New Orleans' Tujague's Restaurant Celebrates 160 Year Anniversary
Tujague's Restaurant is pulling out all the stops as it celebrates 160 years of storied history. The restaurant, which opened in 1856, is the second oldest continually operating restaurant in New Orleans, after Antoine's Restaurant, and is the oldest stand-up bar in America.
The establishment is known for a handful of trademark dishes including spicy shrimp remoulade and boiled beef brisket. Moreover, it's the birth place of brunch and the creator of famed cocktails like the Grasshopper and Whiskey Punch. Its illustrious past also contains stories of haunting spirits, along with a guest book that contains the signatures of high-profile visitors, which include Presidents Roosevelt and Eisenhower, as well as Diane Sawyer, and Harrison Ford.
In celebration of its 160th anniversary, Tujague's will host a series of special events, contests, and promotions throughout the year to show appreciation for those who have helped maintain its place in New Orleans history. Starting in May and continuing through the end of the year, Tujague's will offer an $18.56 prix fixe lunch menu, an ode to the year the restaurant first began serving the people of New Orleans. The three-course menu will be available Monday through Friday and features several New Orleans staples that diners may choose from.
Starter selections include seafood gumbo or an oyster wedge — fried oysters, blue cheese, red onion, cherry tomatoes, bacon, and herbs with a sweet onion-buttermilk dressing. Entrée choices include seafood courtbouillion — Gulf fish, oysters, and shrimp cooked in creole tomato broth and served over rice; a petit filet mignon topped with garlic confit and accompanied by potatoes and vegetables; and a choice of shrimp, oyster, or soft shell crab BLT po-boy with house made potato chips. For dessert, diners will indulge with a traditional bread pudding. Since New Orleans is a city known for both dining and drinking — usually together — Tujague's will offer $3 house wines-by-the-glass, well cocktails, bloody Marys, and mimosas during lunch.
Coinciding with its anniversary, The Southern Food and Beverage Museum (SoFAB) will debut a special Tujague's exhibit that will showcase items collected throughout its 160 year tenure. In addition, the restaurant will find a place in the National Culinary Heritage Register, which honors "culinary products, processes, inventions, traditions, and establishments that are at least fifty years old and have contributed significantly to the development of American foodways."
Help celebrate Tujague's past, present, and future by visiting the French Quarter location at 823 Decatur Street. The restaurant is open daily serving lunch from 11:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. and dinner from 5:00 p.m. – 10:00 p.m. Brunch is served on Saturday and Sunday from 10:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.