New Orleans Walking Food Tour

During a recent trip to the Big Easy (my first time there!), I signed up to take a New Orleans Walking Food Tour, hosted by Custom Conventions and led by Marc Preuss and Carling Dinkler. More than any other city in the U.S., a food tour in New Orleans (I quickly learned) is also a history lesson.

Napoleon House New Orleans

Our first stop was at the historic Napoleon House restaurant, which was declared a national landmark in 1970. And yes, it’s named after THAT Napoleon!

Located in the French Quarter of New Orleans, it was built in 1794 and enlarged in 1814 by Mayor Nicolas Girod, but instead of being known as the Girod House, people called it the Napoleon House. Why? It was the grandest home of the time and area, and rumors eventually took hold that it was being prepared as a residence for Napoleon Bonaparte after his exile. News of his death in 1821 halted the rumor … for the most part.

Executive Chef Chris Montero (posing with me above) gave us a thorough history lesson while we were there, then fed us samples of their muffaletta sandwiches. They’re served warm and are a delicious take on this New Orleans classic. I could have eaten a whole loaf of the bread used …

Jackson Square New Orleans

From there, we walked through Jackson Square, where we were treated to some festive live music …

… which had several of us dancing in the streets (I’m on the left). Technically, we were dancing in Jackson Square, but that doesn’t have the same ring!

After a little time in Jackson Square to enjoy the sights and sounds and to snap some photos of the historic St. Louis Cathedral, the oldest Cathedral in North America, we were on to our next stop …

Cafe Du Monde

Our next destination was the famous Cafe Du Monde, where I finally had my first taste of a beignet. I was anticipating a square doughnut with powdered sugar. But they were much much better than that! Sorry, doughnuts.

Typically, there’s a long line at this New Orleans landmark, but we were able to go straight to the back, where samples of their beignets were brought out to us.

I could have eaten the whole tray, but my mom raised me better than that, so I controlled myself and was quickly distracted by a window at the back of the restaurant, where you can watch them mix and cut the beignet dough.

Broussard’s Preuss Family

What came next on our New Orleans Walking Food Tour was a special treat! We got to meet and go into the home of iconic New Orleans chef Gunter Preuss, where we enjoyed a sample of his beautiful wife Evelyn’s jambalaya (made just the way this foodie likes it). We weren’t just in the presence of New Orleans food royalty — we were in their home!

Chef Gunter Preuss owned and ran the famous Broussard’s restaurant until recently, served The Pope when he was in NOLA and was profiled in the PBS series “Great Chefs of New Orleans.” At home, however, his wife Evelyn is the chief cook … and her entire pot of jambalaya was gobbled up in no time by our hungry group of food influencers who were all in town for the 2018 International Food Bloggers Conference.

Despite the August heat and humidity, we were smiling. Because – jambalaya!

Antoine’s New Orleans

Established in 1840, in the heart of the New Orleans French Quarter, Antoine’s is the oldest continuously operating restaurant in America … and it’s still run by its founding family. Oysters Rockefeller were invented here!

We were treated to a tour by the charming, knowledgeable, funny and famous server Sterling Armour. That’s him in the photo on the plaque below, in Saveur magazine. During our tour, we also sampled Antoine’s soufflé potatoes. I have never had anything like them – they were puffed and light on the inside but slightly crisp and salty on the outside. YUM!

Antoine’s escargot is another menu favorite, and I was so enchanted by the cute snail on the wall in one of the restaurant’s many rooms that I just had to give him a little kiss. Perhaps I was a little loopy from the August heat and dehydration? Nah … I really am this goofy!

We ended our tour across the street with samples of Leah’s Pralines. My favorite was the bacon pecan brittle – wow!

The tour was well worth the cost and 3 hours. My phone app said we walked four miles, so I’m sure I walked off the food samples. If not, I sweat them off because it’s hot and humid in August in New Orleans. If you go, take a bottle of water with you, wear comfortable shoes and just go ahead and pin your hair up. Also, I recommend eating breakfast beforehand. Assuming they’d have to roll us out of a food tour, we all skipped breakfast and by noon when it was over, we were all hungry.

New Orleans Walking Food Tour Sights

New Orleans is a unique, cultural mashup where there is always something to see, smell, taste and hear. My three days wasn’t enough, and I can’t wait to get back to experience more. In the meantime, here are a few other sights along the way during our New Orleans Walking Food Tour …

Laissez les bon temps rouler!

 

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