New Orleans... eating out???

Hello, I'm from Springfield, MO and my daughter is going to be completing in Tae Kwon Do at the Jr. Olympics. We will be in town 7.29.05 thru 8.3.05 in New Orleans!! (soooo very excited) My question is about eating out...? any suggestion on where to eat or where not to eat? I will have my 2 daughters (6 & 11) with me and my hubby. So lay it on me where are the great places to eat? Also if you have any suggestion on must see place that would be great to have!! Thanks! Sherrie 10.12.04 Start of my new healthier life! 278/199/145 ish

Really cool place on Veterans Blvd called Miyako - definitely the hibachi!! They do a fantastic show and I personally LOVE their fried rice with the steak hibachi.... BIG favorite... costs about 8.95/hibachi and 4.95/fried rice (two can share it) Also the Gumbo Shoppe in the French Quarter - the BBQ shrimp (not barbecue, it's a special N`awlins dish)... REALLY awesome. If you have any more questions (hotel, sight seeing, what is a "ripoff" and what's worth the cost, etc) let me know... you should be there at just the right time for us to plan the July/August get together (and I'm hoping I'll be just barely postop at that time)... My goal is to make our get togethers monthly

Thanks for the info!! We will be staying at the Quality Inn & Suites St. Charles we hope it's a nice place, of course we also know it's not the Ritz Just hope it's clean and safe, we have several families from our Tae Kwon Do school and of course that means loads of kids!!! Have you been to the Audubon Zoo/Aquarium? We are planing to visit both the zoo and the aquarium. Have you used the streetcar we are planning to use it to help with the parking (cost) while we are in town? Thank You so much for letting me bounce my trip ideas off of ya! This will help, I know it makes for a better trip if you have some inside info about what is good and where the best places are to visit and what has the best price for the experience. Thanks, Sherrie I hope you will be post-op by the time I make it to town, and way down the road of recovery!!! I was looking at your page and on your list for the hospitle I would say you can mark off about the 1st 8 things on the list... you will not be eating or drinking right away. I was not able to have anything to drink or even ice until the next day. And full liquid diet of 2 oz. of both... you wont really eat until you are home. They did my surgery on a Tues and I was home that Thrus and went to my youngest daughters soccer game that Sat. You will for sure want lip blam it's a must.

Awesome plan to see both (our Zoo is on par with the San Diego Zoo - world famous) and I've been to, and love both.... but you should make sure you allow about 6 hrs for the Zoo and prolly 4-6 for the aquarium if you plan to see the IMAX film (dunno which will be playing then) and if no IMAX then still 4 hrs so you can hear all the little "demonstrations" and educational info bits about the species (from penguins to white alligators to sharks), and the walk through tunnel! It's beautiful. When you go to the Aquarium you'll be just about 8 blocks from the world famous Cafe` Du Monde` (french donuts called 'ben yays' spelled beignet) and the amazing coffee (half milk half coffee called "Cafe Au` Lait") that place is one of our historic landmarks... and it's right across the street from the Oldest continually operating church in the US - Jackson Square's own, St. Louis Cathedral. The pope (rest his soul) held Mass there some years ago for an Easter trip to New Orleans. I was in my early teens then. Anyway, TONS more info... but you really shouldn't miss those 3 things Aquarium, Zoo, and Jackson Square.... the streetcar (as we natives call it) has been a great way to get back and forth from your hotel area to the French Quarter (though I do suggest a good map book for carrying... not just mapquest)... Also buy something current, streets have changed a lot here over the last 5 yrs. There is a cruise as well, two actually, you could take the "Zoo cruise" from aquarium to zoo.... or you could take the Natchez Steamboat cruise. I wouldn't personally waste money on the Ghost Tours here, they're not all that fascinating... but a daytime walk through the cemetaries is interesting... I would be more than happy to pick you and your daughters up for an afternoon about town to see the Lakefront, and maybe the world's second longest bridge (no point in travelling it, but it's neat to see... used to be the longest till a few years ago... it's 24 miles long) There's plenty of cool stuff to do here for every age group, and that's not even counting the Ripley's believe it or not museum... I was mostly thinking of the *strictly* N`Awlins stuff they can't see anywhere else Oh and the New Orleans Children's museum another good fun thing to do.... crafts made for kids, or by kids Can ya tell I love my hometown??

I would say the ACEM house is good. I loved it there. It was a fun place and good food. Plus cheap also IF you go to the neworleans.com web site they have alot of information about places to go eat. Good luck to you're daaughter with the Olympics. Maria

Thank You!! I was just sure if I posted here on the Louisiana board I would get some good info!!! We have several books from the New Orleans visitors. I just wanted some 1st hand suggestion from the folks who have been there. My daughter is very excited about this trip, and loves to compete which is funny because she is very small for her age, so most would never even think she is a 1st dregee black belt in Tae Kwon Do... and loves to spar. She is 11 and only weighs 68 lbs. and is just over 4 feet tall. Small package but big heart! Thanks!! Sherrie

Check out nola.com it's my fav site for New Orleans