Seven Days on the Dawn and Christmas in New Orleans: A Review

[PaulInPGH]

But the best part—even outdoing the food—was when we got to go back in the kitchen to meet Leah Chase. It was an unbelievable experience, one which I can’t sum up adequately. Here’s how my wife wrote about it on Facebook:

 

A true once-in-a-lifetime moment getting to meet one of the great culinary idols. Paul and I met Leah "Mrs. Dooky" Chase in her kitchen. The staff leads you back into a bustling kitchen, where Mrs. Chase still holds court at a table crowded with odds and ends. She was thinner than the last time I'd seen her on TV but smiling brightly and wearing a cheery yellow top. Gracious to a fault, she complimented me on my blouse and said Paul and I were a good looking couple. She warned us to enjoy it, since one day we'd be "old and ugly" like her. As if! She's still very beautiful at 90 some-odd-years old and I said I'd be delighted to age like her. She asked if we had kids and we replied no. "Good! Enjoy each other." She asked how long we had been married. I responded 3 years married and 6 together. "You've got a long way ahead of you. Takes 12 years to train a man. I sometimes meet divorced women. Been together 20 years and then split up. Why? You've trained him now! All that wasted work!" She asked where we were from and said she saw no VA ham. Paul patted his stomach and I patted my butt. She got a real kick out of that. "That's some good kind of ham!" She signed our cookbook and gave some parting wisdom--that enjoying life and enjoying each other is most important, better than money or material things. We shook hands and I thought of all the many hands Leah Chase shook before mine—Civil Rights leaders, artists, presidents. She still treated us like we were of great importance and I'll never forget how humbling and inspiring a meeting it was.

[tweetylori]

Can't remember if I've thanked you yet, but in case I haven't, I sure am enjoying your review and very much appreciate it!

[cml4958]

A true once-in-a-lifetime moment getting to meet one of the great culinary idols. Paul and I met Leah "Mrs. Dooky" Chase in her kitchen. The staff leads you back into a bustling kitchen, where Mrs. Chase still holds court at a table crowded with odds and ends. She was thinner than the last time I'd seen her on TV but smiling brightly and wearing a cheery yellow top. Gracious to a fault, she complimented me on my blouse and said Paul and I were a good looking couple. She warned us to enjoy it, since one day we'd be "old and ugly" like her. As if! She's still very beautiful at 90 some-odd-years old and I said I'd be delighted to age like her. She asked if we had kids and we replied no. "Good! Enjoy each other." She asked how long we had been married. I responded 3 years married and 6 together. "You've got a long way ahead of you. Takes 12 years to train a man. I sometimes meet divorced women. Been together 20 years and then split up. Why? You've trained him now! All that wasted work!" She asked where we were from and said she saw no VA ham. Paul patted his stomach and I patted my butt. She got a real kick out of that. "That's some good kind of ham!" She signed our cookbook and gave some parting wisdom--that enjoying life and enjoying each other is most important, better than money or material things. We shook hands and I thought of all the many hands Leah Chase shook before mine—Civil Rights leaders, artists, presidents. She still treated us like we were of great importance and I'll never forget how humbling and inspiring a meeting it was.

 

Your wife has a way with words as well! :)

[PaulInPGH]

Can't remember if I've thanked you yet, but in case I haven't, I sure am enjoying your review and very much appreciate it!

 

It's been my pleasure; I'm glad you've enjoyed it.

[PaulInPGH]

Your wife has a way with words as well! :)

 

Yes, indeed. With a Ph.D. in English, she should really be the one writing this review.

[Medtech2]

 

Famous fried chicken.

We spent a week in New Orleans and I remember this well. My mouth is watering now!

[PaulInPGH]

We made it back to our hotel by about 1:30 to find our room ready. As a bonus, our room was in the part of the hotel that was once a Civil War hospital and is reputedly haunted. Sadly, we never experienced anything supernatural. We did end up meeting one couple who was staying in a room near us who books a stay in a different haunted New Orleans hotel every Christmas, and they said they’ve experienced some freaky stuff over the years. We never saw them after that first meeting, so we didn’t hear whether they encountered any Confederate ghosts roaming the halls.

 

After a short rest, we left our hotel for another walk around the Quarter, mostly looking for the places where we’d be dining over the next few days and remembering the splendor of meals passed.

 

We stopped back at Café du Monde for another beignet fix and an afternoon coffee pick-me-up. We then walked over to where our tour for the evening was set to leave, and we saw the Dawn zip by as she made the journey back down the Mississippi.

[PaulInPGH]

Several months back, we purchased a tour through Gray Line Tours to visit the Celebration in the Oaks. This is when New Orleans City Park is turned in to a winter wonderland, with thousands of lights and decorations.

 

The Celebration in the Oaks was very nice. The lights and displays were definitely impressive, and we absolutely loved hearing a recorded telling of the Cajun Night Before Christmas. A sampling:

 

Twas the night before Christmas an' all t'ru de house,

Dey don't a ting pass Not even a mouse.

De chirren been nezzle good snug on de flo',

An' Mama pass de pepper t'ru de crack on de do'.

 

De Mama in de fireplace done roas' up de ham,

Sit up de gumbo an' make de bake yam.

Den out on de by-you dey got such a clatter,

Make soun' like old Boudreau done fall off his ladder.

 

I run like a rabbit to got to de do',

Trip over de dorg an' fall on de flo'.

As I look out de do'in de light o' de moon,

I t'ink, "Mahn, you crazy or got ol' too soon."

 

Cux dere on de by-you w'en I stretch ma'neck stiff,

Dere's eight alligator a pullin' de skiff.

An' a little fat drover wit' a long pole-ing stick,

I know r'at away got to be ole St.Nick.

 

Look up the rest; it’s fantastic.

[PaulInPGH]

On the negative side, we definitely didn’t need the “tour” to do this, as the City Park isn’t very far from the Quarter. Rather than pay the $40 per person for what amounted to a 20 minute bus ride in each direction with an awful guide providing terrible narration, I’d suggest just grabbing an Uber to the park and enjoying at your leisure.

[PaulInPGH]

 

Celebration in the Oaks.

[PaulInPGH]

 

More from the Oaks.

[PaulInPGH]

 

Cajun Santa!

[PaulInPGH]

We were back to the Quarter by about 9:00, and we set out to enjoy a couple spots we loved on our last trip. First stop was the famous Lafitte’s Blacksmith Shop, which is the oldest structure to have served as a bar in the U.S. It’s on Bourbon, but on the quieter, residential side of things. They make a delicious, and crazy-strong grape slushy drink called the Voodoo Daiquiri, which I could drink all night (or at least until I pass out). One Voodoo Daiquiri got me more buzzed than drinking all day on the cruise.

 

Since it had been a while since we’d eaten, we only stayed for one drink before heading across the street to NOLA Poboys for some tasty New Orleans sandwiches. My favorite, the debris style roast beef, had been replaced with a version with pot roast, which just wasn’t quite as delicious. The barbeque shrimp po’boy was still great, and the fried boudin balls were amazing.

[PaulInPGH]

 

Barbeque shrimp po'boy.

[PaulInPGH]

After dinner, we played tourist and took a quick walk down Bourbon Street. We picked up a hand grenade—a potent melon slushy—which we shared on our walk back to our hotel.

 

Coming soon: Christmas Eve in New Orleans, and we take another cruise.

[cincicruisers]

Thanks for taking the time to share your review with us. Very well done.

[gwcruzer]

I am loving your report! Thank you for including your New Orleans adventures.

[Cruzinnana47]

Paul, thank you for the fantastic review of your Dawn cruise and New Orleans stay...I've particularly enjoyed reading this last section describing your Big Easy adventures...it makes me want to get back there again and visit the places you've mentioned....particularly Dooky Chase's! We ate in Willie Mae's last April during our pre-cruise stay before boarding the Dawn, and that was quite an experience, too--especially finding it! I also enjoyed seeing the photos of City Park showing the Christmas lights.

 

Thanks also to your wife for her narrative about time spent talking with the legendary Leah "Dooky" Chase herself.

 

Hope you have many happy travels in the future.

[Wetescape2016]

Thank you for your review Paul! We are taking our first trip to New Orleans in just under 30 days. We will be sailing on the Dawn for our first time, and if you can believe it in room 9602!

I am taking note of all your New Orleans tips, so thank you for that!

Heather

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

[pmcglothen]

Hi Paul...First off thanks for the great review...We are sailing on the Dawn the First week in February and we are very excited and love all the tips I am getting from you!

 

I do have a question about the breakfast at O'Sheehans...what to they have? On cruises we usually opt for the dining room instead of the buffet but would like to have another option as well!

 

Thanks,

Patti

[PopPopBear]

Great review Paul! Looking forward to boarding the Dawn in 4 days. :)

[PaulInPGH]

Thank you for your review Paul! We are taking our first trip to New Orleans in just under 30 days. We will be sailing on the Dawn for our first time, and if you can believe it in room 9602!

I am taking note of all your New Orleans tips, so thank you for that!

Heather

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

 

That's funny. I'm sure you'll enjoy 9602; it's a great room in a great spot. I'm glad you've found the New Orleans stuff helpful. I wish I was going back already. Maybe 2018:)

 

Cheers.

[PaulInPGH]

Hi Paul...First off thanks for the great review...We are sailing on the Dawn the First week in February and we are very excited and love all the tips I am getting from you!

 

I do have a question about the breakfast at O'Sheehans...what to they have? On cruises we usually opt for the dining room instead of the buffet but would like to have another option as well!

 

Thanks,

Patti

 

I don't remember much beyond what we had. My wife had an omelet, and I ordered something called the express breakfast, which was eggs, bacon, hash browns, and toast. Generally, I think they offered a slightly smaller version of what you could order in the dining room, but, at least the morning we ate there, it took about half the time. Not quite as quick as going to the buffet, but still pretty quick.

[PaulInPGH]

Day 10: A Christmas Eve Cruise

 

Being a creature of habit, I of course wanted more beignets for breakfast on Christmas Eve. It turned out that pretty much everyone in New Orleans had the same idea, so we took one look at the line and decided to change course.

 

We took a short walk over to Johnny’s Po’boys, which is reputed to be one of the best po’boy shops in town. We shared a breakfast po’boy which was good, but had nothing on the lunch po’boys we’d grab there later in the trip.

[PaulInPGH]

For the last few days, my wife had been dealing with steadily-worsening congestion in her nose and ears. She felt bad enough the morning of Christmas Eve that, following breakfast, we took an Uber to the nearest open urgent care to get checked out by a doctor. Luckily, we were one of the first in to the urgent care that morning, so we were in and out in about 20 minutes. My wife was dealing with a pretty severe case of congestion, along with a possible sinus infection, so the doc put her on antibiotics, along with some powerful decongestants. We Ubered back to the Quarter and stopped at a CVS to pick up her meds.

 

Neither of us are strangers to getting sick while on vacation, so my wife took her meds and powered through, not letting her clogged nose and ears prevent her from having a good time. We worked our way over to the French Market to stock up on the New Orleans essentials we wanted to bring home. We grabbed some Café du Monde beignet mix and coffee, and some Pat O’s Hurricane Mix. My wife also grabbed some of the po’boy sauce she loves from the Pepper Palace. All of this can be ordered online, which is great when you need that New Orleans fix, but we decided to stock up and save the cost of shipping.