I spent a day in New Orleans in September and recommend the following:
d.b.a. New Orleans- on Frenchmen Street, probably has 30-ish taps and 100 or so bottles. Seems newer and in a hip neighborhood, but a relaxed, unpretentious atmosphere.
Cooter Brown’s- other side of town, about 40 taps and easily over 100 bottles. A lot of people get a plate of oysters to snack on while drinking.
Avenue Pub- I literally just walked in the place and didn’t have enough info to rate before I got a phone call and had to pick someone up from the airport. But it’s a cool place that caters to serious beer drinkers:http://www.theavenuepub.com/ (and it should be listed on this site).
Parkway Bakery and Tavern: I went here after getting in town as it opened (11 AM daily, closed Tuesdays). Known for the best po’boys in town, it lives up to its billing and has about 25 different ones to choose from.
All of these places are away from Bourbon Street, though d.b.a. is walkable from there. None of the Bourbon Street bars are great for craft beer drinkers, but Jean Lafitte’s seems like a cool place (and one of the oldest bars in the country). At most of the Bourbon Street bars you’re going to get a plastic cup and pay too much, especially that weekend, but you should be able to find a few different Abita brews on tap there.
I’ll be back in late May and can’t wait. The atmosphere and people down there make for a great drinking experience.
