In case you haven’t heard, New Orleans is a wonderful place to eat. Between the Southern location and the French food, you’d be amazed at all the different cuisines found in one little city. And it’s all awesome… if you know the right places.

As I stated in my previous post, I was only there for three days, so I was unable to hit as many restaurants as I would’ve liked, not to mention all the recommendations I received from several bloggers and friends. But I was able to hit a handful that were all wonderful and absolute musts if you’re planning on heading to the Big Easy.

Let’s start with lunch: Several people recommended the same two places to me over and over again. So, of course, I knew I had to try them. The first was Acme Oyster House. If you want sea food, this is the place to go, as noted by the line outside and the fact that Acme’s been around since 1910.  While seating is based on a first come, first served basis, the food is well worth the wait. And in case you’re unsure of what to order, don’t worry, I’m here to help.

The Chargrilled Oysters and Peace Maker Po-Boy came highly recommended and I can see why. They were both awesome. The chargrilled oysters were the best I’ve ever had. My husband actually had to stop me from licking each and every shell. They also come with several pieces of bread which is a good thing. That was how I was able to soak up every last bit of that amazing seasoned garlic butter each oyster was swimming in.

Then hubs and I dove into the Peace Maker. Now I’m not a huge fan of po-boys because they’re usually so deep fried and so incredibly spicy. But Acme’s was neither of these things. The sandwich was nice and light and had the slightest bite. In other words I was still able to enjoy my meal without downing an entire pitcher of water like I’ve had to do with other po-boys I’ve tried.

But if you’re more of a sandwich person then you’re going to want to stop at the Central Grocery on Decatur. While other places in the French Quarter make muffulettas, no body can compete with the Central Grocery. The sandwich was created by the store’s owner, Salvatore Lupo, back in 1906. And the recipe has stood the test of time. As a matter of fact, Lupo’s grandson is now the man serving them up. They’re so popular, he makes a bunch first thing in the morning so they’re ready to go when the lunch rush hits.  What makes them so amazing? The Central Grocery’s own olive salad, which you can buy by the jar so you can make your own muffuletta at home.  If you don’t want to stop your touring of the French Quarter but are dying for something to eat, this sandwich is the way to go. And as you can see, one sandwich is easily enough to feed two people.

Then there’s dinner and just like lunch there are several different options whether you’re looking for something a little bit more touristy or a nice quiet place to sit down and have an amazing meal.

Since G and I are huge swing dance fans we had to take a trip on the Steamboat Natchez. It’s a classic riverboat, the last working one in New Orleans actually, and they not only serve dinner, but they have a live swing band that plays while you trip up and down the Mississippi.  Okay, so the food wasn’t amazing. It’s what you’d expect from a corporate sort of tourist locale. But the trip was definitely worth the money.

There was nothing better than taking a smooth, quiet trip up and down the Mississippi the way they used to when dinner and dancing on steamboats were as commonplace as drinking a mint julep in the summer. And the Dukes of Dixieland, the swing band that performed on the upper deck, provided the perfect accompanyment to a wonderful evening. The Steamboat Natchez may be a tour for tourists, but if you love swing music and want to take a trip down the river, this is absolutely the way to go. It’s fun for the kiddies too since they can take a trip on a boat and see how a real steamboat works.

If, however, you’re looking for something off the beaten path that’s at the other end of the spectrum from the Natchez, Meauxbar is the place. As a matter of fact, it’s so off the beaten path, even though it’s been around for eight years, most locals don’t even know about it. They only serve dinner, and it was ah-MAZ-ing! Hubs and I each ordered something different and every single bite was better than the last.

We started dinner with the Martini Indochine which is their signature cocktail. It’s made with ginger liqueur, vodka, and crystalized ginger. Oh. My. God. It was sweet with just the right amount of zing, though I’m not sure that zing came from the ginger or the liquor. But be careful, a couple of these and you may not be able to finish dinner.

We shared the boudin blanc and ginger crawfish dumplings for our appetizers. Both were great, but the boudin blanc, which was made in the kitchen that day by chef Matthew Guidry, was the real winner. The sausage had a definite bite, but the sweet sugar-cane mustard sauce helped tone down the spiciness.  Dinner was the duck confit and a double-cut pork chop and, no surprise, the food just kept getting better and better. I could go on and on about the different courses at Meauxbar, but I won’t. Let me just say, if you’re visiting New Orleans and the French Quarter, whether you’re staying for one night or 10, RUN, don’t walk, to Meauxbar and plan on making a night of it.

In fact, every place I ate while we were in New Orleans was sprint-worthy. So make sure you hit at least one of these spots when you visit. I guarantee, you’ll be extremely happy you did.

A couple weeks ago the hubs and I decided to take a quick trip together, just the two of us. It was going to be all about relaxing and spending some much needed time together. But of course, since I’m the foodie that I am, I was very up front about the fact that there would be a lot of eating while we were there. It wasn’t too hard to twist his arm, he just had one request: we had to eat out for every meal… just so I could get a well rounded view of all the food New Orleans had to offer of course. So it was set and thanks to several recommendations from a lot of different foodies we had a plan.

I’m starting my New Orleans posts with breakfast places since breakfast is the most important meal of the day.

The street car stops right in front of the Camellia Grill.

Although G and I were staying in the French Quarter I was told by a few people there was a diner in the Garden District that was well worth the trip, and it’s an easy trip to make. We just hopped the street car and took a lovely ride through said district to the Camellia Grill. The leisurely ride allowed us to see all the beautiful houses that make you think of New Orleans, it’s only a couple bucks, and if you have young children, a ride on a trolley is always a great way to kill some time while getting where you need to go.

The very cool wait staff at Camellia Grill.

When we got to the Grill, we were greeted with a bustling diner that only had a handful of seats at a counter. But don’t worry, the wait is so worth it. Since they’re known for their omelettes, waffles, and pecan pie, that’s what we were having. I know, I know, pecan pie isn’t considered breakfast food, but since it’s made right in their kitchen every day, I just had to try it. Although the waffle was nothing special, the omelette that hubs had and the pecan pie I sampled were out of this world. Now, there is a Camellia Grill in the French Quarter but it just opened up in December and since Kitchy is all about the retro thing, I had to try the original which opened in 1946 and I’m very happy I did. So, if you want some classic Southern hospitality and some outstanding food, I’d recommend hopping the street car and taking a ride, you won’t be disappointed.

Then there’s The Court of Two Sisters which is located right in the heart of the French Quarter.  They have a wonderful Jazz Brunch Buffet every day of the week starting at 9 am.

And by buffet, I mean over 80 different items from which to choose as well as a full bar. You could have scrambled eggs and french toast or one of several salads to go with their gumbo. They have some seriously delicious grits and their bread pudding is awesome.

But what makes The Court of Two Sisters the perfect place to take the family is the outdoor patio and the jazz trio that plays all through brunch. The patio’s covered by vines, greenery and ceiling fans, so even in the middle of August it’s never too hot outside. They do seat inside as well though, so if the heat and humidity is just too much for you, it’s very nice indoors.

And if you’re worried about missing out on the jazz trio, don’t. They rotate between the two locations. They seem to play for about 30 minutes at a time in each location. So while you won’t hear dixieland for your entire meal, you’ll definitely have it for a good portion.

Cafe Du Monde at night

And now for the best known place in the French Quarter – Café Du Monde. The cafe has been around since 1862 but was originally located inside the French Market. Now it’s located right on the corner of Decatur and St. Ann streets. Café Du Monde may be open 24 hours, but we decided to hit them up first thing in the morning because there’s nothing better than a hot cafe au lait and beignets after a long night at the various jazz clubs on Frenchmen Street.

While it’s true, the café’s menu is limited, (they only serve coffee, [black or au lait] beignets, orange juice, soda, and white or chocolate milk) they serve them well. The cafe au lait I had was delicious and the beignets… well other than there being a little too much powder sugar for even my sweet tooth, my plate was empty in a matter of minutes. Look at them, can you blame me? I debated buying the actual Café Du Monde beignet mix, but decided since I don’t own a deep fat frier, they just wouldn’t be as good.

So those are my breakfast choices for New Orleans. If you’re curious about the other meals of the day, lunch and dinner, don’t worry, those are up next. As I said, we ate, or rather devoured, our way through New Orleans.

A few weeks ago I was going to make a sazerac for my classic cocktail. But upon doing the research on the cocktail’s history, I discovered that the cocktail not only originated in, but is also the cocktail of New Orleans. So since G and I were headed there for vacation, I thought I’d wait until I returned from the trip to do the post. And I’m so happy I did. Not only did we have several sazeracs in the city where they originated, but we even sipped on a couple inside the actual Sazerac Bar. After tasting my share and hearing the history of the drink, I can see why the sazerac is the cocktail of New Orleans.

See, Antoine Amadie Peychaud moved to New Orleans in the late 1700′s and is given credit for inventing the Sazerac in the 1830s. Upon moving to New Orleans, the Creole apothecary, opened a drugstore called Pharmacie Peychaud. Like many “chemists” of his day, Peychaud sold his own patent medicine: Peychaud’s Bitters, to relieve his clients’ ailments. The “cocktail” became quite popular among friends and family. Peychaud named the drink after the Sazerac cognac which was the original liquor used in the cocktail. Today rye whiskey is used, though no one’s really sure when or why the change was made.

While the cocktail has been around since the early 1800′s, the Sazerac Bar wasn’t created until 1938. Sure the New Orleans Roosevelt Hotel in which the Sazerac Bar is located has been around since the mid 1800′s and there was a bar inside, but the bar didn’t take on the Sazerac name until much later. Although Sazerac cognac hasn’t been used in the cocktail in decades, the bar still pays an annual fee to the Sazerac Company for the use of the name.

As you can see, it’s absolutely beautiful inside and so much history. There are four murals around the bar that were painted between 1938 and 1939 by Paul Ninas and are now worth over two million dollars. There’s a bullet hole in the wall that has several different theories as to how it got there, including an attempt on Huey Long.

Inside the Sazerac. That's one of the four murals by Paul Ninas.

Then there’s my favorite story: on September 26th, 1949 a large group of women stormed the bar so they could each have a cocktail. Evidently before that date, women weren’t allowed to drink in bars. But from that date on, women were allowed inside the Sazerac. And now, every year on that date, women from the area recreate the event, complete with appropriate 40′s attire. Yes, I want to attend… just once.

So if you’re heading to New Orleans, walk across Canal Street and have a drink inside the Sazerac Bar. You’re not only in for a delicious cocktail, you’re in for one hell of a history lesson.

Sazerac

• 1 sugar cube
• 3 dashes of Peychaud’s Bitters
• 1-1/2 ounces rye whiskey
• 1/4 ounce of Herbsaint or Absinthe

Pack an Old Fashioned glass with ice.

Place a sugar cube in a second Old Fashioned glass. Add the Bitters and crush the sugar cube. Add the whiskey.

Empty the ice from the first glass and coat with the Herbsaint. Pour the whiskey mixture into the glass with the Herbsaint, garnish with a lemon peel and serve.

I’m a little late to this party, if you can call it that, and for that I’m deeply sorry. See I was taking time last week away with my husband. We’ve both been so busy with life, work, and all the stresses that go with it that we haven’t really been seeing much of each other. So about a month ago we decided to take some time for just the two of us and relax. No big grandiose trip, just a few days so we could reconnect. Several places were suggested like Hawaii or Mexico or somewhere tropical, but G and I decided to head to New Orleans for no other reason than we love food and we love jazz. We ate and drank and listened to jazz and just enjoyed the moments.

Before we left our trip was just a chance to be together and have some fun the way we used to, before A. Now that I’m back and have seen the horrible news from Jennifer Perillo, a food blogger I follow religiously on twitter, that trip means so much more. The outpouring of love and support that Jennifer has received from the food blogging community makes me so proud to be a member. After all food is what brings us all together. It doesn’t matter if it’s for a celebration or a mourning, a sporting event or hanging out with friends; whenever a gathering occurs, no matter what the reason, food always seems to be at its center. So it seems especially apropos that the food blogging community come together to show their support with, what else – food.

Jennifer made two requests to celebrate her husband. The first was that everyone make a peanut butter pie since that was his favorite dessert. The second was to share it with someone you love and hug them as tight as you can at least once more. I was happy to oblige.

While I hugged and kissed my man over plenty a cocktail and beignet in New Orleans, I hugged him even tighter when we got back. I hugged my son whom I missed so much. I hugged my mother who watched him while we were gone. I hugged them all like there was no tomorrow, because as Jennifer said, today is the only guarantee we can count on. So for Mikey and Jennifer and all the people out there who have someone important in their life… this pie’s for you.

Shared with someone I love

Peanut Butter Chocolate Mud Pie

Ingredients

• 2 squares unsweetened chocolate
• 2 Tbsp butter
• 1 cup water
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 2 Tbsp corn starch
• 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa
• 1 chocolate cookie pie crust
• 1-1/2 quarts chocolate peanut butter ice cream, softened

Directions

Melt the chocolate and the butter in a medium sauce pan over low heat. Gradually add the cocoa and cornstarch, alternating with the water, until you’ve used up all three ingredients.  Add the sugar and stir until thick and completely combined. Simmer for 10 minutes; set aside.

Fill the cookie crust with the ice cream. Smooth top with a spatula. Freeze for at least an hour.

Once the pie has hardened, pour 1/2 cup of fudge sauce over the top and spread over the top of the entire pie. Put back in the freezer and chill for at least 2 hours and up to over night. Serve with whipped cream or dollop of peanut butter.

A few posts back I mentioned how I’d participated in a monthly chat on Twitter called Spice Chat. The spice of the month had been basil and over the course of the chat several people tweeted about using fresh basil in fruit salads. So since it’s watermelon season, I started thinking how yummy a watermelon basil salad would be.

But watermelon and basil seemed kinda boring, so I wondered what I could add to make it better. I knew balsamic vinegar went well with watermelon and then I read somewhere, though I don’t remember where exactly, about buffalo mozzarella and watermelon being a good combination. And just like that I had my salad: watermelon, fresh basil and buffalo mozzarella drizzled with a little balsamic. Yum-my!

Now there was just one thing I needed in order to make the salad perfect.  I had to use a high quality balsamic that was nice and sweet.  Luckily I had just the thing.  See, over the Memorial Day weekend my family and I traveled to San Diego for a quick little getaway. While we were there we visited Seaport Village, a fun little shopping area that has several restaurants and plenty of places to fly a kite. While chasing my son around, I happened upon a new oil & vinegar shop: Seaport Oil and Vinegar. I don’t know about you, but oil and vinegar are like my flour and butter. I use them constantly in everything from salad dressings to pasta sauces. So when I discovered that Seaport Oil and Vinegar not only sold plain olive oil and vinegar, but flavor infused oils and vinegars, I knew I had to try some.

If you like garlic, I’d highly recommend their garlic olive oil. But their flavored balsamics are really special. The cherry balsamic is wonderful over steak and their strawberry balsamic is perfect for fruit salads like this one. So of course that’s the balsamic I used.  But even if you don’t have a flavored balsamic, any good quality balsamic vinegar will work.

Watermelon Mozzarella Salad

• 4 pounds watermelon, cut into 1 inch cubes
• 1 cup buffalo mozzarella, halved
• 3/4 cup fresh basil, chopped
• 1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar

Place first three ingredients in a large salad bowl. Drizzle with balsamic and toss to combine. Serve.