New Orleans - Food & Drink

French, African and Italian cultures have made New Orleans cuisine what it is today.

Taste Cajun etouffe (spicy crawfish or shrimp with a tomato-based roux of garlic, peppers, celery and onions). Savour Creole gumbo (a potpourri in hearty broth), remoulade and bread pudding. Fill up on po-boys (anything deep fried in a baguette) and muffalettas (deli meats on Italian olive bread), and beignets (square doughnuts doused with powdered sugar).

CBD and Warehouse District restaurants tend to be quiet and romantic, serving smaller portions than your average Louisiana eatery. Entrees such as lobster-filled ravioli or roasted lamb chops with goat's cheese are delicately presented, and served in friendly surroundings.

An eclectic mix of French, Italian, Japanese and Caribbean flavours, to name a few, are available in the Garden District, along with contemporary fusion cuisine. The venerable Commander's Palace best captures the city's gastronomic Creole heritage.

It is always a party in the French Quarter. Live jazz, soul and blues play in the restaurants and bars crowded with visitors from abroad and elsewhere in the US. Pricey? Sometimes, but the food and experience can't be matched.

Make reservations for French Quarter restaurants. In case you have a beignet attack at 5am, donuts are available, piping hot and encrusted with sugar, at Café du Monde 24/7. Tip 15-20% at restaurants unless you are eating at Mother's where cheap, down-home cooking is served cafeteria style.