New Orleans is unique, and one of the most exciting cities in America. Our 2001 Annual Meeting (May 2–6) will coincide with the city's annual Jazz Festival (April 27–May 6), setting the stage for a fantastic expansion of opportunities for attendees. Unfortunately, this also creates considerable potential for frustrations. The city will be filled to the brim with visitors. Hotels and bed and breakfasts will be booked far in advance, and restaurants will have long lines.
In order to ensure a terrific time, advance planning is well advised. Be sure to book — your flights, rooms at the Fairmont Hotel (123 Baronne Street, site of the meeting) or elsewhere, reservations for lunch and dinner, and tickets for the festival concerts — as far in advance as possible.
To facilitate your efforts, I'm offering some easily accessible sources of information and reservations. Please note that (1) all information was current as of autumn 2000; (2) days and times vary slightly according to different guides; and (3) many Web site names are given in short form here and would need “http://www” preceding them to work in your Web browser.
Flight reservations are available through Rich Worldwide Travel at 1-800-333-7424 (in New York City at 212-997-1600) or via Internet sources: airline Web sites, e.g. USAir.com, or ticket services such as Expedia.com, Travelocity.com, or Biztravel.com.
Accommodations are available at the Fairmont Hotel at 1-800-866-5577. Be sure to mention that you are with the American. Information on other hotels or bed and breakfasts can be found at the city's Web site at NOLA.com (select the Visitors Guide) or the New Orleans sections of Digitalcity.com and 1 StopHotels.com. Searching “Bed & Breakfasts and New Orleans” and “Lodgings and New Orleans” turned up 271 and 488 listings, respectively. Reservations can be made online at many of the choices or via iseatz.com.
Jazz Festival tickets can be charged (starting in mid-February) by calling 1-800-488-5252 or, in New Orleans, 504-522-4786; or by visiting the jazz festival Web site at .
The major site of the Jazz Festival is the fairgrounds, where many sound stages provide continuous music from 11:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. and you can also find Cajun food, craft booths, etc. Tickets to the fairgrounds are $15 in advance and $20 on site and are good for an entire day. Special buses will transport visitors directly from downtown to the fairgrounds for a few dollars.
Restaurants can be found at the New Orleans sections of Zagats.com, Timeout.com, and Digitalcity.com, as well as at NOLA.com. Reservations can often be made online, so check for this option at the site. Reservations are also available at the New Orleans section of iseatz.com. When making reservations, keep in mind that a restaurant may be the site of one of the festival's evening concerts.
Here is a sampling of the restaurant listings from some of these Web sites.
Acme Oyster and Seafood House, 724 Iberville Street. 504-522-5973. Freshly shucked oysters, “po boy” sandwiches, and gumbo are famous. There are no reservations at this inexpensive restaurant that serves lunch and dinner daily and “raises hole-in-the-wall décor to an art form.”
Bayona, 430 Dauphine Street. 504-525-4455. “Absolutely superb and consistently sublime” contemporary Creole food is offered at this old, elegantly refurbished cottage. The food is expensive; reservations are recommended. Lunch is served Monday thorough Friday and dinner Monday through Saturday.
Café Atchafalaya, 901 Louisiana Avenue. 504-891-5271. No reservations or fanfare, just inexpensive “excellent comfort” southern Creole food, open for breakfast and dinner Tuesday-Sunday, lunch Tuesday-Saturday, and brunch Saturday and Sunday.
Café Sbisa, 1011 Decatur Street. 504-522-5565. Considered the “epitome of old-style New Orleans decadence,” this bistro serves a traditional Creole menu, accompanied by live jazz. Lunch and dinner are served daily, and brunch on Sunday. Reservations are recommended for this moderately expensive restaurant.
Christian's, 3835 Iberville Street. 504-482-4924. Set in a beautiful, renovated Lutheran church, this restaurant serves Creole food “to worship” at moderately expensive prices. Lunch Tuesday–Friday, dinner Tuesday–Saturday. Reservations are recommended.
Clancy's, 6100 Annunciation Street. 504-895-1111. A favorite despite its environment and noise. Moderately expensive contemporary Creole food “balances richness and restraint” in its “flawless filet mignon in Madeira sauce, fried oysters with Brie, and sautéed trout with pears.” Lunch Wednesday–Friday, dinner Monday–Saturday. Reservations are recommended.
Commander's Palace, 1403 Washington Avenue. 504-899-8221. This “first class in every way” Cajun-Creole restaurant, famous for its turtle soup, is voted most popular in Zagat's. Reservations are recommended. The site is a Garden District mansion, where lunch is served Monday–Friday, dinner nightly, and a jazz brunch on Saturday and Sunday.
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Galatoire's, 209 Bourbon Street. 504-525-2021. Considered a New Orleans institution and rated number two in Zagat's, this haute cuisine restaurant serves Creole seafood. It is expensive, and reservations are recommended for lunch or dinner, served Tuesday–Sunday.
Grill Room, 300 Gravier Street 504-522-1992. Reservations are essential at this very expensive, world-class restaurant. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner, served daily, feature “formidable” French cuisine with exotic spices, served in a “beautiful, classy, and elegant” environment.
Johnny's Po Boys, 511 St. Louis Street. 504-524-8129. There are no reservations, and the surroundings are “rudimentary,” but Johnny's offers a “cornucopia” of inexpensive, huge, and tasty “po boys,” served daily for breakfast and lunch; dinner is served Monday-Saturday.
K-Paul's Louisiana Kitchen, 416 Chartres Street. 504-596-2530. The legendary long lines at Chef Prudhomme's Cajun-Creole restaurant have been reduced by a new reservation policy. Moderately expensive, the food is “luscious, Louisiana cooking,” and the doors are open for lunch and dinner, Monday-Saturday.
Palace Café, 605 Canal Street. 504-523-1661. Set in a beautifully restored turn-of-the-century building, this restaurant provides delightful atmosphere and outstanding, moderately expensive, Cajun-Creole food. This is the home of — and reportedly still serves the best — white chocolate bread pudding. Lunch Monday-Friday, dinner Monday-Saturday, brunch Saturday and Sunday. Reservations are recommended.
Uglesich's, 1238 Baronne Street. 504-523-8571. Offbeat and “seedy,” this inexpensive restaurant boasts a hundred-year-old setting where fresh raw oysters and “the best fried oysters” are served to impossible throngs. No reservations here; the best chance belongs to those who come early (10:00 a.m.) or late (4:00 p.m.) to this lunch-only place.