Our trip to the city that care forgot for our friend Sean's wedding
Thursday-My first time back to the motherland in exactly 4 months. We arrived at our hotel at about sunset, the Omni Royal Orleans on St Louis Street. This is a great location in the heart of the French Quarter. We were surprised to find a bottle of iced champagne and chocolate dipped strawberries awaiting us in the room compliments of a guy I knew who was in charge of the food and beverage service in the hotel (thanks Jeffrey!). We drank some and got ready to go to the wedding rehearsal dinner. The dinner was held at the Audubon Golf Clubhouse in (you guessed it) Audubon Park. The bar was wide open and we spent about an hour catching up with some old friends. Our dinner was actually served buffet style. I started with turtle soup that was pretty darn good;they even had a little bottle of sherry to top it off with right there! I then ate a big plate of grits and grillades, crawfish pasta in cream sauce, roasted veggies and some prime rib. Yum. For some reason I skipped dessert. Back to the hotel and nighty night.
Friday-Awoke and found breakfast at a little spot in the quarter;I had your standard eggs, bacon, grits toast thing while Rapunz had an incredible veggie omelette. Rapunz was then off to the Ritz Carlton for a pedicure and manicure. I went and got my hair cut at my old barber shop at Race and Tchoupitoulas. From there I was off to lunch with the fellows at Ralph's on the Park right by City Park. I enjoyed a great seafood crepe-shrimp and crabmeat cooked in a wild mushroom cream sauce served in a perfect little crepe. Yum. A little white wine and we were talking seriously good food. Then we were back to the groom's house to get ready. Yep, I dressed like a penguin. Off to the wedding following a dispute with an obviously very Baptist bus driver regarding the consumption of beverage alcohol before entering a church. Well, the Catholics were paying and won the debate. Hooray. After the wedding we went to the reception at City Park's Botanical Garden Pavillion. It all happened very quickly, but I remember eating fried shrimp, boiled shrimp, fried catfish, oyster patties, roast beef, roast ham, wedding cake, etc. There was a great band that played for us. Back to the hotel for some deep sleep.
Saturday-I awoke to a note telling me Rapunz had gone for a massage at the Ritz. I got up and wandered around the serene streets of the Vieux Carre shaking off the night before and getting prepared for another Saturday night;well, maybe both the streets and I were going about this exercise. It was reassuring to take in the familiar sights, smells and sounds. When she returned to the room, we were off to our favorite Vietnamese restaurant for lunch. We split chargrilled shrimp and lemon grass beef spring rolls, after which Rapunz had an order of Pho Tai and I had dependable Mien Ga. After this we drove around my last neighborhood of record, Algiers Point, then onto the vehicle ferry back to the French Quarter across the river. It was about time for the LSU game, so we met up with a crew and watched at an Irish bar on Decatur Street. Besides a good game the highlight was one of my friends almost getting his butt whipped by a suspected alumna of the Isle of Lesbos. I have video. After the game we all went to dinner at the Rib Room. We split a smoked salmon appetizer that was to die for, then we both got a prime rib au jus...um, um, yum. Hey, nobody said we went there to eat a bunch of tofu! We then had a few drinks and watched Florida State knock off Boston College in the lounge. Party time, LSU #2, so we went to The Old Absinthe House for a bit. I watched in fascination as the bartender (who looked like one of the Clockwork Orange guys) prepared an Absinthe for somebody. I didn't think this was the best nightcap, so stuck with beer. Then it was back to the hotel amid LSU cheers, pleadings for nudity, beggars, bar barkers, etc. Just a typical French Quarter night.
Sunday-I was starting to feel a little low, so naturally, we headed out for a hearty breakfast of fried beignets. We got them, alright. Yum. Back to the hotel and then to lunch with my friend from Colorado and his irritating wife. She was a picky eater who didn't eat seafood, so we settled on Gordon Biersch which is (being kind) a mediocre brewhouse chain with a location in their city in Colorado (why anyone would go to a good food town and eat chain fare they can obtain at home is beyond me). We watched a little Saints, then we were off. Rapunzy did some last minute shopping at the mall, then we got some goods at Whole Foods, then we were gone. Back to SOWAL, and I look forward to going back...
...you will not believe what just happened. I started crying reading this. I can see the city you love through your eyes. 
Big D was on the Tulane golf team and needed to practice ... and have his nutrition, a.k.a beer. The Tulane course was across the river at Lakewood -- too far to drive to.
