Thanksgiving in New Orleans…  In other words, we spent a holiday that celebrates an epic meal, in a city that makes every meal an epic celebration.  Mmm, mmm!

We started the day by walking the few blocks through the French Quarter from our hotel to the historical Court of Two Sisters, to partake of their world-famous Jazz Brunch.  It was just my mom and me, since Jacob was still zonked from the previous night’s revelry.  The sun was shining, the sky was blue, and it was a balmy 72°F – basically a fabulous New Orleans morning.  We got to the restaurant and were whisked onto the beautiful patio, past the burbling fountain, to a prime table at the base of a sprawling tree covered in a century’s worth of wisteria.  There, as we listened to the cheerfully dulcet sounds of the jazz trio, our waiter, Cliff, swooped in with the Chicory coffee for which the city is so famous.

We hit the buffet, and I was pleasantly surprised.  There was a sea of salads on the cold side (including a Cajun Pasta Salad, Bleu Cheese Potato Salad, Curry Chicken Salad, Creamy Pasta Salad with Crawfish and Spinach, Chicken Salad, Muffuletta Salad, and a Potato Salad with Boiled Eggs) as well as numerous spreads, pates, and mousses.  Across the way, the hot side began with a copper-topped station serving omelets and Eggs Benedict, followed by a carving station serving juicy slices of Ham and Roast Beef.  There was Jambalaya, Andouille Sausage, Veal Grillades and Grits, Turkey (both white and dark), and a delicious Giblet Gravy.

Sure, there might be some better Creole kitchens in New Orleans, but few can combine the incredible ambiance and cheerful service that have kept people coming back to Court of Two Sisters for generations.

Later, after a long nap, the hotel’s car drove us uptown, to the Garden District; where Mom, Jacob and I dined at that legendary grande dame of New Orleans fine-dining, Commander’s Palace.  Coincidentally, I’d had Thanksgiving dinner at Commander’s, twenty years earlier, when my family celebrated the holiday in New Orleans, during my freshman year, at Tulane.

There’s really nothing I could say about the restaurant that hasn’t been said hundreds of times already, so I’ll be brief.  The remodel of the restaurant was a smashing success (especially the embroidered walls in the vestibule, and the birds that emerge, three-dimensionally, from the walls of the dining room.  The Commander’s Salad (a chopped salad of Romaine, pressed egg, smoky bacon, herbed croutons, Gruyère cheese, and creamy black pepper dressing) is still the best thing on the menu.  The Pecan Crusted Texas Redfish (with crushed corn, spiced New Roads pecans, petite herbs, and Champagne-poached jumbo lump crab) is delicious.  And, with impeccable service, anything good is at once great.

Sure, I espouse individuality - straying from the herd, taking that path less travelled, blah blah blah.  And I’ll admit it: I’m as guilty as anyone of raving about this fabulous new restaurant, or that sexy new shop.  But sometimes it’s just incredibly comforting to go where you know the outcome in advance.  So, here’s to the tourists and the places that continue to attract them: May their numbers never cease to multiply.

Thanksgiving in New Orleans
Court of Two Sisters – Click HERE for info
Commander’s Palace – Click HERE for info

Get into it!