rjw_lgb_ca

My mother has gone off and moved herself to be with relatives in rural Louisiana in the heart of bayou country. My husband and I (the last children she's on speaking terms with) are not thrilled by this life decision (for various reasons she should be closer to me and my sister here in California-- but she's feuding with my sister, so...), but we're stuck with having to go visit her for Thanksgiving. Since we're probably going to fly into New Orleans' Louis Armstrong International Airport, I am entertaining the notion of spending the Friday and Saturday night after Thanksgiving in the French Quarter; my DH has never been to Louisiana, so after three nights with my mother and a passel of relatives I don't really know.... Let's just say a bit of fun would be nice. And my mom is actually a lot of fun when bars and booze are involved. As long as there's not a lot of long walks involved, since she's now dealing with mobility issues.

So the question becomes: Hotel or well-located B&B (bearing in mind the mobility issues)? Will I be able to find a place when only two weekend nights are being reserved? What are the "safest" streets to look on, with the understanding that Mom knows the Quarter VERY VERY VERY well and is a no-BS kind of old lady, and we'll also have my cousin along as a traveling companion (and she knows the Quarter well too)? We won't want to spend more than $150 per night, all in, which may make this an impossible quest all around.

What do you think, o NOLA experts? Can you help an ex-pat Creole/Cajun? And sure, suggest a couple of dining spots that are currently GREAT, if you want to.

Any insight, as always, will be greatly appreciated. And let's not get squabbling with each other like on other posts, please, you're ALL pretty!!

Thanks, friends.

november_moon

First - your post is fabulous. I smiled the entire time I was reading it. My late-grandmother sounds a lot like your mom. And in fact, when I am in New Orleans, I often buy a drink for my late-grandmother because I feel her presence there. One of the nice things about New Orleans, is that no one bats an eye when you buy a drink for the dearly departed. I've even had bartenders talk to her as though she really is sitting there with me.

For hotels, check the Villa Convento - that's a cool old hotel and they generally have good rates. It is old, so double check the mobility issues - stairs and things.

Another possibility is the Place d'Arms, which is just off Jackson Square. This hotel is made up of several townhouses, so it has different sections - some rooms open directly onto one of the courtyards, so no stairs anywhere.

starrs

Another option is to stay in the Garden District and enjoy the restaurants along Magazine St. You'll find more B&Bs to choose from there than the FQ. You could take the streetcar in to the FQ.

Inakauaidavidababy

When you say $150 all in do you mean to include 2 rooms for you and h and your mom and cousin? Or $150 all in each room? Since I can't imagine cramming into one room. I know myself and my husband require our own seperate room. I'm not sure how easy the trolly is for people with mobility issues in the Garden District. Your Mom will know.

rjw_lgb_ca

Good information coming in...!

The $150 is per room, preferably after taxes and fees, but I know that's hard to control.

The Garden District might be a possibility. We will probably have cars, so onsite parking will be nice. Riding the streetcar into the Quarter might be tough, but maybe cabs or Uber to get around...?

I'll be checking the properties already suggested. Thanks to everyone for chiming in, it's all helpful! Merci beaucoup, y'all!

rjw_lgb_ca

Whoops... I also meant to say "... for two rooms"!

Silly me.

Thanks again, y'all!

rjw_lgb_ca

A quick report back:

We ended up, for various reasons, at the Four Points Sheraton French Quarter (Bourbon at Toulouse). Clean, inexpensive and ideally located for our purposes. The rooms were small and a bit shabby but, again, impeccably clean. I couldn't quite get the HVAC figured out for ideal comfort, but we slept great regardless. The hotel bar had a great bartender, ready with a stiff drink and perfect suggestions for stuff to do around the hotel. The hotel restaurant was actually very good as well. High parking rates, but who cares? We valeted a full-size truck and went almost everywhere on foot/wheels (Mom was in a wheelchair, but she's back walking now). For two nights, it was good. I was looking at the Place d'Armes, but I now know that given Mom's chair, it would have been a bit of a hassle.

Our first night's dining was at Oceana Grill on Conti. Big portions of great Creole specialties including oysters Rockefeller (almost as good as what Mom used to make), crawfish étouffée (a favorite of mine since childhood) and a gut-busting fried seafood platter (shrimp, oysters, catfish). The wheelchair was a bit of a challenge, but we managed.

The next day was a bit of sightseeing (my husband having never been to NOLA, and it was my first time in 30 years), schlepping up Bourbon to check out Marie Laveau's House of Voodoo, to look into fun bars (we were all too tired for a pub crawl this time, but our next visit...!) and to go over to Jackson Square. And locals, please forgive us: My mom INSISTED we go for coffee and beignets at Café du Monde. They were as good and sloppy (powdered sugar) as the last time I had them-- 4:30 AM on a Saturday morning in the Quarter in spring 1985. Well, I think they were as good.

That evening, we went to Harrah's to lose some money (Mom wanted to hit the slots), then to Irene's Cuisine (a friend of my cousin had recommended it) on St. Philip at Chartres. Awesome food, incredible service, and somehow we managed to parallel-park a full-sized truck on St. Philip in the smallest space I've ever seen.

We checked out the next morning to go spend Thanksgiving among our many, many, many relatives. I will note that we had dinner one night at Nottoway Plantation's restaurant, Mansion, in little White Castle, LA. Elevated Creole cuisine, elegant and delicious and served with Southern charm. Otherwise we cooked. I impressed my mom and cousin with a really good shrimp jambalaya (if I do say so myself), and my cousin impressed all of us with a huge shrimp boil that fed us for two days straight.

All in all, a nice taste of Louisiana. We will be going back more often. Watch out, French Quarter!