Trip to New Orleans
This trip to New Orleans is a big challenge for me. Previous trips have been food-focused, including lots of oysters, fish, heavy Willa Jean breakfasts, meals at Cochon, Brennan’s, August, Luke, GW Finn’s, Revolution, Acme, NOLA, Emeril’s, Mother’s, Jacques-Imo’s, Johnny Sanchez, K-Paul’s, Surrey’s and muffulettas at Central Grocery. A trip or two to Cafe Du Monde or Cafe Beignet usually happened. For this trip, my husband’s annual Birthday trip to New Orleans, I was a bit concerned. I certainly didn’t want to revert back to my old habits and come back with my all the weight I’ve worked hard to lose, but at the same time I want to enjoy eating. I was surprised to find a lengthy article called “New Orleans in Green”, with pages of reviews. I couldn’t believe how many new places have popped up just in the last couple years. This is going to be a lot easier than I thought!Day 1:
Lunch at Carmo

Dinner at Emeril’s

Chef’s vegetable plate
Day 2:
Breakfast at Pulp and Grind


Vegan Lemon pepita sunflower poppyseed muffin
Lunch at Central Grocery
Have you ever heard of souvenir eating? I succumbed to this notion that I had to have a muffuletta at Central Grocery, which I did. It was good, don’t get me wrong, but I was not as crazy about it as I used to me. I said goodbye to it and decided to have a tofu poboy next time we visit NOLA. I saw a photo of a great looking one at Green Goddess.Dinner at Drago’s in Metarie
Our new friends, Sheri and Raymond Doyle, whom we had never met before, but we have boxers in common, so they are instant friends, wanted us to experience the original Drago’s, which is in Metarie, where they live. The Cvitanovich family is still there after 50 years. Mrs. Cvitanovich was at the hostess stand and was so friendly. After a margarita, I had grilled oysters, wine and lobster. The Blue Zones philosophy I follow will not allow me to feel like a failure for eating any non-plant based food, which is what I love about the plan. Out of 1,100 meals a year, a few meals of anything I want is not going to be the end of the world. I am moving ahead and have an entire day of plant-based restaurants for tomorrow.Day 3:

Breads on Oak
I woke up feeling the effects of all the rich food and wanted more than ever to continue on my plant-based lifestyle. We ubered over to Breads on Oak, a highly rated organic bakery with numerous vegan options. The bright, quirky corner building was easy to spot. Walking up to the counter I was astounded at all the plant-based selections.



St. Roch Market
St. Roch Market is a food hall featuring a diverse lineup of food and beverage stalls. It’s a place for someone to grow a food brand and develop a following. It’s located at 2381 Claude Ave., a 15 minute drive from the French Quarter. We toured the market to see the types of food and found everything from baked goods, Mexican food, and a few plant-based options as well. The Daily Beet menu caught our eye, particularly the fresh sounding ingredients and the spring rolls. Also, we could see piles of fresh fruit and vegetables in their kitchen. We ordered the spring rolls.


Sneaky Pickle
I’ve seen many Instagram photos from Sneaky Pickle in my #vegannola notifications the past few weeks. It is located about a mile from St. Roch Market. We ubered over there, not being sure if walking on the busy street was a good idea.




Dinner at Seed
We heard good things about Seed. A short Uber ride over to the spot at 1330 Prytania Street and we were seating quickly. Seed is described as a chic, modern vegan bistro with a diverse menu and they have wine and cocktails! I saw several things I wanted to try, such as the Southern Fried Nuggets and the Sweet Corn Polenta, however I ended up ordering the Eggplant Poboy, fried eggplant, roasted red peppers, onions, lettuce, and garlic aioli. Steve ordered the BBQ Sandwich with house made seitan, BBQ sauce and slaw on wheat bread. We ordered some chips and dips to much on while waiting for our entrees. We enjoyed the blue corn chips with accompanying salsa, guacamole, and “cheese” sauce.


Day 4
Pulp and Grind Steve ran out to bring up chai tea and muffins while I worked on my blog. This mornings muffins were Pistachio and Almond and Chocolate Chip Walnut. Both amazing. If I lived in NOLA I would get so fat eating these muffins!

with my husband, Steve, outside Commander’s Palace
Heading back to Texas
We had breakfast at the Omni before leaving for the airport. Normally I avoid the high priced hotel cafe breakfasts, usually heavy on egg and meat dishes, but the hotel gave us a $40 gift card due to some issues we had with drunk guests pounding on our door at 2 am and no one answering the phone at the front desk. Long story. I ordered their steel cut oatmeal and toast with peanut butter. They had almond milk, which is a bit unusual. My oatmeal was way overcooked and mushy, but it was edible. I certainly wouldn’t eat here for the food, but we had to get to the airport and it was convenient.