Conference Dinner on Thurs - need your input ASAP
Posted: Mon Apr 23, 2018 12:55 pm
Hi all,
I need some input from you. I'm trying to choose a place for all us all to eat together on Thursday night as is our custom at these conferences. The hotel gave me a list (which I have posted in another thread in this section) and I am going through that list as well as some others that I have found on TripAdvisor and Yelp. Here's the issue: I want to choose a place that has real New Orleans food and not just burgers and pizza, but also has enough of a selection for everyone to find something. And it must be within walking distance from the hotel.
Many of the choices on the hotel list are primarily bars or they serve food selections that you can get anywhere. And many of the places that DO have traditional N.O. food don't have room for 18 people for dinner. So...the dilemma.
Here's a bit of a recap of some of those on the hotel list with real N.O. food on their menu:
Bon Ton Cafe (upscale), is in a historic building and has great reviews and a good-sized menu, but it's quite expensive. There ARE things on the menu that are "relatively" reasonable ($20-30), but being more upscale, you can also spend $30-45 on a steak like at Ruth Chris. They DO have room for us if we divide up into two groups. We would still be sitting near each other - most likely at adjacent tables.
Menu: http://www.thebontoncafe.com/dinner.html
Mothers sounds really fun, but they have first come, first served seating and it's cafeteria style where you order at a counter and then go find a seat. (That might be great for lunch if some people want to try it out. I do!)
Menu: http://www.mothersrestaurant.net/mothers_menu.html
CellarDoor is in a historic building (a house actually), and they are known for their craft drinks, but they also serve food. The menu doesn't have that many choices though and their online menu has no prices displayed (irritating)
Menu: http://www.cellardoornola.com/menu-1/
Luke - which originally was one of my first choices, can accommodate us in their private dining room only, but they want a $1000 guarantee for food, and since we are a "large" group, they would make us choose from a reduced menu. I don't know about you, but I want MORE choices, not fewer. Also, they are located inside a hotel so there isn't really much N.O. ambieance. I could check to see if we can get in there if we break up into 3 groups - as we did once in San Antonio.
Menu: https://www.lukeneworleans.com/menus/
Cochon - historic building, and some less common foods: Pig foot, rabbit, port cheeks, alligator, etc. Prices are reasonable.
Menu: https://cochonrestaurant.com/#cochonMenus
So... if you want to eat all together, I need some input. Please look through the menus. If you just want to take your chances in smaller groups with no reservations and go our separate ways, we could do that as well. A lot of places DO need reservations though for the dinner hour - even for smaller groups. If you know of another place, let me know!
Feedback please! If I'm making reservations for all of us, time is running out. I may email you all as well, but it would better to have a discussion here together.
-- Susan
I need some input from you. I'm trying to choose a place for all us all to eat together on Thursday night as is our custom at these conferences. The hotel gave me a list (which I have posted in another thread in this section) and I am going through that list as well as some others that I have found on TripAdvisor and Yelp. Here's the issue: I want to choose a place that has real New Orleans food and not just burgers and pizza, but also has enough of a selection for everyone to find something. And it must be within walking distance from the hotel.
Many of the choices on the hotel list are primarily bars or they serve food selections that you can get anywhere. And many of the places that DO have traditional N.O. food don't have room for 18 people for dinner. So...the dilemma.
Here's a bit of a recap of some of those on the hotel list with real N.O. food on their menu:
Bon Ton Cafe (upscale), is in a historic building and has great reviews and a good-sized menu, but it's quite expensive. There ARE things on the menu that are "relatively" reasonable ($20-30), but being more upscale, you can also spend $30-45 on a steak like at Ruth Chris. They DO have room for us if we divide up into two groups. We would still be sitting near each other - most likely at adjacent tables.
Menu: http://www.thebontoncafe.com/dinner.html
Mothers sounds really fun, but they have first come, first served seating and it's cafeteria style where you order at a counter and then go find a seat. (That might be great for lunch if some people want to try it out. I do!)
Menu: http://www.mothersrestaurant.net/mothers_menu.html
CellarDoor is in a historic building (a house actually), and they are known for their craft drinks, but they also serve food. The menu doesn't have that many choices though and their online menu has no prices displayed (irritating)
Menu: http://www.cellardoornola.com/menu-1/
Luke - which originally was one of my first choices, can accommodate us in their private dining room only, but they want a $1000 guarantee for food, and since we are a "large" group, they would make us choose from a reduced menu. I don't know about you, but I want MORE choices, not fewer. Also, they are located inside a hotel so there isn't really much N.O. ambieance. I could check to see if we can get in there if we break up into 3 groups - as we did once in San Antonio.
Menu: https://www.lukeneworleans.com/menus/
Cochon - historic building, and some less common foods: Pig foot, rabbit, port cheeks, alligator, etc. Prices are reasonable.
Menu: https://cochonrestaurant.com/#cochonMenus
So... if you want to eat all together, I need some input. Please look through the menus. If you just want to take your chances in smaller groups with no reservations and go our separate ways, we could do that as well. A lot of places DO need reservations though for the dinner hour - even for smaller groups. If you know of another place, let me know!
Feedback please! If I'm making reservations for all of us, time is running out. I may email you all as well, but it would better to have a discussion here together.
-- Susan