Audubon Aquarium
Ayk’s sister-in-law recommended that we visit the aquarium. Though it’s not as expansive as the Baltimore Aquarium, I’m still glad we went.
Sad-Turned-To-Heartwarming Fact (the Fun Fact's killjoy cousin): When Katrina hit New Orleans, a few aquarium staff braved the storm to protect the animals. They were told to leave once the looters took over the city. With no one monitoring the aquarium, the back-up generators that pumped oxygen into the tanks failed. Sadly, most of the animals died. The heartwarming part is that aquariums across the country donated animals and help raise funds for the New Orleans aquarium. Hooray togetherness!
Lionfish are an invasive species and have no natural predators along the Atlantic Coast. They are apparently good eatin', just be careful of their poisonous spines.
Diamondback Terrapin. Hi, Testudo!
Penguin!
Blue Hyacinth Macaw - the most terrifying animal there. This monstrous bird gave me the stink eye and squawked each time I tried to take a picture, thus making them blurry. One girl started crying when she saw it. I hear ya, kiddo.
Haaai!
"Sorry about killing all those cute sea critters with our oil spill. Here - take some plaques and some money for your aquarium."
Jacques-Imo’s
Seeing all the fish swim around in the aquarium made us rather peckish for some seafood. We headed to the Garden District for dinner at Jacques-Imo’s. If you’re going to New Orleans, put this quirky Creole restaurant on the top of your list. It’s a little pricey ($20-30/entrée), but it’s worth it if you’ve got the money and the time. I said time, because there will definitely be a wait. We got there around 5 PM and we had a 30-minute wait. By the time we left, it was nearly a two-hour wait.
Seeing all the fish swim around in the aquarium made us rather peckish for some seafood. We headed to the Garden District for dinner at Jacques-Imo’s. If you’re going to New Orleans, put this quirky Creole restaurant on the top of your list. It’s a little pricey ($20-30/entrée), but it’s worth it if you’ve got the money and the time. I said time, because there will definitely be a wait. We got there around 5 PM and we had a 30-minute wait. By the time we left, it was nearly a two-hour wait.
Told you it was quirky.
Cornbread drizzled with melted butter and herbs
A friend suggested getting a picture with Jacques, the restaurant’s owner. He quipped, “You sure? I’ll break the camera.” Though he didn’t, his animation certainly blurred the picture.
Fried green tomatoes with blackened shrimp
Gator cheesecake. Sounds disgusting, but it is so savory and rich. It's more like a quiche than a custard. As for the gator? Jacques could’ve put chicken in there and I probably couldn’t tell the difference.
Abita, a local brew. We tried each of their beers everywhere we went.
What looks like rabbit food is actually a tasty spinach salad tossed with a light dressing with a fried oyster on the side. And they actually do serve rabbit there. Catfish, too.
Ayk got the Carpetbagger Steak (filet mignon with an oyster-creme sauce) and I got the Blackened Red Grouper. So amazing. The sides were somewhat average when compared to the outstanding appetizers and entrees; we had maque choux, collard greens, and cole slaw. We had no room left for dessert.
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