397855 Wed May 02 20:56:18 -0700 2007 14 9 New Orleans 0 2536761 what are some good Nola treats to look for and bring home? Also - this isn't food-related, unless you count good cocktails as requirement - we are coming to New Orleans at the end of May. We want to hear some jazz, but we aren't big into being standard-issue tourists. Recs? Thanks! Wed May 02 20:56:18 -0700 2007 46230 lilyanna 1 2536816 A bottle of Herbsaint - so you can make Sazeracs when you get back home. Because it's authentic, of course, and much cheaper than the Pernod you'll be forced to substitute. Camellia Red Beans - much better than whatever kidney beans you'll find in your local stores for Monday's traditional Red Beans and Rice. French Market or Community Coffee City Roast with Chicory. Olive Salad to try to make your own Muffalettas with quality cold cuts - good luck on the bread! Bring a few loaves home for the freezer. Tony Chachere's for sprinkling on everything. Zatarain's Crab Boil, and other products, especially Creole Mustard Packages of Louisiana crawfish tails for your freezer Wed May 02 21:25:22 -0700 2007 2536761 32444 MakingSense 1 2537364 Good list from MakingSense...I'll add: Zapp's potato chips cajun craw-tator flavor (made in Gramercy, but still a LA food product) Steen's cane syrup (again, not NOLA, but LA) Thu May 03 06:51:34 -0700 2007 2536761 12023 Hungry Celeste 2 2539589 If I might piggyback on this usefull thread - I'd like to try some good hot boudin sausage while I'm here. Any recommendations for a good place or brand? Thanks! Thu May 03 16:35:57 -0700 2007 2537886 77259 Paul N 3 2539682 For lilyana, use Steen's as you would use maple syrup. It's what southerners eat on their pancakes and (pecan) waffles. You can also use it as a glaze. Steen's has a web site with recipes. As for boudin, not sure I can help here. I buy mine -- by the five-pound box -- from Kelly Cormier's Country Meat Block in Opelousas, which is two hours west. If you have a car, you might try Jacob's or Bailey's in LaPlace, which would be a half-hour away. They are more noted for andouille than boudin, but do sell boudin. I think the Napoleon House serves boudin on its charcroute plate, if memory serves. I would trust that it, like everything else there, is of high quality. In general, boudin, unlike red beans or cane syrup, is not really a branded product. Everybody has some meat market or gas station they're partial to. And the best producers are west of New Orleans. (Calvin Trillin, for example, famously likes the boudin from Nook's in New Iberia.) For a different taste, you might try the Vaucresson Sausage Co., which sells po-boys at Jazz Fest and has a retail outlet on St. Bernard Avenue. Thu May 03 17:08:26 -0700 2007 2539589 56329 jamy 3 2540281 There's a combo gas station/convenience store/restaurant about 1700 block of Airline Highway (sorry--Airline Drive) that serves good po-boys and very good boudin--both traditional pork and crawfish. It's on the odd-numbered side of the street on the edge of the big parking lot of the shopping Center--you'll see it. (If you are proceeding from NO to Kenner, it'll be on your side of the hwy. Start loking after you pass the Hurwitz Mintz furniture store (Very hard to ignore.). This conforms to my view that the very best boudin is served in little out of the way gas stations, etc, back on country roads. The best I ever had was on a highway near Ville Platte, and I curse the fact that I lost the note as to it's location. I have never been able to find it again. Thu May 03 20:57:45 -0700 2007 2539589 17677 underworld gourmet 4 2541906 Just checked the address today-1919 Airline Drive, and the name of the place is Kid Creole's food store. Very nice, like I said. Fri May 04 11:27:54 -0700 2007 2540281 17677 underworld gourmet 3 2540976 Boudin is not something readily found in NO. More to the west in Cajun country around Lafayette. Try Cochon in the warehouse district. Fri May 04 07:42:38 -0700 2007 2539589 19636 Tonto 3 2541157 There's a stand at the farmer's market that sells smoked meats and tasso, etc. I haven't had the boudin from them, but it's probably worth a try. Saturday mornings, look up Crescent City Farmer's Market. Fri May 04 08:26:16 -0700 2007 2539589 10559 JGrey 3 2544941 Paul, if you'd like to talk like a Cajun...just say boudin, the sausage is redundant! Sat May 05 17:30:22 -0700 2007 2539589 14049 cajungirl 4 2545887 Thanks for the tip, cajungirl. Last night I got to try some delicious boudin - at Mid-city Lanes Rock n' Bowl of all places. I asked what it was doing in NO and the guy behind the counter told me tonight's caterer was from "somewhere across the lake." There were only four items on the menu but the guy assured me they were all excellent. He was right. I ended up trying al of them. Best etouffee and best gumbo I've ever had. (the gumbo was a lot thinner than the stuff that gets called gumbo up north - but so tastey!) Good jambalya. The boudin was delicious - but not at all like I expected - mild and flavorful and clearly meant to be dipped in hot sauce. Then I got to see Kermit Ruffins. Sun May 06 08:47:55 -0700 2007 2544941 77259 Paul N 1 2540269 Folks, please keep this discussion focused on the food. The local music scene and other general tourism discussions fall outside this site's purpose. Thu May 03 20:53:33 -0700 2007 2536761 2 The Chowhound Team 2 2542276 Thank you, Chowhound Police. More genuinely, thank you posters, for these great suggestions. Jamy, I live in the South, and in NC, we don't use in Steen's on anything, so this is another reason I'm excited to visit a new Southern subsection. Fri May 04 13:01:02 -0700 2007 2540269 46230 lilyanna 2 2544946 So boudin and Steen's cane syrup are now off limits? My husband eats both on LeJeune's French bread...does that count for something? Sat May 05 17:34:31 -0700 2007 2540269 14049 cajungirl 3 2545225 They are talking to the OP, who requested non-food info. Sat May 05 20:14:27 -0700 2007 2544946 10559 JGrey