1.
Arnaud's Restaurant
In
other cities, gourmands may get excited
about a restaurant one minute and
the next minute, the spot has been
turned into a hardware store. Not
so in old New Orleans, where restaurants
can become part of the family. None
of these moreso, it seems, than Arnaud's.
New Orleans families have been visiting
Arnaud's for generations, choosing
it as the location where they want
to commemorate their most important
family events and milestones.
Founded
by a colorful French wine salesman
names Arnaud Cazenave, Arnaud's recently
celebrated 80 years of serving New
Orleans families and visitors the
finest cuisine in a classic atmosphere
that speaks of Old World grandeur
and a simpler time.
In
fact, so beloved has this dining institution
become to New Orleanians that many
have simply decided to spend eternity
there.
Arnaud
Cazenave is said to be the most active
spirit in the restaurant, perhaps
still hanging around to make sure
that everything is being kept in order
and to his liking. Cazenave, whom
most New Orleanians came to call Count
Arnaud, for no apparent reason as
he was not nobility, was a stickler
for service in the grand French style,
and it is likely he still maintains
these standards today. If silverware
and napkins are not set to his liking,
the staff says he has no qualms about
moving them; If he does not like the
set up at the bar, he will rearrange
it until he does. The kitchen, the
service areas, no space is off-limits
to the ghost of Count Arnaud.
Just before Count Arnaud
died, he let it be known that his
successor was to be his daughter Germaine
Cazenave Wells who guided the venerable
institution through many years.
The Germaine Cazenave
Wells Mardi Gras Museum was opened
at Arnaud's Restaurant in her honor
in 1983 by then-proprietor Archie
A. Casbarian. Open free to the public
during restaurant hours, the collection
of Carnival court gowns, costumes
and other memorabilia made in France
provides a rare glimpse of the private
side of Mardi Gras.
The museum has two basic
themes-what Mardi Gras is and who
Mrs. Wells and her family were. The
museum brings together more than two
dozen lavish Mardi Gras costumes,
including 13 of Mrs. Wells' queen
costumes, one of her mother's and
one of her daughter's, as well as
four king's costumes worn by Count
Arnaud, (whose title was entirely
local and honorary) and six children's
costumes.
The spirit of Germaine
Cazenave is said to haunt this area
of the restaurant and Mardi Gras Museum
most frequently. There have been reports
from employees and patrons who have
been startled to see a misty form
appear among the many Mardi Gras gowns
and keepsakes. That misty form is
said to be the daughter of Count Arnaud.
The restaurant serves
classic Creole dishes, including the
Count’s own spicy recipe forRemoulade
Sauce. The restaurant features many
dining rooms and the French 75 bar.
813 Bienville St, New
Orleans, LA 70112-3121
Official
arunads Web site www.arnauds.com
2.
Brennan’s Restaurant
Located at
417 Royal Street in the heart of the
French Quarter, Brennan's Restaurant
has been a culinary phenomenon in
New Orleans since it opened its doors
in 1946. The Brennan's menu is known
and highly regarded throughout the
world and most visitors do not want
to miss an opportunity to have a meal
at this famous location while visiting
the Crescent City.
The Royal Street location
that Brennan's now occupies was maintained
as a private residence throughout
the 19th century and into the 20th
century, until Edward Brennan founded
his famous restaurant. Most of the
paranormal activity that has been
identified at Brennan's is attributed
to the families who owned and occupied
this former New Orleans town house
in the early years of the 19th century.
The location passed through several
owners and so the identity of the
ghostly spectres cannot be verifiably
traced, however, their presence is
undeniable.
Members of the Brennan family who
currently own and operate the restaurant
readily admit that there are ghosts
at the location. Once famous haunting
there involves the infamous spectre
of the second-storey Red Room. Said
to be the spirit of a former owner
who lost everything in financial ruin
and who committed suicide after murdering
his family, the ghostly atmosphere
of the Red Room is usually all anyone
needs to convince them that the place
is haunted. Staff and employees, however,
often have to go to the room for linens
or tables and additional chairs, and
there have been reports of a mysterious
misty figure who literally haunts
their steps the entire time they are
working upstairs. Patrons who have
rented the room for special events
have reported the ghostly image of
a man dressed in 18th century clothing
seen peering in disapprovingly at
the festivities. Some have encountered
simply a feeling of his presence,
an anger and foreboding, just outside
the main door to the Red Room.
Another
active spectre is said to the be ghost
of the late Chel Paul Blange who created
many of Brennan's signature dishes
and helped build the reputation of
the esteemed eatery.
European
Chef Paul Blange, who worked for decades
at the famous eatery and was so devoted
to the restaurant that when he died
the restaurant’s menu, a knife
and fork were placed across his chest
of his dead body as he lay in the
coffin. "No one ever thought
Chef Blange would leave Brennan’s,
and apparently, he never did,"
says Jimmy Brennan, an owner of the
establishment.
The
Chef is said to lurk in the kitchen,
his natural location in life, and
many of the chef staff have reported
the feeling of being watched, and
even of something touching them while
they are preparing meals. Late at
night, when the guests have gone and
staff are locking up, Chef Paul will
bang doors and pots in the empty kitchen.
And this is where the ghost is most
often sighted.
Another
former employee is said to haunt and
be sighted in the wine cellar that
he made famous. Herman Funk, a wine
master whom Brennan's employed to
build their fabulous cache of famous
and renowned wines and spirits, is
said to be still attached to his job
even in the afterlife. Most employees
don't like going to the wine racks
alone, although they brave their way
through it. For every clink of a bottle
the employee makes, it is said, there
is a mimicking "clink" of
another bottle just out of reach.
This, they say, is Herman Funk making
his suggestion for a wine selection.
Employees who have been there awhile
admit that they will usually go with
Funk's selection, in addition to what
the guest might request, bringing
patrons a choice "just to keep
Herman happy."
For
a haunting in the most sumptuous surroundings,
Brennan's, the famous French Quarter
restaurant, offers it's red dining
room. Tucked away upstairs and lit
by gas chandeliers, the room was the
scene of a murder-suicide during the
Civil War when the owner of the house
killed his wife and son then hanged
himself from the elaborate brass chandelier.
"I've seen the
ghost there myself," says a waiter
at Brennan's for10 years. "The
cleaning crew won't go in there at
night, but a lot of people request
that room for dinner. They hope to
see the ghost.
Official
web site /www.brennansneworleans.com
3.
Antoine's Restaurant
Since
1840, world-renowned Antoine's Restaurant
has set the standard that made New
Orleans one of the greatest dining
centers of the world.
For over 160 years,
Antoine's Restaurant's excellent French-Creole
cuisine, service, and atmosphere have
combined to create an unmatched dining
experience for both locals and visitors
to New Orleans.
Established in 1840,
Antoine's is the country's oldest
family-run restaurant. Antoine’s
is more thanjust a Haunted New Orleans
restaurant it is an experience, a
museum and a walk back in time to
old New Orleans. Ancestral spirits
lurk within the great old walls of
this 4 star fine dining experience.
Make sure to tell the Ghost of Antoine
hello.
It was spring in 1840,
when New Orleans was queen city of
the Mississippi River, when cotton
was king and French gentlemen settled
their differences under the oaks with
pistols for two and coffee for one.
"Dixie" had not yet been
written, destined to become the marching
anthem for Confederate forces in the
War Between the States.
This was the city young
Antoine Alciatore adopted, after two
frustrating years in New York, to
establish a restaurant that would
endure under his family's direction
for more than 150 years and set the
standard that has made New Orleans
one of the great dining centers of
the world.
It was on St. Louis
Street, just one block from the spot
the famed restaurant occupies today,
that the 27-year old Alciatore started
what was to become simply "Antoine's"
as a synonym for fine food. He felt
at home in the French-speaking city
of lordly aristocrats and their extravagances,
an ideal audience for his culinary
artistry.
The main dining room at Antoine's
as it appeared in 1951. Even at that
late date the gas chandeliers provided
the only heat for the room during
the winter months! [Louisiana Photograph
Collection, New Orleans Public Library]
After a brief period in the kitchen
of the grand St. Charles Hotel, Antoine
opened a pension, a boarding house
and a restaurant. It wasn't long before
the aromatic odors wafting from his
kitchen brought New Orleans to his
door and, in five years, the Pension
Alciatore was firmly established.
It was then that he
made arrangements for his finacee'
to join him from New York. She came
to New Orleans with her sister and
she and Antoine were married. Together
they worked to build up their pension
with culinary emphasis.
New Orleans' gentility
was so taken with the restaurant that
it soon outgrew its small quarters
and Antoine's moved down the block
and eventually, in 1868, to the spot
on St. Louis Street where the restaurant
stands today.
In 1874, Antoine being
in ill-heath, took leave of his family,
with the management of the restaurant
in his wife's hands. He felt he had
not much longer to live and wished
to die and be buried in his birthplace
in France. He told his wife he did
not want her to watch him deteriorate
and said as he left; "As I take
boat for Marseilles, we will not meet
again on earth." He died within
the year.
Jules served as apprentice
under his mother's tutelage for six
years before she sent him to France
where he served in the great kitchens
of Paris, Strassburg and Marseilles.
He returned to New Orleans and became
chef of the famous Pickwick Club in
1887 before his mother summoned him
to head the house of Antoine.
His genius was in the
kitchen where he invented Oysters
Rockefeller, so named for the richness
of the sauce. They remain one of the
great culinary creations of all time
and that recipe remains a closely-guarded
Antoine's secret ... though it has
been imitated countless times.
Jules married Althea
Roy, daughter of a planter in Youngsville
in southwest Louisiana, and Marie
Louise, the grand dame of the family,
was born. A son, Roy Louis, was born
in 1902 and headed the restaurant
for almost 40 years until his death
in 1972.
Many locals say that
the ghost if the family still watches
over it's fine dining establishment
from the other side.
http://www.antoines.com/
Antoine's Restaurant • 713
Rue Saint Louis • New Orleans,
Louisiana 70130
4.
La Louisiane Restaurant
The
Bar & Bistro at La Louisiane
725 Iberville St
New Orleans, LA 70130
(504) 378-8200
Old
World charm fills this historic hotel
restaurant, which has seen multiple
closings and renovations since the
early 1800s. Now fully restored--crystal
chandeliers, gas lanterns and original
artwork adorn the space--the Bistro
offers an eclectic menu of French-Creole,
Italian, Mediterranean and American
dishes. Louisiana oysters are served
with braised endive and melted cheese;
gulf fish is pan-sauteed or grilled;
and cane-syrup glazed carrots and
parsnip mashed potatoes compliment
the bone-in short ribs.
During the late 1800’s, this
building was owned by Amaron Ledoux
his widow, a philanthropist known
for caring for destitute women. Her
ghost has been seen recently, but
was most seen in the 1960’s
when the Playboy Club was located
next door to the restaurant, and Playboy
Bunnies reported that Mrs. LeDoux
“watched over them.”
Leased
by Louis Bézaudun and his wife
Ann in 1881 as the site of a hotel
and restaurant their ghost are said
by locals to be see quite often dressed
in all their finery walking in and
out of the building. Ann Bézaudun's
ghost is said to smell very exotic
and the strange arouma of a old french
perfume fills the air when she is
near. If you happen to see this ghost
she is always dressed in black and
is said to smile and nod politely
and go on her way.
New
Orleans hotelier and restaurateur
Brett Smith was renovating an 1809
building in the French Quarter, which
was to become La Louisiane Restaurant
and his upstairs residence. While
chatting on the phone, he looked through
the carpenter’s plastic drape,
and saw a figure sitting on a ledge.
Smith thought he was alone in the
building.
"I saw the figure
of a person watching me, and then
felt a cold breeze float past. It
wasn’t a cold day," says
Smith. "The presence of another
being or whatever was so real that
I could feel the hair stand up on
the back of my neck."
La Louisiane’s
Brett Smith isn’t sure that
he believes in ghosts, but he isn’t
discounting the idea either. "Before
my experiences, I didn’t believe
in ghosts at all, but now I’m
not sure. I do know something happened
and another being is here. I’ve
decided to accept the Playboy Bunnies’
version and to believe that the ghost
in this building is watching over
me and my family. She’s now
part of our family as well."
5.
Muriel’s Restaurant
801 Chartres Street,
at Chartres. Occupying a large corner
spot overlooking Jackson Square and
just steps away from St Louis Cathedral,
Muriel’s is a pretty place to
dig into creative Creole cooking.
Chef Erik Veney works with classic
local elements, like crawfish, oysters,
soft shell crabs in season, or duck
confit in his own recipes and does
traditional dishes like gumbo and
turtle soup.
Muriel's used to be
haunted by the ghosts of several slaves.
However, many years ago the owners
decided to block off an area of the
restaurant (which can be seen from
the street) and dedicate it to the
slaves. They place fresh bread in
the room each day, and ever since
they started the tradition the ghosts
of the slaves haven't been seen.
Although she never actually
lived there, in theory Muriel is the
woman who would own Muriel's Jackson
Square. It was a a grand New Orleans
home in the mid-1800s. Egyptian mummy
cases mingle with tasseled lamps and
a Ouija board in the upstairs Seance
Lounge; velvet curtains are suspended
alongside trees in the iron-furnished
Courtyard Bar; the Virgin Mary hangs
just outside a restroom ornamented
with African tribal paraphernalia.
Muriel is an eccentric
ghost they say. She likes chairs to
slide over slippery wooden floors,
and she plays spooky Gregorian chants
in stairways illuminated by gaslights.
One recent report is that she can
be seen sometimes as a reflection
in the windows looking out towards
Jackson square,
There are at least three known actual
ghosts at Muriel’s, and maybe
more. The best known is Pierre Antoine
Lepardi Jourdan, who built this structure
as a home in 1789. He committed suicide
upstairs in 1814, and his ghost can
be seen wandering through the building.
The lounge on the second
floor is haunted by Pierre Antoine
Lepardi Jourdan. Mr. Jourdan built
his house (the building the restaurant
currently resides in) in 1789. The
house was his dream home, and he loved
it dearly. However, one night in 1814
Pierre Antoine Lepardi Jourdan bet
his house in a poker game. Unfortunately,
he lost the game and had to give up
his home. But before he gave it up,
he committed suicide on the second
floor. Today people see his ghost
wandering around the lounge. His spirit
doesn't appear human, but instead
he appears to be a block of sparkley
light.
The two other ghosts
are mischievous and throw glasses
around the first floor bar and courtyard.
One of them a small girl called francis
is said to be heard sining and often
slams doors and trips a waiter or
waitress.
http://www.muriels.com/
6.
Cafe Du Monde
1039 Decatur Street
New Orleans, LA 70116 .The Original
Cafe Du Monde Coffee Stand was established
in 1862 in the New Orleans French
Market. The Cafe is open 24 hours
a day, seven days a week. It closes
only on Christmas Day and on the day
an occasional Hurricane passes too
close to New Orleans. Many say ghost
vampires and zombies have been seen
from this vantage point looking towards
the Mississippi River and Jackson
Square.
Many of the locals swear
of a ghost waiter that takes your
order and dissapears. When the actual
waiter shows up they usuall say oh
that our ghost waiter walter or Blue
as some call him.
The Original Cafe Du
Monde is a traditional coffee shop.
Its menu consists of dark roasted
Coffee and Chicory, Beignets, White
and Chocolate Milk, and fresh squeezed
Orange Juice. The coffee is served
Black or Au Lait. Au Lait means that
it is mixed half and half with hot
milk. Beignets are square French -style
doughnuts, lavishly covered with powdered
sugar. In 1988 Iced Coffee was introduced
to the cafe. Soft drinks also made
their debut that year.
The taste for coffee
and chicory was developed by the French
during their civil war. Coffee was
scarce during those times, and they
found that chicory added body and
flavor to the brew. The Acadians from
Nova Scotia brought this taste and
many other french customs (heritage)
to Louisiana.
Chicory is the root
of the endive plant. Endive is a type
of lettuce. The root of the plant
is roasted and ground. It is added
to the coffee to soften the bitter
edge of the dark roasted coffee. It
adds an almost chocolate flavor to
the Cafe Au Lait served at Cafe Du
Monde.
The Cafe Du Monde Coffee
and Chicory is traditionally served
Au Lait, mixed half and half with
hot milk. However, people have a personal
preference on how they like their
coffee. People like their coffee strong
and black, or with sugar; maybe with
a little more milk, or maybe a little
weaker brew. I suggest that the Coffee
and Chicory be demonstrated using
vacuum bottles to keep the coffee
hot, and to give the customer the
opportunity to experiment finding
their personal preference.
Cafe Du Monde · 1039 Decatur
Street New Orleans, LA 70116
Official
Web site www.cafedumonde.com
7.
Pat
O'Brien's
The great bar and restaurant
of the French Quarter is located at
718 St. Peter St. where it holds forth
24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365
days a year. Operators estimated that
possibly a billion people have passed
through the grand old watering hole
in the generations it has been open.
Famous for the ass-kicking Hurricane
(more than just a pretty glass!),
the old establishment boasts a ghostly
reputation almost as well-known as
its menu.
Probably the two most
haunted areas of Pat's are the Piano
Bar and the upstairs Ladies Room.
Employees from the early
shifts, when the old building can
sometimes be almost empty of customers,
have reported strange cold spots and
footsteps in the Piano Bar area. One
bartender, restocking the bar alone
one afternoon, distinctly heard the
sound of footsteps behind him followed
by the tinkling of piano keys. He
looked around and found no one else
in the bar and no apparent source
for the ghostly sounds. Needless to
say, he was quick to complete his
inventory. Others have reported cold
spots and the feeling of being pushed
when no one is around.
The Ladies Room is said
to be haunted by the ghostly spirit
of a restroom attendant. Ladies who
have retired to a stall in a mostly
empty restroom have reported hearing
footsteps and the sound of sighs in
nearby stalls. One woman reported
hearing a sudden peal of laughter
from the stall areas when only she
and one the lone (living!) restroom
attendant were present. New female
employees are generally very uncomfortable
in the grand old privy, though some
of the older workers just laugh and
say that they can take the sounds
in stride, just as long as they don't
SEE anything!
Other employees report
poltergeist-like activity in the courtyard
area where they insist that a spirit
likes to move the wrought iron tables
and chairs around, and sometimes likes
to hide the workers' ubiquitous green
jackets while they are busy preparing
for the day's crowds.
An old tradition at
Pat O's is to have a photo memento
taken of an evening spent there. Although
some people look a little worse for
wear, or worse than they recall, several
have commented in hindsight that the
Pat O's photos might be a good place
to look for photographic evidence
of ghostly occurrences. If you have
any Pat O's memento photos and notice
anything odd in them, please let us
know and we will be happy to post
them on our Ghost Photos page!
Pay
a virtual visit to Pat O's right now
at www.patobriens.com
8.
The Bombay
Club Restaurant and Martini Bistro
Guests of the Prince
Conti don't have to walk far to experience
outstanding New Orleans cuisine.
Elegant, sophisticated
and very popular with the local cognoscenti,
The Bombay Club Restaurant and Martini
Bistro is tucked away down the carriageway
at the back of the Prince. The Bombay
Club features Nouveau Creole specialties
such as Louisiana Bar-B-Q Shrimp,
Duck Duet and Bombay Filet Mignon
with English Stilton cheese.
The bar is well known
for the best and largest martini selection
in town - 125 variations - single
malt scotches, ports, reserved bourbons
and premium cigars. Live music nightly
showcases a changing cadre of small
ensembles, jazz and cabaret performers.
New Orleans , so well
known for her music, food, and spirits,
has surprisingly few venues that offer
a high quality sampling of all three.
One of these rare places is The Bombay
Club, a lovely candlelit spot tucked
away in the heart of the French Quarter
at 830 Conti Street . Although the
club is located just a short half-block
from the infamous Bourbon Street ,
its ambiance is miles away.
The ghost of a Storyville
Madame is sighted often, she still
haunts the bar area and kitchen area
here. She has been seen and photographed
at booth number three in the bar and
amongst guest photos. She has walked
in and out of the bar area many times
and actually is said to bump into
people then just dissapear. Unexplained
paranormal occurrences have taken
place in the kitchen. A dishwasher
will turn itself on/off, sometimes
not even going on when it's supposed
to.
The Bombay Club, 830
Conti St 586-0972 Featuring live music
nightly, the Bombay lays claim to
being the "premiere piano bar
of the city" and is renowned
for its excellent martinis.
Offical
Web Site www.princecontihotel.com/dining.html
9.
Louis XVI
Restaurant
A feast of lavish French
cuisine and fine wines is presented
with European-style service at the
internationally-acclaimed Louis XVI
Restaurant nestled in the historic
St. Louis Hotel. A romantic evening
overlooking the French restaurant's
Mediterranean-style courtyard has
become an integral part of the New
Orleans experience.
When Louis XVI opened
its doors in 1971, its mission was
to provide true French cooking and
service to a city where Creole had
reigned supreme for centuries. After
a quarter of a century, Louis XVI
remains steadfast in its desire to
be only one thing ... a fine French
restaurant. Its standards have always
required that the quality of product
and service be maintained regardless
of the cost.
And new ghost sightings
as of recen , ex kitchen and current
employees say Louis XVI Restaurant
is very haunted. The many ghost are
said to adjust the thermostat on the
stoves and large ovens. Lock and unlock
the store room and rearranges the
vast wine Celler... Many think it's
the past owners ghost! Waiters say
they know he follows them to the tables
making sure everything is just right.
Louis XVI, recipient
of the prestigious Distinguished Restaurants
of North America (DiRoNa) Award for
unequalled levels of achievement in
cuisine, service and presentation,
also hosts wedding receptions and
group functions.
Many of the ghost ofen
are sighted in ghost photos taken
at wedding receptions and around the
Mardi Gras Season.
Louis XVI is a very
fine and upscale French restaurant
located right between Bourbon Street
And Royal Street.
http://www.louisxvi.com/
10.
Court of Two Sisters
The Court of Two Sisters offers a
most extraordinary New Orleans dining
experience. Our jambalaya Jams. Spicy
Creole food and music, seven days
a week. 613 Royal St. New Orleans,
LA 70130 504-522-7261 ~ FAX 504-581-5804.
Best Dining - Gold Award
Best Outdoor Dining Best Breakfast
/ Brunch Results of WHERE New Orleans,
the city's premiere visitor magazine,
survey of thousands of national and
international guests.
It was two Creole sisters
and the notions shop they owned on
this site that gave The Court of Two
Sisters its name. However, 613 Rue
Royale has long played a significant
role in the history of the French
Quarter and old New Orleans.
the Court of Two Sisters,
which has been ISPR-certified as haunted.
Many locals tell haunted Tales Of
the Two sisters ghost (Emma and Bertha
Camors) watching over them as they
enjoy their wonderful meals.
Originally known as "Governor's
Row", the 600 block of Rue Royale
was home to five governors, two state
Supreme Court Justices, a future Justice
of the U.S. Supreme Court, and a future
President of the United States. It
is not surprising, then, that the
original resident of our address was
Sieur Etienne de Perier, royal governor
of colonial Louisiana between 1726
and 1733. It has also been rumored
that the outrageous Marquis de Vaudreuil,
the colonial royal governor who transformed
New Orleans from a marshland village
into a "petit Paris", was
once a resident of 613 Rue Royale.
The two sisters, Emma
and Bertha Camors, born 1858 and 1860
respectively, belonged to a proud
and aristocratic Creole family. Their
"rabais", or notions, outfitted
many of the city's finest women with
formal gowns, lace and perfumes imported
from Paris. Marriage, reversals of
fortune, widowhood - nothing could
separate the sisters. Indeed, as the
Picayune was to report, the sisters
died within two months of each other
in the winter of 1944. United in death
as in life, the sisters lie side by
side at St. Louis Cemetery #3. And
today they say there ghost do the
very same and or often sighted sitting
together at a table late at night.
New Orleans Magazine
2001 Reader's Choice
Awards - Best Outdoor Dining
Official
Web Site www.courtoftwosisters.com
Many
other Haunted Restaurant in New Orleans
have had reported ghostly encounters.
