#2445 - Sazerac Bar, New Orleans - 3/16/2014

Yuri, myself, Ray and Russell
Ramos Gin Fizzes at the Sazerac Bar, New Orleans

Try the: Ramos Gin Fizz

The Sazerac's title as first ever cocktail may be in dispute, but it is my favorite classic cocktail, and there are few places better to enjoy it than the historic bar that bears its name in the city of its invention. But the drink that encouraged Huey Long to hold court in the Roosevelt Hotel bar -- to the point where the bar was known as "Huey's Office" and is said to have been the reason for the construction of the Airline Highway from Baton Rouge -- is the Ramos Gin Fizz. Thus our party started with the latter classic.

Sazerac Bar, New Orleans

The bar named The Sazerac traveled around town a bit. "It started out in a roughhouse back alley behind Royal Street in 1853 and stayed in more-or-less the same location for about 100 years before some enterprising businessman recognized the value of an emerging brand, purchased Peychaud’s original recipe, and moved the Bar to the Roosevelt Hotel.  Two more hotel name changes and one location change within the hotel would place the Sazerac bar in its current spot… right off the grand main lobby of what is once again, and finally, called the Roosevelt Hotel." (12bottlebar)

Meanwhile, the Roosevelt Hotel had quite a history of its own. The first part of building opened in 1893 as the Hotel Grunewald, which featured a basement lounge called "The Cave," considered one of the first nightclubs in America. The Cave was elaborately decorated with stalactites, stalagnites, pools, fountains and nymphs, and remained in operation hosting late night carousing, dancing, and Dixieland musics until 1935. In that year the hotel was purchased by a group headed by the aforementioned "enterprising businessman." This was Seymour Weiss, the former owner of a barber shop in the hotel, who would grow into becoming not only the owner and general manager but a valued confidante of Huey P. Long. Weiss converted The Cave to the Blue Room, which would host the likes of Glenn Miller, Guy Lombardo, and Tommy Dorsey. In 1938 they added the Main Bar, later to become The Sazerac:

Sazerac Bar, New Orleans, LA

'In 1949, Weiss purchased the rights to use the name "Sazerac Bar" from the Sazerac Company. The bar had previously been on Exchange Place before Prohibition and at 300 Carondelet Street afterward. He renovated a store front on Baronne Street which had previously held a wine-and-spirits store and opened the Sazerac Bar on September 26, 1949. As a sign of his marketing genius, Weiss announced through the news media that the new bar would abolish the previous 'men-only' house rule and admit women. Women from around the city flocked to the venue, and the event became known as Storming the Sazerac. The anniversary is celebrated every year at the hotel with vintage costumes and libations.... In 1959, the decision was made to close the Sazerac Bar on Baronne Street and transfer the name to the Main Bar. It is still named the Sazerac Bar today.' (wikipedia)

The bar and the rest of the hotel were shut down for four years after Hurricane Katrina, reopening in 2009 under the ownership of the Waldorf Astoria group. The room is handsomely dark, its bar framed by giant silver trophies and its art deco interior featuring murals by Paul Ninas. While the crowd tends to be sedate and formal, our well made gin fizzes were interrupted by a group of young women who told us they were on a sort of bachelorette party version of a scavenger hunt with their friend required to get a stranger to buy her a shot. If it wasn't a true story, it was good enough to merit a swig of tequila, and we happily obliged.

The Cave, Grunewald Hotel (wikimedia)

The Sazerac definitely belongs on your shortlist of bars to visit in New Orleans.


130 Roosevelt Way, New Orleans, LA 70112 - (504) 648-1200
Est. 1949 - Building constructed: 1893
Previous bars in this location: The Main Bar
Web site: therooseveltneworleans.com
Reviews: 12bottlebar - eater - youtube - nola.com - nola.com - atlasobscura - edibleneworleans - neworleans.com - yelp

#2444 - Victorian Lounge, The Columns, New Orleans - 3/16/2014

The Victorian Lounge, The Columns Hotel, New Orleans

When a visitor is ready for a break from the raucous bars of the Quarter and jazz clubs of the Marigny, it is a good time for a visit to what is, in a way, the most classic of New Orleans bars -- the Victorian Lounge in The Columns Hotel. It is best reached by catching the Saint Charles Avenue streetcar, said to be the oldest operating streetcar system in the world, running since 1835 -- just a couple years after the mansion now called The Columns was constructed. It's recommended to buy an all-day pass, jumping on and off to more closely admire some of the city's mansions, or to check out a bar or restaurant. Definitely recommended is a stop in the upper Garden District to visit The Columns.

The current hotel was originally constructed in 1883, designed by the famous architect Thomas Sully as the family home of cigar magnate Simon Hernsheim. This was at a time when 80% of men smoked cigars, New Orleans led the country in cigar production, and Hernsheim's factory was the largest in the world, rolling imported Cuban tobacco into 40 million cigars a year from it's massive five story factory on the corner of Magazine and Julia Streets. (1)  Five years later Hernsheim would commit suicide, consuming "cyanide of potassium” to end his grief "resulting from the death of his wife and other family troubles." (ibid)

After the mansion was severely damaged in a 1915 hurricane it was substantially remodeled, including adding the Colonial Revival style columns that now provide its name. It was run as a posh boarding house until 1953, when it was sold and converted in the hotel that remains today. The third floor includes the "Pretty Baby Suite," a nod to memories of Louis Malle filming a twelve-year-old Brooke Shields here in his 1978 recreation of a Storyville district house of ill repute.

I could not locate a date for the construction of the lounge, in the former dining room of the Hernsheims, but a commenter on this blog post claims to have constructed it himself in 1980. In any case, today it is one of the most elegant bars in the Big Easy, with 12-foot high mahogany doors opening to a stately bar, below 15-foot mahogany ceilings, where a bartender serves New Orleans classics to a small mix of patrons, both formal and casual.

3811 St Charles Ave, New Orleans, LA 70115 - (504) 899-9308
Bar Est. 1980? - Building constructed: 1883
Web site: thecolumns.com - facebook
Articles ranked: sucktheheads - gardenandgun - neworleansbar.org - nola - triparchitect - yelp - tripadvisor

#2443 - Golden Lantern, New Orleans - 3/16/2014

This is a quintessential gay dive bar, in the French Quarter, but a few blocks northeast of party central, with strong, affordable drinks, jello shots, drag queens on Saturdays, friendly staff, and a mixed crowd every day.

"As the official home of Southern Decadence, the Golden Lantern boasts the smallest performance stage in the entire French Quarter. A popular bar for locals of every persuasion, the Golden Lantern is the source of the best Margarita and best Bloody Mary in the entire city. With two cocktail hours (8 to 10 a.m. and 4 to 9 p.m.), the bar welcomes all and features a myriad of specials including $6 beer pitchers. As the home of Donnie Jay, a former Southern Decadence grand marshal, the Golden Lantern is steeped in Southern Decadence history, and rumor has it that Decadence was actually created here. Commissioned photographs of past grand marshals dot the walls along with a full-size cutout of Marilyn Monroe. Musically, divas rule and video monitors anchor the bar. This is one of the friendliest bars in the city, so don’t be surprised if a stranger offers to buy you a cocktail. He may even be buying for the whole bar!" (livingneworleans.com)

Golden Lantern, New Orleans

Golden, Lantern, New Orleans
(About a year after this photo was taken the sign was
modified to read "Est. 1964")

1239 Royal St, New Orleans, LA 70116 - (504) 529-2860
Est. 1964
Web site: facebook
Reviews: nola - yelp - tripadvisor - gaycities

#2442 - The Original Pierre Maspero's, New Orleans - 3/16/2014

It is difficult to define how long Pierre Maspero's has included a bar, but it appears to have been operating some kind of cafe under that name since the building was constructed in 1788. Here is a description from the current web site:

"Of all the historic sites in New Orleans, none have witnessed more drama than the old exchange coffee house known as The Original Pierre Maspero’s Slave Exchange. The building is one of the oldest in the French Quarter, having been erected in 1788 by Don Juan Paillet. During the first decades of the 19th century this coffee house was a meeting place where brothers Jean and Pierre Lafitte and their men met to plan escapes. It was also in this historic site that Andrew Jackson met with the Lafitte brothers to plan the defense at the epic Battle of New Orleans. It was at this battle that the British surrendered to the American troops led by Jackson."

Today it is a cajun restaurant known for items like barbecue shrimp in spicy sauce, blackened redfish, and grilled alligator. In the owner's description of their cocktails, "The most popular drink we serve during the summer is our Fruit Daiquiri. In the winter we do pretty well with our Irish Coffee. We also have Hurricanes, Planter's Punch, Pernod Suissesse, the Zombie, and Ramos Gin Fizz."

I don't feel like I had a good enough sample to comment on either cocktails or food (although next time I go I plan to have the seafood pistolettes). But they seemed palatable, and more than worth a visit, particularly when combined with the history and abiding feeling of an 18th century space, with its mixture of brick and plaster, fireplace and hanging pots.

440 Chartres St, New Orleans, LA 70130 - (504) 524-8990
Est. 1788 - Building constructed: 1788
Web site: originalpierremasperos.com - facebook
Reviews: mitchellspublications - lafittesblackbox - gayot - yelp - tripadvisor

#2441 - Napoleon House, New Orleans - 3/15/2014

Napoleon House, New Orleans

Try the: Pimm's Cup

"It may not be my very favorite muffuletta in the city, but it is my favorite place to eat a muffuletta in the city," said Jeff, New Orleans food expert -- usatoday

This basically captures my reaction to Napoleon House. Even the famous muffulettas, along with the equally famous Pimm's Cups here, are fine, but hardly worth a special trip in themselves. It is the place that is the attraction -- some say classic French Quarter, but it also feels as if you could be in Rome. The sun pours into the patio and through the open front door, Beethoven's Eroiqua, composed for Napoleon, wafts through the interior, and bare plaster spots on the walls alternate with spots of the paint that is said to have last been applied in 1814. The previously flaking ceiling was freshly painted only at the command of the city.

Napoleon House, New Orleans

It feels historic, and it is. The connection with Napoleon himself is tenuous -- in 1821 the first resident, French born Nicholas Girod, offered the residence to the erstwhile emperor in exile, with transportation from the island of St. Helena provided the banished general by associates of the famous pirate John Lafitte. Girod had been the fifth mayor of New Orleans, serving from 1812 to 1815, that is, up to and including the time General Andrew Jackson repelled the British in the Battle of New Orleans (neither side having yet received word of the treaty signed 15 days before). The plot to rescue the exiled emperor ended prematurely with Napoleon's death in May of that year.

Napoleon House, New Orleans

Nearly a century later, Sicilian immigrant Joseph Impastato started renting the building in 1914, and running a grocery downstairs. In 1920 he purchased the property, and in a side room opened a tavern. It was not an officially licensed tavern, as it was in January of that year that federal prohibition took effect, a measure that appears to have had only modest effects on the alcohol consumption habits of New Orleanians. Impastato ran the bar for 23 years, then passed it to his brother Peter Impastato in 1943. Joseph remained living upstairs in the building, and "holding court at a table on the patio" until he died at age 100. The Impastato family continued to operate the Napoleon House through the date of this visit, until selling it to Ralph Brennan (of Brennan's Restaurant fame) in May of 2015. Brennan has pledged not to change the place, and that is very welcome news indeed.

Napoleon House, New Orleans

Postscript: One final small personal memory: While sipping our Pimm's Cups at the bar, we fell into a friendly conversation with Michael and LSU alum Megan, and discovered that she was a mutual friend of my Seattle co-worker Jeff M. We would run into the same couple again the very next night at The Columns.

Bruschetta, Napoleon House, New Orleans

500 Chartres Street, New Orleans, Louisiana, 70130 - 504-524-9752
Est. 1920 (as tavern, and during prohibition) - Building constructed: 1794 (expanded 1814)
Previous bars in this location: None
Web site: napoleonhouse.com - facebook
Reviews: nola.com (sale) - wwno.org - usatoday - wikipedia - neworleansadvocate - fleurty girl video - yelp - tripadvisor

#2440 - Kingfish, New Orleans - 3/15/2014

Kingfish Restaurant, New Orleans

New Orleans has, of course, many more than its share of famous chefs, and a number of top bartenders, and the Kingfish has had changes in both in this visit. On our stop we did not have time to sample the mix of Japanese street food, Cajun and French cuisines, but we did have a couple cocktails from legendary fourth-generation barman Chris McMillian. I've lost my notes on what we drank, but in any case McMillian has moved on to open his own place (Revel) in 2016, and both the kitchen and bar at Kingfish appear to remain in very good hands with new chef Nathan Richard and current bartenders.

Chris McMillian, Kingfish, New Orleans

As the name implies, the restaurant and bar are a paean to the era of prohibition and Huey Long, with bartenders and servers in white shirts and black braces. The cocktail menu is a mix of local classics and new inventions. There is a grand piano, pressed tin bar backing, 30s movies playing, and a large photo of Long. At dinner hours and evenings it is packed and lively.

337 Chartres St., New Orleans, LA 70125 - (504) 598-5005
Est. April 2013
Web site: kingfishneworleans.com - facebook
Reviews: nola.com - eater - countryroadsmagazine - bestofneworleans - yelp

#2439 - Bombay Club, New Orleans - 3/15/2014

The Bombay Club, New Orleans, LA

The Bombay Club in the French Quarter's Prince Conti Hotel is a green and woody paean to the heydays of British colonialism, Cajun cooking, and the great American invention of the martini. This visit came shortly after long-time manager Richard Fiske passed away and his staff departed to open a bar in his name. The group that runs Broussard's and Kingfish took over, remodeled, and installed chef Nathan Richard and bar manager Blake Kaiser. Our group did not have time for dinner this evening, but enjoyed our cocktails and old standards on the piano from our friend Monty Banks.

Monty Banks at the Bombay Club, New Orleans, LA

830 Conti St, New Orleans, LA 70112 - (504) 577-2237
Web site: bombayclubneworleans.com - facebook
Reviews: neworleansadvocate - curbed - nola - yelp - tripadvisor

#2438 - Broussard's (Empire Bar), New Orleans - 3/15/2014

On this visit our small group was not here for the elegant, old French restaurant which over it's nearly 100 years has served characters from Tennessee Williams and William Faulkner to Sammy Davis Jr., Tony Bennett, and Elizabeth Taylor. Rather we were headed for the new Empire Bar, where the new owners had completed a million dollar remodel, and put its cocktail program in the capable hands of Paul Gustings, who has been granted various titles along the the lines of "the crustiest bartender on earth." Alas, I failed to note the specific cocktails we tried that day, but I do remember that they included a punch and that we enjoyed them all in the shade of the 100-year-old vine in the refurbished patio of the 1874 mansion that eventually grew into Mr. Joseph Broussard's restaurant.


819 Conti St, New Orleans, LA 70112 - (504) 581-3866
Est. 1920, current bar 2013
Web site: broussards.com - facebook
Best articles: nytimes - eater - countryroads - nola - nola - gonomad
More articles: theneworleansadvocate - yelp - tripadvisor - neworleans - 10best - punchdrink

#2437 - Tony Seville's Pirate Alley Cafe, New Orleans - 3/15/2014

There's nothing wrong with a little Disneylandish corner in an historic setting, especially when they are pouring absinthe. The staff are friendly and the vibe is lively but not loud or overly crowded.

622 Pirates Alley, New Orleans, LA 70116 - (504) 524-9332
Web site: piratesalleycafe.com - facebook
Reviews: yelp - tripadvisor

#2436 - Cane & Table, New Orleans - 3/15/2014

Cane and Table, New Orleans, LA

The basement of my house started out being decorated as a goth bar and rather suddenly shifted to a tiki bar. How that happened is kinda a long story, but a similar thing happened to Pravda, this beautifully dark and ornately formal, Soviet-themed space on Decatur Street. I loved that bar and hated to see it go. But if the evil empire had to collapse, one could do a lot worse for a replacement than a "Rustic Colonial Cuisine and Proto-Tiki" joint. And we're not talking some cheesy, overly sweet bastardizations of tiki -- we're talking an ownership team from the highly regarded Cure and Bellocq hiring rum master Nick Detrich to devise a menu of well-balanced, Caribbean themed, pre-prohibition era and tiki style drinks.

The vibe has gone from dark to what feels like relaxing in a sunny plaza in Havana. This is especially true on the back patio, where strange gods mix unobtrusively, from tikis to faded Egyptian figures, all around one of the older buildings in all of New Orleans. There are nights with well known guest bartenders (including Beachbum Berry) and an "all you can drink brunch." It is now a place where it is easy to linger.

1113 Decatur St, New Orleans, LA 70116 - (504) 581-1112               
Est. 2013
Previous bars in this location: Pravda
Web site: caneandtablenola.com - facebook
Articles ranked: eater - nola - nola - 10best - yelp - zagat - neworleansonline

#2435 - 3 legged Dog Tavern, New Orleans - 3/14/2014

Three Legged Dog, New Orleans, LA

One of so many bars in the New Orleans that in any other town would probably be your favorite bar in the city, the Three Legged Dog is known for their crawfish, boiled with corn, potatoes, pineapple, sausage, garlic, artichokes, and heaped onto places from a huge bin.

Three Legged Dog, New Orleans, LA

Three Legged Dog, New Orleans, LA
(Photo from bar's facebook page)

400 Burgundy St, New Orleans, LA 70112 - (504) 412-8335             
Web site: facebook
Reviews: hungrycityblog - yelp - tripadvisor

#2434 - The Upper Quarter, New Orleans - 3/14/2014

The Upper Quarter has a nice, genuine dive feel to it. It is known as a big gathering place for New Orleans Saints fans, and one can only assume that its taken them a substantial number of pudding shots to handle recent seasons.

1000 Bienville St, New Orleans, LA 70112 - (504) 523-4111
Web site: facebook
Reviews: bestofneworleans - yelp - tripadvisor

#2433 - Rita's Tequila House, New Orleans - 3/14/2014

This was not a targeted bar but rather one of those we're-ready-for-another-drink-now stops. As a group of youngish women started awkwardly dancing and grinding with each other behind us, we requested a couple of to-go cups. "Yeah, I'd want to leave too," the bartender told us.

417 Bourbon St, New Orleans, LA 70130 - (504) 298-8227
Web site: ritastequilahouse.com

#2432 - Lafitte's Blacksmith Shop, New Orleans - 3/14/2014

Lafitte's Blacksmith Shop, New Orleans, LA

Lafitte's Blacksmith Shop is a charming candlelit French Colonial cottage that basically caps the northeast end of the party zone on Bourbon Street. It is very common to hear that Laffitte's is "the oldest bar in the country," the "oldest continually operating bar in the country," the "oldest building hosting a bar," and once the home or business of pirate/adventurers Jean and Pierre Laffitte. Each of the first three claims is manifestly untrue (I recommend Jay Brooks' page for a pretty good assessment of oldest bars in the U.S.) and the latter claim is highly dubious. But the building is very old - variously reported as built between 1722 and 1732 or between 1772 and 1791 (I lean toward the latter since this is the range favored by the History Department of the University of New Orleans). It has certainly not been operating strictly as bar since that time, and appears to have hosted a variety of businesses from a dentist's office to a combination cobbler and oyster shop (nolamyths). A more likely claim to being the oldest continually operating bar in the city is made the Old Absinthe House, which appears to have been officially serving liquor fairly continuously (with a substantial exception for prohibition) since the 1880s.

However, Lafitte's may well have started as a bar in the 18th century, and it appears to have become a cafe with a barroom permit in 1933 (nolamyths), the year federal prohibition ended. It was established then as "Cafe Lafitte" by Mary Collins, Harold Bartell, and Thomas Caplinger, and over the next two decades attracted some famous clientele: "The cafe became a popular night spot that attracted a bohemian clientele, including the gay community and celebrities like Noël Coward and Tennessee Williams. However, Caplinger never held clear title to the property and the building was sold in 1953. He soon opened a second cafe at the other end of the same block named Café Lafitte in Exile, which maintains that it is the oldest gay bar in the U.S." (wikipedia).

Currently the bar is popular with both locals and tourists, still lit virtually entirely by candles, and will serve anything from a nice Sazerac cocktail to one of those horrifically candy-flavored vodka and everclear monstrosities favored by certain tourists aiming to lose their inhibitions.

941 Bourbon Street, New Orleans, LA 70116 - (504) 593-9761
Est. 1940s - Building constructed: Between 1772 and 1791
Previous bars in this location: None known
Web site: lafittesblacksmithshop.com - facebook
Articles ranked: link - nola - wikipedia - nolamyths - neworleans - roadtrippers - neworleanshistorical.org - punch - tebeau - oldneworleans - hauntedhouses - yelp - tripadvisor - thrillist