Gonna Take You There - 9.20.25

I have said it before and I will say it again, when you travel with me more often than not, we are doing just that, traveling, not vacationing. I am hyper aware of my limited time in new places, and I like to make the absolute most out of every second. I want to experience the culture, food, art, history, everything. We did quite that as we were up bright and early as we had things to do and beignets to eat.

The four of us (Avery, his friend and his friend’s girlfriend, and myself) started our day off by going to the French Market and Jackson Square. We went directly to the infamous Loretta’s Authentic Pralines which has been in business for over 35 years. Loretta was the first African American woman to successfully own and operate her own praline company in New Orleans. I, however, came to try her crab beignets which did not disappoint. We then leisurely walked through the French Market browsing the various shop vendors. From the Market, we went to the Square to take some pictures before heading back to our hotel to grab our newly arrived friend and get ready for a tour of a lifetime. 

Our 4-person group became 5 with the arrival of another friend and we wasted no time as we went straight to lunch at Willie’s Chicken Shack where I had the Jambalaya. We had a few bites before we had to take our meals to go as we were off to tour the Bayou. We booked our New Orleans Swamp & Bayou Alligator Tour on Viator. The tour was $65.00 per person and included roundtrip transportation. Our boat was open sided, but top covered which was much appreciated in the Louisiana sun. On our tour we came up close with various wildlife including alligators, birds, raccoons, and turtles. The tour was approximately 4 hours long; about an hour drive each way and about 2 hours on the water. For me, the tour was a bucket list item, and I am now satisfied, and I do not feel the need to go again. At the docking location there was a gift shop that we had time to visit before and after the tour that had restrooms as well as drinks and snacks for purchase. There were also restrooms and a bar on the dock where we boarded the boat. The boat did not have restrooms but our bus did have a restroom. To me, these are the questions I am inquiring about before I sign up for a multi hour tour. Lastly, if you are like our group and had concerns about bugs, we did not need bugspray but I would recommend bringing sunscreen, a hat, sunglasses, and water. Overall, we had an enjoyable excursion and it was nice to explore outside of the busy city life. 

Upon our return to New Orleans, we stopped for beignets at Cafe Du Monde. Cafe Du Monde is an iconic New Orleans cafe known for their coffee and beignets since 1862. The cafe is open 24 hours, 7 days a week, closing only on Christmas Day and in times of hurricanes. I was instantly obsessed with the venue and beignets, their only food item. These beignets are simply the best, and it is a must do. 

After beignets we all went back to our hotels to get ready for dinner and to welcome the last two members of our group. The 7 of us met for dinner at Zesty Creole, a casual eatery dishing up Louisiana-style cuisine and Southern comfort foods in a warm setting. At Zesty Creole, we shared appetizers of Gator Bites (alligator meat cut in small pieces and coated with house seasonal flour and served with remoulade sauce) for the table and I ordered the Grilled Shrimp Salad (house salad with grilled gulf shrimp) for my main course. I enjoyed my meal, especially since my diet usually consists of fruits and vegetables which I had been lacking during this trip.

From dinner, our group headed to Caesars Casino. This is a massive casino equipped with a restaurant, bar, and sports book. I played the slots while Avery and some of the guys hit the tables together. Unfortunately, I did not win, but I had an enjoyable time. Once we had our fun, we headed out to the bars.

We went back to Pat O’Brien’s where we enjoyed the outdoor patio and caught a few songs from the Dueling Pianos. At this point the exhaustion was sinking in, and we split up our group for some to go rest and others to continue the night. 

As you might have guessed, I dragged Avery out for a few more bars to end the night. Avery, his friend, and I went to Lafitte’s Blacksmith Shop Bar. Lafitte’s Blacksmith Shop was built between 1722 and 1732 and is reported to be the oldest structure used as a bar in the United States. The bar has a grand piano playing lively singalongs, beer, and frozen drinks - specifically their purple drank. The purple drank is also known as the Voodoo Daiquiri and includes bourbon, vodka, and grape juice. The drink and bar have seen many celebrities over the years including Jason (retired offensive lineman for the Philadelphia Eagles - Go Birds!) and Kylie Kelce (podcast host), Christopher Meloni and Adam DeVine (actors), Jelly Roll (musician), Shane Gillis (comedian), and more! We ordered the infamous purple drank and walked to Frenchman Street. 

On Frenchman Street we ended up just walking the strip and hanging outside of the bars enjoying the music and our conversations. It is important to note that some of these bars had a cover charge and would not let you bring in outside drinks. We stayed for a bit on Frenchman before calling it a night and going back to the hotel.