Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
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Facing Canal Street, turn left and walk three blocks to North Alexander
Street. The big yellow house on the corner is the Ronald McDonald House,
which provides a “home away from home” for families with children suffer-
ing from cancer. Opened in 1983, it is one of nearly 340 such houses around
the world. Among other things, the house offers comfortable beds, laundry
and shower facilities, playrooms, and warm meals, most prepared by a dedic-
ated corps of volunteers.
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Walk one block to North Hennessey Street. The bright-blue building you'll
pass on your left is Blue Dot Donuts (4301 Canal), notable for being founded
by three New Orleans police officers. Boasting more than 50 kinds of dough-
nuts, it's been featured on the Cooking Channel and the Food Network.
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Continue walking down Canal to North Carrollton Avenue. During this
stretch, you'll pass Café Minh, an upscale Vietnamese restaurant, and across
Canal, the local offices of Volunteers of America.
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Turn left at North Carrollton. If you're hungry or just in the mood for a
drink, the next two blocks offer an array of choices. Among other ethnic
cuisines, you'll find Italian, Chinese, Mexican, and Japanese. There's Milk-
fish, New Orleans's only Filipino restaurant; the upscale Rue 127, a New
American bistro; Juicy Lucy's, for stuffed burgers; and Wit's Inn, a sports
bar with some surprisingly good pizza. Brown Butter Southern Kitchen &
Bar is the new kid on the block, and Venezia, across the street, is an old-
school Italian restaurant that's been in business since 1957.
Wherever you go, save room for dessert. Angelo Brocato's, with its
homemade gelato, cannolis, and other Italian pastries, is a must. The old-
fashioned ice-cream parlor is a replica of the one the Brocato family opened
in Sicily in the early 20th century. At the corner of North Carrollton and Bi-
enville is Cajun Brothers Seafood & Poboys, a seafood shop with some of the
tastiest boiled crawfish in town. (Crawfish season runs from early March
through the end of June.)
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Continue walking down North Carrollton. Between Bienville and St. Louis
Streets is Mid-City Market, a commercial development that opened in 2013.
The center, which consists largely of chains such as Panera Bread, Five Guys,
and Pinkberry, replaced an old car dealership that had sat dormant and
blighted since Katrina.
Adjacent to Mid-City Market, at St. Louis Street, is a segment of the Lafitte
Greenway, a 2.6-mile multiuse trail and linear park. As of this writing, the
