The first stop for any visitor to New Orleans should be the Café du Monde, at 800 Decatur St., and in business at the same location since the early 1860s. It's the home of the famous beignets, which are often compared to the common donut — and that would be a great mistake!
The beignet is lighter than any donut I've ever eaten, is served warm, and is sprinkled with so much powdered sugar that one can see the thumbprint left by the waiter!
Squeeeeeeal - oink, oink, oink! Oh, excuse me, I completely forgot myself! The reason you might want to start at Café du Monde is that you can then plan a return trip — you'll want to experience beignets more than once!
This young man was our waiter. Almost all the waiters at Café du Monde are Vietnamese because it's currently Vietnamese-owned.
Carriages across from the Café du Monde
I had great pasta and shrimp at Joey K's, at 3001 Magazine Street. Joey K's serves good New Orleans cuisine in generous portions, has a fun ambiance, and is a favorite of locals.
In Algiers Point, I had breakfast at Toute de Suite Café, at 347 Verret St., off the tourist path, and another favorite of locals. I had an outstanding breakfast, and there was a good piano player providing background music, an unexpected treat on a Saturday morning.
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My hosts are great cooks, and I was treated to alligator sausage! In the photograph below, the lighter links are alligator.
And ready to eat!
The same meal included crayfish, a.k.a. "crawfish." Delicious!
If you're imagining that the alligator sausage and crawfish are served spicy-hot, you'd be correct. Here's a picture from my hosts' kitchen — they buy cayenne pepper by the quart!
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And now ... back to the treadmill exerciser!
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According to Calvin Trillin's writing about New Orleans food, you barely got started eating there. My own favorite food when I went to New Orleans was the gumbo; I still make a modified version of it.
ReplyDeleteAs a Louisiana native, I appreciate your sharing your enjoyment of our cuisine!
ReplyDeleteHello, Parnassus - You are quite right — I barely scratched the surface, but for the short time I was there, I had delightful gastronomical experiences!
ReplyDeleteCarol, it was a pleasure, and I didn't even mention chickory coffee!
ReplyDeleteDear Mark, It's 6 in the morning and my mouth is watering. Love it all but the pictures of the beignets have done me in.
ReplyDeleteI have a box of beignet mix a special friend brought from New Orleans many years ago...don't think that box beignets will satisfy.
Hi, Gina - I've seen those boxes of beignet mix, and I'm betting that you'd be able to duplicate the New Orleans taste pretty closely. The tricky part, though, is that Café du Monde clearly orders powdered sugar by the drum. Are you sure you'll have enough?
ReplyDeleteoh yum - the food, the architecture, the antiques, the history.....jealous.
ReplyDeleteWell, it all looks DELICIOUS, except for the alligator sausage. I mean: NO. Though I once sampled frog's legs and snails, I draw the line at gator.
ReplyDeleteYou must have had a great time, Mark!
Hi, Hill Country House Girl! Stay tuned — I'll be sharing New Orleans through the rest of the month ...
ReplyDeleteHi, Yvette - Isn't it funny hoow our connection to food is so personal? I thought nothing of eating alligator, but have always passed on frog legs! Frog legs always bring me back to 7th-grade biology class!
ReplyDeleteI am so pleased I had eaten my supper before I saw this post. Are the beignets freshly made just before serving? Alligator sausage I would definitely give them a try.
ReplyDeleteHi, Rosemary - Café du Monde is open 24 hours each day, and there's a constant stream of people coming in just for beignets and coffee, so the beignets are always warm and fresh. Would they harden otherwise? I'm not sure, but they all get eaten up fast, so it's a moot point! And you would not be disappointed with the alligator sausage - it was very good.
ReplyDeleteI have found that some of the best bakeries in Australia are now run by Vietnamese. I think it is a hangover from Vietnam's French colonial past. Crayfish yes, and I would try the alligator (I think)
ReplyDeleteHi, David - I think you are right about the Vietnamese and fine pastry. On my second visit to Café du Monde, our Vietnamese waitress spoke English with a French accent.
ReplyDeleteOne of the many reasons I've always wanted to go to New Orleans - delicious!!
ReplyDeleteHi, Stacie - and a good reason to go back! As Parnassus said, I barely got started, and didn't even get a taste of gumbo!
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