Babs and Rik Travel to the Big Easy

New Orleans – The 1st Night

Babs and I went to New Orleans this weekend with some old friends of ours, Rod and Christine Holcombe. Babs went for the shopping. I went for the food and in search of that elusive Louisiana brewbub. The first night we went to Preservation Hall and listened to a brass jazz band. Two saxophones, a trumpet, a trombone, a tuba, some snare drums and a bass drum. It was awesome music. It was musty and dark and hot and must have been just like it used to be "in the day". That's why they call it Preservation Hall; it is the effort of many people to maintain the original style of jazz that was slowly disappearing that made New Orleans famous. They played great songs like "I Got a Hole in my Bucket" and "Hold that Tiger" and "When the Saints Come Marching In". Lots of Tiger Rag, too. I got there in time for the last set that started after 10:00; Rod had been standing in line since 6:00PM to make sure we got good tickets. We had a great time, and afterwards went for refreshments next door at Pat Obrien’s. I had a Hurricane, consummating once again my love affair with rum, followed by an Abita Amber Ale, made in one of Louisiana's few craft breweries. Babs had a mint julep. Being true tourists, we bought the glasses and brought them home. We made it back to our hotel, The Provincial, a hotel I would highly recommend in the heart of the French Quarter, after 1:00AM.

The 1st Morning

I knew that if I was to go searching for the elusive microbrew, I would need to start my long day with some good New Orleans coffee, complete with chicory. Babs would want some beignets with hers. Café Du Monde is the place for that. I think I paid $1.50 for a cup of black coffee that is "seared black". It was great. While sitting there, I watched people eat their beignets. They were buried in confectioner's sugar. I mean buried! I've never seen so much sugar. You get about a half dozen beignets on a plate and then they throw what looks like a shovel full of sugar on them. The sugar covers your lap, the table, and the floor. It is impossible to eat them without making a powdery mess. While we were there, the sugar truck pulled up. I watched them load 50 lb bags of confectioner’s sugar onto their cart. Five bags. Ten bags. Thirteen bags. Another cart. They brought 16 – fifty lb bags of sugar inside. I asked the guy if that was a normal order. He said no; today was a light day. They usually get 20 bags per day. That's 1000 lbs of confectioner's sugar every day! And most of it winds up in your lap and on the floor. Oh well, they do grow a lot of cane sugar around these parts. I guess that's how you support your local farmers.


Have some beignets with your sugar


Have some sugar with your cafe


Seen on a street in the Garden District

Stay tuned for the first afternoon and the beer saga...