New Orleans: Food

By
Saint Greg

September 27, 2019

In this entry I’m going to cover the places I ate prior to my last two cruises out of New Orleans and I’ll throw in where I ate before the Saints vs. Texas Monday Night Football game a couple weeks ago.

Going back to last December I did the Park N Cruise package at the Country Inn & Suites in Metairie. I did go downtown for the Krewe of Jingle parade which is where I got my first food.

Mother’s Restaurant

Mother’s is my favorite place for a Po Boy in the downtown area. There’s usually a line out the door when I get there, this day was no different.

Here is a look at the menu posted outside. They also will usually pass copies down the line. You can see the guy in front of me holding one in the above picture.

Here’s a better look at the menu: Mother’s Restaurant Menu

This is what it looks like once you get inside. You order and pay at the end of the line. Then you find a table. Your server will take your receipt and bring you your food when it’s ready.

Some say the prices are high here but you have to take into account the fact that they don’t allow tipping. That is all figured into the price.

Here is a look at the lunch specials.

My typical order here is the Debris Po Boy and Jerry’s Jambalaya.

Mother’s is also a good place for breakfast if you’re staying in the area. On weekdays they have the Early Bird Special from 7am-9am which includes Scrambled eggs, smoked sausage, grits, a biscuit, and coffee or orange juice.

If you aren’t getting the early bird I recommend getting Roast Beef Debris as the meat with whichever breakfast you choose.

ACME Oyster

The Country Inn & Suites Metairie is walking distance to the ACME oyster in Metairie. There is also a location in the French Quarter if you’re staying in that area. At the ACME oyster I prefer to sit at the oyster bar and eat charbroiled oysters.

The good thing about sitting at the oyster bar is you can watch the preparation of the oysters and interact with the oyster bar workers.

In this case the oyster bar guys were slipping me a raw oyster in a cup every time they shucked some.

At one point I got so stuffed with oysters I thought if I don’t take the oyster out of the cup, next time they won’t put another in it. Wrong. Two oysters in the cup.

I intended to have the ACME Oyster Bananas Foster Cheese Cake for dessert, but I was so stuffed from oysters I couldn’t eat anything else.

If you are visiting the ACME location in the French Quarter, you will typically find a line out the door. If you tell the person taking party numbers you want to sit at the oyster bar, you may be able to skip the line.

If you need a table and aren’t interested in waiting in line, Felix’s across the street is a pretty good alternative and never has a line.

Cochon Butcher

This last cruise when I was staying in the Warehouse District and in need of a lunch spot before visiting the WWII museum, I stopped at Cochon Butcher.

Cochon Butcher is a sandwich shop that makes all of their meat in house.

Here is a look at some of their meats.

This is a link to the Cochon Butcher Menu.

I went off the normal menu and ordered the Coppa Steak Special. I also got a side of Mac N Cheese and a local beer, Abita Amber.

If you’re hungry for more Cochon Restaurant is right next door.

Drago’s

Another spot for Charbroiled Oysters is Drago’s Seafood Restaurant. This is actually where the Charbroiled Oyster was invented. Much like ACME, Drago’s has a location down here as well as one near the hotel I stayed at last time in Metairie. In this case I’m eating at the location inside the Hilton Riverside which is a popular pre-cruise hotel.

Again I was able to secure a spot at the oyster bar.

My Charbroiled Oysters and Abita Amber.

If you aren’t an oyster fan they have much more than just oysters on Drago’s Menu.

Dat Dog

After an evening on Frenchman Street I stopped at the Dat Dog to grab something to take back to the hotel room.

Here is a look at the menu.

I went with the Guinness Special and Cheddar+Bacon+Ranch fries.

Crepes a la Cart

The Crepes a la Cart store is uptown which is a pretty good streetcar ride away. In this case they happened to have the Running of the Bulls right outside of my hotel. They had food trucks there including the Crepes a la Cart truck.

Here is a look at the menu they have on the truck.

I went with the big pig.

Hansen’s Sno-Bliz

If you’re cruising out of New Orleans in the summer you want to try to get a snowball. The closest one to the cruise terminal is Hansen’s Sno-Blitz.

The problem is they don’t open until 1pm. That makes it difficult stop by before or after the cruise unless you’re staying here. Where are they at in the morning? They’re in there making syrups fresh each day with spring water and cane sugar.

People think it’s a snow cone. It’s not a snow cone. It’s different. it’s a snowball.

I went with a chocolate snowball with condensed milk which makes it closer to ice cream than a snow cone.

This one they say is like their roast beef po-boy of snowballs. Anytime you’re in New Orleans and someone compares something to a roast beef po-boy…It’s good.

Port Orleans Brewing Co.

After the Snowball I was looking for a place to watch a football game and Port Orleans Brewing Company was nearby.

While I was there I grabbed an order of their Boudin Balls.

Coop’s Place

For late night eats in the French Quarter, Coop’s place is a good option. You have to be 21 to enter. They carded me. Their kitchen is open until midnight during the week and 1am on weekends.

Here is a look at the menu.

Red beans and rice, rabbit and sausage jambalaya, cole slaw, and Cajun fried chicken.

Cafe Du Monde

The next morning I hit Cafe Du Monde for breakfast.

I got a cafe au lait and an order of beingets.

The Company Burger

The Company Burger‘s downtown location is a popular spot before Saints games. That is where I ate before their last Monday Night Football game. I commonly get a company burger and sweet potato fries.

In this case I went with the company burger and cheese tater tots. Unfortunately I started eating both of them before I thought to take a picture.