Everyone recommended the jazz brunch at Commander’s Palace, so we had to check it out. There’s a dress code, as the unfortunate gentleman in front of us discovered when he arrived in shorts and was asked to return to his hotel to change. Luckily we were prepared. It was our last morning in New Orleans, and what better way to end our amazing trip than with more live music and more incredible food!

According to one of the waiters, the building was once a house of ill repute.

Here we are in our fancy duds.

Egg Sardou

Wild White Shrimp Remoulade

Fire-grilled Louisiana White Shrimp

Pecan Crusted Gulf Fish

Musicians travel around to room and chat with guests

Spiced Gingerbread Cake with Pumpkin

Creole Bread Pudding Souffle

A sweet finale to an amazing weekend. We would have liked one more day to see some of the things we missed,  but now we have a reason to go back!

Saturday was filled with more tasty treats, culture and history, and incredible music. We visited the Voodoo Museum, took a bike tour around the city, ate way more food than any two people should consume in a single day, and ended the evening at our beloved Fritzel’s.

Artist drawing the cathedral

Stanley’s came highly recommended for brunch, and it did not disappoint.

Our attempt to try as many of New Orlean’s famous eats as possible in three days - we shared the Stella Benedict (eggs benedict with fried softshell crab) and an oyster po’boy. Yum.

Smoking Time Jazz Club, complete with a couple of swing dancers, on Royal St. We are now the proud owners of a couple of their CDs.

Fritzel’s during the day.

Voodoo Museum

Madame John’s Legacy was rebuilt in 1789, and survived the fire of 1794 that burned down much of the French Quarter. It’s built in the Louisiana Creole (French West Indies) style of architecture.

Ready for our tour of the city with Bob, of Big Easy Bike Tours.

Holocaust Memorial in front of the Mississippi River

The steamboat Natchez has a 32-note steam pipe organ known as a Steam Calliope, which plays some very unique, charming tunes.

The beginning of Frenchman St., another destination for great music and food.

Our tour guide, Bob, was  a wealth of knowledge about the various architectural styles (and colors) of homes around New Orleans.

City Park

Tomb of Unknown Slaves at St. Augustine Catholic Church in the Treme neighborhood

Time for an afternoon snack - Cafe du Monde is open 24-hours a day

Coffee for him, cafe au lait for me, and an order of beignets to share.

We had another wonderful dinner, this time at Emeril Lagasse’s NOLA restaurant. We over-indulged on BBQ shrimp, a scallop special appetizer, the NOLA Caesar salad, and for entrees, Adam ordered shrimp and grits, and I had the garlic crusted drum, which is a local white fish. For dessert, we had the banana pudding layer cake. We somehow failed to take pictures of any of this delicious food!

Our first choice for music that night was The Spotted Cat on Frenchman St., but it was packed, as were all the other jazz clubs in that area. So we headed back to tried-and-true Fritzel’s to hear the Fritzel’s New Orleans Jazz Band. Of course, we walked down Bourbon St. on our way out to marvel at the chaos and debauchery. It was a perfect end to a perfect evening.

New Orleans is perfect for a little getaway. Rich in history and culture, amazing food, and wonderful music. IOn our first day, we wandered around the French Quarter, shopped in the French Market, took the streetcar through the Garden District, and enjoyed a memorable meal at John Besh’s August. We topped off the night with a stroll down Bourbon Street and ended up at Fritzel’s European Jazz Pub.

Camellia Grill was a great recommendation for breakfast - looks and feels like an old-fashioned diner.

Bits of history sprinkled around the city.

View down Chartres St. towards St. Louis Cathedral

Balconies are a common architectural detail

Live music in front of Jackson Square

Peeing fountain in Jackson Square

Jackson Square was formerly known as Place d’Armes, and the park was modeled after the Place des Vosges in Paris.

The Steamboat Natchez

Adam and I, with the Mississippi River in the background

The French Market has fresh produce, food stalls and other tasty morsels, plus a flea market.

Flea market finds

This shop had all kinds of great stuff!

The famous Cornstalk Hotel

Preservation Hall (unfortunately our dinner reservations prevented us from checking out the music here, so we’ll add that to the list of must-dos when we return!)

Lunch at ACME Oyster House: seafood gumbo

ACME’s signature dish: chargrilled oysters, topped with garlic butter and parmesan cheese

Street car in front of Loyola University, across from Audubon Park. Great way to see the grand homes of the Garden District.

Fountain in Audubon Park

Angels

Amuse bouche at Chef John Besh’s restaurant, August

My entree - brioche breaded trout, topped with jumbo lump crab meat and wild mushrooms, with hollandaise foam. Amazing flavors and presentation.

Bourbon Street - like a 7-block long frat party in the street

Lucky find of the night - Fritzel’s European Jazz Pub.

My final week of summer vacation started with a hurricane, which turned into a tropical storm, which knocked out power and water at Camp Fern for a few days, yet none of that could stop me from enjoying a gorgeous week in the Hamptons!

On Tuesday morning, Angela got up crazy early to go surfing with Dave. I went for a run to the beach, and when I returned, I saw this. Angela is hardcore!

We still had no power, so I got creative and made breakfast on the grill.

Hurricane McMuffins!

On the ferry, headed toward Shelter Island

Lovely beach in front of the Sunset Beach Hotel

On Wednesday, Nicki and I had dinner at Crow’s Nest in Montauk. This is the view from the restaurant, which feels a little like a treehouse.

Our power finally came back on around 2am Thursday morning, but we still had some amazing produce from the farm stand, perfect for lunch on the deck. Jess made a tomato and cucumber salad. So simple, so delicious.

I grilled corn, zucchini, yellow squash and green beans. Yummy!

On Friday, the rest of the Ferners came back, and we spent the afternoon at Ditch Plains, the Montauk beach most popular with surfers.

Happy hour at Cyril’s

Saturday was family dinner night - we started with Jess’ famous guacamole and Bonduritas (a.k.a. margaritas, or “happy juice”).

Grilled tilapia with mango-avocado salsa, corn and tomato salad with basil, and quinoa with chickpeas and red peppers

Jess, Heather, Angela and I went for casual fun - jukebox, ring game, darts, and plush (pronounced “ploosh”) at Murf’s. Nady and Amy opted to get gussied up and headed to Rushmeyer’s and Talkhouse.

Sunday was our last full day in the Hamptons for the summer. We ended with sunset in Sag Harbor.

And drinks with Nicole, Fernando and other friends at B. Smith’s. And pizza at Conca d’Oro.

Another amazing summer in the Hamptons, so many great stories and good times. See you next year, Camp Fern!

We were ready for a little activity in our third weekend in the Hamptons. We kicked it off with an early dinner of fajitas, courtesy of Jessica. Yum! Clearly I am no longer the only house chef. And who am I to turn down a delicious dinner made by someone else! We had so much fun with the moonlight kayaking last year, we just had to do it again. Same surf shop (Main Beach Surf and Sport), only this time we were on Georgica Pond, right around the corner from Camp Fern. And like last year, we finished the night with a visit to an old fave - Murf’s in Sag Harbor!

Peppers and onions

Steak

The goods

Shrimp fajita for me!

Chef Jess knows how to rock a life vest

Angela and Heather

Jess and Amy

Emily

Click on the photo to see the deer

And a fox!

Stalking the swan (this was my view)

Angela and me

We made it!

Jeff and Nicki

Heather on a SUP (stand-up paddleboard)

This week’s Ferners: Emily, Angela, me, Heather, Jess, Amy

Clamming and crabbing

Full moon rising

Bonfire and s’mores!

Em likes her marshmallows burnt to a crisp

Designated driver, drinking responsibly

Dave was an old friend we met at Murf’s last summer

Group hug

Midnight snack - shrimp and taco sauce on a chip. Classy!

Rainy Sundays are a good excuse for wine and cheese. Really though, who needs an excuse?