Jeff's Things to do Around NOLA Part 9: Upper Magazine Street

The Good Wood-designed District Hand Pies

Last week we had a chance to check out a number of great two-day itineraries for a trip to NOLA. This week, it's back to one of our popular blog features, Things to Do Around NOLA. We're up to part nine, and you can see all of the previous places we have been at the end of this post.

TTDANOLA this time around is taking us just a short trip away from campus, over to upper Magazine Street. Any local will tell you that Magazine is one of the coolest streets in town; it's one of the spots you're most likely to find Tulane students on their nights and weekends. Magazine is six miles long and runs parallel to St. Charles Ave. all the way from Audubon Park to the French Quarter. It's got some of the best food, drink and shopping in the entire city. Magazine is divided into three unofficial sections: upper Mag, Garden District Mag and LGD Mag. I just made these sections up, but I bet most would agree.

Upper Magazine Street is the far Uptown area bordered by Audubon Park on the Uptown side and Jefferson Ave on the downtown side. Accessing this ten block area is easy by foot or streetcar. If you're leaving the Office of Admission, simply walk the .8 mile loop through Audubon. Make a left onto Magazine, and voila! Start your journey down this section of Mag. Along the way, you'll see some of my favorite spots in town.

Ready? Lets go! In order of Uptown to down:

Monkey Hill Bar: I love this little upscale cocktail bar. It's a great spot for a nice drink, a date night, or a night out with your friends to hear some great live music on special nights. It's named after Monkey Hill in Audubon Park, which is the highest point in New Orleans at a whopping 20 feet above sea level.

Perlis Clothing: Ever seen anyone wearing a polo shirt with a crawfish on the breast? Of course you have, they're everywhere in NOLA. And they are from Perlis. Perlis is a fan favorite of many Tulane students, and a polo from Perlis is the perfect graduation gift.

Perlis shirts in all their glory 

Fresh Bar: Great fresh salads and great discounts for Tulane students. Plus, use your Splash Card here to pay with your Tulane NOLA bucks!

Reginelli's Pizzeria: Another staple in the Tulane diet. Great pizza and salads, and they have locations all over town. This restaurant delivers to Tulane. A lot. You can also head right across the street to pizza rival Slice. They've got one of the best BBQ shrimp po'boys in town, IMO.

Dirty Coast: In New Orleans, we love our t-shirts. We also love our inside jokes. Dirty Coast combines the two. I don't know of any city that has more catch phrases, one-liners, nicknames and insider things than New Orleans. Dirty Coast takes all of them and puts them on a shirt.

District Hand Pie and Coffee Bar: The folks who brought you District: Donuts/Sliders/Brew on LGD Mag just opened this cute little pie and coffee shop serving up some delicious miniature pies. Talk about nom. Bonus, the inside was designed by one of my Tulane fraternity brothers at Good Wood NOLA. It's a super neat spot.

I promise not to scare you if you take my RIDE. Too much. 

Romney Pilates Center: If you don't know what Romney Pilates is by now, well then you just must not be an avid blog reader! Romney is the premier fitness studio in NOLA. And I am not just saying that because I instruct there, cuz Lea Michele agrees with me. There are specialty classes in Pilates, TRX, boxing, cycling and many others. If fitness is your thing, like it is mine, you will love this spot. My classes are packed with Tulane students looking to get their sweat on. Check out RIDE here.

Whole Foods: After your workout, directly across the street is our main Whole Foods. It's built in a converted streetcar barn, hence the name Arabella Station.

Lanterns in the back patio at St. Joes (photo cred foodio54.com)

St. Joe's Bar: Another one of my favorite bars in New Orleans. St. Joe's has this awesome back patio that is great for a balmy spring or summer evening. Not to miss are their famous blueberry mojitos (for when you are 21, of course).

Hazelnut: Did you know that Bryan Batt of Mad Men fame is a Tulane alum? Did you also know that he owns this neat little home accessories shop right on Magazine? If you get lucky, he might even be there when you visit.

Bryan Batt in his store. (photo cred gonola.com)

Jean Therapy: I'm not a huge shopper, except for once a year when I usually blow it all out of the water, so when I do need a fresh pair of jeans, I always head to Jean Therapy. A great selection of stuff for guys and ladies. It's also nestled in a block of Magazine with all sorts of other great stores that you ladies will love.

There is a lot more to see and do on upper Magazine Street, but this list is my starting point for you all. Enjoy yourself and have a great walk!

The inside of RIDE at Romney

Various choices at Fresh Bar (photo cred Fresh Bar)

Previous TTDANOLA:

Part 8: The CBD
Part 7- Maple Street
Part 6- The Bywater
Part 5- Oak Street
Part 4- Freret Street (on second thought, don't even bother with that one. So much has been added to this awesome street, walking distance from Tulane, that we need to write the sequel to that blog)
Part 3- Mid City
Part 2- Frenchman Street
Part 1- Magazine Street (the original post, thus somewhat dated)