7 Great Happy Hours in New Orleans French Quarter & CBD

September 19, 2015

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Luxury Travel Advisor & Founder of Passport To Friday. Follow along on my travels and let me help you plan your dream trip or honeymoon!

I'm Chelsea.

The Big Easy. Also known as my new favorite place. Besides renting a car at MSY Airport and driving straight to Mississippi, I hadn’t been to New Orleans since I was 10 years old. Needless to say, that was a much different experience that involved no hurricane drinks but definitely an infinite amount of beignets. When I was scheduled for a program in New Orleans, I was so excited to finally explore this vibrant city.

New Orleans is the definition of soul. The culture of NOLA is contagious, with jazz music buzzing through your ears everywhere you turn and the aroma of cajun food filling the air. The architecture makes you feel like you’re in a different era and the drinks are strong. I’m not sure why I ever left this magical place.

This post is a little different than my usual “happy hours near the convention center” posts because there’s no way you’re going to go to New Orleans and not head in the direction of the French Quarter. Also, lots of the convention hotels are spread out so you are bound to end up wandering away from convention center land. New Orleans has many amazing happy hour deals, but here are some of my picks in the French Quarter and Central Business District:


FRENCH QUARTER


7 Great Happy Hours in New Orlean's French Quarter & Central Business District
 Broussard’s

Fancy, fancy, fancy. Broussard’s screams “dress to the nines and hand me a glass of champagne, stat”. While they exemplify classic New Orleans elegance, they also appeal to us normal folks with a very reasonably priced happy hour.

  • $5 Food Items: includes Crispy Shrimp Toast, Frites Fondue, Louisiana Seafood Slider
  • $19.20 Bottles/$5 Glasses: one Blanc, one Rosé, one Rouge
  • $.95 Daily Punch: yep, only 95 cents

Happy Hours: Daily 4-7pm

819 Rue Conti, New Orleans, LA 70112

Photo via Nola.Eater.com

Photo via Nola.Eater.com

Tableau

If you want balcony dining, Tableau is your place. New Orleans is famed for their expansive balconies offering views of the busy streets below, but rarely do you find great food and most importantly a great happy hour on one. They also have an outdoor courtyard if that is more your style. Tableau offers:

  • $6 Select Small Plates: includes filet mignon sliders, seared yellowfin tuna, burrata bruschetta
  • 1/2 off Wine & Beer on Tap: 4 varieties of wine, 6 of beer
  • $5 Classic Cocktails: Cuba Libra, Dark & Stormy, Bee’s Knees, French 75

Happy Hours: Daily 3-7pm

616 St. Peter St, New Orleans, LA 70116

7 Great Happy Hours in New Orlean's French Quarter & Central Business District

Brennan’s

A pink facade is an immediate draw for me, and Brennan’s is so much more than just their colorful exterior. There is a secluded courtyard, numerous opulent dining rooms, and exceptional cuisine. Their bubbly-based happy hour appropriately matches the elegant ambience and includes:

  • 1/2 off Bottles of Bubbly: yes, this even includes Veuve Clicquot Rosé for only $55
  • $7 Bubbly Cocktails: try the Mr. Funk – cranberry juice, peach schnapps, sparkling wine
  • Bar Snacks: $5 crispy creole black-eyed peas, $8 yellowfin tuna tartare, $10 lobster remoulade

Happy Hours: Tuesday – Friday 2-7pm

417 Royal St, New Orleans, LA 70130

7 Great Happy Hours in New Orlean's French Quarter & Central Business District
Bar Tonique

A happy hour that starts at noon every weekday does not surprise me for NOLA, but lucky for you this is actually a great happy hour. Cool bar, great drinks, amazing prices… yeah, I’d come here at noon for that (which I actually did). The best thing about an early happy hour are that early drinkers are usually quite the characters, so be prepared to meet some fun, interesting locals here.

  • $5 Cocktails: Aviation, Frenchmen’s Dark & Stormy, Sazerac, Pimm’s Cup, Moscow Mule, Whiskey Old Fashioned
  • Weekly $5 Specials:
    • Monday – Pimm’s Cup
    • Tuesday – Whiskey Flights
    • Wednesday – Moscow Mules
    • Thursday – Caipirinhas
    • Friday – Punch Special
    • Saturday – Bacon Bloody Marys
    • Sunday – Mai Tais

Happy Hours: Weekdays Noon – 5pm, Weekly All-Day Specials Daily

820 N Rampart St, New Orleans, LA 70116


CENTRAL BUSINESS DISTRICT


Photo via Nola.com

Photo via Nola.com

Balise

OYSTERS! A Nawlins’ must. Get your oyster fixin’ here with a great happy hour oyster deal. Head to their downstairs bar room to get in on the action.

  • $1 Oysters
  • $5 Craft Cocktails & Glasses of Wine
  • Discounted Bar Bites

Happy Hours: Monday – Friday 4-6pm

640 Carondelet St, New Orleans, LA 70130

Photo via TripAdvisor.com

Photo via TripAdvisor.com

Sac-A-Lait

More oysters, not complaining. Extremely close to the convention center, this would make a great first stop on the happy hour train (I mean happy hour does start at 2pm).

  • 1/2 off Oysters
  • 1/2 off Beer & Wines by the Glass

Happy Hours: Tuesday – Friday 2-7pm

1051 Annunciation St, New Orleans, LA 70130

Photo via PalmisanoContractors.com

Photo via PalmisanoContractors.com

Fulton Alley

A bowling alley might seem a little random, but it was actually a blast. PLUS their happy hour is a great deal and it is extremely close to the convention center and convention hotels… strike! So what’s the deal?

  • 1/2 off Select Bar Bites: think deviled eggs and cinnamon & raisin bread pudding beignets
  • $6 Wines by the Glass and Select Cocktails: I enjoyed the Howitzer French 75 with Fighting Cock Bourbon, Lemon, Peach Bitters & Champagne
  • Complimentary first half hour of bowling and shoe rental

Happy Hours: Monday – Thursday 5-7pm, Friday 11am-7pm

600 Fulton St, New Orleans, LA 70130

Safe travels y’all!

Best,

Chelsea Rose Martin

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Hi, I'm Chelsea Martin, Luxury Travel Advisor & Founder of Passport To Friday. I've been planning bespoke luxury vacations and honeymoons for almost a decade now. I can't wait to help you plan the trip of a lifetime! 

A true Cancer, hotel-slipper-obsessed gal whose IG Explore page is full of dogs.

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