For our second week in NOLA, we wanted to kick things off right. We had heard that liquor laws were a whole different thing in New Orleans and we knew that it was possible to walk around the French Quarter with giant glasses of mixed drinks. We were in total disbelief, however, when we heard that you are able to purchase frozen daiquiris at drive thru locations across the city and we had to investigate this for ourselves so we went and found one after John got off work. It was true and it was incredible (you just can’t put the straw in them or take the lid off while you are in the car – then it becomes an open container). We drove around the city for a bit, then picked up wings from J Creole’s and drinks from Daiquiris & Company to take home for a quiet dinner followed by a dip in the hot tub.
We also went out on Wednesday evening for more alcohol themed entertainment. We had done several brewery and distillery tours previously but I was REALLY looking forward to the one we had scheduled at Happy Raptor. Number 1, how freaking cute is the name? Number 2, it’s rum. I love rum. It is one of the few alcoholic beverages that I actually really enjoy – cheap rum, expensive rum, flavored rum, it doesn’t matter. For $15 each, we got the distillery tour, one of their cocktails, and sample shots of 5 different rums – Silver, Gold, Bananas Foster, Hibiscus, and King Cake. For our cocktails, I got a Hibiscus Hurricane and John got the Rum Punch and they were both delightful. We also sampled our first actual piece of King Cake (a Mardi Gras must) and learned a little about this amazing dessert. We ended up buying a bottle of Bananas Foster to take with us as well. John had the good sense to stop drinking when we started feeling tipsy and switched to water for the rest of our visit so that he would be good to drive home. I was not the driver and, consequently, did not stop drinking so I was feeling very good by the time we left.
The single slice of King Cake that we shared at Happy Raptor was enough to really spark our interest (and our taste buds) so John got up super early on Thursday morning and drove to Dong Phoung Bakery to stand in line for a King Cake of our very own. Almost every bakery in town sells King Cakes but Dong Phoung is one of the very best and you have to get there really early and get in line before they sell out.
A little King Cake history: This cake is historically only eaten from Epiphany (Jan 6, 2023) through Mardi Gras Day (February 21, 2023). It is similar in consistency and flavor to a giant cinnamon roll but may also contain cream cheese or fruit filling. There is also usually a trinket or figurine called a “feve” (french for fava bean, which was originally used as the trinket) baked into the cake representing Christ and whoever finds that in their slice is considered lucky and, if the cake is being enjoyed in an workplace setting or a friendly gathering, may win a small prize- but they are also responsible for buying the next King Cake! Many New Orleans bakeries use a small plastic baby. Ours was on top of the cake which is much less of a choking hazard. This cake was cinnamon with cream cheese frosting and cream cheese inside and it was delicious.
On Saturday, we visited the Audubon Zoo. This is a beautiful zoo filled with gorgeous architecture, giant green spaces and towering oak trees. There are statues and fountains everywhere you look and I just felt transported back in time to the old timey zoos and parks that you see in classic movies. We also got to experience our first New Orleans Crawfish Pie and Jambalaya while visiting!
Exhibits include flamingos, rhinos, sea lions, a great reptile collection and a small aquarium section.
We absolutely loved the “local” wildlife section – raccoons, alligators, and THREE baby black bears!
The zoo sits inside the beautiful Audubon Park, which is also full of amazing old trees and plenty of green spaces to walk and play. We visited several areas in the park but our favorite was the Tree of Life, which was planted around 1740 and is absolutely breathtaking. We climbed the tree and sat among its roots and just felt at peace.
We wrapped up the day with dinner at Cooter Brown’s, a local hotspot. We had a Strawberry Lemonade and a Rum Punch to drink. I had the Mater Gator (fried green tomatoes and alligator sausage) Po Boy and John had a Hot Sausage Po Boy. The planters out front are full of oyster shells from the bar and it’s just a really comfortable, low-key place.
We decided to finish out the week on Sunday with another day of adventure. We started the morning by shopping at the Farmer’s Market at City Park. We bought some strawberries and some donuts and just enjoyed people watching for a little bit.
We continued the day by venturing into the French Quarter. We walked along Decatur, shopped at the French Market, and tried a Muffuletta from Central Grocery. We saw the original Cafe Du Monde but did not stop as we have had their beignets from another location and a cruise ship had just unloaded a TON of passengers that had made their way there. We did find an amazing little art market at Jackson Square and bought a few small pieces from local artists. We also picked up a few souvenirs to send home.
We drove back to the house to walk the dog, then headed out again for lunch/dinner. We had crossed Lake Pontchartain on our way into the city from Slidell and I had thought the bridge we drove on was never going to end. We soon learned that the area of the lake we had crossed from Slidell into New Orleans was actually one of the smaller parts of the lake and that the lake was enormous (630 square miles) and that there was a bridge crossing the middle section that connects Metairie to Mandeville- AND THAT BRIDGE IS ALMOST 24 MILES LONG!
We headed over to Metairie and drove across – it seemed to take forever! It turns out that the Lake Pontchartrain Causeway is actually the longest bridge over water in the entire United States. It is free to drive from Metairie to Mandeville but there is a $5 fee on the return trip.
While in Mandeville, we ate at Trey Yuen, which is a popular Chinese restaurant. Dinner was pretty good but we also enjoyed exploring the grounds which were full of plants, statues, and koi ponds.
We had just completed our second week in New Orleans and, usually, this would mean that it was time to move on as we don’t typically spend longer than two weeks in one location. We had already done so much but we still had a to-do list a million miles long and were relieved to have an additional 6 weeks in which to do it.
