New Orleans - Day 2

Only our second day in New Orleans and we were on our way to our brunch reservation at the place for jazz brunch, Commander's Palace (1403 Washington Ave). It's a large old teal and white building with matching antique electric sign. This restaurant has been around since 1880! As a hostess walked us to our table, we walked through a tunnel of staff welcoming us to the Palace. Everyone was impeccably dressed. We walked past the jazz trio playing downstairs on our way upstairs. The trio was the best live music that I'd heard so far in New Orleans. There was another trio playing upstairs. Neither carried sheet music; and, they played all variety of songs on request ("You Are My Sunshine", "The Entertainer", "What a Wonderful Life"). The musicianship was amazing! Both trios roamed around their respective floors taking requests and playing to the table guests.

To compliment the elegant atmosphere and delightful live music, brunch was exquisite. All brunches were a starter, entree and dessert. My starter was turtle soup, poured into my soup bowl at my table with much aplomb (we were surrounded by servers who waited to serve us all at the same time). My entree was stuffed quail; and, I finished my meal with a triple chocolate truffle. At our table, we tried all the desserts, including bread pudding, strawberry shortcake, cheesecake and salted caramel ice cream.

After such a decadent meal, we needed a very long walk. Lafayette Cemetery is directly across Washington Ave from Commander's Palace. In New Orleans, since the water table is so high, people are buried above ground. The entire wall of the Lafayette cemetery along Washington Ave is wall vaults for burials. Inside the cemetery, the majority of graves are mausoleums, or above ground tombs. It was different to see rows of above ground vaults instead of tombstones.

After the cemetery, Byron acted as tour guide and directed us on a walking tour of the Garden District. The old homes here are indescribable. Jefferson Davis, President of the Confederacy, died in one of the homes. Mark Twain often visited another. These are homes full of New Orleans history.

By this time, we we needed a snack and sit down break. We walked over to The Columns (3811 St. Charles Ave) and enjoyed light refreshments along with a beautiful view of St. Charles Ave on the outside patio. Light refreshments make one hungrier for a real meal. Tonight was an important play-off game; and, we went to dinner at Gordon Biersch (200 Poydras St), where the guys could watch the football game. 

After dinner, us girls headed for a walk down Bourbon Street. It was still early, 8 pm. However, Bourbon Street was already closed off. We joined the spectators meandering down Bourbon. On top of the bars that I expected to see, there were also much more adult offerings. New Orleans has some interesting policies. There is no last call. Alcohol is served 24/7. In addition, there is no open bottle restriction. You can leave the bar with your drink (as long as it's in a plastic container) and walk the streets drinking it.