A Weekend in the Big Easy
New Orleans
Story by Kathleen Mansfield, Photography by New Orleans CVB and Modus Photography
It’s not called the Big Easy for nothing – New Orleans is the ideal destination for any traveler desiring to enjoy a time-honored, easy-going culture of music, cuisine, and never-ending celebration in what is essentially a giant speakeasy of entertainment and history. A weekend in the Louisiana city will fly by with so much to explore, so let’s get started.
New Orleans, which is celebrating its 300th anniversary this year, was originally a French city, although the Spanish did occupy it for a time – you can see evidence of this in some architecture in the French Quarter. It was ceded to the U.S. in 1803 and became a melting pot of cultures, which shows in its varying cuisines of Vietnamese, German, and Italian influence. Today, New Orleans is a vibrant, exciting vacation destination as well as an important business hub, a thriving arts community, and the home of the Saints football team and Pelicans basketball team.
Begin a long weekend in New Orleans with a quick ride from the Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport to your hotel. NOPSI Hotel is a recent addition to the Central Business District, located in the New Orleans Public Services Incorporated building, a historic landmark which was built in 1927 and formerly housed the city’s utility company and transit operator. NOPSI is a charming upscale Salamander property and provides a luxurious stay with convenience to all the amenities of New Orleans. Its interior features tall ceilings, tasteful industrial fixtures, and the cozy blue, gold, and brown décor signature to the Salamander name. Lobby walls are adorned with black and white photographs of Princess Grace Kelly and scenes of Monte Carlo, a nod to Monaco’s historic ties to New Orleans. Welcoming staff attend to guests’ every need, from room service to dog walking. The hotel also has a beautiful event space called the Dryades Ballroom, formerly a warehouse for the NOPSI power transformers, that hosts special occasions like weddings, corporate functions, and debutante balls, which are still prevalent in the very traditional New Orleans community.
After checking in and resting up in one of NOPSI’s spacious suites, dine downstairs at Public Service, the hotel’s onsite restaurant. Taste contemporary Gulf Coast flavors like Cajun Poutine before taking an elevator upstairs to Above the Grid, the hotel’s poolside rooftop bar where craft beer, wine, and cocktails like the Live Wire await along with incredible city views from nine floors up. Rest easy in the Big Easy tonight – you have a big weekend ahead!
The next morning, grab a coffee and breakfast pastry and take a few hours to explore the many art galleries in the Warehouse District as well as the National World War II Museum, which offers an immersive look at the war that changed the world with detailed exhibits, including first-person accounts, and a fascinating collection of artifacts.
The art galleries, which feature curated works of all styles and media, occupy warehouse spaces that were vacant for some time until they were used in the 1984 Louisiana World Exposition, which helped begin the revitalization of the Warehouse District. Hotels and restaurants followed the galleries in their move to the area, leading to the Warehouse District becoming one of the wealthiest parts of New Orleans. In addition to the National World War II Museum, the Warehouse District is also home to the Louisiana Children’s Museum and the Ogden Museum of Southern Art.
Once you’ve enjoyed your walking tour of the history and art of the Warehouse District, head to lunch at the upscale restaurant Galatoire’s. Hopefully you secured a “line sitter,” because Galatoire’s famously fills up for long Friday lunches as soon as it opens and doesn’t take reservations. Line sitters are paid to wait in line outside of the restaurant and hold the place of the lunch party. A Friday lunch is an extravagant dining affair that takes anywhere from three to five hours, and guests often dress up for the occasion to celebrate birthdays or engagements, conduct casual meetings, or wine with friends. In fact, men are required to wear sport coats if they dine on the first floor. Champagne flows and the atmosphere is cheerful, fun, and almost comical in its flamboyance; second lines of musicians regularly stop in to play a miniature parade through the crowded restaurant, encouraging audience participation and often wishing a happy birthday to one of the guests through a trumpet. Guests will almost certainly spend a fortune at Galatoire’s, but when they are surrounded by such a lively atmosphere complemented with an incredible menu, white tablecloths, servers in tuxedos, and stylish vintage green and gold décor throughout, the experience is worth it.
Walk off that long lunch with a pleasant stroll down Royal Street to Jackson Square. Antique shops and local art galleries, street performers, second line parades, and crowds of visitors abound here; it’s a true culmination of everything New Orleans. Chat with the artists along the Jackson Square fence and purchase a local piece to take home. Stop by the waterfront and enjoy the fresh breeze as you take in the noise of the people, the carriages, and the steamboats on the water. New Orleans is one of the world’s busiest ports, located on the Gulf of Mexico.
Back at NOPSI Hotel, take your shoes off and rest a bit before your evening drink-making class at New Orleans Drink Lab just a few blocks away. At Drink Lab, groups of two to 12 learn the history of cocktails in New Orleans as they make the cocktails by hand using traditional ingredients just like in the original recipes. The two-hour introductory class includes three of the city’s most popular drinks: Manhattan, Sazerac, and Ramos Gin Fizz. Another class for repeat customers provides different cocktails with additional history.
Drink Lab and downstairs lounge Victory co-owners Daniel Victory, a master bartender, and Camille Whitworth, a media professional and motivational speaker, designed their classroom bar with influence from Mahogany Hall, a mansion owned by a notorious madame in New Orleans in the late 1890s – the same era in which the cocktails were first created. Daniel said he hopes to change the perception of drinks with his classes and educate participants on the many flavors available for different moods and social situations, and also reminds participants on how walkable New Orleans is – so no need to drive after imbibing one of the city’s classic cocktails.
You’ve surely worked up an appetite perfecting your bartending skills, so ease on over to one of New Orleans’ other popular restaurants, such as MayPop, a Vietnamese American restaurant with bold flavors and lots of spice.
Still awake? Time to visit Bourbon Street, the quintessential Mardi Gras destination and an adventure in itself for the all-night reveler. New Orleans allows open containers in the streets, so grab a drink and make the most of your Bourbon Street experience. If Bourbon Street isn’t your thing, sign up for a haunted tour of New Orleans and learn about its most prominent ghost tales.
Sleep in at your quiet NOPSI retreat, and recharge with a delicious breakfast at Willa Jean, a delicious restaurant and bakery. You may have noticed the abundance of coffee and chicory blends at Willa Jean and everywhere else you go; it’s a thing here and has been for 200 years. In fact, a traditional New Orleans cafe au lait is made with two ingredients: half rich black coffee and chicory and half boiled milk. Chicory is a caffeine-free root that is blended with black coffee to cut the bitterness of the coffee beans.
On your last day in New Orleans, check out more of the city’s popular activities such as the aquarium, a plantation tour, or one of the city’s historical museums like the Museum of Death, which displays a variety of artifacts and art on the subject of death including photographs, letters, videos, recreations of crime scenes, and even some actual taxidermied animals and a human head. Indulge in a classic rum hurricane at Pat O’Brien’s, home of the original hurricane, eat some beignets at Cafe du Monde, or enjoy lunch in the welcoming pastel atmosphere of Brennan’s on Royal Street before returning home. New Orleans enjoyed having you!
