You may have seen your share of beads during the weekend's Mardi Gras parties, but consider those a mere warmup to tomorrow's main event. Which includes:
The velvet-draped environs and special holiday menu at this French boite should help you get in touch with the softer side of New Orleans' Creole heritage. But the toothsome alligator soup—teeming with meaty chunks of the swamp critters—keeps you in touch with your wilder instincts.
You've always taken a global perspective when it comes to partying, so you'll be inspired by Carnivale's spicy gumbo of South American flavor and French Quarter-style decadence, where feathered samba dancers and Bacardi girls muddling tableside mojitos find common purpose: your happiness.
You'll find gumbo, spicy jambalaya and etouffee at this Moonshine soiree, but it's the guests of honor that you've come to see: a hundred pounds of live crawdads shipped directly from chef (and Louisiana native) Aaron Ortego's family farm. Consider them recession lobsters.
In addition to hurricanes, Ash Wednesday shots and oysters with housemade hot sauce, the Fifty/50's party offers the lady who collects the most beads by the end of the night a $100 bar gift certificate. We can only hope that someone plays dirty…
Your memories of Bourbon Street are a little fuzzy, so you should feel right at home on Rush and Division, where things have been known to get a bit hazy. If you need a guide between bars, just follow the stilt walkers—and hope someone's salted the sidewalk.
