Doing the Big Easy - Triple D Style (part 1)

From Austin it was onto New Orleans and a cruise on the Voyager of the Seas.  I had a very early flight out of Austin and after a fairly short connection in Houston I arrived in "The Big Easy".  As a coincidence my older  brother Tom also would be in town for a huge Bar Association Meeting.  I waited for him to arrive and we headed into the city so I could drop him off at his hotel just about in the French Quarter.  After he checked in we walked over to the Quarter to check out the area and go to a place for lunch.  We went to a place called the Chartre House and although it wasn't a DDD place I did enjoy a small snack as I knew that there would be more places later in the day to try.

After bidding Tom adieu I headed north out of the the city to the town of Slidell.  My first New Orleans area restaurant would be a very low key, classic cafe-diner called LA PINES. 

My LA Pines Shrimp Po Boy



I ordered the Shrimp Po Boy.  Po Boys are traditional Louisiana sandwiches which come with just about any meat or seafood fillings that you can imagine.  Most people get them "dressed" which includes lettuce, tomatoes, mayo, etc..  They don't add the hot sauce but it is provided on all the tables and is quite popular amongst all of the locals.  After chatting with the staff and getting my book signed, The manager asked me to go and add a push pin to their visitors map, which was very cool!

From LA Pines it was onto the town of Mandeville which is at northern end of the Lake Pontchartrain Causeway bridge.  I would be crossing the lake to get to my hotel for the next few nights but before heading over the lake I had to stop at a cool, small joint called LOUIE AND THE REDHEAD LADY.  As it was about 2pm, the place was pretty empty and I decided that after looking over the very extensive menu I would go light and try their Gumbo and Biscuit Special.

My Gumbo Lunch

The seafood gumbo was very tasty and real thick.  It came with a small garlic biscuit that really just made the meal.  Although neither Louie or the Redhead Lady were not there, I did get the manager to sign my book. 

From there I headed south on the Causeway toward my hotel, where I would be staying for the 2  nights prior to the cruise.  The causeway bridge is 24 miles long and after travelling about 10 miles into the lake you couldn't see either shore on the north of the south, so it was like driving on a bridge in the middle of the ocean.  It was pretty awesome.

After settling into the hotel I was off into the city of New Orleans to meet my cruise friend Jimmy and try a few places for dinner.  I met Jimmy outside one of the best places that I have encountered on my travels CASAMENTO'S.  This hole-in-the-wall joint specializes in Oysters.  As  we found a table I noticed the champion oyster shucker from the DDD episode was holding court behind the bar.  I immediately remembered him, Mike Rogers is a great great and can shuck an oyster like no body's business.  Mike was the guy who signed my book and he knew all about the book as hey didn't have his picture but some other guy who I don't think even works there anymore.  Mike is amazing he shucks the shells clean, I have never seen that before. 

Raw Oyster's on the Half Shell

My Oyster Loaf Sandwich

 Mike the Main Shucker Man at Casemento's

Jimmy and I shared a half dozen raw oysters.  They are presented with a cup and a wedge of lemon.  On the tables are all the condiments to making your own cocktail sauce.  A tray with Ketchup, Pure Horseradish, Salt and Pepper and Tabasco are there to make it to your own taste.  Jimmy made the mix and we ate them with saltines and they were delicious.  I also ordered a small Oyster Loaf sandwich.  I was amazed as the Fried Oysters were not all wet and soggy which is usually the way they come, it was really nice and delicious.  It was a great dinner!

Now, what to do for dessert?  On he Ice Cream episode of DDD Guy went to a local place called THE CREOLE CREAMERY.  At this ice cream parlor they make ALL of their ice creams and sorbets.  It was a really tough decision but then we saw a small sampler plate that included 4 small scoops, so that was the way to go.  I decided on some really interesting flavors.  One was a spicy peanut ice cream (an it had a bit of a spicy kick), another was the lavender honey ice cream and another was a vanilla cream with cream cheese, very tasty.  It made for a very good ending to my first day in the Big Easy.