There is nothing like a leisurely bike ride through a beautiful city …. stopping for home made local food … several times in the afternoon.  This is what we did this day in NOLA.  I had done my internet searches prior to coming here and was very eager to experience what others had raved about.  Local experience.  Local restaurants. Local food.  The kinds of places a tourist would only find if they were walking for hours and got lost.

The kind of ride that will remind you of Katrina and the horrible loss that NOLA faced.  This is the way they marked the buildings after Katrina.  According to Cassandra, our tour guide from the Confederacy of Cruisers, txi – Texas Rangers; 9.6 = September 6th; NE = No Entry; 0 = no bodies found.  Buildings were labeled this way in the weeks following the storm to signal who entered and when and what if anyone was found.  Many of the buildings have long since been painted over, beautifully might I add…. but remnants of the storm are still around.  Our tour included various bits of information and history but primarily our tour consisted of food.  Glorious food!

Our first stop was Bennachin’s – West African Cousine on Royal Street West.

Really a small hole in the wall kind of restaurant but they know how to fry plantains and sauté spinach.

They serve the plantains with a tomato sauce with ginger that is seriously good!

Next stop the Confederacy of Cruisers office….. to get in from the rain.  Seriously the sky rumbles on a daily basis in the summer here in NOLA so after a little drizzle (HA) and a few moments to snap pic amidst a whole bunch of bikes…

Off we went, in a little rain… to Elizabeth’s.  Home of praline bacon…. YUP…. PRALINE BACON my friends.  We also had Boudin Balls in Creole Mustard Sauce, Fried Green Tomatoes, N.O. Boiled Shrimp in Remoulade Sauce and did I mention the Praline Bacon!?

The Boudin Balls were okay… but the real stars here were definitely the bacon and fried tomatoes…. again… did I mention the Praline Bacon…. do you see an obsession coming on here?????

The next stop on our ride was The Joint…. This one is on Bon Appetit’s Top 10 and it’s not hard to see why.

Time for a little smoked ribs and macaroni and cheese….

… and a little something they like to call….Ginger Cat?…. seriously … I can’t remember but it was with honeysuckle vodka, lemon juice and ginger beer… seriously YUMMY!

Last stop the Meltdown…. home made, home sourced ingredients for the most luscious popsicles you have ever had….

Just another day in Nawlins… and we haven’t even had dinner yet!

Thanks to the Confederacy of Cruisers we now have a list of other places we should go.  If you’re ever in NOLA this is a great way to get a taste of the local food… and amazing food…. and find other places to go… they give you a list of their favourites… and are happy to answer questions if you’re out and about…. find yourself somewhere in town… with no idea of what to eat…. these are your folks!