Where to Eat in New Orleans - Absolute Bangers

Wondering where to eat in New Orleans? Here I’ll highlight some of our favorite spots to eat in New Orleans that we discovered during our recent Labor Day weekend visit! At the end of this post I’ll briefly touch on a few spots I wish we had passed on. 

I normally like to give GOOD VIBES ONLY, but I think it’s important to at least mention the not-so-great places.

Where to Eat in New Orleans for Breakfast:

grilled ham & egg melt (perfection)
blueberry pancake 🙂

Everything about this quaint little diner was amazing. The atmosphere, the service, and the FOOD! I got the grilled ham & egg melt with a blueberry pancake on the side and both were incredible. The pancake was SO fluffy and perfect and I’m very particular when it comes to pancakes. 11/10 – you must go here!! But go early before the rush. 

2) Café du Monde (Early)

I’m sure you know the hype. It’s worth it. All they really do is beignets and coffee, but they nail those two things. I would recommend either going early or in the evening if you want to avoid the rush.

Go to the historic location in Jackson Sq. it’s worth it! When they are busy it gets kind of hectic and we felt a little rushed sitting inside, so take it to-go if you want to avoid that. Also where we sat inside was cash-only, so keep that in mind.

3) Croissant D’Or (We went here on a different trip)

This place is also great for sweets/pastries and coffee! Just not as much of food food. I don’t have pictures of this place unfortunately. 

Where to Eat in New Orleans for Lunch:

Muffuletta

I especially liked the fried catfish po’boy and the muffeletta. And I think it’s worth noting that I haven’t really liked any other po’boys I’ve had, other than this restaurant. 

Red Beans and Rice
Bananas Foster Bread Pudding

This place could really be lunch or dinner just like Red Dog Diner could be breakfast or lunch! The atmosphere is cozy in the cookery and they have a cute patio/courtyard if the weather is nice!

I only had the red beans and rice here and the bananas foster bread pudding but both were AMAZING! The bread pudding is fried and I’m not the biggest fried food fan, but I actually still really liked it. 

Where to Eat in New Orleans for Dinner:

Brennan’s

Gulf Fish Amandine
Bread Pudding

You may be familiar with the Brennan family, they were one of the first families on the food scene in NOLA and they own this restaurant (and I think many others). If you are looking for a splurge dinner with a high-end atmosphere, this is the perfect place. ALSO the main dishes are great, but the desserts are to DIE for.

The bananas foster is actually made in front of you and the whole room fills with the lovely smell of caramelized bananas.

Bananas Foster Being Made
End Product for Bananas Foster (tastes better than it looks)

Spots to Avoid:

– Breakfast: Crack’d – Although it looks cute, don’t be fooled! If you have to go here, the pancakes were the winning dish, but the milk for the coffee was curdled and my shakshuka eggs were undercooked.

– Marigny Brasserie – It’s Frenchmen St. so we thought it would be good, but it was empty at 6:30 pm and after eating there we understood why. Food is very meh and it’s expensive. 

I’ve linked my VLOG of the weekend below if you’d like to see everything real time! This VLOG also shows some fun things to do in NOLA including a swamp tour, the WWII museum, and a food & history tour. Happy planning 🙂

Oh hi there. 👋 It’s nice to meet you.

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