“Vampyres and Fete Francaise”
I took cousin Colin to the French Quarter on Monday, while Diana had an appointment around lunchtime. He really wanted to try the Vampyre Apothecary and so we stopped there to check it out. I didn’t believe they were selling a dozen oysters for $6 during Happy Hour – but it is legit.
Colin was in search of Vampyre souvenirs for friends back in Greenville. So we visited the store so he could pick up t-shirts and blood bags.
We rambled through the quarter a bit, down Bourbon with a stop at Jean Lafitte’s blacksmith shop, back over to Royal, stopped into a gastro pub for a light snack, and decided on where to meet Diana for lunch.
We did make a quick stop into the Dirty Coast t-shirt store:
I chose Saint John and Diana met us there. They were actually serving a brunch menu – unusual for a Monday. Diana was able to talk them into giving her the steak tartare from the dinner menu, and Colin enjoyed a breakfast po-boy.
We tried to visit the “Almost Rock ‘n Roll Gallery” that Steve, Andy and Jude’s friend, runs just down from the restaurant. Alas – a sign in the window saying they are closing and everything is 50% off. We do have a few weeks to make a purchase if we find something we like.
An Uber home to rest up a bit, and then off to Dos Jefes in the evening for John Fohl.
Here’s John performing “Bet you didn’t see it coming:”
I think Colin really enjoyed the casual Dos Jefes vibe.
We dropped him at the airport early on Tuesday morning and then really “enjoyed” the rush hour traffic back into downtown. Diana enjoyed Happy Hour with the girls at Wine on Oak in the evening.
Wednesday and Thursday were pretty mellow work days. We did watch the new movie “Irish Wish.” This was a corny and predictable Lindsay Lohan vehicle that I found strangely funny and enjoyable. Must have been in the right mood.
On Friday, we decided on Elizabeth Street café at the Saint Vincent hotel for Happy Hour. This is the sister restaurant of the Vietnamese place of the same name on First Street in Austin. I always loved their banh-mi sandwiches.
Happy Hour here is a good deal, $5 off cocktails and half off all food. We enjoyed French negronis and chili oil dumplings. The garden outside seating is very relaxed and pleasant. It’s about a mile stroll from our home – just right. On the walk, we noticed “Molly’s House.” I texted a picture to my future daughter in law.
Reply:
“You bought me a house.”
“I knew I was your favorite.”
Funny Molly!
Next on our agenda was Wild South. This is a brand new tasting menu restaurant that has been open less than three weeks. I read a rave review from the newspaper food critic. You can reserve bar seating and order from an a la carte menu, if not prepared to commit to the full tasting. It was a bit of work to find the place, which does not have a sign. We persevered and were welcomed in by Brian with a complimentary cider that he has been enjoying lately. The tasting menu was very inviting. Diana tried to convince me, but we would not have been able to do it justice after our earlier snack. See what you think:
The a la carte menu includes a couple of the lighter dishes from the tasting one. We enjoyed tuna nduja, shrimp salsa, and fish pieces. All excellent. We’ll certainly have the full menu next time. Alex was a lovely bartender – very patient and knowledgeable as Diana selected a white wine.
It’s always pleasant when a place that is delivering such high quality is also casual, relaxed and welcoming.
On our hike back home, I pointed out District coffee, one of my places for a yummy breakfast biscuit. They had an ice cream banner out front, and so..
The ice cream was really good. Just as well, as we think it’s been over a decade since Diana had any – would be a shame to break that record for something average. We walked home up Philip Street – so many pretty, historical houses lit up at night. We’ll call our Friday afternoon and evening activity a “Lower Garden District ramble.” Our first of many.
Saturday began with a couple of laps around Audubon park. Then we parked the BBB at the Kingpin and walked over to Fete Francaise, the annual fundraiser for the local bilingual French school. Most of the krewe met us there, and we enjoyed some moules frites and a set by local heroes, Galactic:
Galactic were followed by a very interesting group called RAM de Haiti. Thom has seen them a couple of times at an old hotel in Port du Prince in Haiti. They are based here just now due to all the trouble in their homeland. Polyrhythms, punk guitar, big horns like the annoying things at soccer matches, and a saxophone – quite the entertainment.
Here are the horns:
Next up – a short walk back to the Kingpin for the free Saturday afternoon show featuring John Papa Gros. I really enjoyed his solo piano set:
What a lovely day of excellent free music. Time to relax on the couch and enjoy the NCAA basketball tournament – Texas versus Tennessee. I did manage to walk over seven miles on Saturday.
Diana decided to play tennis with the girls on Sunday morning. In a weak moment, I volunteered to drive her over – for an 8 am start. I picked her up around 10am at Kenny and Kara’s home, and then we did a run through the grocery store. Now I’m watching Purdue versus Utah State – I have Purdue to win the entire tournament in my pool. They seem to be pulling ahead nicely.
Finn shared this picture of Holly’s Iranian New Year table setting. New Year was on Wednesday and it is traditional to set a table with little things that symbolize good fortune for the year ahead.
Nothing much to report on the reading front this week. I did add a lot of exciting upcoming new releases to my list. I’m also going to revisit the Graham Greene book that features the hotel where RAM de Haiti played for Thom.
The Black Crowes are back with their first album in fifteen years:
I haven’t listened to much of it yet, but this one sounds good.
Some old and great stuff from the same band:
And finally, from a band co-founded by John Fohl:
Coexist peacefully, with patience and kindness for all!