Last weekend, my husband and I went to New Orleans for a long weekend. Neither of us had ever been so we were so excited to explore the city! Whenever we told people we were going to NOLA they always commented on how amazing the food is and gave us their favorite restaurants (thank you!). My husband and I definitely ate our way through the city for three days and it was nothing short of amazing. I captured some of the major food highlights of the trip!

Chargrilled Oysters at Oceana Grill

When we first arrived in the Big Easy, we headed straight to Oceana Grill which was recommended to us for their chargrilled oysters. I am a big fan of oysters, especially chargrilled (hello cheese and butter!) and these were some of the best I’ve ever had. First of all they were HUGE – some of the biggest oysters I’ve ever seen. These oysters had a cajun sauce on top and were grilled to perfection. It was the perfect meal to start our trip!

Breakfast at Café Fleur De Lis

Our first morning we headed to Café Fleur De Lis for breakfast, coffee and a bloody mary. I had the bayou omelet which had peppers, shrimp, andouille sausage and covered with a sautéed spinach cream sauce. It was fantastic!!!! The combination of the shrimp, sausage and sauce made this such a satisfying omelet. It came with a side of crispy hashbrowns, and cheese grits – don’t judge my carb eating! I topped my breakfast off with a spicy and (very) strong bloody mary. I was ready to walk and explore the city after this meal!

Beignets and Coffee at Cafe du Monde

Cafe du Monde is one of those places you have to visit when in NOLA. They only serve coffee and beignets which are a squared shaped style doughnut covered in powdered sugar. They were fluffy, warm and left my fingers covered in powdered sugar. It was a perfect afternoon snack on a rainy day.

Drinks at Carousel Bar

When visiting New Orleans, Carousel Bar is a must! It was recently named one of the top 20 bars in the world and is such a fun, unique experience. The round bar only seats 25 so you might have to wait a bit to get a seat, but it is worth the wait! The bar spins around slowly as you sip your cocktail of choice from their extensive cocktail and wine menu.

All the Seafood at Acme Oyster House

Acme Oyster House is in the French Quarter and was very close to where we were staying. We went here for dinner one night and it was delicious! We (once again) got chargrilled oysters, and oysters on the half shell. The chargrilled oysters came out sizzling and were full of all the butter and cheese flavors – yum! The oysters on the half shell, again were huge, and tasted so fresh and clean, with none of that briny flavor that you sometimes get. We also ordered a soft shell crab, which neither of us had ever had. I really liked the legs, which tasted like your typical crab legs but the body had a weird texture to me and was slightly sweet. Acme is a must for any seafood lover in NOLA.

Po-boy at Mahony’s

A po-boy is a New Orleans traditional sandwich, so we had to have one. A lot of po-boys are served with fried oysters or shrimp, but at this point in the trip we wanted a ‘healthier’ option so we opted for the grilled shrimp po-boy. The sandwich is served on a freshly baked french baguette then stuffed with jumbo grilled shrimp, friend green tomatoes, remoulade sauce and lettuce. The shrimp were huge and grilled perfectly and the fried green tomato added a nice crunch. The sandwich was delish and a nice break from all the oysters we had been eating!

Hurrican at any Frozen Drink Stand

One of the many cool things about New Orleans is they don’t have an open container law so you can walk around the streets with a drink in hand. You will see so many people carrying around large glasses full of these boozy slush drinks. Be aware though – one is plenty, as they are full of sugar and a ton of booze that could lead to an epic hangover!

Confederacy of Cruisers Bike Tour

By far the highlight of the trip was the culinary bike tour we did with Confederacy of Cruisers. We had a local guide take us around by bike to 4 different locations to try some real southern cuisine. We went outside of the touristy, French Quarter area which was awesome to see more of the city and experience restaurants we probably wouldn’t have went to on our own. We tasted creamed spinach, fried chickpea fritters at an African American restaurant (I forgot to write down the name), stopped at award-winning Lil Dizzy’s Cafe for some seafood gumbo and delicious fried chicken (pictured above). We also tasted more beignets and a muffuletta, along with a fresh cocktail. It was such a fun way to spend our last day in New Orleans and get away from the busy french quarter.

Overall, our trip to NOLA was so fun and we came back to Denver with our bellies full and happy! Have you been to New Orleans? What was your favorite thing to eat?