Our vaguely hedonistic weekend in New Orleans was off to a cracking Saturday start following a stellar lunch at Antoine’s.
To work off some of the indulgence at that classic restaurant, my friends and I strolled around the French Quarter before wandering in to a tourist trap called Maison Bourbon. The interior with its exposed bricks and faded pictures gives the image of a jazz bar that time forgot, but something about its location makes it feel less “authentic” than the live music venues on Frenchman Street. But we didn’t feel like going far.
And regardless of whether the place is nectar for the tourist bees parading up and down Bourbon Street, the music was good.
The Loose Change Jazz Band started around the time we walked in, and seemed in warm-up mode for most of our visit. But even at that less-energetic pace it made for great listening. And yes, I went whole tourist and tipped them to play a song, so got to hear “Basin Street” played live. That put a smile on my face.
Dinner that night was at Cochon, a restaurant with a pork-centric menu and owned by Donald Link — also proprietor of fine dining venue Herbsaint, where I’d had an about average meal on Friday night.
Saturday night didn’t fare much better.
It might have been my elevated expectations given Link’s reputation in the city, or the praise I’d heard from several people about the restaurant. But I left Cochon feeling somewhat underwhelmed by the overall experience.
The three of us traveling had local friends with us for company, so we tried a number of the small plates between us. I wish I could give a review of them, but none of them left much of an impression.
The main course I had of beef brisket with horseradish, potato and apple salad stuck in my memory (and my stomach) a while longer. The hearty brisket was well done, if served a little on the lukewarm side, and the salad a nice, crisp accompaniment. But it was probably worth a couple of dollars less than the $21 price tag, and didn’t knock my socks off.
A good thing, because I did not pack an adequate number of socks for the trip so needed every pair that I had.