4 day New Orleans trip and need CHOW advise

[bardesa]

Never been to NOLA but will be there for a 4 day vacay in March. We'll be in the French Quarter but are willing to travel if the eats are worth it. Any suggestions?? We like hole in the wall, mom and pop places and want to experience real NOLA flavor. Also am on a budget, trying to stay no more than $25-30 per person for dinner. Thanks!!!!!

[edible complex]

My favorite restaurants in the French Quarter are:

Galatoire's (jacket required for men at dinner): oysters rockefeller, oysters en brochette, seafood stuffed eggplant, lamb chops béarnaise, crabmeat au gratin, fried soft shell crabs w/crabmeat, godchaux salad, soufflé potatoes.
http://www.galatoires.com/
Mr.. B's: great gumbo Ya-Ya, BBQ shrimp, any fish of the day plank grilled, and profiteroles for dessert.
http://www.mrbsbistro.com/index2.php
Irene's: the duck is amazing, and the chicken rosemarino is a classic Creole Italian dish.
http://www.frommers.com/destinations/neworleans/D41515.html
Muriel's at Jackson Square: good gumbo, goat cheese and crawfish crepes, puppy drum, and double cut pork chops.
http://www.muriels.com/
Iris in the Bienville House for veal cheek ravioli, mussels, foie gras, duck confit, sunchoke and cauliflower soup, scallops and skate wing.
http://irisneworleans.com/

Go to Cafe du Monde (riverside of Jackson Square) for beignets and coffee any time of day.
http://www.cafedumonde.com/

Check out Stanley on Jackson Square for breakfast or lunch. Scott Boswell also has Stella!, but this is his casual restaurant that cranks out some good food too:
http://www.stanleyrestaurant.com/
http://www.restaurantstella.com/

For raw oysters: Desire Bar in the Royal Sonesta, Bourbon House, Acme or Felix's in the Qtr., Luke in the CBD on St. Charles Ave., Pascal's Manale and Casamento's Uptown.
http://www.sonesta.com/RoyalNewOrleans/index.cfm?fa=diningentertainment.home
http://www.bourbonhouse.com/
http://www.acmeoyster.com/
http://www.felixs.com/
http://www.lukeneworleans.com/
http://www.neworleansrestaurants.com/pascalsmanale/
http://www.casamentosrestaurant.com/main/main.html
For good drinks: Carousel Bar at the Monteleone (a must visit), French 75 Bar at Arnaud's, Lafitte's Blacksmith, Absinthe House, Napoleon House, Hermes Bar at Antoine's, Chart Room on Chartres, Sazerac Bar at (recently reopened) The Roosevelt.
Central Grocery for muffalettas. These are great for the plane ride home. Be sure to check their hours, as they may be closed when you fly home. They pack well, so you can buy a day before flying. If you like your muffalettas warmed (which I do), then eat at Napoleon House or heat up the CG when you get home. I find it opens up the flavors of the meats, cheese and olive salad.
http://www.napoleonhouse.com/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Central_Grocery

Green Goddess is the newest and most talked about in the Qtr.
Menu looks amazing:
http://greengoddessnola.com/

If you have a car or will take the streetcar, head Uptown for J'Anita's, Martinique, Clancy's, Patois, Coquette and Boucherie.

J'Anita's in the Avenue Pub on St. Charles Ave. for great BBQ for lunch. They also have the best fish sammich ever and the St. Chuck Duck po boy!
http://www.theavenuepub.com/food.htm

Martinique Bistro on Magazine has great food and a beautiful courtyard.
http://www.martiniquebistro.com/
Clancy's on Annunciation is terrific; get the oysters w/brie, sweetbreads, the smoked soft shell crab and the veal chops. and their frozen Brandy Alexander's are good for dessert.
http://www.frommers.com/destinations/neworleans/D41648.html
Patois on Laurel for rabbit, moules frites, and pork belly. This has become one of the best new restaurants and well worth trying. Open also for Friday lunch and Sunday brunch, if that fits in your schedule.
http://www.patoisnola.com/
Coquette is on Magazine St. and is open for for both lunch and dinner. The menu changes, but if they have the cod, get it. They have a great drink list, and I love their French 75's. There is also a great Pinot Noir from Melville which compliments their food.
http://www.coquette-nola.com/
Boucherie is on Jeanette just off Carrollton. They are open for both lunch and dinner. Get the Mussels w/Collard Greens, Fries w/Parm, Boudin Balls, Pulled Pork Cake, Brisket, Smoked Scallops and the ChocBacon Brownie. The Cote du Rhone works well here.
http://www.boucherie-nola.com/

Or, head to Mid-City for Mandina's on Canal St. for turtle soup, oyster po boys, and trout or Parkway Bakery and Tavern for the best roast beef po boys.
http://www.parkwaybakeryandtavernnola.com/
(Mandina's is cash only.
)http://www.mandinasrestaurant.com/

In the CBD, across Canal St from Fr. Qtr., try Rambla in the International House Hotel for great tapas, Luke on St. Charles for oysters at the bar, duck and rabbit pate, choucroûte maison, and moules and frites, Domenica in The Roosevelt for goat cheese stuffed squash blossoms, grilled radicchio, and any of the pastas and pizzas. check out lunch at Restaurant August, which has a 3 course for $20.09 that is stellar. Other places: Herbsaint and Cochon (both Donald Link restaurants), Rio Mar, La Boca, a Mano (all Adolfo Garcia's restaurants).
http://ihhotel.com/restaurant.html
http://www.lukeneworleans.com/
http://www.domenicarestaurant.com/
http://www.restaurantaugust.com/
http://herbsaint.com/
http://www.cochonrestaurant.com/
http://riomarseafood.activepixel.com/
http://www.labocasteaks.com/index.html

[carolinadawg]

The OP should be aware that many of these suggestions have entree prices that will make it virtually impossible to eat within his/her budget. For hole in the wall type places, consider Willie Mae's Scotch House, Coop's and Port of Call, in addition to the mentioned Napolean House, Central Grocery and Acme.

[nomadchowwoman]

Yes, most of EC's recs won't fit into the OP's dinner budget. Suggestion: make lunch the main meal, and you can do some fine dining--at August, Herbsaint, Bayona, Cochon. To fit your budget for dinner, you can eat an all raw oyster-dinner at the suggested places or char-grilled oysters at Dragos, po-boys ay most places, pizza at Domenica, some of EC's selections at Luke. "Hole-in-the-wall": Liuzza's, Liuzza's by the Track, Mandina's. Two Sisters. Taqueria Corona. Felipe's
Willie Mae's and Central Grocery are not open at night. Neither is Cafe Reconcile (but it's a great NO food place w/a great story.)
Not hole-in-the-wall but good value: Cochon Butcher, Boucherie.

[karykat]

All your suggestions are helping me too. Appreciated.