USA Guide
Louisiana
Nightlife
1 Donna's 800 N Rampart St 
504/596-6914 Hosting smooth jazz and blues, this scruffy barbecue joint on the fringe of the Quarter feels like a locals' place but attracts a loyal out-of-town crowd. Cover varies; one-drink minimum.
2 Le Bon Temps Roulé 4801 Magazine St 504/895-8117 A spirited mix of locals and hard-drinking students fill this convivial uptown neighbourhood bar – complete with pool tables and good bar food – where the weekly Soul Rebels gig (Thurs) has become an institution. Price: No cover
3 Preservation Hall 726 St Peter St 504/522-2841 
www.preservationhall.com This tumbledown old building – with no bar, a/c, or toilets, and just a few hard benches for seating – has long been lauded as the best place in New Orleans to hear trad jazz. The music is lively and joyous, building steam as the night goes on – lines form well before the doors open. Thurs is brass band night. Wed– Sun sets every 45min 8–11pm. Price: $10 cover
4 Snug Harbor 626 Frenchmen St 504/949-0696 www.snugjazz.com Sophisticated Faubourg Marigny jazz club in an intimate, two-story space. If money is tight, settle for the bar, where the gigs are shown on a tiny closed-circuit TV. Nightly shows 8pm & 10pm. Price: Cover $8–25
5 Spotted Cat 623 Frenchmen St 504/943-3887 With a regular menu of roots music, the Spotted Cat has become the place to see the New Orleans Jazz Vipers, who dish up a high-octane twist on jubilant swing and trad.
6 
Vaughan's 4229 Dauphine St, in the Bywater 504/947-5562 Rickety old neighbourhood bar that fills to bursting point on Thurs, Kermit Ruffins's night. The band is crammed up against the audience – a mixed bunch of locals, students, and the players' friends and family; between sets, help yourself to free beans and rice. Take a cab and prepare for a magical New Orleans evening. Price: Cover $10 on Thurs
7 Circle Bar 1032 St Charles Ave 504/588-2616 www.circlebarnola.com Painfully hip bar in a crumbling old house at Lee Circle. With an eclectic booking policy, from alt rock to bluegrass, it's renowned for resurrecting R&B legends from oblivion, and always pulls a gorgeous, hard-partying crowd.
8 Maple Leaf 8316 Oak St 504/866-9359 Legendary uptown bar with pressed-tin walls, a large dancefloor, and a patio. It's a New Orleans favourite for really great blues, R&B, funk, and brass bands; ReBirth's Tues-night gigs are a must. There's chess and pool, too.
9 Mid-City Lanes Rock ‘n' Bowl 4133 S Carrollton Ave 504/482-3133 www.rockandbowl.com Its location, in a Mid-City mall, may be unprepossessing, but this eccentric and fun bowling alley-cum-music venue is an institution. Though it's especially heaving on Thurs – zydeco night – they also book great local R&B, blues, and swing, and the crowd is always lively. Take a taxi.
10 One Eyed Jack's 615 Toulouse St 504/569-8361 www.oneeyedjacks.net Loosely conceived as a decadent cabaret lounge in old Bourbon Street style, this hip bar and club presents a wide range of shows, including burlesque, trad jazz, rap battles, indie rock, and punk to a friendly crowd.
11 Tipitina's 501 Napoleon Ave 504/895-8477 www.tipitinas.com Venerable uptown venue, named after a Professor Longhair song, with a consistently good funk, R&B, brass, and reggae line-up. The Sun Cajun fais-do-do is fun, too.