Iconic food and drinks try whilst you're in New Orleans.
New Orleans, Louisiana is famous for it's jazz, brass bands and voodoo, but a lot of people are drawn to New Orleans to EAT! Food in New Orleans has many influences including Creole, Cajun and of course American. The food scene in New Orleans is incredible and there are so many iconic dishes to try.
Whilst in New Orleans I made it my mission to try as many iconic dishes as possible and discover some of the best food and drinks in New Orleans, so here is a summary of things you should try whilst visiting.
1. Beignets
Cafe du Monde or Cafe Beignet / $
Pronounced 'ben-yay', these square shaped pieces of dough are deep fried and COVERED in icing sugar. When I say they are covered in icing sugar, I mean a whole bag full, so much that you often see icing sugar across the streets of New Orleans.
You get about 6 doughnuts in a bag and personally I could never eat a whole bag myself, so would recommended sharing them with someone. Don't hang about, eat them whilst they are still hot as this is when they taste best. I don't drink coffee but they are meant to be paired with a cafe au lait.
There are two really popular beignet cafes in New Orleans; Cafe du Monde and Cafe Beignet. They say locals are loyal to one or the other, but I tried both and couldn't say whether one was better - I loved the beignets from both! Both have multiple cafes across New Orleans and there are ALWAYS queues.
2. Po'Boys
Killer Po'Boys / $
Essentially a Po'Boy is a long sandwich filled either meat or seafood. There are loads of spots around town that serve this famous New Orleans sandwich. We went to Killer Po'Boys and the setting is very basic but the sandwiches make a great lunch or afternoon snack. We share the pork belly and the seared shrimp ones and both were delicious.
3. Oysters
Everywhere / $
New Orleans is known for oysters. Grilled, deep-fried, in a po'boy, there are countless options of eating oysters whilst you're in New Orleans. Quite often oysters are a luxury, expensive treat but in New Orleans there are loads of oyster happy hours where you can get them really cheap (like $1 an oyster). We got oysters at Seaworthy (The Ace Hotel) and Peche and both were great.
4. Muffaletta
Central Grocery and Deli / $$$
The muffaletta is an Italian sandwich made up of cured meats (ham and salami), mortadella cheese, swiss cheese, provolone cheese, olives, pickled vegetables and bread. I must admit, when I went on the search for one I was expecting I freshly made sandwich but instead, once I reached Central Grocery and Deli all the sandwiches were ready made in the fridge. The Muffaletta was MASSIVE (9" round), it could probably feed four people comfortably. It was also EXPENSIVE and cost over $30. I personally didn't rate the Muffaletta, it was bland (but then there was a strong taste from the olives) the bread seemed quite dry and for the price it's not something I would recommend. There are so many good food choices in New Orleans, so check out some of the others instead.
5. Voodoo Cocktail
Lafitte's Blacksmith Shop Bar / $$
A MUST TRY famous New Orleans cocktail made up of bourbon, vodka, grape juice (that gives its purple colour). You can get Voodoos all across New Orleans, but go to Lafitte Blacksmith Shop Bar (one of the oldest bars in the USA) to drink them, as these were best ones we had.
6. Hurricane Cocktail
Lafitte's Blacksmith Shop Bar / $$
Another iconic New Orleans cocktail that is made up of light rum, dark rum, lemon juice and passion fruit syrup. I personally preferred the Voodoo, but this is also worth a try whilst at Lafitte's Blacksmith Shop Bar.
7. Chicken, Biscuits and Grits for Breakfast
Ruby Slipper Cafe/ $
Only in America you would have fried chicken for breakfast, accompanied with biscuits (a Southern USA classic that is like a scone/savoury cake). Usually served with eggs, bacon etc. it makes for a very filling, delicious breakfast!
Grits are similar to porridge but made with cornmeal. We want generally excited to eat grits but new it was a Southern American dish we needed to try so ordered them as a side dish with our breakfast. The server recommended we got them with cheese. They didn't taste of a lot and I probably wouldn't order them again but they are worth trying!
8. Creole Cuisine
Cafe Sbisa/ $$$
Creole cuisine is essentially a mix of West African, French, Spanish and Amerindian (Indigenous American). We were recommended Cafe Sbisa to try some of the best Creole food in New Orleans. We had loads of different dishes including Turtle Soup (that is in a dark sauce and is very rich and meaty), fried pickles with a Creole remoulade for dipping and a shrimp dish (that was rich and very messy to eat as the shrimps had their shells on).
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