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New Orleans Sights

Southern Food & Beverage Museum

6 reviews | Write a review

Good for: learning, All tourists, Gifts and souvenirs, locals, culture

Not good for: drinking, Partying, sitting, eating food

  • Address
    • Riverwalk Mall
  • Website
  • Phone
    • 504 569 0405
  • Price
    • admission $5
  • Hours
    • 10am-6pm Mon-Sat

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Lonely Planet review for Southern Food & Beverage Museum

Sitting as it does in the commercial crassness of Riverwalk Mall, the Southern Food & Beverage Museum isn’t immediately appealing – from the outside it looks more like a gift shop than anything else. Don’t judge this book by that cover. There’s actually a pretty fascinating, well-executed exhibit behind the fronting shop that includes more information than you’ll probably ever need on the food staples and dishes of the South, and New Orleans and Louisiana in particular. The attached Museum of the American Cocktail isn’t much more than a small gallery hall, but admission is free with the food museum and, hey, how often do you get to see 19th-century ads for Sazerac?

 

Traveller reviews for Southern Food & Beverage Museum (6)

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    Fun and informative museum

    itsmeganp recommends this,

    Lot's of fun! Not your ordinary museum. This place is filled with cool factoids about the history of New Orlean's cuisine. Highly recommended for tourists and locals.

    Good for: locals, learning, All tourists, Gifts and souvenirs

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    Interesting and fun museum for the whole family

    tomateunosmates recommends this,

    This is a great place to learn about staples of southern food like red beans and rice, gumbo, po-boys, and more. The exhibits do a good job in satisfying one's curiosity without saying too much, and there's a truly unique collection of food-related artifacts on display. Don't miss the Museum of the American Cocktail, located within SoFAB, it's really worth a visit! The museum also holds cooking demonstrations regularly, workshops for kids, book signings and much more. They have a very nice website (http://southernfood.org/) with updated information. Enjoy!

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    Learning about how food connects to everything

    ericn recommends this,

    It's a great place to go to learn about all the food you eat while you're in New Orleans. You'll get a sense of history and culture that is hard to get otherwise. The staff is friendly and happy to explain things.

    The permanent exhibit explains the role rice, beans, coffee, and seafood have played in the culture of New Orleans. It surprised me that not so long ago, women would walk through the city selling stuff from baskets on their heads,singing songs to attract customers.

    The Museum of the American Cocktail is fascinating. You'll never look at a drink the same again.

    Check the website. They have demonstrations or talks all the time. They're worth it--you often get to attend for the price of admission. Two for one! They sometimes have free food from a local restaurant. Plan your visit to coincide.

    The shop is cool, too. It's touristy stuff, but of a better quality than you find in most places. Books, hand-made stuff, some clothing.

    It's in a mall--not great--but it's a short walk from the French Quarter.

    All-in-all, a good place to spend an afternoon and get out of the heat.

    Good for: culture, souvenirs, Shopping, learning

    Not good for: drinking, Partying, sitting, eating food

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    Very interesting

    nictewe recommends this,

    There´s a lot to see, and you can get educated by all the traditions and different king of stuff they have, and because it is not big, you still have time to do shopping afterwards.

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    Great place with history and culture!

    marknorm recommends this,

    To be honest Im not a big museum guy but this place is great. I had a blast at the Southern Food and Beverage Museum! There's tons of stuff there to see. I highly recommend the "Liquor Room." It has super old authentic bottles and drinks that you've never heard of before because they're so old. Also, there's always some cool exhibit going in there to check out. This place is more than a museum, it's a lot of fun. If you're visiting NOLA, you're trip isnt complete until you got to SOFAB. Check it out.

    Good for: food, museum, Sofab, nola, tourist

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    Great place to explore the history of Southern cooking.

    mnreid1187 recommends this,

    I agree that the location may throw travelers off a bit. The museum has a gift shop in the entrance, which may confuse some as being just a retail store. As you walk through the doors, you see that the museum is very large and filled with interesting exhibits displaying Southern cooking. As I walked through the museum I learned the history of cultivating and collecting sugar, rice, crawfish and shrimp. Located within the Southern Food and Beverage Museum is the American Cocktail Museum which gives insight to the history of the cocktail. Definitely make a stop to the Southern Food and Beverage Museum on your next trip to New Orleans.

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