Stopover in LaPlace, Louisiana; hotel review + restaurant view + things to do

STOPOVER IN LAPLACE, LOUISIANA

LaPlace is a convenient spot to overnight when you're visiting the Louisiana plantations.  I recommend you plan in a swamp tour here as well.

Holiday Inn Express & Suites La Place  

4284 Hwy. 51, in LAPLACE, (985) 618-1600.  Continental breakfast.  Pool; coin laundry. 
This is a cog in the reliable chain and features really unusual bathroom plumbing.

Nobile’s Restaurant  

2082 W. Main Street, in LUTCHER, (225) 869-8900.  L M-F, D Thur-Sat. 
Built in 1895 during Louisiana’s lumber boom--this town harvested cypress--when it served as a bar and boarding house, this spacious restaurant features vintage high ceilings is a comfortable gathering place for locals.  It retains a lovely Victorian mahogany bar that greets arrivals and has some interesting collectables as part of the decor.  The menu offers Cajun and Creole dishes, including gumbo, seafood, and po’boys.  I chose a crispy Caesar salad and an unusual appetizer plate of crawfish empanadas to go with my colorful Hurricane cocktail.

front dining room in Nobile's Restaurant in Lutcher, Louisiana

rustic paintings for sale in Nobile's Restaurant in Lutcher, Louisiana

Hurricane cocktail at Nobile's Restaurant in Lutcher, Louisiana

Caesar salad at Nobile's Restaurant in Lutcher, Louisiana

crawfish empanadas at Nobile's Restaurant in Lutcher, Louisiana

Cajun Pride Swamp Tour  

110 Frenier Road, in LAPLACE.  Cajun Pride Swamp Tours glide through the legendary, privately owned Manchac Swamp, where you will see alligators, turtles, and a variety of birds.  Seasoned guides introduce additional local flora and fauna as the pontoon boat meanders through the waterway, and they tell tales of hurricanes, survival, and the unique Louisiana culture.  According to Captain Allen--our Cajun guide who sports a gravelly voice much like the late actor Redd Fox--whether you see alligators “depends on the temperature.”  At 70-degrees plus they come out.  Allen keeps alligators in his home as pets and sometimes brings one along for his riders to hold.  If you’re real lucky, as I was, he will do this on the day you visit and you, like I did, might get to hold a two-foot-long baby alligator.  

Cajun Pride Swamp Tour in LaPlace, Louisiana

alligator spotted on Cajun Pride Swamp Tour in LaPlace, Louisiana

egrets spotted on Cajun Pride Swamp Tour in LaPlace, Louisiana

red cardinal spotted on Cajun Pride Swamp Tour in LaPlace, Louisiana

Captain Allen holds alligator on Cajun Pride Swamp Tour in LaPlace, Louisiana

visitors hand off alligator on Cajun Pride Swamp Tour in LaPlace, Louisiana

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images ©2017 Carole Terwilliger Meyers 

Destrehan, Louisiana: Destrehan Plantation; things to do

Destrehan Plantation  

13034 River Road, in DESTREHAN, (877) 453-2095, (985) 764-9315. 

The oldest documented plantation in lower Mississippi, this fully restored property dates to 1787.  Destrehan Plantation started as an indigo plantation, and then in 1804 became the largest sugar plantation in the area.  A 10-minute video viewed in the brick-wall and brick–floor Cooling Room orients visitors for the 1-hour guided tour of the Big House—which began as a French Colonial in the 1790s, but was later remodeled into a Greek Revival--after which visitors can explore on their own.  Costumed guides, who refer to themselves as “interpreters of history,” interpret the legacy of the Destrehan family and point out the unique architectural features of their home, which being a country house was not so grand.  But though it had sparse furnishings, it was clean and well maintained. 

The focus here is on stories, so you’ll learn about the French family whole lived here, as well as about Marguerite--the cook and laundress slave born in 1740.  You’ll also see an original document signed by Thomas Jefferson and James Madison.  Period craft demonstrations occur daily and include open-hearth cooking, indigo dyeing, sugar-cane processing, weaving, 1780s carpentry, and African-American herbal remedies.  

Big House at Destrehan Plantation in Destrehan, Louisiana

240-year-old live oak tree at Destrehan Plantation in Destrehan, Louisiana

costumed guide at Destrehan Plantation in Destrehan, Louisiana

bedroom at Destrehan Plantation in Destrehan, Louisiana

bathroom at Destrehan Plantation in Destrehan, Louisiana

detail from painting at Destrehan Plantation in Destrehan, Louisiana

demo of 1780s carpentry at Destrehan Plantation in Destrehan, Louisiana

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images ©2017 Carole Terwilliger Meyers 

Wallace, Louisiana: Whitney Plantation; things to do

Whitney Plantation  

5099 River Rd./Hwy. 18, in WALLACE, (225) 265-3300. 

Dedicated now to telling the story of slavery, this former indigo, then sugar plantation is on the National Register of Historic Places.  The focus at Whitney Plantation is on the lives of the plantation’s slaves in the 1830s and the story is told through their eyes.  The tour is mostly outside and begins with a memorial site where names are etched into shiny granite walls.  This spot is meant to be a place to contemplate and grieve, and it records the names of 107,000 people held in bondage in Louisiana from 1719 to 1820.  Another area known as The Field of Angels memorializes the 2,200 children who died in this parish.

memorial overview at Whitney Plantation in Wallace, Louisiana

memorial plus guide at Whitney Plantation in Wallace, Louisiana

memorial name detail at Whitney Plantation in Wallace, Louisiana

memorial picture and name detail at Whitney Plantation in Wallace, Louisiana

During the walking tour, visitors see both the last surviving example of a French Creole barn and the oldest detached kitchen in Louisiana.  The Big House is considered the earliest and best-preserved raised Creole cottage in Louisiana and is furnished with era pieces, but it is in great need of repairs and access is poor.  All of these structures were built by slaves.

Big House at Whitney Plantation in Wallace, Louisiana

slave cabin with child sculptures at Whitney Plantation in Wallace, Louisiana

A picturesque small church with a tall steeple was moved here from across the river.  It is now populated with child sculptures, by Woodrow Nash, that represent slaves who were freed and whose stories are told here.   

exterior of church at Whitney Plantation in Wallace, Louisiana

child sculptures by Woodrow Nash, inside church at Whitney Plantation
in Wallace, Louisiana

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images ©2017 Carole Terwilliger Meyers

Edgard, Louisiana: Evergreen Plantation; things to do

Evergreen Plantation  

4649 River Rd./Hwy. 18, in EDGARD, (985) 497-3837. 

One of the largest and most intact plantation complexes in the South, Evergreen Plantation is still a working sugarcane plantation.  It has 37 buildings on the National Register of Historic Places.  Most are antebellum, and 22 rare slave cabins in original double-row configuration are included.  People still live and work here.  As you tour the grounds, don’t miss a stroll through an allée of moss-draped 100- to 200-year-old live oaks.  Historically, indigo was the first crop on this plantation, then came sugar cane and some rice.  Still a private residence, the main house was originally French Creole style, then remodeled to Greek Revival.  No furnishings are original to the house, and currently it is furnished with no particular style.  It was prominently featured in the 2012 movie “Django Unchained,” and parts of the new 2016 version of “Roots,” starring Forest Whitaker, were filmed in the kitchen.  

live oak allee at Evergreen Plantation in Edgard, Louisiana

plantation house at Evergreen Plantation in Edgard, Louisiana

slave cabins at Evergreen Plantation in Edgard, Louisiana

gigantic tree at Evergreen Plantation in Edgard, Louisiana

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images ©2017 Carole Terwilliger Meyers

Vacherie, Louisiana: Laura Plantation + B&C Seafood; things to do + restaurant review

Laura Plantation  

2247 River Rd./Hwy. 18, in VACHERIE, (888) 799-7690, (225) 265-7690.  Guided tours daily 10am-4pm; $20.  No lodging. 

Based on 5,000 pages of documents from the French National Archives that are related to both the free and enslaved families who lived on this centuries-old sugar cane farm, and also incorporating original resident Laura’s own book “Memories of the Old Plantation Home,” the tour at Laura Plantation features professional guides who share compelling, real-life accounts of seven generations of Creole inhabitants.  This plantation has the largest collection of family artifacts original to a Louisiana plantation.  Life here wasn’t all hoopskirts and mint juleps or convoluted relationships and intrigue.  Here it was Creole-style austere.  For instance, by tradition marriage was proposed with a fan, not a diamond ring.  Twelve buildings are on the National Register, and many are 19th-century Creole-style that are raised off the ground on square brick pillars while others are 210-year-old West African bricks-between-posts construction.  Built in 1805 and situated on a fault line with a natural ridge high point, this site never flooded.  The property has a tropical feel, with palm trees and a banana forest that is sometimes shriveled and dry from cold winter weather.  The west-African stories that inspired “Tales of Brer Rabbit” were originally recorded in this region and are thought to have been originated in cabins here.

Laura Plantation store in Vacherie, Louisiana

cat's-eye view from plantation house at Laura Plantation in Vacherie, Louisiana

 

dry banana forest at Laura Plantation in Vacherie, Louisiana

19th-century Creole-style out building that is raised off the ground
on square brick pillars, at Laura Plantation in Vacherie, Louisiana

out building at Laura Plantation in Vacherie, Louisiana

portraits of former residents at Laura Plantation in Vacherie, Louisiana

portrait of former resident at Laura Plantation in Vacherie, Louisiana

 

crawfish mound at Laura Plantation in Vacherie, Louisiana

B&C Seafood  

2155 River Rd./Hwy. 18, (225) 265-8356, in VACHERIE.  M-Sat 11am-4:30pm. 

Located right next door to Laura Plantation, so close that you can easily walk on over, B&C Seafood provides some of the area's best Cajun and Creole seafood.  According to one regular, it is “the only restaurant in the state of Louisiana that serves Alka-Seltzer for dessert.”  Diners pass through the fish market in front to reach the large dining room in back.  Fried plate lunches are primo and include combos—I had catfish, prawns, and particularly delicious hushpuppies—and the menu also offers fried alligator, boudin balls, stuffed potatoes, gumbo, po-boys, and plenty more. 

exterior of B&C Seafood in Vacherie, Louisiana

fish market at B&C Seafood in Vacherie, Louisiana

fresh crawfish at B&C Seafood in Vacherie, Louisiana

dining room at B&C Seafood in Vacherie, Louisiana

owner of B&C Seafood in Vacherie, Louisiana

Abita root beer at B&C Seafood in Vacherie, Louisiana

salad at B&C Seafood in Vacherie, Louisiana

fried combo at B&C Seafood in Vacherie, Louisiana

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images ©2017 Carole Terwilliger Meyers

Vacherie, Louisiana: Oak Alley Plantation; things to do + restaurant review

Oak Alley Plantation  

3645 River Rd./Hwy. 18, in VACHERIE, (800) 442-5539.  Tours 9-5; $10.  Lodging $104-$135, includes breakfast. 

This exceptional property is entered from the river road through a dramatic, and much-filmed, quarter-mile alley tree tunnel of 300-year-old oak trees (there are 28 of them spaced 80 feet apart in two equal rows).  Movies filmed here at Oak Alley Plantation include “The Long Hot Summer,” “Interview with the Vampire,” and “Hush, Hush, Sweet Charlotte,” as well as Beyonce’s “Déjà Vu” music video.  The house tour tells about the Romans family that built the plantation.  Outside, a self-guided tour continues through the “Slavery at Oak Alley” exhibit.  Spread through six cabins, it provides insight into the lives and importance of those who were enslaved here.  Also of special interest are The Sugarcane Theater, which shows a short video explaining how sugarcane is processed into sugar, and a Blacksmith Shop with an 1800s-era forge and live demonstrations.

oak tree alley at Oak Alley Plantation in Vacherie, Louisiana

plantation house at Oak Alley Plantation in Vacherie, Louisiana

dining room in plantation house at Oak Alley Plantation in Vacherie, Louisiana

reading belle in plantation house at Oak Alley Plantation in Vacherie, Louisiana

children's bedroom in plantation house at Oak Alley Plantation
in Vacherie, Louisiana

slave cabin at Oak Alley Plantation in Vacherie, Louisiana

Housed in a 19th-century cottage, Oak Alley Restaurant serves a particularly tasty breakfast enhanced by what must be the very best beignets around. 

best beignets around in restaurant at Oak Alley Plantation in Vacherie, Louisiana

Both new and century-old cottages are available on the outskirts of the property to spend the night in.  Breakfast in the restaurant is included. 

guest cottages at Oak Alley Plantation in Vacherie, Louisiana

 
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images ©2017 Carole Terwilliger Meyers