2339 Miles - New Orleans, LA (part 3)

(Post written August 14)

Thursday morning we got up pretty early, which was tough after a night out on Bourbon Street! It was worth it, though.

Our first activity of the day took us to the New Orleans School of Cooking for a Creole cooking class! Of all the things we did in New Orleans, this was probably my favorite. It was a demonstration class, so we got to sit back and relax while we watched our chef Barbara make authentic Creole dishes. Our class included Crab and Corn Bisque, Shrimp Creole, Pina Colada Bread Pudding, and Pralines. We got copies of the recipes to take home, and I took copious notes. Maybe at some point on this blog you’ll see a shrimp or chicken Creole! My first attempts at a roux should certainly be interesting. Also, there’s no way any of these recipes will qualify as healthy. Between the 4 dishes, Chef Barbara used about 10 sticks of butter! Not to mention the cream and whole milk in the bisque, the whole milk in the pralines… you get the idea. It’s no wonder that I gained probably 5 lbs on this short visit! (That and the fact that we also missed workouts on all three days…oops).

Chef Barbara pours pralines onto parchment paper, while a volunteer from the class helps stir the bisque

Throughout the four hour class, Barbara also shared some history of cooking in the area and how it has been affected by the many cultures that come together there. And at the end of the class we got to enjoy all the food! We were also treated to some beer and root beer from Abita, a local brewery.

We left the class absolutely stuffed (and in need of some detox after all that butter!). We walked around some more (because that’s what we do) and then stopped in at the Cabildo, one of the State Museums of New Orleans. They were previewing part of an exhibit on Hurricane Katrina, so they had us check it out and then give our opinions on what was good and what needed to be improved. Being the nerdy museum-lovers that we are, we actually felt pretty qualified to offer our advice. It was interesting to be involved in the process.

After that, we went over to the Presbytere - another State Museum of New Orleans. The two museums are located on either side of the St Louis Cathedral, so we didn’t have far to go. The Presbytere featured exhibits on Mardi Gras and the Zulu organization. Zulu is a primarily African American community organization that has it’s own impressive Mardi Gras parade each year. It first gained national attention when Louis Armstrong served as king of the parade in 1949.

The most impressive thing about the exhibit was all the beautiful costumes on display. These things are absolutely huge and decked out in ways you could never even imagine with feathers and sparkles everywhere.

A Zulu costume worn by the character Big Shot - a man who tries to show up the king each year with a more impressive costume.

A Zulu Ambassador costume. This costume is really reminiscent of the early days of Zulu, when the characters dressed in grass skirts and blackface.

Another Mardi Gras costume in the traditional colors of purple, green, and gold.

After the museum, we headed back over to Café Du Monde for an afternoon snack: more beignets! They were really so delicious.

We toured the French Quarter some more and took a little afternoon break (we’re still trying to figure out what we’re doing after our stop in Austin, and we still haven’t made any firm plans!) and then changed for dinner.

On a recommendation from the front desk, we walked over to Acme Oyster House. For an appetizer, we decided we had to at least try some raw oysters.

I was a bit skeptical

I tried one, but I thought they were kind of gross, so Paul finished off the rest of the half dozen. On the wall, they had the names of people that had eaten more than 15 dozen (in an hour I believe). The record? 42 ½ dozen raw oysters. Ew! For dinner, we stuck with some more tame selections - more jambalaya for me, and a crawfish etouffee for Paul.

After dinner we headed back towards Bourbon Street and got into Preservation Hall for some authentic New Orleans jazz. Preservation Hall is a unique place. It’s basically just a room into which they shove a band and about 75 people.. There are a few benches and chairs in front, but most of the place is standing room only. The place looks like it hasn’t been touched in a hundred years - plaster is falling off the cement walls, and there is of course no air conditioning, just a few ceiling fans, so it was hot.

I tell you what, though, it was pretty cool. The band was a group called the Paulin Brothers Brass Band. It consisted of 7 members (4 of which were Paulin brothers): trombone, clarinet, alto sax, tuba, bass drum, and snare drum. The leader of the band was one of the Paulin brothers, and in between songs he talked about growing up with 9 brothers and 3 sisters. Their mother was there, sitting in the front row. After the first set, we were able to nab some seats up front. Actually, they were really on the side, right next to the band. I could have reached out and touched the snare drum or trombone player. One of the Paulin sisters was sitting right next to me.

The view from our seats. This was in between sets, but those empty chairs in front of us is where the band sat.

After about two hours of fantastic jazz, we decided it was time to hit the hay. This morning, we were up early and packing again. We considered one more stop at Café Du Monde on our way out of town, but decided to just get on the road instead. By 7:30, we’d picked up Obie from his doggy hotel and we were on our way to Austin, TX!