Five Days of Beignets: A Cali Girl’s First Trip to New Orleans

As someone who just got back home from New Orleans only a week ago, I already want to go back. New Orleans always seemed like some distant, mystic place, especially for someone like me who had never been and grew up on the complete opposite coast. I’d always seen photos of the two and three story Spanish style terraces draping the buildings of the French Quarter, videos of brass bands jamming out while walking down the street, and imagined the streets covered in green and purple beads.

I wasn’t in NOLA for Mardi Gras or any other kind of public event, but for me, the city is a WHOLE MOOD. The vibe is energetic, the people are friendly as hell, and the food… let’s just say I had shrimp and jalapeño cheese grits that changed my entire perspective on shrimp and grits (more on that later).

This trip was particularly special because it was a celebration for my boyfriend and I. For a number of reasons, we never properly celebrated his birthday in March (2019) and all winter and spring I was heads down crunching on my master’s thesis (which I confess, I turned in super late). For those reasons, our time in NOLA was distinctive from other trips. It was our time to walk away from life’s demands and enjoy some damn gumbo. All that said though, I definitely want to go back, and next time for Mardi Gras. But first, here’s a bit more on my first experience in this vibrant city.

Where We Stayed
I have to give it up to my boyfriend who did extensive research before we boarded the plane to NOLA. He knew we wanted to be in the middle of everything so we specifically chose our Airbnb in between the Downtown area and the French Quarter, but not too far from Mid City. On foot we were only fifteen-minutes from the heart of the French Quarter, although I admit, we pretty much Ubered there every time because walking in the heat was draining.

What We Did
I’ll be the first to say that we wanted to prioritize a few things when it came to capitalizing on our time in the Big Easy: first food, then music. We did however squeeze in a good number of activities. The first night we arrived, we set out to take a Ghost and Vampire Walking Tour. If you didn’t know already, NOLA is known to be one of the most haunted cities in the America. After all, it is one of the oldest cities in the U.S. that pre-dates America’s independence.

I should disclose that I am a believer in the supernatural and I’m not ashamed to say it. I’m not one of those people who believes in spirits but not ghosts. Nope. I believe all of it (with the exception of vampires and werewolves). Aliens, unexplained phenomena, dark magic, witch craft, phantoms, dark energy, etc. 

The most disturbing landmark in the city that is allegedly haunted is the former house of Madame Delphine LaLaurie  (above). According to history, Madame Delphine was a serial murderer and torturer of her own slaves. She experimented on her slaves by mutilating their bodies, tortured them mentally – this lady even killed a nine-year-old slave girl. We walked passed Madame Delphine’s building a few times (we even walked under the building’s awning by accident – ugh!) and I could never shake off the eeriness.

We couldn’t get enough of learning about dead people (#becauseNOLA) so we also took a walking tour through St. Louis Cemetery No. 1 where the famous voodoo priestess Madame Marie Laveau is buried. Sidenote: did you know that Nicolas Cage bought himself a tomb in this cemetery? Yeah…Neither did we.  

The following night, we decided we needed to get loose. I’m sure everyone and anyone that has even the slightest knowledge of NOLA has heard about Bourbon Street but we barely spent any time on Bourbon Street. To be perfectly honest, we heard from plenty of people (mainly my dad) that Bourbon St. is for little kids. In other words, the barely-legal-drinking-age adults that can’t hold their liquor. Not for this trip. We opted for Frenchmen St. instead and that was the probably best decision we could have made.

 

Frenchmen St. smells just as terrible as Bourbon St. on Saturday night but the vibe is leaps and bounds different. For one, the sound of music booming from each bar/lounge sets you up for the environment before you walk in. The greatest part is that you can bar hop one after the other and find an atmosphere just right for you. Patrons genuinely want to have a good time so although it’s not the bead-tossing rave party on Bourbon, Frenchmen had everyone drinking and grooving. I’m thankful that I have a boyfriend who can listen to sultry jazz, brass jazz, reggae, alternative and pop, and adapt to each sound accordingly because that’s exactly what we did. Live music was important to us because we both enjoy music (all kinds) and we clearly knew New Orleans is known for its musical roots. Frenchmen St. did not disappoint.

Music lounges we visited include: Maison (A MUST), The Spotted Cat, Cafe Negril, Vaso, and Blue Nile. 

On a hot Monday, the boyfriend and I took plantation and swamp tour because we needed a break. It was nice to get out of the hustle and bustle of the French Qtr. for a bit and enjoy the country. New Orleans, and quite possibly the entire state of Louisiana, has a rich history of racial injustice. When we arrived to the Destrehan Plantation, I immediately went to the slave quarters before our tour started. Humbling is only the beginning of words to describe my experience walking into a slave cabin. A billboard listing all of the slaves that the Destrehan family owned was unnerving but I appreciated the plantation reservists were trying to be transparent and not hide this part of history. Not surprisingly though, our “historical interpreter” did not spend a great deal of time discussing the slaves roles and contributions in length. Let’s be real, slave history is bleak and I’d rather hear about my history from someone I can relate to, not a tour guide.

As for the swamp tour …  GATORS! No other explanation needed.

 

Other activities include: Historic Voodoo Museum, New Orleans Museum of Art (NOMA), City Park, Jackson Square, and Louis Armstrong Park

What We Ate
Periodically I go through these phases where I’m really into fitness and eating healthy. Tuh. Not this time! Creole, cajun, and southern flavor is part of the experience in NOLA. That goes without saying that we ate… a bunch.

I also have a confession. The first day, I got really sick from a shrimp and oyster poboy and the boyfriend broke out in hives – neither of us have food allergies. For two days I struggled in the Louisiana heat with digestive issues. Needless to say, I still found a way to sneak in a bite of this and that here and there, and there were definitely a few dishes that brought me back to life. I could literally dedicate an entire blog post to New Orleans food alone, but because we dined out so much, I’m only highlighting my top three.

 

• J’s Seafood Dock in the French Market. Have you ever had shrimp and grits that made you wanna slap your mama? Well I have. J’s shrimp and jalapeño cheese grits were the best I have ever had. In fact, I want a duplicate of those grits every time I have a bowl. No questions asked. 
• Neyow’s. I hear there’s a separate location in Houston but the NOLA spot did us right. My only gripe is that I wish they would have given us more fried chicken. The creole seasoning made this chicken what it was and it was fried to perfection.
• Cafe Du Monde. Initially I had my reservations about this place. Accordingly to locals and tourists alike, this beignet (pronounced ben-yay) cafe cranks out beignets like nobody’s business. That’s probably because there’s always line of people ready to get some. It’s their staple dish after all. Generally I don’t trust any kind of assembly line food making however these beignets changed my life for the better. These beignets are really all the rave everyone talks about.

Other restaurants we dined at include: Cochon, Commander’s Palace, Oceana Grill, Carousel Bar (great for the attraction), Parkway

How We Were Treated & How We Interacted
The people of New Orleans are incredibly kind. Not the tourists, but the actual locals. For a place that attracts so many outsiders, we were never treated as outsiders. A few people even mistook us for locals which was flattering. I’ll also add that for anyone that is part of the African or Native American diaspora, this city is special. It’s hard to ignore the overwhelming and thriving Black culture in NOLA, not to mention the history that is still preserved whether it’s through music, food, art, or what ever. And the locals are more than happy to engage and discuss this because it is truly inspirational.

Final Thoughts
Because I have family ties to New Orleans on my paternal side, being in the city felt like a homecoming of sorts. I recall stories of my grandmother growing up in the Jim Crow south, NOLA to be exact, and for that reason visiting New Orleans was really special. That said, I regret that I didn’t have a chance to engage with the surviving family members who still reside in the city. So for those reason, I will be back in New Orleans. I have no doubt about it.