NOLA

[Lorenzo]

Three deep breaths...ok, so I just spent LITERALLY an hour and 20 minutes "on hold/disconnect/have to transfer you" with Delta, on two phones simultaneously, in order not to miss them, only to be told that that deal is "sold out". I just gave up and didn't harass the poor woman I finally talked to, but I'm calling Delta tomorrow and complaining vociferiously. Not only do I believe it may be illegal, since the website did not mention a limited number of "deals" while saying that the offer was good through today, but the phone system SUCKS.

Have fun in NOLA Tansu. I mean that in a good way.

Sorry you didn't find the fare you wanted.  The NOLA fare was good.  I was tempted to scoop up a trip to San Francisco, too, if for no other reason than to make a mileage run at six cents a Skymile, have a couple of good meals, and return home.  As far as I know, the general rule is that seats priced at whatever price level or "fare bucket" are always available only in limited quantities, and the cheapest seats on a flight do tend to sell out first.  Any air travel experts out there care to elaborate?  (Yes, this is probably a separate "food travel" thread.)

[LizR]

Thanks for the info. If the deal is not available any more, then they should remove it from the website or indicate "sold out". I could have lived with that, no problem. Basically being on hold for 80 minutes for something that was no longer available? Huge waste of my time and disappointing to boot. Not cool.

[tansu]

Not to turn this into a travel site, but it was a southwest price match.
Delta ENDS their "sales" about 8-9 pm on given day. NOT sold out!
I am a kettle, not a expert.

[Lorenzo]

My wife and I had a long weekend getaway in NOLA, using the Delta sale fare mentioned here back in October.  This trip we hit up some classics that have long been on my bucket list but for some reason I've never been able to make it to (okay, for the reason that most other trips have been during Mardi Gras or Jazzfest or a buddy's birthday or some other craziness that preoccupied me).  We concentrated on the Garden District and Uptown: Casamento's for oysters; lunch at Commander's Palace with the 25-cent martinis; Tracey's and Magazine St. Poboy for po'boys.  Also finally experienced the grilled oysters at Drago's: NOW I know what all the fuss is about--those oysters were about the best thing I've ever eaten.

As a huge fan of the NOLA style roast beef po'boy, I took the opportunity to compare Tracey's (the people who used to own Parasol's) and Magazine Street Po'boy versions.  Tracey's was the winner between the two--less mushy meat, larger sandwich overall (not necessarily a plus), and what I thought was the better bread.  Perhaps more gravy than I would have preferred--the thing was soaked--but not a big problem.  Next trip I plan to check out Parkway's, which is another place that gets mentioned a lot when roast beef po'boys are discussed.  My wife declared the softshell po'boy at Tracey's a clear winner over Magazine St. Po'boy's version--just more crab.  I also tried the "oyster loaf" at Casamento's and was a bit disappointed--just an oyster po'boy on white bread instead of French bread, and I believe I much prefer the latter.  But Casamento's raw oysters were amazing--I don't know where they get them, but of the many dozens of oysters we ate at various places over the weekend, those at Casamento's were the plumpest.  But I'm pleased to report that oysters were great everywhere.  Crawfish were not quite in season yet.  We had hoped to find them at Cooter Brown's (sports bar), which I've heard can do a mean crawfish boil, but we had to make do with oysters.

We didn't make a big deal out of breakfast/brunch this trip, and our only dedicated breakfast foray was to Camellia Grill, an old-school diner in Carrollton at what is currently the end of the St. Charles streetcar line.  Greasy and satisfying diner breakfast, nothing more nothing less.

Lunch at Commander's.  Check.  In a word, anticlimactic.  It's been on my bucket list since years ago hearing my parents mention it as somewhere they dined on a NOLA trip back in the early 1960s. (My mom was from Baton Rouge, and met my Yankee dad after moving to the Northeast.)  No major desire to return for either lunch or dinner.  I guess it might be a novelty for someone who wouldn't experience the whole "French fine dining" thing but for being a tourist in New Orleans, and it's no doubt a great place for a fancy business lunch or special date night dinner, but we just didn't find it exhilarating, and the pretentiousness seemed kind of silly for a place that seats like 500 people.  Yes, the food is no doubt great, but there are so many places for great food.

They sure are proud of their food, those New Orleaneans.  We were walking in the park, and a guy walking with his wife just started talking to us: "What's your favorite food in New Orleans?"

Drinking: Avenue Pub is a great beer bar, with a selection that reminded me of The Porter.  The owner's name is Polly, who reminded me of Molly.

We went to the French Quarter to watch the Krewe du Vieux parade, but other than that we pretty much ignored the Quarter this trip.  Everyone seems to be gearing up for Mardi Gras.

We also toured the World War II Museum.  Excellent.

[Mike GadgetGeek Stock]

GG>- purported to have the best Charbroiled Oysters.


Drago’s Seafood Restaurant (Fat City, Metairie)
3232 N. Arnoult Road, Metairie, LA 70002
Phone: (504) 888-9254

    Hours: Monday – Saturday, 11 am until 9 pm
    Closed Sunday
    Closed All Major Holidays
    Closed July 2 – July 5, reopen July 6
    Closed Mardi Gras weekend and some parade nights.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++==++++++++++++++++

Drago's Seafood Restaurant (Hilton New Orleans Riverside)

(504) 584-3911
Warehouse District
2 Poydras St
New Orleans, LA 70130 (504) 584-3911
Warehouse District
open Monday through Sunday from 11 am until 10 pm.
Closed Mardi Gras Day, Easter, Thanksgiving and Christmas

.....

[Lorenzo]

GG>- purported to have the best Charbroiled Oysters.


Drago’s Seafood Restaurant (Fat City, Metairie)
3232 N. Arnoult Road, Metairie, LA 70002
Phone: (504) 888-9254

    Hours: Monday – Saturday, 11 am until 9 pm
    Closed Sunday
    Closed All Major Holidays
    Closed July 2 – July 5, reopen July 6
    Closed Mardi Gras weekend and some parade nights.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++==++++++++++++++++

Drago's Seafood Restaurant (Hilton New Orleans Riverside)

(504) 584-3911
Warehouse District
2 Poydras St
New Orleans, LA 70130 (504) 584-3911
Warehouse District
open Monday through Sunday from 11 am until 10 pm.
Closed Mardi Gras Day, Easter, Thanksgiving and Christmas

.....

Not having a car with us, we went to the Drago's at the Hilton.  A local shrugged when I asked whether the one in Metairie is really better.  If I'm not mistaken, there's even a third Drago's location somewhere.

[LizR]

There is a Drago's on Poydras.

Lorenzo - ever been to Liuzza's by the Track? Years ago I heard that their roast beef po boy rivaled Parasols. http://www.nola.com/sites/liuzzas/

I agree about the underwhelming "oyster loaf" at Casamentos.

And curious as to what you got at Camillia Grill? The chili cheese omelette or the pecan waffle used to be the way to go.

Looking forward to our trip to NOLA on the 18th!

[Lorenzo]

There is a Drago's on Poydras.

Yes, it's in the Hilton hotel.  That's the one we went to.

Lorenzo - ever been to Liuzza's by the Track? Years ago I heard that their roast beef po boy rivaled Parasols. http://www.nola.com/sites/liuzzas/

Haven't been there, but I saw it mentioned somewhere.  I'll put it on my po'boy list, though it doesn't seem to get mentioned a lot these days.  Parkway is definitely my next target.

And curious as to what you got at Camillia Grill? The chili cheese omelette or the pecan waffle used to be the way to go.

We had omelettes, though I don't recall what kind.  I know their blender-whipped omelettes are sort of their trademark, but I didn't care for the style.  Still, a good diner breakfast was a refreshing alternative to the upscale brunches.

Enjoy your trip and let us know how it went.  I can't get enough of that city.

[Mike GadgetGeek Stock]

I really don't know this and have not looked it up...

Where are some interesting beer places in or around New Orleans ?

.....

[Lorenzo]

Where are some interesting beer places in or around New Orleans ?

As I mentioned in my trip report, I thought Avenue Pub on St. Charles was a winner.  Serious beer list.  Claims to be open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.  http://theavenuepub.com

[LizR]

I do like the Camellia Grill's fluffy omelette style, especially with the chili cheese combo to kind of counter the amount of fluffy egg.

Anyone know if K Jeans Seafood is still there on Carrollton? Have not been back to NOLA in at least 7 years and looking forward to it, as I mentioned before. It is nearly always hot and /or humid as hell but I lived there for a year in 95-96 and it does get under your skin.

[Mike GadgetGeek Stock]

Mena's breakfasts are 'da bomb. They have a spicy alligator sausage that rocks my morning world. 

Drago's (Hilton location) sets the high point for chargrilled oysters in my book.  They were a tad gritty but the best flavor I/we have come across, and HUGE oysters to boot.


......

[Davo7]

Headed to Mardi Gras next week, riding in Babylon on Thursday night. Ready for the ride, even more ready for the food. Here's what we got lined up:
Arnaud's
Miss Mae's
Commander's
Tracey's
Acme
Restaurant August.

Laissez Bon Temps Rouler!!

[Mike GadgetGeek Stock]

We are back with lies on our lips about New Orleans and how nice the weather is there.  We DID have a wonderful time, and did get some rare treats and some genuinely fine food.  I'll post about it with pics to the links. 

Drago's has the finest Oyster cooked that way that I have eaten, ever.  I am not sure how they get them that good.

The Green Goddess is sortof like the Soup Nazi to me.  Wonderful food, teeny-weeny place, ambivalent owner/server/front-end-person, wonderful food, strange scruffy wait staff that we took for a homeless guy, wonderful food, and good prices.

Pier 424 Right on period.  If Chad is there, you eat wonderful food, I have not been there when he was not there, so I don't know about those times.

Harrah's Seafood Buffett, take your $$$ to Ralph's < by the park > and have a wonderful stuffed burger for $8.00...

Mena's go every day if you can.  Wonderful breakfast but no eggs Benedict, WONDERFUL alligator sausage that is worth the trip.

Pat O'Brian's ----  You know -----   Don't go there and then go to Royal street and shop...  LOL

<<< adding more later >>>

[Lorenzo]

Are the crawfish coming in yet, Mike?  Not that I'll be back in NOLA any time soon