Best Nightlife in New Orleans

"Commander's Palace has been around since the late 1800s, but under Ella Brennan’s leadership starting in the 1970s, the restaurant essentially redefined New Orleans cuisine and catapulted into stardom with the help of celeb chefs Paul Prudhomme and Emeril Lagasse. Today, the menu and service are top notch with James Beard Award-winning chef Tory McPhail leading the kitchen and Ti Martin and Lally Brennan running the show. Go for lunch and make sure to end the meal with the bread pudding soufflé and whiskey sauce."

"GQ's Golden Dish Award for Eggs Sardou, Commander’s Palace’s legacy speaks for itself. Located in the Garden District, Commander’s Palace is thought to be the original spot for a jazz brunch and patio dining. For contemporary Louisiana food and alfresco dining, look no further than Commander’s Palace."

"Parkway has been a master of pivots throughout the pandemic, from quickly establishing an efficient curbside service model to adding tenting to let seating spill outside. This patio isn’t the most open-air of the bunch — it’s more of an extension of the restaurant — but it is one of the most protected from the elements; no need to fear a storm spoiling your po’ boys and gumbo here."

"Parkway Bakery & Tavern has been open since 1911 and serving up po’ boys since 1929. After more than 100 years, it remains a family-run business to this day. Founder Jay Nix and Head Chef Justin Kennedy have won several awards and have been featured on television for their exceptionally delicious po’ boy sandwiches, such as the Golden Fried Catfish and Parkway Surf and Turf."

"Heralded as serving the best po’ boy in America, Parkway Tavern has been a New Orleans cheap eats institution for over 100 years. Must-try po’ boys include wild caught Louisiana shrimp, fried to crispy perfection; and surf and turf, layering shrimp, slow-cooked roast beef and gravy. For between $12 and $15, you have a feast for two."

"Ruby Slipper Cafe serves a New Orleans twist on Southern brunch favorites 7 days a week. We are a scratch-kitchen, using fresh ingredients from local purveyors whenever possible. Our coffee Read more..."

"Service was great.The wait was long, as the location was very popular.My friend and I got two of their signature dishes according to the menu, the Sweet ..."

"Opened by chef Mike Stoltzfus and his wife Lillian Hubbard in December 2008, Coquette is a Garden District stunner, from its gleaming floors and crisp linens to its architectural details and warm exposed brick walls. Chef Stoltzfus proffers innovative southern cuisine with an emphasis on locally sourced product and pastry chef Zak Miller does the same, with an emphasis on unexpected twists that elevate dessert into something ethereal. He uses seasonal fruit, fresh herbs and surprising flavors like smoke and heat to bring something special to the table."

"Opened by chef Mike Stoltzfus and his wife Lillian Hubbard in December 2008, Coquette is a Garden District stunner, from its gleaming floors and crisp linens to its architectural details and warm exposed brick walls. The Garden District building was built in the late 1880s and has been among other things a residence, grocery store, auto parts store and several restaurants. Chef Stoltzfus, who honed his craft as a sous chef at Restaurant August, proffers innovative southern cuisine with an emphasis on locally sourced product."

"Longtime Magazine Street stunner Coquette is open for takeout service, Thursday through Saturday from 4 to 8 p.m. Order online day-of here or call the restaurant after 1 p.m."

"I am officially, 100% percent ripping that off,” Fieri told Avery’s owners Christy and Justin Pitard after devouring their kicked-up Fried Potato Salad. That’s just one of their twists on local classics. Another featured was the couple’s riff on Oysters Rockefeller in—you guessed it!"

"With 21 viewing screens and 20 bars on tap, Poppy’s Time Out Sports Bar & Grill takes on the hottest sports action on the Lakefront. Opened seven days a week, Poppy’s Time Out is available for all kinds of sports crowds from parties of 20 to huge gatherings of 3,000. Quench your thirst with one of their specialities like Poppy’s Voodoo Juice during your favorite game or just relax in one of their outside tables with a view of the Mississippi River in the distance."

"Named for the famous Frenchman intended to live there after his exile from France, Napoleon House is a 200+ year old historical landmark. The speakers play classical music and there’s a lovely courtyard. Order a Pimm’s Cup and a muffuletta, served warm."

"But you have to go to Napoleons House Bar to get a Muffuletta. This place has been here FOREVER. They have homemade bread with all their sandwiches and the highest quality ingredients to go inside."

"They also have tons of other amazing cocktails including Pim’s Cup, French 75, and their mixologist’s seasonal specials. Having a drink here is an experience."

"Tours run twice every evening (5pm and 8pm) and include visits to the Lalaurie Mansion (where American Horror Story Coven was filmed), LaFitte’s Blacksmith Shop, and more. Our guide had plenty of creepy tales to share and clearly believed a lot of the ghost stories herself, which made it all the more fun. Our tour group was a little on the larger side, but otherwise, the experience was entertaining."

"It’s not every day that you get to drink in a bar that’s 300 years old. That’s precisely what you can do at Lafitte’s Blacksmith, which tops the list of oldest bars in New Orleans. It’s actually said to be the oldest building used as a bar in the country!"

"Behind the museum’s main building is a gated outdoor space in 11 acres of mature parkland enriched with more than 90 works of sculpture. The Sydney and Walda Besthoff Sculpture Garden opened in 2003 and at the time of writing in 2019 had just doubled in size with an expansion that included 26 new works, mostly by 21st-century artists. On serpentine paths among pines, magnolias, camellias and live oaks draped with Spanish moss there are pieces by Henry Moore, Deborah Butterfield, Barbara Hepworth, Pierre Auguste Renoir, Robert Indiana, Gaston Lachaise and René Magritte, as well as contemporary sculptors like Katharina Fritsch, Hank Willis Thomas and Jeppe Hein."

"The Sydney and Walda Besthoff Sculpture Garden is technically a part of the New Orleans Museum of Art, but it’s one of those places to visit that deserves its very own part of this listing since many come by just to visit the garden on its own. Right near the main NOMA building, an 11-acre expanse of garden stretches out, decorated with over 90 different sculptures. The gardens first opened in 2003 and have grown in size ever since it made its home in the rear of the Louisiana museum."

"The sculpture garden that sits just outside the New Orleans Museum of Art is a wooded quilt of streams, pathways, lovers' benches and, of course, sculpture, mainly of the modern and contemporary sort. During spring and summer, theatrical productions are often put on here, but it's a lovely spot for a stroll any time of year."

"After voodoo (or vodou) came to New Orleans in the 1700s—first via West African slaves, then with Haitians after the Haitian Revolution—it entwined with the city’s identity. Which is why, since the 1970s, a French Quarter visit has been deemed incomplete without a stop at the tiny Historic Voodoo Museum. If it’s lore you seek, you’ll find it here."

"Lakeside Shopping Center, 3301 Veterans Memorial Blvd., Suite 79A, Metairie, (504) 833-7906; www.smashburger.com. A barbecue, bacon and cheddar burger is topped with fried onions on an egg bun."

"At Bearcat Café Uptown, your mood determines just how healthy your meal will be. Are you a “good cat” or a “bad cat” today?. The former enjoys vegan tofu scrambles or house-made yogurt while the latter indulges in gluten-free chai pancakes smothered in candied pecans and folded in with pumpkin cream cheese."

"Bearcat is a nice, beautiful space: From the outside, it looks really modern, and inside there’s a lot of windows, so it’s bright and open, and you feel good. The restaurant attracts mostly a college-age crowd, and older—not a lot of kids. It’s got table service, and they do brunch every day."

"This sleek and minimalist daytime cafe is a light and airy space for delicious, plant-based comfort foods. They make favourites ranging from pancakes and biscuits to fruit bowls and eggs with sweet potato hash. The artisan coffees are a must too."

"Although we were tempted to try popular Sno-Bliz flavors like watermelon and satsuma, we kept our Snoball simple with bright red strawberry shaved ice and creamy milk. Don’t confuse Hansen’s Sno-Bliz with typical snow cones stands and ice cream shops. The Hansen clan has been shaving ice at Sno-Bliz and topping it with homemade syrup since 1934."

"Open since 1939, this location still uses the same ice-shaving machine its owner invented in 1934. Expect the lines to be long, even on those oppressively hot days."