Original Pierre Maspero's

Located on a busy French Quarter corner across the street from the perpetually under-renovation courthouse is the Original Pierre Maspero's. It is said that slaves were sold from the balcony here during the height of the city's brief slave trade. The restaurant is on the ground floor of one of the city's oldest buildings, dating from 1788; the menu claims that Andrew Jackson planned from here the defense of the Battle of New Orleans, in which he led American troops to victory over British soldiers. All this is meant to say that diners generally come here for historical reasons, not for the rather typical, tourist-oriented menu that features such dishes as red beans and rice, jambalaya, shrimp Creole and fried seafood.