Whereto Eat & Stay in New Orleans

It’s been nearly three years since Hurricane Katrina slammed into New Orleans, but this spirited, supremely gracious, happily eccentric, and gay-friendly bastion of the South has undergone a dramatic comeback. The French Quarter, Uptown, and other prominent, tourist-driven areas have rebounded, and the city's long-famous restaurant scene and wealth of memorable old-world hotels and intimate guest houses are thriving. Here's a look at some of the Big Easy’s best places to dine and spend the night, from classic New Orleans favorites to innovative newcomers.

The French Quarter
This historic neighborhood remains the heart of the city’s fabled gay scene, with such famed bars as Bourbon Pub, Cafe Lafitte in Exile, Oz, and Good Friends drawing scores of revelers each night, and the lovably raffish Clover Grill, long a fixture in the gay community, doling out plenty of deliciously greasy food and sassy attitude. Other great gay-popular restaurants, such as Peristyle and Bayona, continue to serve up tantalizing contemporary fare.

With so many creative chefs doing wonderful things in this city, it's sometimes tempting to pass by the more established venues, but the French Quarter has some truly vaunted halls of dining that should not be missed. A perfect example is Brennan’s, which opened in 1946 and comprises a warren of warmly lighted dining rooms set around a lush courtyard. Meals here are memorable no matter the time of day, but breakfast is perhaps the greatest treat - consider the three-course prix fixe, where you might sample traditional turtle soup, oysters Benedict, and Bananas Foster (which was invented right here at Brennan’s).

Another “must” among the classics, Galatoire’s has been family-run since it opened in 1905 and is one of the best places in Louisiana to watch local politicos hobnob and broker deals, especially on Friday afternoons. From the enormous menu you can try everything from lavish, high-end dishes like grilled pompano with sauteed crabmeat meuniere to simpler and more affordable standbys like shrimp au vin and oysters Rockefeller.

You’ll find dozens of fine places to stay in the French Quarter, but two upscale properties deserve special mention. The Hotel Monteleone, an 1886 stunner, hosted the likes of Tennessee Williams and Truman Capote on numerous occasions. You can sense the hotel’s distinguished history simply by walking through the gracious marble lobby. The nearly 600 rooms are handsomely appointed, some overlooking the Mississippi River. Smaller and with a hipper vibe, the W French Quarter occupies a stately old building anchored by a magnificent courtyard. The 98 rooms have sumptuous featherbeds with 350-thread-count linens, framed black-and-white photos, DVD players, and Bliss Spa bath products. Sip cocktails and nosh on snacks in the mod Living Room Lounge, or book a table for dinner at Bacco, a stellar restaurant serving contemporary New Orleans-meets-Italy cuisine. You won’t find a more alluring, skillful balance between French Quarter charm and high-tech sophistication.

Faubourg Marigny
The colorful neighborhood immediately downriver from the Quarter - across tree-shaded Esplanade Avenue - is Faubourg Marigny, which has a high concentration of gays and lesbians, many who have restored the area’s French West Indies-style cottages and Greek Revival mansions. Moderately priced, less-touristy restaurants and B&Bs are a major draw of the neighborhood, which also has a handful of gay bars, the most famous being the leather-and-Levi’s-oriented Phoenix.

A favorite restaurant with the gay community, Feelings Cafe is set on a quiet street in a charming old building with a leafy patio. It’s best known for its Sunday brunch (try the crab cakes with poached eggs and Hollandaise sauce) but serves first-rate Creole and Continental fare at lunch and dinner, too. For a sublime blend of soul and Creole cooking, drop by the Praline Connection, famous for both its crawfish etouffee and its bread pudding dessert. Down the street, Marigny Brasserie is a slick modern space whose kitchen puts a contemporary spin on both Louisiana and French ingredients and recipes. If you’re a music fan, definitely check out Snug Harbor Jazz Bistro, which books some of the most talented musicians in the city.

Friendly hosts Leigh and Jim Crawford operate one of the neighborhood’s best lodging choices, the nine-room Elysian Fields Inn, a handsome old mansion filled with fine antiques, music memorabilia, and local artwork. Other good bets include B&W Courtyards, which comprises a handful of intimate, charmingly furnished guest rooms, all with private entrances and most opening onto a landscaped courtyard, and La Maison Marigny, a gorgeous gay-owned 1898 B&B whose sun-flooded, impeccably decorated guest rooms have 12-foot ceilings and polished hardwood floors. The most popular room has access to a small balcony overlooking the street below.

The Central Business District
Just upriver from the French Quarter, you’ll find the city’s downtown business center, which is also rife with large hotels and a number of exceptional restaurants. The gay-friendly gaming and hospitality company Harrah’s played a visible role in New Orleans’ comeback, having morphed from merely a downtown casino into a full-service upscale resort, complete with a first-rate hotel and a handful of noteworthy restaurants. Rooms in the sleek, 26-story high-rise offer panoramic city views and are elegantly furnished with comfy sofas, plush bedding, and marble bathrooms. Among the property's stellar dining options, don’t miss Bambu for innovative Pan-Asian food and the outstanding John Besh Steakhouse, which is tucked discreetly into a relatively peaceful corner of the otherwise boisterous casino. Inside this modern, whimsically decorated eatery you might sample cast-iron roast rib-eye of beef with peppercorn sauce, or 30-day aged Prime New York Strip with blue-cheese butter. From the restaurants to the gaming floor to the hotel, Harrah’s provides some of the friendliest service in town.
Diagonally across from Harrah’s, the Windsor Court has been one of the South’s great emblems of luxury and hospitality since it opened in the early 1980s. The large rooms, many of them full suites, contain high-quality European furnishings and Italian-marble baths, giving them the feel and look of a posh English country home. Amenities include a full health club, a pool, and a wonderfully swish bar called the Polo Lounge, as well as one of the most notable restaurants in the city, the New Orleans Grill, which is worth experiencing even if you aren’t staying here. Noted chef Greg Sonnier turns out such stellar fare as grilled rabbit tenderloin with grits and a honey-lavender-Dijon glaze, and oyster-artichoke-crusted redfish with white beans and a roasted-red-pepper sauce.

Uptown
Comprising the Garden District and its ornate mansions, the fine shopping and dining along Magazine Street, and the verdant scenery of Aububon Park, Uptown is a broad swath of the city upriver from the Quarter and Central Business District, an area best reached via the historic St. Charles Streetcar.

Just stroll along Magazine Street and you’ll discover one inviting cafe or restaurant after another. One particular standout is stylish La Petite Grocery, which serves up modern takes on French favorites, such as tomato-and-mint-braised lamb shank with roasted red onions and ricotta gnocchi. It’s a sister restaurant to nearby Sucre, a delightful little bakery acclaimed for its sinful cakes and pastries, potent java, and light lunch fare; and Grand Isle Restaurant, which is back in the Central Business District adjacent to Harrah’s, and is a big-city version of an old-style Louisiana fish camp. Seafood lovers will find all their local favorites here - boiled crawfish, shrimp remoulade, and oyster gumbo.

Farther uptown, you’ll find still more bustling retail and restaurant activity - places that increasingly compel tourists to explore beyond the French Quarter. In the Riverbend area, Jacques-Imo’s Cafe serves up delicious contemporary dishes and New Orleans standbys, from country-fried venison with wild-mushroom pan gravy to fried mirlitons (a popular local squash) stuffed with oysters. Around the corner, wonderful burgers, breakfast fare, and house-made pies are the hallmark of Camellia Grill, a stalwart of delicious, down-home comfort food.

Mid-City
You can count yourself among New Orleans’s more enterprising visitors if you take the time to venture into the Mid-City area, a loosely defined section of town about a 10-minute drive north of the French Quarter. It’s anchored by City Park, which extends north almost as far as Lake Pontchartrain and contains the New Orleans Museum of Art. Adjacent to the park is the rapidly gentrifying Esplanade Ridge area, which is home to some excellent accommodations and restaurants. The cozy bistro Cafe Degas serves such superb French cuisine as salade Nicoise and Cajun-style bouillabaisse. In warm weather you can enjoy a meal on the lush garden patio.

There aren’t too many places to stay in Mid-City, but one superb, gay-owned choice is the 1898 O’Malley House, an imposing Colonial Revival mansion run by friendly innkeepers Brad Smith and Larry Watts. The gracious rooms are filled with exceptional antiques, handsome Oriental rugs, plush four-poster beds, and elegant armoires and bed stands, yet the rates here are far lower than what you’d pay for similarly handsome accommodations in the French Quarter. A bounteous Continental breakfast is included.

If you have even a slight sweet tooth, be sure to stroll around the corner to Angelo Brocato, which serves some of the richest desserts in the city. Try a scoop of chestnut or panna-cotta gelato, or for the ultimate in decadent dining, a slice of Sicilian Cassata cake (filled with ricotta cheese and topped with marzipan). This neighborhood institution opened a century ago, was destroyed by Hurricane Katrina, and has been completely rebuilt - just another sign that New Orleans is back, better than ever.
Andrew Collins is the author of Fodor’s Gay Guide to the USA and eight additional travel guides as well as Moon Handbooks New Orleans. Contact him at Info@Hotspotsmagazine.com