Foodies and music buffs have cause to celebrate.
In the evenings, jazz and blues is once again streaming out of New Orleans’ French Quarter and Faubourg Marigny. At last count, the Louisiana Restaurant Association reported 822 metropolitan-area restaurants open—more than 100 percent of the pre-Katrina total.
The French Quarter retained most of its beloved dining haunts, including renowned Arnaud’s, famed for its Creole remoulade and oyster Bienville, an Arnaud’s creation. Menus are catered to each group’s needs.
“If it’s the group’s first night, we’ll put out a lot of seafood. If it’s the last night they have been Dixieland Jazzed and gumboed to death, so we will customize the menu,” says Lisa Sins, director of sales and marketing for Arnaud’s. This massive space includes 17 private dining rooms, with the largest seating 220. The whole restaurant can host up to 970 for a sit-down affair and up to 1,500 for a reception.
For a down-home Cajun party, try Mulate’s, located in the Warehouse District across from the convention center. Catfish Mulate’s topped with crawfish etouffee is a specialty, as is the live music nightly.
“There are dance couples we pay who come and do a demo or actually offer dance lessons,” says Monique Boutte Christina, president of Mulate’s New Orleans. Groups can use the main room, which holds 300, or the party hall next door for 200. Corporate buyouts for up to 750 are possible.
St. Tammany’s Parish is a burgeoning cuisine hot spot, partially due to its post-Katrina increase in population. In April, James Beard Award-winning chef John Besh made headlines as he reopened the famed La Provence in Lacombe. For groups, the Dakota in Covington, sister restaurant to New Orleans’ acclaimed Cuvee, offers private dining for up to 120.
The music scene is also well on the road to recovery.
“A lot of musicians are coming back, not because of assistance from the city, but because of help from nonprofits,” says Deborah Guidry, general manager of the famed Preservation Hall, which reopened in spring 2006. Groups can arrange a one-hour private cocktail party with a six-piece band followed by an organized second line to the nearest restaurant, usually K-Paul’s Louisiana Kitchen or Muriel’s; maximum capacity is 125.
Tipitina’s, established in 1977 for rhythm and blues legend Professor Longhair, has two locations. The landmark Uptown original offers a capacity for 1,000 and a concert stage, while the French Quarter location, used more for groups, can host 500 reception style or 250 for a sit-down-dinner upstairs, or 450 reception style or 200 for dinner downstairs. Team-building options include a recording session accompanied by internationally renowned musicians.
