Vacation questions for locals...

[CDollarsign]

My girlfriend and I will be coming to New Orleans very shortly. We got free flights so we are looking for a cool hotel in the French Quarters. We are looking for a non corporate sort of boutique hotel which would be very nice and fun to stay in. Any recs? We plan to have dinner one night at August. Is this a good choice? What other places should we look into eating at other than the New Orleans staples? Thanks in advance!

[CDollarsign]

So my vacation to New Orleans was this weekend and it was a blast. We had alot of fun on Frenchman St. We took a pretty cool 20 mile bike tour and ate lots of stuff. Patois for brunch was incredible, I wish I was able to eat dinner there. They have great drinks aswell, namely Tuscan. Cochon for dinner was outstanding. I had the cochon and my gf ordered braised beef cheeks aswell as fried aligator, all were excellent. We also went to to Cochon Butcher which was very good and fun. It was very nice being able to venture out of the FQ. We did find a little bar that we like alot in the FQ called The Chart Room, highly recommended if you like dive bars. Cheap drinks and a great jukebox. Thank you very much for all the recommendations.

-----
Cochon
930 Tchoupitoulas St., New Orleans, LA 70130

Cochon Butcher
930 Tchoupitoulas, New Orleans, LA 70130

Chart Room
300 Chartres St, New Orleans, LA 70130

[mrsfury]

Sounds great! :)

[LisaBlair]

August is a wonderful choice. The front dining room is the most beautiful I've ever dined in.

For drinks and music, go to Frenchman Street. d.b.a. and the Spotted Cat are great places to catch local, live music.

All the hotels recommended thus far are good choices.

Modern twist on local food - I would agree that Cochon is a great choice.

-----
Cochon
930 Tchoupitoulas St., New Orleans, LA 70130

[paz5559]

Green Goddess. Iris. Meauxbar. Rue 127 if you feel like venturing out of the quarter.

People who post the same answer regardless of the question jut crack me up. You specifically said "other than New Orleans staples". That being the case, DON'T go to Galatoire's, Emeril's, Commander's, Napoleon House, Drago's, Port O'Call, Mr. B's, K-Paul's, or Johnny's. Not cause they are bad, just cause they are exactly what you asked to avoid.

Personally, I think Felipe's, is at best mediocre Mexican food, and so why anyone would recommend it to an out of towner is beyond me. Buffa's primary positive attribute is that it is open 24/7, but other than that, nothing special.

Btw, when you say local bars, do you mean cool places with interesting drinks (ie. a hipster place)? A dive bar? Cause Cooter's, Bruno's, and Lucy's are pretty much college frat bars, and not places I would tell anyone other than a Miller or Bud drinker with an IQ under 80 to try.

[CDollarsign]

My gf and I are kind of hipsters i guess... Haha, but yeah we like cool places with really good/interesting drinks and good atmosphere. Where can we find that?

[paz5559]

Mimi's in the Marigny, Cure, French 75, Avenue Pub, Bar Tonique, Delachaise, Clever, Oak.

[erikschwarz]

Some very good recs have already been given, but here is my two cents worth:

1) You have interest in the Warehouse District (which is where my office is located). Check out Capdeville, a "gastropub" (horrible term, sounds like an intestinal complaint) with interesting drinks, some good food and a generally lively local clientele. Also check out the art galleries on Julia Street. If you are a kid at heart, stop at the Childrens Museum, also on Julia Street. http://www.capdevillenola.com/

2) If you want to hang with the local hipsters at night, hit Frenchman St, as Lisa Blair suggests. To her recommendations I would add the Three Muses (see photo below), again a bar that appeals to locals with good food - and also good live music. http://www.thethreemuses.com/

[bg1811]

Stella is attached to the Hotel Provincial. You might kill two birds with one stone.

[whs]

Domenica in the Roosevelt Hotel is on all our New Orleans friends' radar. We loved August (twice) and it's walking distance of International House and Loft 523, two nice boutique hotels. A great breakfast place across the street from IH is Commerce Restaurant--great biscuits, grits and eggs and the waitress will call you "baby". Cochon was fun, Cochon Butcher looked funner, and we didn't stop in, but the $20 3-course lunch at Coquette on Magazine Street looked really good.
http://www.domenicarestaurant.com/
http://www.ihhotel.com/
http://www.loft523.com/
http://www.cochonbutcher.com/
http://www.coquette-nola.com/

-----
Cochon
930 Tchoupitoulas St., New Orleans, LA 70130

Domenica
123 Baronne Street, New Orleans, LA 70112

[Bill Hunt]

The Bistro at the Maison de Ville is quite good, and their Audubon Cottages are excellent rooms.

The food is a great draw, and well worth the stay.

Enjoy,

Hunt

[Bigrayok]

I think NOLA fits the New Orleans style food with a modern twist description. It is one of Emeril's places and is in the French Quarter. It is open for lunch and dinner. Reservations are suggested but I have got in at lunch without a reservation before. Emeril's original place fits the description also in my opinion.

Bigray in Ok

[nola1421]

K-pauls, Emeril's NOLA restaurant, Stanley's, Johnny's Po boy place to eat right outside this hotel and many more, Omni Royal Orleans hotel in the middle of the FQ.

-----
Emeril's Restaurant
800 Tchoupitoulas, New Orleans, LA 70130

[Bill Hunt]

Unlike some CH regulars, we had both great food and service at NOLA.

Not sure that I could have asked for much more. They got graded down on a few minor points, but really delivered. We were impressed on all counts.

Hunt

[texasredtop]

I ate at August one night last week and will never return. Just under $250 (dinner for 2) and only one dish was better than just average (some kind of curry shrimp bisque). The rest of the meal was just forgettable. Edible but absolutely average or below average in every way. However, after my bbq shrimp at Mr. B's arrived, and getting that first bite, I fell in love all over again. They are still #1 with me. Galatoire's was fabulous too. If you can get to Metairie, do not miss the char-grilled oysters at Drago's. YUM!! I haven't heard good things about the Drago's on the Riverwalk though.

-----
Galatoire's Restaurant
209 Bourbon St., New Orleans, LA 70130

[Bob MacAdoo]

Hotel-wise, try the International House. I stayed there the year it opened and loved it.

Food-wise, I'll defer to the natives, but follow their advice! It served me well three weeks ago!

[Littleman]

What kind of food is your interest. Do you like fine dining. August is outstanding. Go for lunch Monday/Friday for the $20.00 specials. Go to Commander's Palace for their Friday lunch special. Galatoire's, Bayona, Emeril's, Stella, Irene's and NOLA are fun places too. Napoleon House, Mena's, Clover Grill, Coop's, Felipe's, Johnny's, Mimi's, Port O Call and Buffa's are inexpensive places for good food. Luke and Domenica have half price specials from 3/6 PM. Get a room in the FQ or CBD so you can walk to all the places you want to see.

[CDollarsign]

We are looking for unique modern places. I have been to NO in the past and know of some good places that have been around forever. We are trying to find place thats unique to NO. IT would be really cool to find a place with a modern twist on southern food, which seems to be August. Whats going on with the Warehouse District? Looks very cool. We are trying to stay as non touristy as possible minus cafe du monde and central grocer...

[Littleman]

Cochon and Feast may interest your unique places. Patois comes to mind but it's Uptown.

Cochon @ 930 Tchoupitoulas St., New Orleans, LA. 504 - 588 - 2123.
http://www.cochonrestaurant.com/
Feast Restaurant @ 200 Julia Street, New Orleans, LA 504 - 304 - 6318.
https://sites.google.com/site/feastneworleans/
Patois @ 6078 Laurel St., New Orleans, LA 504 - 895 - 9441.
http://www.patoisnola.com/

-----
Cochon
930 Tchoupitoulas St., New Orleans, LA 70130

[stevuchan]

Not a local but visit often, Stella! and Mila are unique modern places and I have had excellent meals at both.

[CDollarsign]

Patois looks awesome. Its by the zoo which we planned on visiting, reservations for brunch made. What are some fun local bars? Wheres a good place to catch a show?

[Littleman]

The Column's Hotel has a nice bar that's fun to visit. You can have your drink on their porch watching the traffic on St. Charles Avenue. Maple Leaf is a live music bar Uptown. Cooter's is a fun place with good oysters. Bruno's is a good sports bar near Tulane at Uptown. Go to Lucy's on Tchoupitoulas in the CBD near Emeril's. You won't regret it. Go to see Jeremy Davenport's jazz at the Davenport Lounge at The Ritz Carlton at 9 PM on Thursday/Friday/Saturday.

The Columns Hotel @ 3811 Saint Charles Ave., New Orleans, LA 504 - 899 - 9308.
http://www.thecolumns.com/
Maple Leaf Bar @ 8316 Oak St., New Orleans, LA. 504 - 866 - 9359.
http://mapleleafbar.com/
Cooter Brown's Tavern @ 509 South Carrollton Ave., New Orleans, LA 504 - 866 - 9104.
http://www.cooterbrowns.com/

Bruno's Tavern @ 7538 Maple Street, New Orleans, LA 504 - 861 - 7615.
http://www.brunostavern.com/
Lucy's Bar @ 701 Tchoupitoulas St., New Orleans, LA 504 - 523 - 8995.
http://www.lucysretiredsurfers.com/ne...

[TaTee]

Oak Wine Bar on Oak Street....take the street car, and I have heard (have not been) that the new bar next to Lilletteon Magazine Street is quite nice.

[The Chowhound Team]

We try to keep this board focused on sharing tips on chow, so we'll ask posters to respond with chow tips only, as hotel discussion is off topic for our site. Thanks!

[smilingal]

CDollarsign - haven't read the rest of this yet - but responding to the CH posting - you might try researching hotels on tripadvisor.com - good luck!