The line forms outside the restaurant, then they show you in and you may have to wait a bit more if you go during lunch hours, even on the weekend. That being said, we didn't wait long at all before we were seated. Since we were 'tasting' we decided to split a plate (which comes with 3 pieces of chicken and one side) so we wouldn't be stuffed for the rest of the tasting that we had planned but unplanned for the remainder of the day. We paid extra for white meat only and ordered a side of red beans & rice and two corn muffins (yum). Long story short on Willie Mae's is that it was delicious. Even the chicken breast which is normally the dry part of a chicken was remarkable. If you haven't had the pleasure, I'd definitely suggest you try it when you're in town. Ok, taste #1, check!
Our next stop was Pinkberry and I have to tell you, although I was curious to try it (it was our 1st time), my expectations were low going in. I don't know why, but just from seeing it, I was expecting it to taste like what McDonald's tries to pass off as ice cream. Don't ask me why I thought that, being that it's not even ice cream, it's frozen yogurt, but hey, that's what I thought. I was pleasantly surprised to find that it had a much more substantial flavor to it, more like Greek yogurt, which is thick, creamy and yum. We had the coconut and added strawberries, blueberries and pineapple. Pure bliss. Taste #2, check!
Our next stop was the the French Market right outside the thick of the French Quarter to be exact. We were leisurely strolling through here when we spotted people eating corn on the cob, so naturally we both wanted to try. It's served steaming hot and you can have it just buttered or buttered with Cajun seasonings. We got the latter, and although it was pretty good with the Cajun seasonings, it would have been tasty with just the butter. Taste #3, check
After the saltiness from the Cajun seasoning on the cobbed corn, Ron thought it might be time for a Daiquiri, but with it being February, there was still a bit of crispness in the air even though it was nice out, so he suggested something warmer instead. Which is when we spotted the Organic Banana and their Cajun spiced rum cider on their "Hot Drinks" menu. We were sold. For $6 bucks it's prepared for you in a Starbucks like coffee cup with a lid, and he asked if we wanted whipped cream on top. Ummm.... yes! This drink was an explosion of warm and delicious in your mouth. Taste #4, check.
We walked around the French Quarter a little more, just people watching, enjoying all the sights and sounds, live jazz playing, breakdancing going on in Jackson Square and artists painting on the streets when we spotted this guy (above) in front of St. Louis Cathedral. The stuff you see out there… After the French Quarter, we wanted to chill for a bit and kinda try to plot our next move. So we drove out to the lakefront to cool out. The lake was a complete 180 from the French Quarter. Quiet, serene, peaceful. We parked there, watched the birds (seagulls?) and tried to decide what we wanted to eat for dinner. Ron suggested Jack Dempsey, but the problem was, neither one of us was that hungry for a full dinner any more. So we tried to figure out where we could go for good appetizers. I suggested Drago’s on Poydras since I’d heard so much about their oysters.
When we got to Drago's, it was a mass crowd of people waiting to be seated. And when I say a mass crowd, I mean a MASS CROWD. We put our name on the list and was told to come back in 40 minutes just to get a buzzer and then the wait would be another hour. WOW. Ron thought it was a tactic for restaurant personnel to see who was serious about waiting which must have worked because a few groups did end up leaving. Long story short, we didn't have to wait 40 minutes for a buzzer and we were seated long before an hour was up. Once seated we settled on the Crabmeat Mediterranean Salad and the Charbroiled Oyster appetizer (above) to split. Taste #5 and taste #6, check and check.
I was shocked when Ron wanted to go somewhere else for one last round of tasting because I thought we were done after Drago's. That dude has me beat on spontaneity hands down, but in the spirit of going with the flow, I was game. He suggested the Palace Cafe on Canal Street for some Bananas Foster for dessert. It was prepared table side, which is the best way IMO and we had coffee to cap it all off. This was a great day eating our way through NOLA.
CULTURE • LIFESTYLE • TRAVEL • NEW ORLEANS LOREM IPSUM LORUM IPSUM DOLOR @chanelnbr5 Learn #neworleans food and culture history at this interactive museum and
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