Day-by-day eating plans for New Orleans. weekend classics, family routes, vegan plans, on-a-budget editions.

Day-by-day plans

New Orleans weekend: the classics, done right ★ 4.6

First-time visitor, three days3 days

A weekend built around the city's invented dishes, the rooms that codified them, and one Bywater tasting menu to close.

  1. Day 1: Friday: beignets, jazz brunch warm-up, po-boy lunch, Galatoire's dinner

  2. Day 2: Saturday: market, oysters, Garden District brunch, Bywater wine garden dinner

  3. Day 3: Sunday: praline bacon brunch, Algiers ferry coffee, tasting menu dinner

New Orleans family three days: po-boys, parades, beignets ★ 4.4

Family with kids, three days3 days

A three-day plan for a family with school-age kids: tactile food experiences, kid-friendly tables, plenty of sugar along the way.

  1. Day 1: Day 1: beignets, riverboat, casual dinner

  2. Day 2: Day 2: snowball, Audubon Zoo, oysters, family brunch

  3. Day 3: Day 3: bakery breakfast, French Quarter walk, Cochon dinner

New Orleans budget two days: under $40 a day ★ 4.3

Budget eater, two days2 days

A two-day eat plan that runs under $40 a day in food costs, anchored on the city's $13 po-boy tradition and snowballs.

  1. Day 1: Day 1: beignet breakfast, two po-boys, late-night sandwich

  2. Day 2: Day 2: bakery breakfast, market, jambalaya dinner

Jazz Fest eating: two festival days, three off-day rooms ★ 4.6

Jazz Fest visitor, four days4 days

A four-day plan for a Jazz Fest visit: two Fair Grounds days fed off the food tents, two off-days for the city's modern rooms.

  1. Day 1: Day 1: Jazz Fest Friday, cochon de lait po-boy, late dinner

  2. Day 2: Day 2: po-boy lunch, Mosquito Supper Club dinner

  3. Day 3: Day 3: Jazz Fest Sunday, dinner at Saint-Germain

  4. Day 4: Day 4: brunch at Atchafalaya, Garden District walk, Brigtsen's dinner

French Quarter evening: oysters, gumbo, brass ★ 4.7

Single evening, walking1 evening

A French Quarter dinner-and-drinks evening through the canonical New Orleans rooms.

  1. Day 1: Day 1: Bourbon to Decatur

    Morning
    Skip; this itinerary starts at sunset.
    Afternoon
    Aperitif on the patio at Pat O'Brien's at 17:30 for a Hurricane and people-watching.
    Evening
    Oysters at Felix's at 18:30, then dinner at Galatoire's from 20:00 for the canonical Creole menu: shrimp remoulade, trout amandine, baked Alaska. Walk for a cocktail at Carousel Bar at the Hotel Monteleone and a late-night beignet at Cafe Du Monde.
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