Monday, April 6, 2009

New Orleans Trip, Part 1

by guest slogger Paul Trapani

Our hotel room at the Westin had views of the French Quarter on one side and the Mississippi on the other. I could easily have spent most of the day just watching the boats go up and down the river.



The Westin is up the road from Cafe Du Monde, (800 Decatur St; 504-525-4544) our first stop for beignets and cafe au lait. It’s a great way to ease into New Orleans, sipping the chicory laced coffee, eating doughy yet light beignets covered with absurd quantities of sugar and watching tourists and locals. And they're open 24 hours!



This was my fourth trip to New Orleans and each time I look forward to Mother’s Restaurant (401 Poydras; 504-523-9656). We split a delicious and ridiculous Ferdi Special, consisting of debris (the stuff that falls off a cooking roast beef), roast beef and ham, all fully dressed with mayo, creole and regular mustard and shredded cabbage. Also: red beans and rice. I'm sad to report that the latter, though quite photogenic, was not as good as on previous visits. The dish was greatly improved by some salt and a few drops of hot sauce, but somehow the beans still tasted flat.




Like Cafe Du Monde, Mother's is packed with tourists and locals. It’s also apparently been featured on some travel and food shows, so try to go during off hours.

3 comments:

Pat said...

Hey, Paul. My son is in New Orleans from today until Thursday. I sent him your series. I want to thank you for getting him well fed today, with a Po' Boy from Mother's. He'll be eating well, I'm sure.

Paul Trapani said...

Thanks, Pat. It's hard not to be well fed in New Orleans no matter where you eat, but Mother's really is something special.

Pat said...

He had the Ferdi special. Your photo made my mouth water!

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