Georgia, that is, for a conference.
Awoke to sunny skies on our last day. Had a late flight so we were able to grab another meal before leaving. Went to Johnny's Poboy for shrimp poboys and gumbo. It was really good. I am headed to Athens GA and Richard back to Cleveland. We agreed we had a great time eating, drinking, and listening to music in New Orleans!
Monday, April 29, 2013
Sunday at JazzFest...not...
We planned on going to JazzFest Sunday but it was pouring rain and we decided to pass and hang around the Quarter. I was coming down with a cold and feeling cruddy as well. We ended up sleeping in late and having brunch at Stanley's. it is a cafe on Jackson Square and has a great dish called "Eggs Stanley" which is eggs Benedict with fried oysters on top. While waiting for a table we were able to make a quick stop at Cafe Du Monde for iced coffee and beignets!
Ended up back at Carousel Bar in the afternoon for a few more well made cocktails then decided to call it an early night and ordered pizza and watched movies back at the hotel.
Richard ran into a bunch of "drowned" people coming back from Jazzfest in the evening and we were glad we made the call to forgo the Fest.
Ended up back at Carousel Bar in the afternoon for a few more well made cocktails then decided to call it an early night and ordered pizza and watched movies back at the hotel.
Richard ran into a bunch of "drowned" people coming back from Jazzfest in the evening and we were glad we made the call to forgo the Fest.
Saturday
Spent Saturday in the Quarter eating and drinking along with lots of walking and swimming.
A couple of highlights included lunch at Mr. B's. They are known for there BBQ Shrimp. This is not shrimp with BBQ sauce, but large head/shell on shrimp cooked in a spicy, creamy, butter sauce and served with a fresh loaf of French bread. You need to wear a bib In order to peel and eat this!
We also ended up at The Carousel Bar inside the Hotel Monteleone. The bar is a restored carousel and the bartenders are very skilled at making cocktails. We enjoyed a Ramos Gin Fizz.
A couple of highlights included lunch at Mr. B's. They are known for there BBQ Shrimp. This is not shrimp with BBQ sauce, but large head/shell on shrimp cooked in a spicy, creamy, butter sauce and served with a fresh loaf of French bread. You need to wear a bib In order to peel and eat this!
We also ended up at The Carousel Bar inside the Hotel Monteleone. The bar is a restored carousel and the bartenders are very skilled at making cocktails. We enjoyed a Ramos Gin Fizz.
Saturday, April 27, 2013
Jazzfest Day 1 recap- it's all about good choices
After an absence of almost 9 years, I returned to jazzfest with Rhonda who is at the fest for the first time. There is always far more to see and hear than you can possibly digest in one day- you simply can't see it all. the trick is to make good choices and don't second guess. Here is a brief rundown of our experience on Friday , day 1 at the fairgrounds:
- Charmaine Neville at Congo square- after stopping first for a strawberry snowball with condensed milk (jazzfest breakfast of champions) we heard a set of original songs with a distinct female voice and, importantly, checked our first "Nevilles box". The family is ubiquitous at the festival. We will see the Nevilles on Sunday.
- Soul rebels brass band at Gentilly stage. These guys are on their way to taking over the mantle of best brass band in new orleans from the dirty dozen. they rocked the crowd of about 10,000 fans with a mix of current songs and a few New Orleans standards. Then it was back to Congo square for ...
- George Porter and running partners- George Porter (original bassist for The Meters) played with a group of mostly younger musicians and riffed on classic meters tunes. George still looks and sounds great, though he let the young guys do the heavy lifting in this set. This bodes well for tonight when we will see George and another incarnation of the meters on Frenchman street.
Next for a change of pace, we went to the blues tent to see
- John Mooney. Rhonda loves blues so this was an easy call. Mooney sounds great on slide guitar, where he did his own take on New Orleans standard "Hey Now" as well as originals.
At this point, around 3pm, it was time for a snack so we headed over to the grandstand for a snack and the only real bathrooms at the festival. We had sampled the crawfish etoufee and crawfish rice earlier in the day but Jazzfest is hard work and we were hungry again. Nestled next to the lagniappe stage is a hidden gem, the oyster stand. I stood in line for a good half hour- not bad at all- and came away with 2 dozen fresh delicious oysters. The jazzfest gods were smiling on us.
We finished just in time to head back to the gentilly stage to see ...
-Gary Clark, jr. We had heard a lot of buzz on this guy and decided to check him out though neither of us knew his music. Gary Clark turned out to be the revelation of the first day. He played a set equal parts Chuck berry and Jimi Hendrix but all mixed together in his own style. He tore it up for a good 45 min and we stayed for the whole thing. Fantastic stuff. Gods smiling again.
At this point , we were faced with the choice of waiting 45 min to see Band of horses to finish out the day , then fight the crowds back to the busses or take beat the crowds and call it a day. We decided on the latter and were again rewarded for a smart choice. We jumped right on a bus, taking the last seats and were whisked back to the quarter.
- Charmaine Neville at Congo square- after stopping first for a strawberry snowball with condensed milk (jazzfest breakfast of champions) we heard a set of original songs with a distinct female voice and, importantly, checked our first "Nevilles box". The family is ubiquitous at the festival. We will see the Nevilles on Sunday.
- Soul rebels brass band at Gentilly stage. These guys are on their way to taking over the mantle of best brass band in new orleans from the dirty dozen. they rocked the crowd of about 10,000 fans with a mix of current songs and a few New Orleans standards. Then it was back to Congo square for ...
- George Porter and running partners- George Porter (original bassist for The Meters) played with a group of mostly younger musicians and riffed on classic meters tunes. George still looks and sounds great, though he let the young guys do the heavy lifting in this set. This bodes well for tonight when we will see George and another incarnation of the meters on Frenchman street.
Next for a change of pace, we went to the blues tent to see
- John Mooney. Rhonda loves blues so this was an easy call. Mooney sounds great on slide guitar, where he did his own take on New Orleans standard "Hey Now" as well as originals.
At this point, around 3pm, it was time for a snack so we headed over to the grandstand for a snack and the only real bathrooms at the festival. We had sampled the crawfish etoufee and crawfish rice earlier in the day but Jazzfest is hard work and we were hungry again. Nestled next to the lagniappe stage is a hidden gem, the oyster stand. I stood in line for a good half hour- not bad at all- and came away with 2 dozen fresh delicious oysters. The jazzfest gods were smiling on us.
We finished just in time to head back to the gentilly stage to see ...
-Gary Clark, jr. We had heard a lot of buzz on this guy and decided to check him out though neither of us knew his music. Gary Clark turned out to be the revelation of the first day. He played a set equal parts Chuck berry and Jimi Hendrix but all mixed together in his own style. He tore it up for a good 45 min and we stayed for the whole thing. Fantastic stuff. Gods smiling again.
At this point , we were faced with the choice of waiting 45 min to see Band of horses to finish out the day , then fight the crowds back to the busses or take beat the crowds and call it a day. We decided on the latter and were again rewarded for a smart choice. We jumped right on a bus, taking the last seats and were whisked back to the quarter.
Trombone Shorty
My one request to Richard when he was planning the music agenda was to include Trombone Shorty. Glad he got the tickets to this sold-out show at House of Blues last night. It was by far the best show I may have ever seen!
It started off shaky when we arrived at 9 and they refused us entrance because I had no ID on me...really...I can't remember the last time I was carded. Walked back to the hotel and then back to HOB to try this again. The place was not crowded when we arrived and it was about 2 hours until TS was to take the stage. This was great because we were able to stake our claim front and center of the stage. There was an opening band, a young local super talented brass group, New Breed Brass Band.
The venue was packed by the end of the opening band's set. We had a half hour wait as everyone was jockeying for position in front of the stage. The vibe was intense. Trombone Shorty and his band had so much energy. From the time he came out and commanded the stage until the end when he jumped into the crowd to show us all some love, he never stopped...he was on fire! I wonder if all his shows are like this or if we were experiencing something truly special last night...I guess there is only one way to find out!
If you ever have the chance to see this young (27) phenom, you must do so. His talent is truly unbelievable! I may be his biggest fan!
It started off shaky when we arrived at 9 and they refused us entrance because I had no ID on me...really...I can't remember the last time I was carded. Walked back to the hotel and then back to HOB to try this again. The place was not crowded when we arrived and it was about 2 hours until TS was to take the stage. This was great because we were able to stake our claim front and center of the stage. There was an opening band, a young local super talented brass group, New Breed Brass Band.
The venue was packed by the end of the opening band's set. We had a half hour wait as everyone was jockeying for position in front of the stage. The vibe was intense. Trombone Shorty and his band had so much energy. From the time he came out and commanded the stage until the end when he jumped into the crowd to show us all some love, he never stopped...he was on fire! I wonder if all his shows are like this or if we were experiencing something truly special last night...I guess there is only one way to find out!
If you ever have the chance to see this young (27) phenom, you must do so. His talent is truly unbelievable! I may be his biggest fan!
Friday, April 26, 2013
Back to the Vieux Carre!
We arrived at my favorite hotel in the Quarter, the Omni Royal Orleans. I have stayed here many times and it is always like coming home (also got a big hug from LeRoy the doorman) Checked in, dropped off the luggage and we were off to lunch.
Mandina's restaurant has been an institution here since 1932. It is off the beaten path of the usual tourist areas, but well with worth the 30 minute streetcar ride down Canal St. toward Lake Ponchatrain.
Fred, my dad, told me about this place years ago. Fred lived in New Orleans during the 70s and 80s and would meet his uncle here for lunch. This has become the first place on my list when I arrive to New Orleans. That said, it was the first stop for Richard and me on this trip.
Mandina's did not disappoint...I had my usual turtle soup ( best in the city), shrimp and oyster po-boy, and a gin and tonic; Richard went for the turtle soup, soft shell crab po-boy (the crab fresh that morning) and Abita Amber beer.
After lunch we went back to the Quarter and over to the Louisiana Music Factory. It is a record store, and yes they sell vinyl! They had a band playing in the store when we arrived, which was cool! I picked up a CD by old school blues duo Sonny Terry and Brownie McGee.
Spent the rest of the afternoon wandering around the quarter and enjoying the sunny day!
In the evening we caught some good Blues music at a small bar on Bourbon and did lots of people watching.
Looking forward to the first day of JazzFest at the fairground on Friday!
Mandina's restaurant has been an institution here since 1932. It is off the beaten path of the usual tourist areas, but well with worth the 30 minute streetcar ride down Canal St. toward Lake Ponchatrain.
Fred, my dad, told me about this place years ago. Fred lived in New Orleans during the 70s and 80s and would meet his uncle here for lunch. This has become the first place on my list when I arrive to New Orleans. That said, it was the first stop for Richard and me on this trip.
Mandina's did not disappoint...I had my usual turtle soup ( best in the city), shrimp and oyster po-boy, and a gin and tonic; Richard went for the turtle soup, soft shell crab po-boy (the crab fresh that morning) and Abita Amber beer.
After lunch we went back to the Quarter and over to the Louisiana Music Factory. It is a record store, and yes they sell vinyl! They had a band playing in the store when we arrived, which was cool! I picked up a CD by old school blues duo Sonny Terry and Brownie McGee.
Spent the rest of the afternoon wandering around the quarter and enjoying the sunny day!
In the evening we caught some good Blues music at a small bar on Bourbon and did lots of people watching.
Looking forward to the first day of JazzFest at the fairground on Friday!
Thursday, April 25, 2013
On our way!
This trip could not have come at a better time. After enduring large wet snowflakes yesterday and plane deicing this morning (it is almost May, right?), we are on our way to warm temps and sunny skies.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)