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Exploring The Bywater Neighborhood In New Orleans

Check out the Bywater neighborhood once you’ve had your fill of the French Quarter in New Orleans. After you experience the Bywater’s unique blend of bohemians, architecture and food, you’ll wonder why it took you so long to get there.

Chocolate Turtle at Bywater Bakery in New Orleans
Image: ©2foodtrippers

When we visit a city, we often visualize ourselves living there. We don’t agree on everything but we agree that when and if we ever live in New Orleans, we’ll likely live in the Bywater.

Hip yet chill, the Bywater is a real New Orleans neighborhood. Despite inevitable gentrification, it retains a funky vibe with rows of shotgun houses next to large swaths of vacant land and the occasional junkyard. But not all of the junkyards are junky. Some are home to eccentric New Orleans folk artists like Dr. Bob.

Musicians at Bratz Yall in New Orleans
The rewards are great when you explore New Orleans beyond the French Quarter. We were rewarded with tasty grub, cold beers and live music when we visited Bywater’s Bratz Y’all. | Image: ©2foodtrippers

It amazes us how so many people go to New Orleans and never leave the French Quarter. We once met a guy at the Louis Armstrong Airport who never left Bourbon Street during his entire weeklong trip. To us, that’s just crazy.

We acknowledge that there are gems in the French Quarter and, yes, even on Bourbon Street. Despite the throngs of tourists, we’ve enjoyed many a meal, drink and beignet in the tourist mecca during our trips to the Big Easy. However, we prefer to explore and eat in other neighborhoods such as Faubourg Marigny, Tremé, the Garden District, Uptown and Mid-City even more.

When we travel, we always seem to connect with gentrifying areas that are brimming with art and food. This happened to us in Lyon with the Croix Rouge and in Paris with Belleville. In New Orleans it happened in the Bywater.

Schedule a Bywater Food and Art Walking Tour.

Our Favorite Things To Do In The Bywater Neighborhood

Bywater Houses in New Orleans Louisiana
The Bywater neighborhood is filled with narrow but deep shotgun-style houses. | Image: ©2foodtrippers

We connect with the Bywater neighborhood’s urban, hipster vibe.

Nestled between Faubourg Marigny and the 9th Ward and situated right next to the Mississippi River, the Bywater is a thriving neighborhood where it’s possible to walk around and explore New Orleans away from the maddening crowds.

We love gazing at the houses and street art whenever we visit. Even the neighborhood’s smallest shotgun houses feature interesting design elements and vividly colorful exteriors.

Duck at N7 in New Orleans
Don’t be misled by the Bywater’s laid back attitude. Restaurants like N7 push the neighborhood’s culinary envelope. | Image: ©2foodtrippers

We never know what we’ll find in the Bywater. During our first time exploring the neighborhood in 2011, we bumped into Dr. Bob’s art studio where we heard about The Country Club, a cool spot to dine and swim in the Bywater neighborhood. Clothing was optional at the time of our visit. Now that was a unique experience!

Every time we wander over to Bywater, we find more things to do, eat and drink. These are our favorites:

1. Eat Breakfast With Benefits

Bywater Bakery in New Orleans
It’s hard to miss Bywater Bakery thanks to its bright red exterior. | Image: ©2foodtrippers

New Orleans isn’t an early morning city, at least not for travelers who stay up late drinking cocktails at dive bars and jazz clubs. However, those who can rally are rewarded when they drag themselves to the Bywater Bakery.

No hidden gem, locals fill the tables and queue for takeaway treats at this iconic bakery in Bywater. But it’s not just a spot for locals. Married owners Chaya Conrad and Alton Osborne welcome all who walk through the doors, especially those who arrive with a healthy appetite.

Salmon Deviled Egg at Bywater Bakery in New Orleans
Why eat a plain Deviled Egg when you can top it with salmon and splash on hot sauce? We ate this elevated southern classic at Bywater Bakery. | Image: ©2foodtrippers

Expect to chow down on iconic New Orleans foods like Breakfast Gumbo, Muffalettas and Yaka Mein but be sure to save room for dessert. Bywater Bakery is a bakery after all. Desserts include a variety of cookies and cakes as well as some sweet surprises.

Pro Tip
Visit Bywater Bakery on a Friday morning if you’re jonesing for bagels.

Bywater Bakery is located at 3624 Dauphine St, New Orleans, LA 70117, United States.

2. Linger Over Brunch

Praline Bacon at Elizabeths in New Orleans
Eating Praline Bacon during brunch at Elizabeth’s Restaurant is reason enough to visit the Bywater neighborhood. | Image: ©2foodtrippers

Brunch isn’t difficult to find in New Orleans and the Bywater neighborhood is no exception. Our favorite Bywater brunch spot is Elizabeth’s Restaurant, a homey restaurant with good food and tasty drinks. Dr. Bob must dig it too since his art adorns the walls both inside and outside of the cosy two-story eatery.

Elizabeth’s Restaurant’s menu features comfort food with a New Orleans twist. If you eat meat, you won’t want to skip the Duck Waffle main dish or the Praline Bacon starter. The porky appetizer is big enough to share but you may want to eat it all yourself. In other words, Bacon + Pralines = Delicious.

Pro Tip
Order a brunch cocktail. We especially like Elizabeth’s Restaurant’s house-made Bloody Mary.

Elizabeth’s Restaurant is located at 601 Gallier Street. New Orleans, LA 70117, USA.

3. Explore Striking Street Art

Bywater Street Art with a Message in New Orleans Louisiana
Bywater street art doesn’t just entertain. It also educates. | Image: ©2foodtrippers

Any stroll through the Bywater is an opportunity to see a variety of art on walls throughout the neighborhood. Many of these wall murals have a message. Some were even painted by Banksy, arguably the world’s most prolific street artist.

While you may or not agree with all of the social commentary on display, you’ll surely appreciate the vibrant colors and creative expression. Who knows? Maybe the art will spark engaging debate. It could happen.

Pro Tip
Dig deeper at Bywater art galleries like Antenna and The New Orleans Art Center. For an even deeper dive into the Bywater art scene, check out Studio Be (see below).

4. Relax With Wine and Music

Outdoor Dining at Bacchanal
Outdoor dining hits new heights at Bacchanal where live music turns every meal into a party. | Image: ©2foodtrippers

Bacchanal is the backyard party we’d go to if we lived in the Bywater and wanted a neighborhood night out. This funky bi-level emporium serves a full menu that can be eaten either upstairs or in the backyard with live music. The menu offers everything from cheese plates to tapas dishes like Gambas al Ajillo to whole grilled fish.

A Big Plus: Bachchanal’s in-house wine shop makes the restaurant one of the best bargains for a night out in the Big Easy. Seriously, how awesome is that? Note – Bacchanal charges a corkage fee for bottles brought from outside the premises.

Pro Tip
Plan to arrive early. Bacchanal doesn’t accept reservations.

Bacchanal is located at 600 Poland Avenue, New Orleans, LA 70117, United States.

5. Drink Specialty Coffee

Coffees outside Pond Coffee in New Orleans
These cappuccino and iced honey latte drinks at Pond perked us up during a hot day exploring the Bywater neighborhood. | Image: ©2foodtrippers

Specialty coffee is the fuel that energizes us both at home and when we travel. Our exploration of New Orleans’ third wave coffee scene led us to Pond Coffee for morning caffeination.

Recommended by numerous baristas around the city, Pond Coffee is a relatively new entrant in the New Orleans coffee scene. The shop, situated inside Bywater’s Small Mart, exclusively uses oat milk for dairy applications. At the time of our visit, beans on offer hailed from Exile and Pretty coffee roasters.

Pro Tip
Go to nearby St. Coffee if Pond Coffee is closed or if you want to chill while you drink your coffee. (Pond was takeaway only during our visit.)

Pond Coffee is located at 2700 Chartres St, New Orleans, LA 70117, United States.

6. Get Your Art On At Studio Be

Mural outside Studio Be in New Orleans
You’ll know that you’ve found Studio Be when you see this impressive mural painted on the gallery’s wall. | Image: ©2foodtrippers

The massive mural on the Studio Be building is just a tiny taste of the art on display inside the 35,000 square foot warehouse. Those who enter the building are confronted by a barrage of striking murals spray painted by Brandan “BMike” Odums.

Murals inside Studio Be in New Orleans
Plan to spend a hour or longer at Studio Be so that you have time to view the gallery’s extensive collection. | Image: ©2foodtrippers

Odums is known around the world for his provocative grafiti and murals. However, Studio Be in Bywater is the best place to experience his art in person.

Pro Tip
Buy a print or souvenir at Studio Be’s gift shop if you want to take a memento of the studio home with you.

Studio Be is located at 2941 Royal St, New Orleans, LA 70117, United States.

7. Chill At A Beer Garden

Brat and Beers at Bratz Yall in New Orleans
We satisfied our German cravings at Bratz Y’all! with this bratwurst and beer combo. | Image: ©2foodtrippers

Just because New Orleans is located 5,000 miles, give or take, from Berlin doesn’t mean that locals and food travelers can’t chill at a beer garden every now and again. In Bywater, Bratz Y’all! fits the beer garden bill.

The local eatery doubles as a cheap eats destination thanks to its menu filled with bargain-priced German food favorites and a beer garden thanks to its… wait for it… beer and garden.

If there’s anything better than chilling at Bratz Y’all after walking around Bywater in the humidity, we can only think of one. It’s chilling at Bratz Y’all with a cold stein of beer while a local, ragtag Cajun duo plays songs like Jambalaya (On the Bayou).

Pro Tip
Don’t skip Bratz Y’all! if you don’t drink beer. Beyond its comprehensive selection of German beer, beverage options include wine and iced tea (both sweet and unsweetened).

Bratz Y’all! is located at 617-B Piety St, New Orleans, LA 70117, United States.

8. Splurge On Dinner

Outdoor Dining at N7 in New Orleans
N7 is a hip Bywater dining destination for food travelers who plan ahead. | Image: ©2foodtrippers

Bywater holds its own when it comes to fine dining in New Orleans. Despite its alternative atmosphere, Nina Compton, the Top Chef winner who helms Compère Lapin, opened Bywater American Bistro in this neighborhood. The neighborhood is also the home to N7, a quirky restaurant that made Bon Appetit‘s best new restaurant short list in 2016.

N7 Entrance in New Orleans
We had to look twice to find the sign for N7 but it’s there if you look hard enough. | Image: ©2foodtrippers

Dining at N7 requires a bit of effort. The restaurant, helmed by Chef Yuki Yamaguchi, is hidden behind a wooden fence and doesn’t take phone reservations. But a seemingly secret world awaits, along with a Japanese inspired modern French menu, for those who plan ahead and venture beyond the aforementioned fence. In this world, al fresco dining, bistro food and natural wine are the main event.

Pro Tip
Make a dinner reservation via Resy. It was the easiest option at this Bywater restaurant when we made our reservation.

Bywater American Bistro is located at 2900 Chartres St, New Orleans, LA 70117, United States
N7 Is located at 1117 Montegut St, New Orleans, LA 70117, United States.

9. Drink Cocktails

Bartender at Saint Germaine in New Orleans
The wine bar at Saint-Germain is a great Bywater spot for drinking cocktails. | Image: ©2foodtrippers

While Bywater may not be NOLA’s cocktail epicenter (that honor goes to the French Quarter), it still has more than its fair share of watering holes.

Down and dirty drinkers will want to head to St. Roch Tavern, on the neighborhood’s western edge, a divey neighborhood bar chock full of character and cheap drinks. While that suits our mood when we’re craving Bloody Mary’s served with PBR chasers, bistro bars like Saint-Germain are typically more our speed.

Coctail at Saint Germaine in New Orleans
We drank this crafted Versailles cocktail at Saint-Germain. Ingredients included dark rum, rum agricole, Angostura bitters and lime. | Image: ©2foodtrippers

Not surprisingly based on its name, Saint-Germain channels the best restaurants and wine bars in Paris. It also offers an innovative cocktail program with drinks featuring spritzes, mezcal, and, of course, St-Germain.

Pro Tip
Plan ahead if you want to dine at Saint-Germain. The restaurant doesn’t take walk-ins for dinner.

Saint-Germain is located at 3054 St Claude Ave, New Orleans, LA 70117, United States.
St. Roch Tavern is located at 1200 St. Roch Avenue, New Orleans, LA 70117, USA.

10. Shop For Folk Art

Dr. Bob's Art - Not Just "Be Nice or Leave"
Dr. Bob’s art studio is the best spot to view and buy the iconic artist’s art. | Image: ©2foodtrippers

The Dr. Bob folk art studio is a fun stop to make in Bywater. You can see Dr. Bob’s art all over New Orleans. Those folksy bottle cap signs that state “Be Nice or Leave” – that’s Dr. Bob.

You can buy and peruse art in this funky Bywater art studio junkyard and, if you’re lucky, you can also meet the eccentric doctor himself. We didn’t meet him during our first visit, but we met him on our second visit and chatted about colorful topics including post-Katrina New Orleans, gentrification, fracking and, of course, Po-Boys.

Read about our favorite Po Boy in New Orleans.

Shut Up and Drink by Dr. Bob
We bought this colorful piece of folk art at Dr. Bob’s studio. | Image: ©2foodtrippers

Pro Tip
Don’t be deterred by the junkyard exterior of Dr. Bob’s studio – it’s an intriguing spot and a great place to buy reasonably priced folk art that will remind you of New Orleans when you’re back home. We recommend making a $30 purchase here instead of at a tourist trap store in the French Quarter, unless you’re shopping for a snow globe for your niece, as happens.

Dr. Bob Folk Art is located at 3027 Chartres Street, New Orleans, LA 70117, USA, USA.

11. Pay Homage At St. Roch Cemetery

St. Roch Cemetery in New Orleans Louisiana
These images of St. Roch Cemetery provide a sneak preview of the cemetery’s landscape. | Images: ©2foodtrippers

Dating back to the 19th Century and also known as Campo Santo (Holy Country), St. Roch Cemetery gets its name from the patron of miraculous cures and dogs. The cemetery grounds here are fascinating to explore including the cemetery’s unique selection of decorative tombstones, mausoleums and statues.

Just like the city itself, St. Roch Cemetery is a cultural melting pot. Along with numerous Italian names memorialized in the cemetery, Spanish, French and Germans names, some of which appear to be Jewish, can be spotted as well.

Pro Tip
Don’t miss the small chapel on the cemetery grounds. It’s filled with interesting offerings for St. Roch, all related to the namesake saint’s ability to heal the sick and infirm.

St. Roch Cemetery is located at 1725 St. Roch Avenue, New Orleans, LA 70117, USA.

Where To Stay In New Orleans

Troubadour Hotel Room 4 in New Orleans
We were happy to return to this room at The Troubadour Hotel after a full day of food tripping in New Orleans. | Image: ©2foodtrippers

Staying at a comfortable, convenient hotel is a must in New Orleans. During our most recent visit, we stayed in the following two hotels that met these criteria:

New Orleans Planning Checklist

Hungry For More In NOLA?

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About The Authors

About The Authors

Daryl & Mindi Hirsch

Saveur Magazine’s BEST TRAVEL BLOG award winners Daryl and Mindi Hirsch share their culinary travel experiences and recipes on the 2foodtrippers website. Since launching the site in 2012, they’ve traveled to over 40 countries in their quest to bring readers their unique taste of the world.

Disclosures

Article Updates
We update our articles regularly. Some updates are major while others are minor link changes and spelling corrections. Let us know if you see anything that needs to be updated in this article.

Funding
We purchased and ate the food featured in this article.

Sponsorship
We thank Visit New Orleans and its partners for their assistance to facilitate this and other articles.

Original Publication Date: March 23, 2014
Republish Date: July 2, 2021

John Guarnieri

Sunday 30th of January 2022

Hi! I subscribe to your newsletters, and was reading your recommendations for Bywater in New Orleans. I am the President of the Bywater Neighborhood Association, and believe you have hit of the best spots! Here are a couple of other places to check out that are neighborhood favorites: Alma Restaurant [Honduran food] Louisa + Dauphine; Suis Generis on Burgundy between Piety and Louisa next to Bud Rip’s Bar; Chance In Hell snowballs [reopening in Spring]; Bar Redux on Poland Avenue [great dive bar] If you want to meet at your next visit, let me know! John Guarnieri, President, Bywater Neighborhood Association, 504.220.6481, bywaterpresident@gmail.com

John

Friday 25th of February 2022

@Daryl and Mindi Hirsch, Look forward to it!

Daryl and Mindi Hirsch

Sunday 30th of January 2022

Thanks for reading John. We'll look at your recommendations and would love to meet for a drink the next time we're in New Orleans. All the best and laissez les bon temps rouler!

Stanford Rosenthal

Friday 16th of July 2021

Great guide! I live around the corner from St. Roch Tavern. It's in New Orleans, not Philadelphia. Otherwise everything is spot-on. (though I personally don't see the appeal of Elizabeth's)

Daryl and Mindi Hirsch

Friday 16th of July 2021

Jeez, now that's an odd typo. Thanks for brining it to our attention so we could fix it. Also, we really love your neighborhood. It's a gem!

Stella Fleming Williams

Wednesday 28th of April 2021

Hi my name is Stella , I've lived in the Bywater area over 27 years , I'm so glad you choice my neighborhood , to share your vacation with the world through your eyes . Dr. Bob I've never heard of him or his Art Gallery until now , I plan on visiting it soon . Thanks so much . PS : Next time y'all come back to New Orleans , please try Jack Dempsey on Poland St. In the Bywater neighborhood. See you soon

annmartina

Wednesday 28th of April 2021

Also stop by the Bywater Bakery for pastry or Chantilly cake

Dr. Robyn

Sunday 21st of February 2021

You missed the Bermuda triangle: BJs, Vaughn's and J&J's. And the Joint BBQ. Come back after Covid and stroll St. Claude.

Stella Fleming Williams

Wednesday 28th of April 2021

@Dr. Robyn, those are some nice places , I love all of them , and Jack Dempsey too.

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