Things I Ate in 2 1/2 Days in New Orleans

Crickets, mealworms & waxworms in various forms at the Audubon Insectarium. The chocolate chirp cookies were my favorite, but the boys liked the mango mealworm salsa. Not the re-introduction to NOLA cuisine that we anticipated, but unique, to be sure.

Oyster po-boy and gumbo at Felix's. R & K had soft shell crab po-boys, and D went with jambalaya and a shrimp po-boy. Not one of us regretted our decisions. Plus we were super comfy and happy while we watched the lines hardly dwindle across the street at Acme. I've eaten at both establishments plenty of times and I'm just as happy either way.

Eggs, biscuit & grits at Clover Grill. Everyone else went for shakes and burgers, give or take the chili. They grill the burgers under an American-made hubcap to sear in the juices. (I presume that the foreign hubcaps aren't adequate for some reason.) I have to say, every person in that place was cheerful, including K, who is still talking about his chili burger a week later.

Mocha, veggie omelet, more grits (yum!), and beignets at Cafe Beignet - I know, I know, but we were going on a coach tour and didn't have time for both Cafe du Monde and lunch before it left, so this seemed reasonable. Sigh. But K (my foodie, clearly - D is annoyed every time I discuss various restaurants because I "sound too fake") is also still raving about the Bourbon Croissant he had there, so no worries.

A soda at Oak Alley Plantation, just to tide us over until....


The mother of all meals at Mother's. Wow. I had the Famous Ferdi Po-Boy and a dish of bread pudding. The ham was astounding! Did I say wow? Wow. D's po-boy was like mine but with cheese, making it the Ralph, and he chose pecan pie. R & K (the 11 year old with the bottomless pit stomach) had Seafood Platters. The sides were scrumptious, especially the cabbage. (R liked the greens better.) So full!

Finally, cafe au lait and beignets at Cafe Du Monde. And bliss. I told the boys beforehand the stories of the first time they'd each eaten there at age 1 (D quickly discovering that wet fingers are ideal powdered-sugar-transfer devices, K's big round eyes getting rounder than I'd ever seen them and not once setting his beignet down.) At 15 and 11, their reactions weren't all that different. See, guys? That's why we stand in line!

Our final meal (Smoothie King at the airport don't count) was at The Camellia Grill. Ruben, cheese fries, hot tea. More chili for K, more burger for D, and I don't remember what kind of sandwich R had, but we all remember the cheesecake he had for dessert.

So, basically - a lot of deicious food. My conservative estimate is about a million calories. But with a million joyous memories, too.