My friend left for the airport on Sunday morning, and I am still beat from this weekend’s activities. Less than a month ago, one of my ladies from Chicago, Abbie, texted me asking if she could come to visit. She would only be here for 48 hours and didn’t have any expectations. The only thing she wanted to do was see Bourbon St. (Which I cringed the moment she said that.)
I let that go and decided I would fully embrace a tourist weekend, as it has been many years since I have done anything remotely touristy. (I also said to myself, at least I didn’t have to think of a blog post for the week…)
I braved the Kenner traffic, grabbed her from MSY, and headed straight for the Quarter.
Abbie has never been to New Orleans, so the city was our oyster. I wanted the first stop to be the oldest bar in America, Lafitte’s. There isn’t a person living here that didn’t immediately think to themselves “PURPLE DRAAAAANK!” And that’s exactly what I got her. For those people not from here, Purple Drink is like a grape-flavored slushie filled with some sort of booze. It’s not for us to question. Just drink it. The best part was, she was very concerned about walking outside with her drink. Grab that drink and let’s roll!
It was mid-afternoon, and while it was hot as Hades, Bourbon wasn’t too crowded and perfect for a lazy stroll. We promenaded down to our next destination for alcohol.
Pat O’s patio was calling our name!
This is the perfect place to end our Bourbon Street gallivant. Nice courtyard, dueling pianos, and hurricanes. Little did I know, we would be back on this street later.
Due to how little time Abbie had in town, I really wanted to make the most of it all. We finished up our cocktails and walked towards the French Market. We did some haggling, purchased a fly, very noisy anklet for myself and, what Abbie kept calling a sewer cap, a water meter necklace for her.
Since we were right there, I couldn’t NOT go to El Gato Negro.
El Gato Negro is an excellent choice for people watching, while boozing, and grabbing a snack. Make sure to try a flavored one – the carrot lime or pineapple cilantro are the real crowd-pleasers.
We left there to head straight to Peche for dinner.
Peche is hands down, one of my absolute favs in the city. Abbie is not even a fan of oysters but ate a few because they are THAT DAMN GOOD. We also enjoyed the shrimp toast, fish sticks, crab claws, and lamb skewers. The Gintilly Shakedown cocktail is a must. With all this food, we felt satisfied. We were also refueled to head BACK down to Bourbon Street. What the hell was I thinking?!
For those of you new to my life, my dad is a self-proclaimed rockstar in a band called Chicken On the Bone. They play 5 days a week at the Old Opera house on Bourbon. Turns out, this was right up Abbie’s alley! We were cutting a rug and pounding some cocktails. We even managed to grab the very first COTB koozie that was made!
After one too many cocktails, we headed near my house in the LGD and hit up Halfmoon for one last nightcap. We didn’t last long before putting that day to rest.
RISE AND SHINE IT’S TOOTHBRUSH TIME!! We had a very full day in front of us, so there was no time to be wasted. I put a hungover Abbie into my car and were en route to City Park.
Even an iced coffee and beignets from Morning Call weren’t able to fully wake us. But we had to continue on! We took a stroll through the Sculpture Garden next door as well, right before the rain started to roll through.
I was a tad nervous about what to do next with some rough winds coming in. However, I couldn’t let our tropical weather stop the tour!
This may come as surprise to some of you, but I have never ridden the streetcar. EVER. Yes, I am from here. Why, have I not taken it, you ask? I have never needed to take it and I hear friends complain about them being crowded with tourists. I figured, if I had a tourist with me, this would be my opportunity to get on board.
As the streetcar rambled towards us, I get a huge sense of anxiousness. I shoved the money in Abbie’s hand and made her jump on board first.
I did it!! I mean, WE did it! I took my first ride! We took the streetcar from Jackson Ave in the LGD to Palmer Park in Carrollton.
On our itinerary was to grab a snoball from Plum Street Snowballs and check out the Arts Market at the park.
At this point, it’s about lunch time. We have been rained on and sweat a whole lot. Next we pointed towards New Orleans East for Dong Phuong Bakery and Restaurant.
Pro tip: those delicious bahn mi Sandwiches from there are NOT for sale in the restaurant. Only in the bakery. You know I bought some to take home after eating in the restaurant.
After a massive Vietnamese lunch, it was clearly drinking time.
Hold us a table at the Columns!
The plan was to have one drink on the porch and do some people watching. My lovely friend, Molly, showed up and one drink turned into three. Oops!
We had dinner reservations coming up soon and I needed a 30 minute nap desperately.
After some time to recoup, our Lyft ride schlepped us over to Toups South. (UPDATE: They are now closed)
Y’all. I cannot say enough good things about this restaurant. It has never disappointed me. Chef Seamus came out and treated us to homemade cracklins that are to die for. We had boudin, biscuits with crab fat butter, a short rib & bleu cheese hand pie, and goat tamales. Then they sent out samples of 4 different homemade ice creams. No, we did not finish all that food. NOTE: bring more people next time.
Now that we were filled to the brim and could barely move, it seemed appropriate to head back to Halfmoon bar for a nightcap and introducing Abbie to every single person I know in New Orleans.
Our 48 hours were almost up and we were fading fast.
Before I had to shove her back onto a plane home, she needed a good New Orleans breakfast to fill her up. The Ruby Slipper has some of the best bloody marys, bellinis, and very rich, delicious breakfast plates.
After breakfast, we watched Saved By the Bell until she was whisked away in an Uber. Just as quickly as she arrived, Abbie was now headed home. Within an hour of her leaving, I napped for 4 hours. She didn’t have a chance to eat her banh mi from the day earlier, so I made sure she took it with her. I did receive a text saying she ate the entire thing in the airport after she thought she would only have 2 bites. Dong Phuong will get you like that. She’s driving to the East next time.
Put a fork in me, folks. She left over 24 hours ago now and I barely have a voice left! Please excuse me while I go soak my feet in a Bon Ju Ju foot bath and then sleep for 12 additional hours.
This may not be the exact plans you would have for a friend visiting in a short amount of time, as we did cover a lot of ground. Word to the wise, tennis shoes are your friend.