Frenchmen Street runs three blocks through the Faubourg Marigny and holds more live music per square foot than anywhere else in New Orleans. The brass bands start around nine and run past midnight most nights, and the kitchens below keep pace with them. These three spots keep food moving while the music does.
Dat Dog
Dat Dog started as a 475-square-foot shack on Freret Street in 2011 before expanding to a second-floor Frenchmen Street location that became the chain’s most popular outpost. The balcony above 601 Frenchmen has become one of the better-known perches on the strip, elevated above the street traffic and close enough to hear every set from the venues below without paying a cover.
The menu runs sausages, hot dogs, and andouille links topped with combinations that lean New Orleans: Crawfish étouffée, debris gravy, boudin, and remoulade all make appearances on the topping list. The Irish Channel dog and the Bacon Werewolf have their own regular followings. Everything moves fast and comes out hot, which is the specific requirement at midnight on a Friday when the second set is starting.
Dat Dog Frenchmen is at 601 Frenchmen Street, open Monday through Thursday and Sunday from 11 am to midnight, and Friday and Saturday from 11 am to 3 am. Call (504) 309-3362 or order ahead at datdog.com.
Bamboula’s
Bamboula’s at 514 Frenchmen Street operates as a live music venue and full-service kitchen simultaneously, which puts it in a specific category on the strip. Most venues on Frenchmen run bars with minimal food. Bamboula’s runs a complete Cajun and Creole menu alongside a rotating lineup of jazz, brass, and Latin bands with no cover charge most nights…