The AllWays Lounge on St Claude books burlesque, drag, comedy, theatre and queer cabaret in a Marigny shotgun room that holds about 80 and runs free Sunday swing-dance lessons.
Tip: Cover usually $10 to $15 at the door; Sunday 20:00 swing-dance lessons are free with no cover. Calendar updates weekly on the venue site.
Address: 2240 St Claude Avenue, New Orleans, LA 70117
Hot Tin atop the Pontchartrain Hotel is the 14th-floor 1940s-artist-themed cocktail room with a 270-degree view of Downtown and the Mississippi, sky-blue ceilings and a small terrace.
Tip: 21+ only, no reservations. Sunday to Thursday closes at midnight; Friday and Saturday push to 02:00. Cocktails around $18.
Above the Grid atop the NOPSI Hotel pairs an open-air pool deck with cocktail service, weekend live music and a clear sightline of the CBD skyline from a heated wraparound terrace.
Tip: Day pool access via ResortPass; bar service runs into the evening with DJs on weekends. The pool closes earlier than the bar.
The Pool Club on the 13th floor of Virgin Hotels New Orleans pairs a wraparound pool deck with cabana seating, resident DJs and a skyline view across the CBD into the Quarter.
Tip: Bar open later than the pool on Thursday to Saturday. Day pool access for non-guests via the hotel's day-pass option.
French 75 at Arnaud's has poured the city's defining gin-and-champagne cocktail since 1918, a wood-panelled side room behind the dining hall with a small bar and antique military prints.
Tip: Walk in for the bar; reservations for the dining room only. Order the French 75 with a side of soufflé potatoes.
Jewel of the South, by Chris Hannah and partner John Stubbs, runs the renovated 1830s Creole cottage as a World's 50 Best cocktail room with a stocked back garden and a small dining menu.
Tip: Reserve via Resy; the garden tables sit two and four. The Brandy Crusta is the order, served at the front bar.
Cure on Freret Street, opened by Neal Bodenheimer in 2009, took the James Beard Outstanding Bar award in 2018. The room sits inside a restored 1905 firehouse with a copper-clad back bar.
Tip: Walk in for the bar, Resy for a back-room seat. The seasonal menu changes quarterly; the bartenders will riff if you give them a flavour to chase.