Holiday Chaos

I recently started an internship with a food blog in New Orleans (SQUEAL!) . It’s called Eater NOLA, and they have food blogs for many major cities in the US. My very first assignment was to write about the top places in New Orleans to bring your guests for the holidays. NOLA is a great destination City and people usually find themselves entertaining year round. I was excited to help with a post that I really thought would be helpful to readers. The editor wanted to be more specific, so she changed the title of the post to “Show Off Restaurants” to entertain your guests. I love the list we came up with! When I had family in for the holidays, we visited some of the places on the list, and also went to some of my personal favorite spots. You can read my post on the Eater blog by clicking the image to the right, and check out my go-to list for entertaining out-of-town guests below. Enjoy!

High Hat Cafe I have been to High Hat a few times now, and I have never been disappointed. It’s the perfect spot to go on a Sunday evening when you are feeling lazy and craving some home cooking. They always have specials and pretty decent beer and cocktail selections. This is a low-key place to bring the whole group, there’s something for everyone.

What I love @ High Hat

Bayona As some of you know I happen to work at Bayona! It is an obvious choice for me when friends are in town because they want to check out where I work. It’s a fun place to bring my girlfriends for an awesome cocktail or glass of champagne. They often have specials running for multiple courses and 25¢ martinis, that’s always fun! Also I get an insane discount, so there’s that. Everyone there works really hard to make sure my guests and I have an amazing experience. Even though I am there every day and I am constantly tasting the food, I’m still pleasantly surprised every time I get the chance to dine there.

Pork Chop with Black-Eyed Peas, Smothered Greens, Pickled Peppers & Onion Rings

What I love @ Bayona

Domenica I love Domenica! It is most definitely the best place for happy hour here in New Orleans. They have awesome wines by the glass and cocktails that are 1/2 price. The pizzas are out of this world. They are normally around $13-$18, but during happy hour, they are also 1/2 price!! They use high quality ingredients for all of the pies. I have never had a pizza I didn’t like there. I went with Robyn and her mom Karen, and her Step-Dad, Bob. It’s fun to go in a big group and share slices with everyone.

Wild Mushroom Pizza, Quattro Formaggi Pizza, Pickled Beet Bruschetta, Wood-Oven Roasted Cauliflower with whipped Goat Cheese

What I love @ Domenica

Milk Bar When I heard of the name, all I could think of was David Chang’s Momofuko Milk Bar in New York City. I was picturing a bakery. I remember Courtney telling me about this place before I even moved to New Orleans. It’s close to the school where she works and she picks up lunch from there often. I’m still not really sure why they named it that, but it may have something to do with their delicious milkshakes. No one goes for the shakes though. They are known for the huge sandwiches that they serve on soft and scrumptious bread. They also have salads, but the sandwiches are a great deal at $8. I can never finish the whole thing at once.

My favorite sandwich, Clooney’s Choice w/chicken, avocado, mozzarella, tomato & lemon aïoli!

What I love @ Milk Bar

Sylvain I tried making reservations here when my girlfriends were in town for a bachelorette party, but we waited too late and they were booked. It’s such a fun spot, and it definitely reminds me of a place you would find in NYC. Sylvain would be a great date night place, it’s really cozy and intimate. If you have a large group, make reservations in advance! Courtney gave me a gift card here for Christmas last year and we had a lovely sister date night over the summer. We had cocktails, an appetizer, we shared soup and a salad, entrees, and dessert. Everything was AMAZING. They had a special with fish served on top of gnocchi and vegetables and it sounded so delicious that we both ordered that for our main course. I can’t wait to go back and try some of their signature dishes. yummy!

Blood in the Gulf Stream Cocktail

What I love @ Sylvain

Surrey’s Cafe & Juice Bar I haven’t been in New Orleans that long, but I knew early on that I loved it here! We ate at this small spot the first weekend that I moved and I was smitten with everything I ordered. I loved that they had fresh-squeezed juice options, and you could add avocado to anything. They are definitely known for long waits on the weekends, but it’s worth it. You can go light and fresh, or overload on carbs and bacon.

Migas with Chorizo