Grand Victorian Bed & Breakfast

Get Your Green on for St. Patrick’s Day in the Garden District!

In the city that celebrates, it won’t be too long before the beat of  drums and marching feet resonate on the streets with more parades and celebrations.

Guests enjoy St. Patrick’s Day Parade

There are several St. Patrick’s Day parades that feature walking groups dressed in costumes of green who give out flowers, beads, and kisses to lucky parade goers along the route.  The floats that follow the walkers throw beads plus the more infamous cabbages, carrots, onions…and moonpies!   The Irish Channel parade on Saturday, March 16 passes directly in front of the Grand Victorian.

One of the marching club members decked out in green

New this year, the annual Parasol Block Party in the Irish Channel has been extended to a 3 day celebration!

On March 19, our city’s Sicilian heritage is celebrated on St.  Joseph’s Day with elaborate altars in Catholic churches and private homes in honor of this saint who provided relief during a famine in Sicily.

Altar at Innkeeper Bonnie’s family’s home

St. Joseph’s Day has also been adopted as an important day for the Mardi Gras Indians, an African-American tradition unique to New Orleans. The Super Sunday Mardi Gras Indian parade on the Sunday nearest St. Joseph’s Day is the one time of year all of the Mardi Gras Indian tribes come together to show off their new suits.  Original costumes are created every year and can weigh between 100 and 150 pounds.

Intricate hand-beaded suits walk the streets on Super Sunday!

We still have a few rooms left for St. Patrick’s Day weekend.  You’ll get a front porch view of the St. Patrick’s Day parade from the Grand Victorian Bed and Breakfast, and you’re a streetcar away from the French Quarter and Super Sunday events.   Hope to see you on the streets!

This entry was posted in Area Events, Garden District and tagged Bed and Breakfast, Garden District, parades, St. Patrick's Day. Bookmark the permalink.

Top 5 Places for Cocktails and Small Plates in New Orleans

We are getting ready for Tales of the Cocktail next month, the annual celebration of the birth of the cocktail right here in New Orleans. To help you get ready too, we have listed our Top 5 places to get a delicious cocktail and appetizer or small plate. All of these are in close proximity to our Garden District Bed and Breakfast.

Cure: Rated one of the Top 3 places to get a cocktail by Best of New Orleans.com, we love Cure for the scrumptious cocktails, small plates and great patio for whiling away the evening.

The Columns: A few streetcar stops down from our St. Charles stop (right at the front door of our Garden District Bed and Breakfast) is the best front porch to drift back in time, have a traditional New Orleans cocktail, and people watch. This is a great place to kick off your evening as it gets crowded later on.

Delachaise: Walk across the street from the Columns and have a really good light meal or cheese plate with great wine at this small place on the streetcar track.

Commander’s Palace: 25 cent martinis for lunch (and one and a half block walk from our Garden District bed and breakfast). Any questions?

Oak: A little further down the historic streetcar line and around the riverbend is a new bar and eatery that features small plates from the chef of Patois Restaurant. Live musicians every night make this a place to put on your must-visit list.

A little old fashioned for those hot summer nights.

Finish your evening on the porte cochere balcony at our Garden District B&B. Check out our summer specials for an extra reason to check out the Tales of the Cocktail festival.

This entry was posted in Dining, Festivals and tagged cocktails, commander's palace, Garden District. Bookmark the permalink.