Galvez Restaurant - Gourmet Supper Club September '13 outing

One night last December, a group of friends were sitting around enjoying a wonderful evening...eating, drinking, laughing, drinking, laughing, drinking....you get the picture...hiccup.

We began to lament the fact that we're blessed to live in a city with so many wonderful dining options, but so little time to try them all.  

Well, one drink thing led to another and we decided to form the "Gourmet Supper Club".  We each put the names of restaurants we'd like to try in a bowl and picked 11 of them, and once a month we go together to these wonderful restaurants.  Why 11 you ask when a calendar clearly has 12 months?  No, it was not the alcohol....we saved our December outing for a special Reveillon Dinner to be determined at a later date.

During my absence from blogland, we tried quite a few wonderful restaurants....too many for me to go back and review, so I'll just start with September's outing....Galvez Restaurant.

The restaurant is on the 2nd floor and offers amazing views of the river and railways below.  As we dined and the sun set, the Crescent City Connection bridge lights came on and lit up the night sky and steamships and locomotives went about their daily business adding a wonderful soundtrack to our evening.  

It's a gorgeous restaurant in a quiet area of the French Quarter.  I am always fascinated with the statuary in the area. Apparently, so is our friend Mike....to avoid confusion....Mike's the one on the left.

But back to Galvez.  The restaurant is really beautiful and completely appropriate for special occasions or just a quiet dinner with friends.

We started our evening with a few pitchers of Sangria.  While it was very tasty, I have to admit I wasn't a huge fan of the fruit with rinds still on it. Just not my thing. Please peel the fruit...thank you.

I started my meal with the Manchego Bombas appetizer (a traditional Spanish dish of potato croquettes stuffed with manchego cheese, deep fried and served with quince sauce) This was okay....eh....kinda like fried cheese....overpriced fried cheese.  I wish I'd taken pics of everyone else's food, but I didn't want to be "that person"...ya know?  Our friend, Thorkil, had the seafood gumbo and it was delicious.  I think we all wished we would've gotten that.   

I figured if you're at a Spanish restaurant, ya gotta eat paella, so I went with the Paella Valenciana as my entree (served with mussels, shrimp, chorizo and chicken).  Again, I was underwhelmed.  On the plus side, it's a healthy portion and when I reheated it the next day for lunch it was much tastier than I remembered...seemed more flavorful.  

...and of course, I had to have dessert, so I got the Flan Estilo Galvez (classic Spanish custard with Caramel sauce topped with figs).  This was your basic flan....not bad....just basic flan.  

...and as I said, the view....well, it's hard to beat this.  

All in all, I'd give Galvez Restaurant a "C".  The food was just okay, but the views and atmosphere are "A+".  Some of our Supper Club group gives this a higher grade, and some a lower grade, so the reviews were mixed.

If I ever return, maybe I'd request a table outside on the 2nd floor balcony and just order tapas and drinks and enjoy a quiet, beautiful night in the French Quarter.

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It's Christmas time in New Orleans (in my best Louis Armstrong voice)



St. Louis Cathedral



Steve and I took a break from the hectic pace of the Christmas season to head down to the French Quarter.  We live about 15 minutes away, and try to do this as often as possible, but not nearly enough as we'd like.  I especially love the Quarter and downtown area during Christmas.

Here a buggy driver waits in front of the Cathedral for his next fare.

Love this shot and perspective of the Cathedral.

 

Here's the Cabildo, which sits adjacent to St. Louis Cathedral.  It was the original seat of Colonial Government in New Orleans, and was also the site of the Louisiana Purchase transfer ceremonies in 1803. It continued to be used by the New Orleans city council until the mid 1850s.  In 1911 the Cabildo became the home of the Louisiana State Museum. The museum displays exhibits about the history of Louisiana from its settlement up through the Reconstruction era, and the heritage of the ethnic groups that live there.

The Ritz-Carlton on Canal Street all decked out for the holidays.

 

A view of the street car tracks down Canal Street.

And, of course, no trip to the Quarter is complete without a trip to Cafe du Monde!

What'll it be?

Mmmmmm.....cafe au lait and beignets.

Hope you enjoyed the mini-tour.

Joyeux Noel!!!

Everybody gather 'round the tree....it's time to sing YMCA

Nope, your eyes haven't deceived you.  It is actual Merman Christmas ornaments, a la The Village People!!!  Spotted these hotties in a little shop in the French Quarter last night.

Sadly, the shop was closed or you know...YOU KNOW...I would've had to run in and buy at least one of them...hmmm...which one....probably the Santa Merman...he's super hot....check out those abs...and I'm pretty sure he's sipping on a Cosmo.

Not quite sure what these have to do with Christmas, but I had to share them with you.  Imagine the decorating possibilities with these beauties...an entire tree..and it would be sooooo glammed up...maybe a boa garland...and lots of lights....Judy Garland's "Have yourself a Merry Little Christmas" softly playing in the background.   I'm pretty sure I'd be great friends with anyone who has these babes on their tree...

fun, fun, fun!!