Lunch at Bayona, one of the New Orleans restaurants of Susan Spicer, who appeared on Top Chef and is now a celebrity chef. Beautiful restaurant, good food, genteel atmosphere. For whatever reason, this restaurant attracted mostly women diners, by a 10:1 margin on the day we were there.
The Museum of Death, which featured shrunken heads from the Amazon, letters from Jeffrey Dahmer, Ted Bundy, and other serial killers, an autopsy movie, and other tasty bits. Don't miss it if your inclinations run to the grotesque. I didn't want to go; Nancy made me. Sorry, no photos.
The Jazz Museum, in the French Quarter. As a jazz aficionado, I was very disappointed. New Orleans could be considered the birthplace of jazz, and you'd think there would be a world-class collection of memorabilia, videos, recordings, art, and written history. But it's a pitiful effort. Clearly there's a need for an infusion of cash and a curator who gives a damn. The one high point of our visit was that we happened upon a concert on the third floor by a pianist named David Torkanowsky, who is a brilliant player.
An evening on Bourbon Sreet. We began with cocktails at Hermes Bar, which is connected to the aforementioned Antoine's restaurant. Nancy discovered what she says is now her favorite cocktail, the "French 75", which was recommended to her by Harry Domash.
Afterwards, dinner at the historic Felix's Restaurant and Oyster Bar right on Bourbon Street. The chaos of the street bleeds into the restaurant, so it's noisy and crowded, but they fry a mean oyster. We left Felix's and strolled along Bourbon. The deafening sounds and craziness reminded us again that that is a young person's scene.
The New Orleans Museum of Art.
Finally, dinner at the elegant Commander's Palace. This is the restaurant whose alumni include Paul Prudhomme and Emeril Legasse. I'd eaten there once before, probably in 1966, when I was a medical student. Commander's has a dress code, so I wore a sports coat and tie for the first time in years. They offer valet parking, and my chest swelled with pride as I handed the young man the keys to our 2004 Ford Ranger pickup truck (which is the vehicle we tow behind our motorhome). As we were led to our table, there was a lineup of waiters welcoming us as we passed. Service was perfect, and the dinner was excellent (though not our favorite on the journey so far) and it was a perfect way to end our stay in New Orleans.
Do we put New Orleans on our list of possible landing spots? No. It has to be one of the most fascinating places to visit in the world. The food is phenomenal. There are lots of beautiful homes spread among many neighborhoods. The musical scene is still impressive. But it's a big city, and the prevailing attitude of the residents isn't nearly as warm and welcoming as that in the rest of the South. We'll not make New Orleans our next home .. but we will visit again.
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