Getting the party started in New Orleans
I couldn’t resist. The call of gumbo, red beans and rice, beignets and live music was too much.
When my husband had a business trip to New Orleans in early February and invited me to join him for a long weekend, I gladly accepted. It had been nearly 10 years since I had visited the Big Easy and that was just way too long to stay away from one of my favorite cities to visit.
Getting there from Pittsburgh is easy, with a mere two-and-a-half-hour plane ride offered by several airlines. We stayed in the Central Business District overnight before moving over to the French Quarter for a long weekend on our own.
I had never stayed in the French Quarter itself and the warnings about loud noise should not be ignored if you are a light sleeper (or if you plan on sleeping at all in this bustling metropolis and center of constant revelry). We did find a gem on Chartres Street in the Chateau Hotel, a restored 18th-century-mansion-turned-hotel complete with large rooms featuring soaring ceilings, balconies overlooking Chartres Street or the interior courtyard fountain and pool.
Our room was spacious and sparkling clean with a balcony overlooking Chartres Street, which is quiet and lined with lovely buildings, private homes and a few quaint shops. We’d hear the occasional clip-clip of horse-drawn carriages passing by or a round of laughter from folks heading home or just starting their evenings about town.
Bourbon Street is only two blocks away but do yourself a favor and stay on either Chartres or Royal Street the next block up and you’ll be steps away from the party but a mile away from all of the noise and mayhem.
Getting the party started
Previous visits to NOLA for me always seemed to happen in the late summer or fall, so we didn’t even realize that arriving on the first couple of days in February meant annual Mardi Gras celebrations were already underway.
Mardi Gras 2024 fell on Feb. 13, but the first parades had already taken place in late January, and we were lucky enough to be there for several more the first weekend in February. Getting a taste of the early rounds of revelry and seeing huge crowds for even the smaller parades convinced me that I may not need to attend Mardi Gras on Fat Tuesday itself. The party here truly starts a few weeks before and lasts all the way through Ash Wednesday.
One of the first parades of the weekend took place just a block north of our hotel kicking off on Royal Street, where the Krewe of Cork assembled (after a morning brunch and before an evening post-parade party) for their annual Mardi Gras strut.
As you’d guess by the name, this Krewe celebrates wine and even had those they dub the “wine police” scattered amongst the parade group refilling wine chalices during their procession. While this parade took place in the French Quarter, three others that evening happened just across Canal Street centered in the Uptown area. These larger parades featured floats and all of them had the large crowds entertained, tossing beads and joining in the dancing, laughter and appreciation of the Mardi Gras culture.
Similar to what we found in Munich during Oktoberfest last year, I was struck by just how much the people of New Orleans truly love Mardi Gras. From Uber drivers to restaurant servers to our front desk staff at the hotel, everyone here sported huge grins while excitedly asking, “Are you here for Mardi Gras? Are you going to the parades?” It’s refreshing to experience this sense of welcome from a city whose population genuinely loves the annual celebration and isn’t just putting it on for tourists. Mardi Gras is their party and they’re going to let the good times roll whether you visit or not.
Good food, little time
So many restaurants, so little time! That’s the problem with only spending a few days in New Orleans. We’d sampled the mainstays of red beans and rice, gumbo and jambalaya on previous visits, so we tried a few other spots for the first time, including the famous Antoine’s Restaurant on St. Louis Street in the French Quarter.
This grand-dame of fine French-Creole dining is the birthplace of oysters Rockefeller and is still owned and operated by the fifth-generation descendants of founder Antoine Alciatore, who opened it back in 1840. We tried their famous Baked Alaska for the very first time and it did not disappoint.
The next day served us up a wonderful surprise as we stumbled upon Tableau by Dickie Brennan & Co. right beside Jackson Square and St. Louis Cathedral. Their menu also features classic French-Creole cooking served in an elegant three-story townhouse with an open kitchen and balcony. We scored a table near the open French doors on a balmy 60-degree late morning and listened to live music from nearby Jackson Square while enjoying the most delicious eggs Benedict I’ve ever had washed down with a crisp Bellini.
We spent our evening on Frenchman Street in the nearby Marigny neighborhood (just six blocks from our hotel) taking in live jazz at the Blue Nile and other clubs. This is where you’ll find the real New Orleans live music nowadays since many Bourbon Street bars have been infiltrated by cover bands and deejays. The next morning, our final culinary stop in NOLA was at the legendary The Court of Two Sisters for their famous jazz brunch buffet of Creole classics. The grand mansion built in 1726 has been a presence on Royal Street for centuries and is the perfect spot for feasting on a spread including made-to-order omelets, crawfish etouffee, prime rib and fantastic pecan pie. With a jazz trio in the corner serenading the brunch crowd, it was the perfect ending to our early Mardi Gras getaway.