Weekend in Louisiana: Big Easy and Lake Charles Getaway!

A weekend in Louisiana visiting New Orleans and Lake Charles is the ideal getaway for those looking for a great scene, amazing food, and a vice or two to indulge. We went on a quick road trip adventure that took us from Houston to the Crescent City and Lake Charles. Along the way we made a stop in Scott, Louisiana for some of the best boudin and cracklins you’ll find in the state!

Pit Stop at Don’s Specialty Meats – Boudin and Cracklins!

We took off on our road trip at 6 am with a game plan to be eating and drinking in New Orleans by noon. There would only be one mandatory stop along the way and that would be at Dan’s Specialty Meats in Scott, LA. Yes I did say mandatory! This place has some of the best boudin and cracklins in the entire state in my opinion. Remember, you’re in Louisiana now, it’s time to chow down like a local. For those that have never heard of these delicacies, I’ll break them down for you.

• Boudin – It is authentic Cajun sausage. Traditionally it is a blend of cooked pork, rice, onions, peppers and some fantastic seasonings stuffed into a sausage casing. There is also seafood boudin available as well. Pro tip: Pronounce it like a real Cajun, “boo-dan”.
• Boudin Balls – Basically this is boudin squeezed out of the the casing, breaded, and deep fried in the shape of a ball. I eat them as is but some people like to dip them in a creole mustard sauce. Try both the original and seafood boudin balls!
• Cracklins – Think of pork rinds with some extra fat attached. The extra fat provides a meatier texture and a more intense flavor than traditional pork rinds. This also makes them more dense and just so damn good.

Other Boudin and Cracklins locations

Traveling on I-10 (in either direction) through Louisiana you’ll start seeing the billboard signs as you get closer to Lafayette. “Best Boudin this” and “Best Cracklins that” they all read. And to be quite honest, you really can’t go wrong at any of the locations on the map I attached. Dan’s is my personal favorite, followed by The Best Stop Supermarket just down the road. Lafayette is the capital of Cajun country so you can explore and try out a new boudin location each time you come through these parts. let me know which is your favorite place in the comments.

Where to Stay? – French Quarter of course!

Whether it’s your first, third, or tenth visit, it doesn’t matter. You have to stay in the French quarter of this historic city to get the full experience. All the best restaurants, cafes, and bars reside in this district or within walking distance of it. Lodging options run the gamut from well known chain brands to independent boutique hotels, to even some haunted ones. And boy does this city have it’s fair share of those…

How we picked our hotel – Back story

I wanted to relive our very first visit to New Orleans from back in the late 90’s. Back then we had only been married a couple of years when I spontaneously asked her if she wanted to go. Neither one of us had visited NOLA at that time so when she agreed, we literally took off that same weekend. No online reservations, no calling hotels ahead of time, we just took off like the young bucks that we were. On that trip we found out a couple of things that still ring true to this day.

• New Orleans is ALWAYS busy with festivals, conventions, etc. and hotel availability is always in short supply.
• Staying in the French Quarter is an expensive affair on the weekends.

I remember us arriving in New Orleans and pulling into a store parking lot to begin calling hotels for a place to stay. We got lucky around the 4th try, someone had cancelled. Would I be so lucky this time around?

How we picked our hotel – Spring 2022

“You’re really not going to make a reservation anywhere?”, my wife bemoaned before we left on this adventure. “Nope. We’re going to wing it like we did on our first visit” I confidently declared. I wasn’t concerned at all because I had technology on my side this time. Armed with my travel experience and the travel apps on my iPhone, I figured that Priceline, Kayak, or Hotel Tonight would bail me out when we arrived with a super low rate in the middle of all the action.

Well let me tell you fam, hotel prices in the French Quarter are some stubborn mofos. I had taken a peek at the prices before we left Houston and I told my wife, “these prices are freaking outrageous, no way in hell am I paying that!”. But New Orleans wouldn’t budge. She responded to my arrogance with a “yes you will pay that amount and you’ll like it too boy”.

Every single property had their rates jacked up. But as I was scrolling, there was one property that stood out for it’s price and superb location. It was still expensive but well below what others were charging in the same vicinity. I took a look at the pictures, glanced at the visitor star ratings, and it was “cheaper” than all the others near by. Worked for me. Maybe this is a special promo I thought. F it, we’re not going to get a better deal so I booked it. My wife was driving and didn’t look at the pics. She was just happy we got something in the French Quarter. That is…….. until we pulled up to the hotel.

The Bourbon Orleans Hotel 😱

“You know this place is haunted right?”, was the first thing my wife said to me when we pulled up to valet our car. Before I could get a chance to answer, the young girl valet “Sandy” was at the door and welcomed us to the property. We gathered our luggage and road trip snacks and made our way towards the hotel entrance. “Hey Mister” I heard someone call. It was the teenage looking valet driver. “Sandy” asked me if I could park my car just off to the side because she didn’t know how to drive a stick shift. I moved my car for her and was thinking that it would be cool if they left my ride up in front of the hotel.

We checked into the beautiful Bourbon Hotel Orleans around 1 pm and they already had our room ready. After freshening up, it was time to explore the surrounding area on this clear blue sky Saturday. The streets were bustling with tourists and locals alike and near our hotel were several artists displaying their artwork. I was on a mission to find this one bar in particular that someone had mentioned on my twitter feed. I punched in “The Carousel Bar and Lounge” into my map app and was on my way.

The Carousel Bar & Lounge – Hotel Monteleone

Now this is a cool ass bar, no joke. I can’t believe I had never heard of it before in my life. Tucked inside the elegant Hotel Monteleone on Royal St., the Carousel Bar & Lounge is located to the right of the lobby once you walk through the hotel entrance. The iconic bar is an old school institution that has been around for 70 years now. It’s history is pretty fascinating and well worth looking into prior to a visit here. And visit you must. I mean, it’s a freaking circus merry-go-round with a 360-degree bar in the middle of it!

There are only 25 seats, so you can sit on the carousel or around it. You’re good either way and the scenery around you will constantly change as people come and go trying to land a coveted spot on the carousel. So you’re probably thinking that it’s super hard or a long wait to get a seat at the novelty bar. The short answer to that is, not really. I’ll share a couple of tidbits that will help you get on the ride.

Getting a seat at the bar.

As I mentioned earlier, with only 25 seats to go around (no pun intended), we’re talking prime real estate here. The main keys are to be patient and have a great attitude! The absolute worst thing you can do is to be lurking behind those sitting down and making a stupid frustrated face and constantly look at your watch. People are just going to order another round for the hell of it 🤣. So here’s what to do.

• Strike up a conversation with those sitting at the rotating bar. Especially if you see their drinks empty. If they are already tipsy or drunk, you’re already halfway there, lol.
• Ask politely if they can let you know when they are leaving. It’s all about how you ask. If you’re a couple, whoever is the more outgoing or charming needs to do the talking.

That is pretty much it. I approached a group of 4 middle aged women who were clearly buzzed and having a great time and started to chat them up. Within a couple of minutes one was telling me I could squeeze in between the seats to join them. I heard my wife behind me, “Mira esta”. I quickly pivoted and said “can my wife get in here as well?” We were now part of their crew and they informed us that they were wrapping it up and ordered us a round while we waited. In all it took us about 15-20 minutes to get a couple of seats.

The Cocktails

Just about everyone orders New Orleans classic cocktails and you should too. As the saying goes, when in Rome. Don’t be that person that orders bud light or even worse, tries to ask for a seltzer at a place like this. Venture out and try some new things. These 3 were our favorites.

Bourbon Street – Head to Pat O’Brien’s!

After a few rounds at the Carousel Bar, it was time to make a move to another New Orleans landmark, Pat O’Brien’s on Bourbon street. This is where the world famous Hurricane drink was invented back in the 1940’s. It’s also home to the original flaming fountain that’s located in the courtyard. It’s only lit at night by the way. Definitely worth a stop while you’re out and about bar hopping on Bourbon. Pat’s can be found next to Marie Laveau’s House Of Voodoo so you can get your cards read while you sip on that Hurricane.

Bourbon Street – What to expect

This street es un pinche desmadre and I love it! Loosely translated, “it’s a beautiful mess”. It is everything you ever heard about it and then some. You will see and come across all types of people from every walk of life imaginable. Music from all the various bars provide the soundtrack as you walk through the various maze of street performers, groups of bachelorette parties, divorce parties, turning 21 parties, and the thousands of other revelers that are there to partake in the debauchery. And that’s just Bourbon street on her best behavior during daylight hours! Here’s a picture slideshow and video clip as exhibit A.

Early Dinner at Antoine’s

It was now time to eat. As you can imagine, we were definitely feeling ourselves after several hours of shenanigans and it was still early enough to beat the dinner crowds. So we made a beeline for the legendary French-Creole restaurant Antoine’s. I had always wanted to eat here but there were always huge lines or it was reserved for private parties during previous visits to New Orleans. This time we were lucky (sort of), lol. I opened the door all cool and let my wife in and the place was as nice as it shows on the pictures that are online.

The host inside took a quick glance at our outfits and kindly told us that they had a dress code for dinner. I mean, we weren’t dressed like bums or anything. We had your typical spring shorts/polo shirt combos on, perfect for walking the quarter and bar hopping, but not for Antoine’s. The host was quick to add that we could eat at this side area bar in the back that they had set up for the common folk . Okay the common folk line was mine 😆. But still.

I took it in stride, looked towards the back area he was pointing to, and in my best Jack Dawson impression told my wife, “So, you wanna go to a real party?”

Common Folk Side

The back/side area was more fun anyway! You have access to the same menu and food as the bougie side but the atmosphere is more laid back. How laid back? Well Antoine’s is located on St. Louis street and apparently it’s a favorite amongst locals to have mini-parades down this street. Restaurant patrons on the common folk side could go in and out at will to the street to take pics and video. I was able to capture a wedding party celebrating in the streets.

The Food Verdict

Fantastic and as expected! You don’t stay in business for 180+ years without knowing what you’re doing. We each had Seafood Gumbo and Oyster Rockefeller for appetizers. For dinner, the Classic Fish Amandine and Creole Shrimp. We ate some before I snapped the 2 pics below so excuse the presentation, lol. All were mouth watering… except for Oyster Rockefeller. My all time favorite appetizer 😭.

Antoine’s is the birthplace of the Oysters Rockefeller dish. And this fact, I did not know until this visit. I had Oysters Rockefeller for the first time about 12-13 years ago in the French quarter but at another restaurant. And since that time I’ve ordered them in different cities whenever I see them on a menu. So what’s my point?

Well they disappointed me here. Badly. They may serve the original recipe here but I whole heartedly prefer the knock off recipes. I’m just saying, don’t say I didn’t warn you. We ate them but when the waitress asked how we liked them, we were honest with her. She told us this is not the first time she has heard this type of complaint and offered to bring us some Charbroiled Oysters instead. They were so much better!

We wrapped up dinner and headed back to our hotel. The sun was beginning to set and we needed a break. No way were we going to last at night at the pace we were operating at. We got in a shower, nap, and set our alarms for 10pm. We were beat and needed some Zzzzz’s.

New Orleans at night – Head to Frenchmen Street!

Okay full disclosure here. My wife and I don’t do Bourbon street at night. We stopped that back in our mid-30’s. That’s for them young bucks. We prefer the live music scene and people on Frenchmen Street. The vibe in this area is chill and older. You won’t see crowds walking around with hand grenades, people drinking from beer bongs, or boobs popped out for beads here.

The scene here is all about the live music and there are several good bars to choose from. Our favorites are the Blue Nile which has an upstairs and downstairs bar and Bamboula’s which usually plays blues. I’ve attached a map so you can see all the bars and calculate walking distances if you’re staying closer to Bourbon St. As you can see, it’s not a bad walk at all. But for those that rather not, there are plenty of Ubers, Taxis, & Pedicabs to get you there and back.

Creepy walk back to our hotel

After we called it a night and were leaving Frenchmen Street, it dawned on us. We were heading back to our haunted hotel. We hadn’t really had too much time to think about it aside from when we first checked in. But now walking the dark and lonely streets of the French Quarter, we couldn’t help but feel an eeriness around us. Even the houses and businesses we walked by looked to be straight out of a horror movie.

The Haunting – Delaying the inevitable

As we entered our hotel, my wife told me that she was nervous and needed another drink to help her sleep through the night. The hotel bar was still open so we made our way towards the sounds coming from that area. She was only delaying the inevitable. Eventually we had to be in our room alone with whatever entity roams this property. On the way to the bar we stopped to use the restroom in the hallway. When my wife emerged, she told me that ever since we checked in she hadn’t looked into any mirror or been alone in any room for fear of seeing someone or something else looking back at her.

We sat at the mostly empty bar and seen a peculiar sign that caught our attention. It listed out all the historic New Orleans cocktails and since we had a few of them earlier in the day, we decided to cross out a couple of more. I ordered a Scarlett O’hara and Sazerac for us and we began to read about the Ramos Gin Fizz drink. Some dude across from us ordered it and we noticed that the bartender poured some of the ingredients into the shaker and then closed it and put it inside of an automated shaking machine.

We thought the bartender was being lazy but then come to find out, this drink needs to be shaken for 6 minutes straight! It was last call so we finished our drinks and looked to each other for reassurance that everything would be okay in the room. Surely the stories were old folklore, tales from drunk guests, urban legends… This place can’t be haunted. It’s all in your mind I remember telling my wife.

Sleepless night

Once inside our room, my wife’s paranoia started to affect me as well. I had to use the restroom and she was about to close the door when I was like, hold on, leave it open. “But you’re on the toilet about to blow it up”, “I thought you weren’t scared” she teased. I’m not scared was all I could muster. Weird thoughts started going through my head as I was sitting there. What if the ghost slaps the shit out of me while I’m on the toilet? Who would believe me? Why the hell would a ghost even do that?, I tried to rationalize to myself.

My wife insisted that we sleep together huddled in the center of the bed with the covers tucked underneath us so that “nothing could touch our legs or arms from over the bed’s edge or underneath the bed”. It made sense at the time. We laid there, wrapped tight like a Mexican burrito and trying our best to get some sleep. I couldn’t shut my mind off. Images from all the scary movies I had ever seen began to appear in my head. The exorcist, Jason, Freddy Krueger, the poltergeist clown, they all made a cameo.

After a couple of hours I got really thirsty and realized I had left my full water bottle in the restroom. I got out of bed and walked in the dark room feeling my way towards the restroom. If something would have touched me at the moment I probably would have fainted. Just as I walked in, the exhaust turned on by itself and the toilet water started running! Ah hell naw. I turned my butt around and got right back into bed, where I stayed until daylight.

Day 2 – Beignets to start the day!

It was 7 am and we were wide awake after that restless night. We showered, packed, and went out for beignets at the Café Du Monde. This New Orleans institution has been churning out these delicious French pastries since Civil War times! If you’ve never had beignets they are like square hole-less donuts coated in powdered sugar. Paired with Café Du Monde Coffee and Chicory, this winning combo is hard to beat to get your mornings started in the French Quarter.

Café Du Monde opens at 7:30 am daily and I highly recommend you get there as close to opening time as possible. It doesn’t take long for lines to start forming. They do have a takeout only line if you can’t find a seat or would rather take it with you. Another tip is to ask for lots of napkins as beignets are very messy to eat. If you have hand wipes, even better. Hopefully there isn’t a band playing outside during your visit. Last thing I want to hear at 7:30 in the morning is horns blaring “When the Saints start marching in”.

Checkout

We finished up our beignets and walked a few blocks down to have a proper breakfast at Café Maspero. Then back to our hotel to get our luggage, checkout, and say goodbye to the Bourbon Orleans. We had survived the night at our first authentic haunted hotel. The manager thanked us for our stay and called the valet to bring our car up (it had been moved sometime the day before). While waiting outside in front of the hotel we saw our car whip around the corner moving pretty fast. The driver came in at a good speed and parked it right where we were standing. “Who the hell is driving my ride like this?”, I thought out loud.

“Good morning Mister!” It was “Sandy”. But… Wait a minute… I was thrown off for a few seconds. She proceeded to load our bags and opened the door for my wife. I tipped her and before she closed my door I asked, “I thought you didn’t know how to drive stick shift, how did you learn so fast?”. She smiled coyly and winked at us, “have a safe ride back Mister”.

Did “Sandy” use my ride last night to learn how to drive stick shift!? What the hell? My wife was cracking up telling me that “Sandy” was probably using our car all night with her friends, grinding the hell out of my gears, all while learning to drive manual transmission. It was funny to imagine that scenario. Man did we get a good laugh just thinking about where my car might have been. 🤣

Golden Nugget Hotel & Casino – Pool time & Slots!

We were now on our way to the Golden Nugget Hotel & Casino for part 2 of our weekend in Louisiana. By design, this day was meant to be a 100% chill day. There were only 3 objectives for us on this part of our getaway:

• Relax all afternoon at the pool
• Gamble
• Win some money

It’s a 3 1/2 hour drive from New Orleans to Lake Charles and we arrived close to 2 pm. Check in is at 4 pm like it is for most hotels but who really abides by that rule anyway. Well this place does. They actually charge you if you want to check in “early”! I can understand if you want to check in at 8-9 am but it was freakin’ 2 pm. We chose to wait and everyone behind us did as well. About 45 minutes later, they texted us that our room was ready.

Our room was on the 20th floor and we had a super sweet view of the pool, lazy river, and golf course from our balcony. We quickly changed into our bathing suits and made our way to the H2O Pool and Bar.

H2O Pool and Bar

We were quite impressed with this pool complex and loved the layout and design. After laying claim to our lounge chairs under the shade of the bar, we ordered our drinks and settled in nicely. The scene and vibe around the pool was one of relaxation. Here is a short list of what’s available when you visit this part of the resort.

• Cabanas
• Daybeds
• Fire pits
• Hot tubs
• Waterslide
• Lazy River and Pool Heated for Year-Round Enjoyment
• Lake Charles Beach area with Craft Beer and Burger joint bar

My wife and I napped, read, drank, and people watched. We had met our 1st objective ✅.

Dinner at the Golden Nugget

There are 9 restaurants on the property. Being from Houston we had eaten at 5 of them before so we wanted to try something new. We decided on the Claim Jumper. It serves your traditional American cuisine and the food was good. TBH this was not our first choice. We really wanted to try out the Chart House “TOP-OF-THE-CATCH SEAFOOD RESTAURANT” but this is the only restaurant that is not directly connected to the hotel. You have to walk a little ways to get to it and we just didn’t feel like it.

Casino time

Felt like Las Vegas to be sure. This was my wife’s time to shine! She loves to play her slot machines and for good reason. She’s usually lucky with them! Like an athlete getting ready to compete, she has her own pregame rituals, superstitions, and strategy. It’s only weird if it doesn’t work right? I played for just a little bit but was quite tired and went up to our room early on this evening. We have a mutual understanding when we’re at casinos, basically it’s that my wife plays until she tires out 🤣. I was asleep by 11 pm.

Around 1 am I hear the door opening. “You awake babe?”, she asks while standing over me by the side of the bed. I knew she had won. There were only 2 reasons she would be waking me up at that hour and they both involve getting lucky. I raised up and turned on the bed lamp. She immediately went into telling me all about her gambling saga. How it started, the ups and downs, how she battled, and then the climax at the end (her winning $800). It’s actually quite cute listening to her tell me all the details. She gets so into it.

We had completed all 3 of our objectives. Which now unlocked our 4th objective. But I won’t be writing about that one 😜.