From Walmart Parking Lot to a Mansion
After 2 nights of unexpected camping at a Walmart in Lake Charles, LA, we were ready to return to New Orleans.
Unfortunately, due to hurricane clean-up, New Orleans wasn’t yet ready for us.
Tired of the bleak surroundings, and in need of a new place to spend the night, we pulled up our Harvest Hosts app.
If you’re unfamiliar with Harvest Hosts, it is a brilliant program that connects businesses with land (farms, wineries, breweries, etc.) with RVers looking for a free place to crash for the night. It has allowed us the opportunity to stay and experience places on the road that we may never have seen otherwise.
Also, spending time at a local brewery > spending time at Walmart.
Their membership is incredibly affordable based on what you get out of it.
To learn more and get 15% off for the year, follow this link.
Alex and I have been to the South a few times, but neither of us had ever spent any time visiting a plantation. As luck would have it, the Houmas House Plantation & Gardens was a camping option on Harvest Hosts.
When we called them, they told us they were open, had space for us, and hadn’t suffered any damage from the hurricane the night before.
After making a pit-stop to hike at Tickfaw State Park, we pulled into Houmas around 5pm.
And, as you may be able to tell, it was more than a little upgrade from Walmart:
Passing gardens, a fountain, and multiple statues, we pulled into our parking spot for the night.
We stopped by the gift shop to check-in and make a dinner reservation, and then got cleaned up.
Seeing as we haven’t yet fixed our water pump issue, showering when dry camping for us involves wiping down with coconut-scented body wipes. #RVLife, baby!
The Turtle Bar
Smelling of the tropics (we hoped) and feeling good that we made a great call with our accommodations for the night, we walked over to the restaurant.
We’re big believers in pre-dinner drinks, so we placed an order for a couple Old Fashioneds as we took a seat at the Turtle Bar, the intimate, stained-glass beauty of a pub connected to the restaurant.
Regrettably, I didn’t take any photos of the bar itself, although I did feel the need to capture this buffalo head located in the same room:
The Carriage House Restaurant
As lovely as the Turtle Bar was, it had nothing on The Carriage House, which really made you feel as if you were dining as one of Louisiana’s elite back in the day.
Both of our jaws dropped as we entered where we were to be seated.
Crystal chandeliers, gold encased artwork, luxurious chairs and a rich, mahogany table topped with fall decor.
No, we were not seated at that table (that would’ve been weird), but instead at a table set for two right next to it.
Being a Thursday night in the off-season, we were lucky to feel like the whole evening was planned for us. We only saw one other table come in the entire time we were there.
The Carriage House prides itself on serving the best local selection of produce, and its menu rotates seasonally to accommodate the freshest items available.
The food is distinctly Southern and wonderfully highlights elegent, Louisiana cuisine.
While prices certainly weren’t cheap, they also weren’t out of this world, considering the surroundings.
The wine list was an even more pleasant surprise. I figured most bottles would be north of $60 (again…fancy environment), but the majority of the options were under $50. We chose a French sparkling that was around $30.
For dinner, we started with Gumbo and a Caesar Salad, and Alex had Shrimp Orleans, while I had the evening’s special: Tripletail (white fish) with Cajun rice and roasted carrots & asparagus.
Dessert was a black raspberry chocolate cheesecake. Yep.
We finished the night with after dinner drinks in the lounge area (also a big believer in that). Unfortunately, they didn’t offer any Port wine, but they had a large selection of Bourbon, so we settled on drinking some neat.
We originally weren’t going to do the official Mansion Tour, but the settings won us over and we decided it would be worth the money to take part in it the next day.
The Houmas House Mansion & Garden Tour
Although it was a Friday, PTO had already been taken because we had originally planned to spend the day exploring New Orleans. But when that didn’t happen (see: hurricane), we figured we’d spend the day wandering the Houmas plantation.
Officially deciding yesterday evening at dinner to take part in the Mansion tour, we slowly wandered over to the meeting point, taking our time to do our own mini-tour of the gardens before it began.
Seeing as the starting point for the tour was at the Turtle Bar, we figured it only made sense to have pre-tour drinks (are you sensing a theme here?)
This time, I ordered a Mint Julep and the bartender said he “just needed to go grab some mint from the garden outside quick”. How cool is that?
Once the tour began, we got to move inside the Houmas Mansion, something you cannot do unless you purchase tickets.
To the surprise of nobody, the inside of the mansion is spectacular.
In 2003, Kevin Kelly, a New Orleans businessman, purchased the mansion & grounds and has lovingly restored its historic shine. He also uses it as his main residence.
Previous ownership over the decades has played a part in various decor and architecture styles throughout. The current owner has made it a point to let the best elements of different time periods shine.
Probably my favorite part of the entire house were the expansive balconies. It’s exactly what I picture when I think of homes of wealthy Southerners back in the day. Definitely would not mind spending a leisurely morning with coffee and a book outside overlooking the gardens.
We wrapped up the tour in the kitchen. Something that in modern times is an extremely prominent point in a house, but not so much the case back then. Today, we spend a lot of money to upgrade and showcase our kitchen, often choosing to connect them to the rest of the living area.
Here in the Houmas House (and I assume every other extravagant home built in this time), the kitchen is tucked away on the main floor so the ladies doing the work were out of sight.
Overall, we had a fantastic time visiting the Houmas House Plantation & Gardens.
We both wanted to spend time at a Louisiana plantation at some point this trip, and the need to get out of the city combined with the opportunity for a free nights sleep made it happen.
Originally published at https://jetlaggedjill.com on November 2, 2020.
