NOLA Thanksgiving Restaurant Tour

For Thanksgiving week, we were in New Orleans, and keeping with tradition we stuffed ourselves like we do each time we go home. Louis and I have a running joke (but we're not really joking) that every time we go home we gain 5 pounds. At least a week before we arrive usually, every meal has already been planned for us, and this time was no exception. Here are just a few highlights of the meals we tried while we there:

Drago's

You can't go to Drago's without getting their charbroiled oysters, and our order of a dozen lasted about 3 minutes. The kids fought over who would get more of them and pretty much inhaled them the minute the waiter set the platter on the table. If you've never had them before, Charbroiled Oysters are fresh shucked oysters on the half-shell that are brushed with an herb butter and then loaded with parm and romano cheese and broiled over a hot grill. I really can't decide what I love more; the oysters themselves or soaking up the herb and cheese butter that's leftover with French bread.

My mom got the lunch special: Stuffed Crab topped with Crabmeat Au Gratin, served with Rosemary Potatoes and Greens. Even though she could only finish half of it, she loved it! I got the Fried Shrimp Remoulade Po-boy which was REALLY heavy on the horseradish- if you don't like spice, this is not the dish for you. Louis got a fried oyster po-boy and both po-boys were roughly the size of an infant. I couldn't even eat a fourth of it, but we all left stuffed and happy.

 Legacy Kitchen

That night we met friends for dinner and tried Legacy Kitchen. To start we ordered the Blue Cheese Chips. House made thick cut chips covered in a creamy béchamel, truffle herb aioli and crumbled blue cheese. Holy deliciousness- these are so rich, decadent and completely divine. I tried their Prosecco with Limoncello and it was SO good with the chips! Louis got the prime rib for dinner. He said it was great but I couldn't even look while he ate it. Beef has never been a favorite of mine, and the pink meat with huge hunks of fat on the side is not appealing to me. After eating the super rich blue cheese chips I settled on the Tuna Tango Salad; seared ahi tuna with avocado, mango, macadamia nuts, won-ton strips and a delicious ginger-lime dressing. By the time I got my salad I was too busy chatting to get a picture, but here's the pic from their website so you can see just how pretty the salad was:

(photo above is from Legacy Kitchen) 

 The next day I was so excited to finally try Coquette for brunch. The last two times we were in town we made attempts to get over there and for one reason or another it fell through. I was so happy to make my way to Magazine Street and finally see what all the fuss was about

Coquette has a new menu every day, which in turn, will always leave you with something new, exciting and hyper seasonal to try. We started off with the charcuterie board which included house pickled vegetables, hogs head cheese, boudin balls and a really delicious pate. The plate below it is a crudo topped with one of the best shaved Brussels sprouts, parsley and mint combos I've ever had. Totally bright, crunchy, fresh and so nice along side the heavy meat board.

For our meals, we tried the Shrimp and Grits with a Louisiana hot sauce gravy, tasso, Brussels sprouts and fried kale.  The sauce was absolutely delicious and I kept reaching into Louis' plate with my spoon to get the rest of it before the waitress snatched up the plate. I had the perfectly crispy seared scallops with chorizo, arugula, charred red onion and a surprise sauce that wasn't listed on the menu. It looked like small bubbles on the plate, but it was actually spicy and sweet and very thick. If I had to guess I would say it was pepper jelly reduction, but whatever it was, I ate it all happily. 

That evening we went to Katie's in mid-city. It's been featured on Diners Drive Ins and Dives before and I love how right outside the door they have a small plaque showing you the line of water left by Hurricane Katrina. I had to try their Pimm's Cup and it did not disappoint!

We started the meal with Charbroiled Oysters and their Seafood Stuffed Beignet. This Beignet is HUGE and overstuffed with crawfish, crabmeat, shrimp, jalapeno peppers, onions, and three kinds of cheese; fried then topped with a jalapeno aioli

For our entrees we got "The Legend"; a piece of French bread about as long as my forearm stuffed with their amazing cochon de lait and BBQ shrimp. This was one of those sandwiches that is so messy it ends up being all over you and so delicious you don't even care that you're wearing it. We also tried the nightly special which was Drum on top of a Seafood Stuffed Mirliton with a Seafood Cream Sauce. I forgot how much I love mirlitons and after having this delicious version, I will definitely be making some at home soon!

I made sure to go to Rouse's and stock up on some essentials before heading home  in the worst holiday traffic EVER. Thank the good Lord for DVD players that come with headphones because that is all that saved us that day.

What is your favorite restaurant in NOLA to visit?