spotted Cat and Preservation Hall, we headed to Fritz's. There were two bands: the first was a saxophone, banjo, double bass, and drums and the second was trumpet, saxophone, piano, double bass, and drums. The jazz was pretty traditional (picture the pianist playing with a cigar in his mouth except when he was doing vocals). Part of the true New Orleans experience!

MARCH 30

It was much warmer and sunnier - closer to summer though not very humid.

M.S. RAU

We passed various antique shops, but M. S. Rau looked extra special. What caught my eye were cool grandfather clocks and precise music boxes. The music boxes had little spikes that caught on levers to dictate the sound that was produce. The sound was pretty clear and not tinkly like most music boxes.There was also self-playing violin/piano chests, where the strings were attached to the some metal (instead of the peg box) and metal that served as fingers and a spinning wheel for the bow. In addition, there was also jewelry, furniture, statues, and paintings.

Fancy music box

Porcelain framed mirror!

GALATOIRE'S

Bow-tied waiters, brass chandeliers, mirrored walls, hexagon-tiled floors - Galatoire's is a century-old restaurant that is classy but not overly pretentious. Perhaps it was the relatively close quarters (smaller than Antoine's at least) or the bustling chatter, but the restaurant felt warm and intimate despite the two sets of utensils laid out. Again there seemed to be a mix of tourists and locals. The locals seemed to consist of proper Southern women who sat very straight as well as a group of businesspeople. After we were seated, we were served some warm bread - similar to po'boy or banh mi style bread. The texture was great - crunchy, soft, chewy, and over the coarse of the meal we had several more loaves. Funny note, pats of butter were placed out on every table prior to seating.

• Souffle potatoes - puffy potato pillows, almost like fries. bernaise was slightly sweet (especially with salty potatoes), perfurmed with nutmeg and parsley

• Turtle soup au sherry - made with holy trinity, a little bit of tomato, veal stock roux, sherry. The primary flavor came from the roux, spices, and sherry. The roux added saltiness and umami, whereas the spices made the soup quite peppery. The pepperiness was counteracted by the bitterness from the sherry. Not sure how the sherry was incorporated, but maybe it was just poured on top because it was quite strong. There were just little pieces of turtle meat - nothing offensive.

• Crawfish etouffee - similar to the turtle soup in the holy trinity and roux base, but slightly less peppery. Little crawfish tails added slight sweetness and chewy texture. Rice was also cool - seemed relatively starchy. Also slightly chewy but soft texture at the same time, probably because it was steamed.

• Sweet potato cheesecake with banana praline sauce - cheesecake + sweet potato pie, though sweet potato flavor was more subtle than cheesecake. Caramel sauce definitely added some sweetness. Praline pecans were nicely salted! And whipped cream added some relief. But I would have been happy with just the cheesecake alone!

From the French Quarter, we walked along the Lafayette Greenway to City Park. The area we passed by seemed to be a former industrial area which looked like it had recently been revived by hip restaurants. Still there were fewer trees than the shady avenues in Uptown.

CITY PARK

We strolled through the Sculpture Garden and the Couturie Forest. There were bodies of water in both - classic New Orleans swamp. In particular the water in the Couturie Forest was still that plants formed a crust over the water.

By the same artist (Juame Plensa) who created MIT's Alchemist!

See yourself from multiple angles! And get lost because there are so many of you!

A cool mosaic!

On top of one of the few hills. Map of New Orleans on the ground!

CREOLE CREAMERY

After all the walking under the hot sun, we needed ice cream to cool off.

• Lavender Honey
• Creole Cream Cheese - tasted like normal cream cheese to me, but apparently it's softer and more similar to ricotta or mascarpone
• Ginger Carrot Cake
• Bananas Foster - like bananas and caramel.

QUEEN TRINI LISA

Food from Trinidad and Tobago! Queen Trini Lisa, who we got to meet, moved down from Trinidad and Tobago to New York and finally to New Orleans when her former husband came after Hurricane Katrina as part of the construction crews who rebuilt the city.

• BBQ Jerk Chicken - this is more likely the chef's creation, as opposed to a popular dish from Trinidad and Tobago, since Queen Trini Lisa herself told us that she learned about jerk chicken while living in New York. Dominant flavor is a sweet barbecue sauce, but the heat hits in the back.
• Cabbage - spicyyyy
• Rice and peas - good solid flavor
• Plantains - sweet and soft on the inside, crusty and caramelized on the outside
  
• Spinach - cooked like the turnip greens from Mother's but without the meat
• Doubles - turmeric based roti-like (but more air bubbles) flat bread wrapped around mild curry chickpeas and cilantro. served with mango chutney (also a little spicy), tamarind sauce (sweet, sour, and some cumin/spices), and hot sauce (vinegar based, really spicy but flavorful)

On our way out of the restaurant, there were some kids wandering the streets and practicing their trumpets. This shows the prevalence of music (jazz, Creole, etc.), which is also linked to festivals and parades, in New Orleans culture.

ROCK N BOWL

This bowling alley and live music venue featured Rusty Metoyer and the Zydeco Krush. Zydeco is a music genre that blends rhythm and blues with indigenous Creole music, according to Wikipedia. The dancing seemed like a mix of swing, cha cha cha, waltz, and country dances. The locals taught us the two step, eight step, and some line dances. While one local, Jackie, was great at teaching us the basics, others simply couldn't tell us the difference between two step and eight step because it came to them naturally! In addition, there were varying styles on the dance floor, including different levels of intimacy, full body movement, and general steps. For example, the same music was suitable for both two and eight step, so people moved fluidly between various steps. Dancers also added their own flourishes such as a kick or stomp with the heel of their boots. It was a lot of fun to dance along side locals and learn some traditional steps.

MARCH 31

Since we had seen the main attractions and were a little bit more tired, we took the next two days a bit easier. So in the extra time, I practiced and did a little bit of psetting...

SMOOTHIE KING

A chain that we saw many times, so we had to try. I got the pineapple mango greek yogurt smoothie - quite refreshing. Also the sizes are pretty large; the smallest size was 20 oz.

DAT DOG

• Rougarou - alligator sausage, onions, tomatoes, pickled jalapenos, bacon. flavor of alligator was not really strong - just tasted smoked and spiced. pickled jalapenos added pop of heat.
• I would be interested in trying the Guinness sausage
• Bonus was that they had vegan hot dogs!

WILLIAM'S PLUM STREET SNOBALLS

According to travel guides, snoballs are ideal treat for summer. I was not planning on having any since it is not summer, but it was definitely hot enough for an icy treat. Basically snoballs consist of finely shaved ice saturated with syrup. The ice was quite soft since it was so fine, but I was not a fan of the artificial flavors, at least the ones I chose (pina colada was OK but I didn't like the peach).

AUDOBON PARK

We (not me) did some cartwheels on The Fly, right by the Mississippi River, climbed some trees, and watched turtles come up to us for food.

BA CHI CANTEEN

Due to the French influence in New Orleans, there is a large Vietnamese population. Ba Chi has your standard banh mi and pho, but also more fusion dishes.

• Kimchi fries - kimchi cheese sauce, bits of kimchi, bits of bulgogi
• "Baco" - steamed bun + taco - everything was fried perfectly, crisp but not greasy
• Soft shelled crab with mayo and eel sauce - I had soft-shelled crab for the first time. Fried tempura style. There was really nothing hard to bite through! When I bit through the body, there was some tasty crab juice!
• Chicken with curry sauce and thai basil - curry was punctuated by lime and lemongrass so it felt light and worked well with thai basil
• Fish with sweet chili sauce

CREOLE CREAMERY (again)

I was too full to order anything, but I tried the lemongrass coconut. It tasted more of lemongrass than coconut, but still good.

APRIL 1

It was quite hot and humid. It was deceptively cloudy, but the UV amplified by the water droplets gave me a tan.

ANTOINE'S

Established in 1840, Antoine's prides itself as the oldest family-run restaurant in America. Parts of the dining area reflect that with memorabilia from the past two centuries, as well as dishes and ash trays from upscale hotels around the world. 

I expected the jazz brunch to feature a band playing music continuously. However, the restaurant is so big that a few instruments cannot fill up the whole space. So instead a trio came around to each table and took song requests. (We asked for something upbeat.) The live music was a nice experience nevertheless.

Saxophone, treble guitar, double bass - each had a solo too!

• Fancy piped butter to go with the bread. Honestly the bread wasn't as exciting as Galatoire's bread. Not as crunchy or flavorful.

• Oysters Rockerfeller - oysters topped with smooth sauce of butter, flour, herbs that formed a shell over the oyster. Good with some lemon but not much oyster flavor. Cool part was the oysters were served on bed of salt, which kept the oysters hot. Unfortunately the metal plate holding the oysters burned my hand.

• Shrimp and grits - very flavorful shrimp! Some juices permeated cheesy sauce (supposedly smoked gouda but I tasted mild cheddar or something else), probably a bechamel, that topped the grits. Also served with lightly candied bacon.

AYU BAKEHOUSE

• Kaya bun - soft sweet bread, with a dollop of coconut jam (kaya), dusted with coconut flakes. reminds me of coconut buns from childhood but less flavorful (just sweet and mild)

Consumed at the airport :)

• Hot cross buns - same soft sweet bread dough but ginger glaze! candied oranges! plump (soaked) raisins!
• I noticed that the muffaletta breadsticks (cheese, tomatoes, olives, optional meat) were quite popular.

BYWATER

Looks like a former industrial hub. Home to many artists. We passed by cool houses and a gallery too!

Parts of the mosaics are mirroed!

Dr. Bob's!

Rusty Rainbow Bridge - literally the name. Pretty accurate. As viewed from Crescent Park

Parked trains along the river. As viewed from Rusty Rainbow Bridge.

There was also a cool music shop that sold instruments, such as the Vietnamese dulcimer (like yangqing) and a mouth bow, and clothes/costumes for musicians.

NEW ORLEANS AFRICAN AMERICAN MUSEUM

This museum focused on the African Americans of Treme, which is the oldest free black community in the country. Because New Orleans was under French and Spanish control, many slaves had the freedom to sell their labor and eventually buy their freedom. No slaveowner in Virginia, for example, could imagine letting their slaves walking around the town square, let alone sell their labor. Hence this created a vibrant black community that became home to many artists and other successful people. One of the key takeaways of the museum was that not every black was a slave and that history is more complicated than the simple linear narrative that is often told, according to a documentary playing the museum. Of course, Treme had its fair share of devastations, such as the destruction of homes to build a highway, but learning about this neighborhood brought a new perspective to my knowledge of African American history.

LILY'S CAFE

Got a grilled pork banh mi for the road! Lots of meat with good ratio of fat to lean, but I couldn't really taste the liver pate... Carrots were marinated with some vinegar and spicy peppers! Also some cucumbers and cilantro.

We rode the streetcar for the last time on the way back to the apartment.

After some flight delays (including a nick on an engine blade), it was finally time to say goodbye to New Orleans!