I’m calling this day Best So Far!
After my disappointing breakfast yesterday, we decided to try the place down the street that the other concierge had recommended earlier – the Commerce. This quiet, neighborhood diner was the site of a shoot for the Brad Pitt movie a couple of nights ago, but all was back to normal today. My eggs,sausage, and biscuits were perfect.
From there we jumped on the streetcar to head out to the Tulane and Loyola campuses. We saw lots of red brick and limestone buildings.
I think that Kelly was a little disappointed by the trip because the promised shopping and restaurant districts didn’t materialize, but I just enjoyed the ride.
In the afternoon, we had a ball at the Aquarium of the Americas. Sure, the fish displays were nice, but what we really enjoyed was Parakeet Point. This was a small aviary full of parakeets. We each had a food stick, and the very tame birds would jump on the stick to eat the seeds. I think we spent half an hour in there playing with birds.
Before dinner, we stopped for a drink at the Carousel Bar – a bar that actually rotates. I usually get dizzy after I drink.
Dinner was at the Red Fish Grill. It is tough to define in words how good this meal was. I’ve only tried oysters once before in my life, but the ladies at the next table talked us into trying the BBQ oyster appetizer – a signature dish of the establishment. Wow, were they good. I could have had a meal of just a big plate of those.
But luckily, I instead had their signature entr̩e Рhickory grilled red fish. Another great dish prepared to perfection.
Afterwards, we decided to walk down Bourbon Street across the quarter to visit the jazz clubs on Frenchman Street. After a few blocks, it gets more residential and a little dark to be walking at night.
However, we soon came upon yet another movie set. They were apparently between takes, and no one stopped us as we accidentally walked into the middle of the set. The streets were covered with dirt, and all of the street signs were down. Several men on horses were milling about. We were told the movie will be called Abraham Lincoln and the Vampire Hunter. Um … OK.
On to Frenchman Street, which was nothing like what I expected. Jazz clubs should be classy places where the musicians wear tuxes while the patrons drink martinis. Not here. Both DBA and The Spotted Cat are dive bars, but we were very comfortable in both. the first featured a band called the Tin Men, consisting of a tuba, resonator guitar, and washboard, and playing a mix of 50s covers and Leon Redbone inspired originals. Very fun stuff. Oh, and we saw the ladies from the Red Fish that had recommended the oysters. They were taking photos with the band members as they played.
At the Cat, there was an unnamed group playing jazz standards – trumpet, trombone, clarinet, piano, bass, and drums. These guys were very talented, and seemed to really enjoy themselves.
At the end of night, a cab appeared right as we were ready to leave.