The court of two sisters, New Orleans

The court of two sisters is a New Orleans institution. It has been nestled in the french quarter since 1832, a constant reminder of New Orleans historical past. It is named after the two sisters Emma and Bertha who had a shop at the location. It is also without a doubt must-visit for the jazz brunch. Having been given this piece of advice ourselves, we made a reservation for 11.30am as we knew it was a buffet. Nothing could have prepared us for what the jazz brunch actually entailed.

We arrived at this beautiful old restaurant with its old exposed brick work and tiled floor and were led through the the now famous courtyard. It was exactly as advised, with wrought iron awning s teeming with wonderful foliage and wisteria. The jazz band was playing us to our table at the front the courtyard, resplete with water features.

The jazz brunch is not cheap at $35, but is all you can eat, in this wonderfully decadent and romantic setting with unlimited teas, coffee and fruit juice. So, a cranberry juice and a coffee were the first order of the day whilst we perused the cocktail menu. We were after all in New Orleans and there is nothing the folks of N'Awlins like more than a drink at breakfast. We kept it fairly traditional with a Bloody Mary and it was good. Really good. They tend to top them with green beans over here.

It was then finally time to face the daunting prospect of selecting our brunch dishes. Upon closer inspection, it became clear that this was no brunch like I knew, but rather an extensive selection of the finest creole dishes and desserts to be sampled over many courses. It included a selection of hot and cold dishes, including one of the house specialities, turtle soup. I of course, did not partake in this. There was also roast brisket and turkey for the meat eaters.

The dishes are also helpfully colour coded to identify the vegetarian ones. I selected from the salad bar, the omelette station which made classic and creole shrimp omelettes and eggs benedict, as well as the hot plates.

Needless to say, Gipsy Spread was like a 'pig in woopsy' sampling all the classic Louisiana dishes such as the gumbo, catfish, crayfish and yes, this was our day to try grits. I can't say we were sold on it. So after a leasurely procession of dishes, we then had dessert to contend with. I could only do the one and opted for the traditional pecan pie, whilst Gipsy Spread worked his way around several of the desserts, topped off with ice cream. Can you sense me rolling my eyes? There was no room left to sample the King's cake below.

The food left nothing to be desired and the service was extremelly friendly, although, I couldn't get used to being referred to as 'my babbies' by our delightful waitress. Must be the English in me. She was super efficient and my juice was replenished in the blink of an eye.


So, we pretty much rolled out of there about three hours later, very happy and satisfied with our first morning in New Orleans, now for a wonder around the french quarter to walk it off. Whether you choose the brunch or a dinner in this exquisite colonial style restaurant, you will not be disappointed with the setting or the food. All of it is steeped in history.