I will preface this post by asking your forgiveness for my truly unforgivable lack of food photography skills.
New Orleans.
NOLA.
Food paradise.
I made a point to order something different at every restaurant I went to on my recent trip to New Orleans. The worst meal I had was at our hotel but I only have myself to blame for that – I knew better. But we were there a total of 5 nights which meant a lot of opportunity for delicious meals. Check out my favorite 5 restaurants in New Orleans for every budget.
5. Emeril’s NOLA
Emeril Lagasse has three restaurants in New Orleans and we had the pleasure of eating at two of them during this trip; yes, both of them made this list. I enjoyed this restaurant for the opportunity to try something new: frog legs! And it wasn’t that expensive, i.e. about the price we would pay to go to dinner here at home on a date night. For appetizers, we ordered the cornbread and collard greens, frog legs and seafood toast (we were at a table with colleagues of mine so had the chance to share everything). Of the three, the collard greens and corn bread were phenomenal – so good! The frog legs were pretty over-seasoned in my opinion, with the spice being a little overpowering but not bad. I wish I hadn’t ordered the seafood toast at all.
I ordered the crab cake which was delicious. It was $29 and I expected three of those bad boys but it only came with one. But that one was worth every penny. I don’t regret that meal one bit.
We didn’t get dessert because you know I was at Cafe du Monde almost every night, right? No shame.
4. Emeril’s New Orleans
We had our anniversary dinner at Emeril’s New Orleans. For special occasions, we make a point to try a new restaurant where we aim to enjoy a particularly great meal. While I was more impressed with this restaurant than #5, I wasn’t overly enthused about the food. We were both drawn to the paella [insert super snobby anecdote about having the best paella in the world at a tiny, hole in the wall restaurant in Barcelona’s Gothic quarter] and the server highly recommended it. My thoughts: good enough. The server’s enthusiasm to share that the Spanish occupied New Orleans and Louisiana for even longer than the French threw me off. I’m not sure I’d brag about that… colonization and all…
The wine list/binder was impressive and I had a good time pretending to know what I was looking at.
Price-wise, this meal was the most expensive that we had and I would recommend it to someone looking for a fancier meal in New Orleans. The food is good but not slap yo grandmama good, if that makes sense. I won’t be dreaming about this meal.
The highlight of our visit was the dessert – chocolate souffle. I’ll just order that the next time I go and call it a day.
3. Creole House Restaurant and Oyster Bar
Picture it. New Orleans. 2018. It’s 9:37 am and you’re walking as fast as you can with a heavier than average 4 month old strapped to the front of your body to a restaurant that Yelp claims to be one of the best breakfast spots in the city. You arrive at the front of the restaurant only to see that the line wraps around the side of the building. Just as you’re thinking, “aww hell naw I ain’t waitin’ in this mess”, a stranger passes you by and says under his breath, “damn, the food isn’t even that good here.” Hearing this and taking it as a sign that in fact, hell naw, you SHOULDN’T wait in this mess, you turn back to Canal street and look for the closest restaurant that looks like it has some potential.
Hello, Creole House. Where have you been all of our lives?
But seriously. Order the Bayou Bowl and thank me later. It had me looking at my egg white omelette with disgust.
Creole House is for any budget with an array of items on their menu. Also conveniently located in the touristy part of NOLA and the French Quarter right on Canal street making it the most convenient meal that we had.
2. Surrey’s Cafe and Juice Bar
I’ve raved about Surrey’s since we first went there back in 2016 and I’m going to keep raving about it now. The shrimp and grits with a side order of big ass banana pancake is the way to go. I wish I could say that I ordered something else and could recommend more on the menu but I didn’t and I can’t. I’m not sorry.
The shrimp and grits comes with perfectly crisp pieces of bacon and the sauce pairs so well with the grits. I really hope that everyone hears about this restaurant and gets to experience it for themselves. They have two locations now and their price point is similar to any breakfast spot.
1. Acme Oyster House
We actually didn’t go to Acme this go around as it was my goal to try all new places but Acme Oyster House is my number one choice for both it’s affordability and fun factor. They shuck the oysters right in front of you at the bar. The line wraps around the corner here too but for good reason. When people asked what they should do for food, my response was always Surrey’s or Acme. You can’t go wrong here.
Honorable Mention
Cafe Du Monde. Duh.
I know someone, who shall remain nameless, who told me on the 4th night of our conference that she hadn’t had any beignets yet.
Looking at her suspiciously, waiting for an explanation, I finally say, “What do you mean you haven’t had any beignets? Are we in the twilight zone?”
To which she replied, “I don’t like doughnuts.”
“Doughnuts!”, I shout, “Who’s talking about doughnuts?! Beignets! BEIGNETS, I say!” as I proceeded to drag her to the original Cafe du Monde (that is somehow better than the one located at the Riverwalk Outlets). We ordered one order of beignets to share.
Ya’ll. Do you know she for real didn’t like them?
I was shocked.
She’s the only one on earth, I’m sure 🙂
The beignets here are something like $3.00 for 3. I’d suggest sharing them with someone if you’re not sure you will like them.
So what restaurants in New Orleans would you recommend? I’m already planning my next trip to NOLA in my head, along with a whole new set of restaurants to try out!