Claudette M.
Yelp
I love vampires. Write vampire novels, so when I discovered there was a vampire gift shop and secret vampire bar in the French Quarter, I was overjoyed. The whole experience was a little magical.
This bar is situated above another, so you have to provide the password given at the gift shop and go through and out the back of the other bar and through a separate door to get to the secret lounge. Even the stairway leading up was cool. The walls were painted red and hung on the wall, along with other things, was a black and red ouija board with bats on it. I tried to find one like that on eBay with no luck. I wanted to steal it (lol, but I would never do that). There was also a picture of the classic Universal Monsters. Beyond that was a little foyer with cats living there. There was a sign on the door which asked that newcomers not let the cats inside.
When we stepped inside, I fell in love. The decor was both whimsical and classic. Lots of velvet, comfy couches, beautiful little details...like a wine-bottle lamp. The ceiling was gorgeous. Witches brooms were hanging from the ceiling. It was like a Quidditch match with no riders, lol.
The bartender looked like a twin to the red-haired beauty at the Vampyre Boutique. She was very patient with us. We wanted the full absinthe experience, as neither of us had sampled real absinthe before. I was impressed by her reverence for the drink when she asked if/when we planned to drive. I figured real absinthe was going to pack a major punch and I wasn't mistaken.
She did the whole thing and let us record it on video. Real absinthe is, indeed, an experience. We say the sugar cube lit on fire, the little water machine (looked like itty bitty faucets). One of the coolest experiences of my life.
We got the drink transferred into plastic cups so we could go out on the balcony. It was a Friday, early evening, but we had the space to ourselves. They were doing work down on Bourbon Street right below us, but there were still people walking by and we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves.
The drink itself I didn't like...as far as taste. I abhor black licorice, and that was all this tasted like...with a huge alcohol kick. I choked a little more than half down anyway because it was pricey (but understandably so for what it was) and the feeling it gives you is one of a kind. I'm a writer, and I love the place tequila takes my mind, but this really was a step beyond. If you've never had real absinthe before, you should try it at least once.
This bar offers vampire tarot readings, and I really wish I'd sat for one. I definitely will the next time I return in 2020.
Loved the decor, the balcony, the bartender was busy but took the time to entertain us and explain some things I never knew about absinthe.
We tried to go back on Saturday to enjoy the balcony, but when we went, it was 7pm and the vamp bar didn't open until 9pm. That was disappointing but didn't dampen our first experience. It was a really cool place to go for fans of Goth and Vampire culture!
No other bar like it in NOLA. It's great there's a bar that caters to people like me!