We spent a long weekend in New Orleans over the Easter Holiday. Brunch is a “must do” for us on Easter and after a bit of research, we decide on Easter Brunch at the Ritz. So was it worth it?
Easter Brunch at the Ritz starts at 11:30 am. We were staying in the hotel as guests, but if you are not, the Ritz includes complimentary parking with the meal price. We booked our reservation a bit late, which left us with a 1:30 pm reservation.
As soon as you step off the Ritz elevator, the fresh smell of flowers engulfs your nose as the beauty of the lobby greets you!
Snap from the Lobby
Upon being seated, we were instantly offered Champagne. Bonus – Easter Brunch at the Ritz Carlton includes unlimited champs! The live jazz band playing in the adjacent bar added to the great ambiance all around the restaurant area.
1st Course – Seafood Buffet
After a couple of glasses of champagne and some time to review the menu, we were encouraged to visit the all-you-can eat seafood bar! This was considered the 1st course! There were abundant options including seafood salads, crab bisque, fresh scallops, gumbo and risotto etc.
Our absolute favorite part of the buffet was the raw bar portion. It included oysters, jumbo shrimp, stone crab claws and king crab legs! Best part about it was that they were already peeled and ready to eat! Our Easter Brunch at the Ritz may have included one or two….ok three helpings of that amazing raw bar!
After an hour, we decided to move on to the 2nd and 3rd courses of our Easter brunch feast.
2nd Course – Salad
For the 2nd course, the Ritz offered a salad of mixed greens, carrots along with blood orange vinaigrette.
3rd Course – Main Entree
They offered 3 options: lamb, filet or vegetarian. We chose the lamb and filet; both were equally delicious.
4th Course – Dessert Bar
We were treated to the extensive dessert bar. This is where Easter Brunch at the Ritz really takes the cake (no pun intended) for us! We can’t recall having such an expansive dessert spread! Also, a Ritz pastry chef was making fresh waffles which were topped with vanilla ice cream and pralines!
And as a bonus, they offered make your own candy bags as a take home treat!
Overall we were overjoyed with our choice to experience Easter Brunch at the Ritz. We had quite a wonderful, filling afternoon! In our opinion, the price tag of $85 per person was well worth it. We had an abundance of food and we never felt rushed. The staff were constantly refilling our champagne and we were encouraged to stay as long as we wanted.
The Ritz offers holiday brunches throughout the year. The next one is on Mother’s Day and would be the ideal treat!
For a more in-depth look at all the courses, check out our snap chat stories!
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View Comments (6)
I've often wondered if the hotel brunches are worth their steep price, but it looks like you really get a bang for your buck at the Ritz Carlton in New Orleans. The unlimited champagne is a truly nice touch. That alone makes me want to book a brunch there! I'm all about the bubbles at brunch. And that seafood bar! I'm with you, Brian. It is an addiction! But such a tasty one. ;-)
We agree, it can be a gamble on value for your money at hotel brunches but this one certainly delivered for us. Glad to find a fellow traveler who appreciates the bubbles and a seafood bar!
Decadent, delicious and utterly desirable! That's about the best way to summarize what you experienced here in the beautiful Crescent City. We LOVE NOLA and actually were just there a couple of weeks ago. The food throughout the city is amazing but we love cajun/creole and this hotel experience looks awesome. We stayed outside of the city but would love to go back and experience this brunch at the Ritz Carlton. Great review guys!
We love NOLA as well and one of many reasons is the food! There are so many great options it can be hard to choose where to eat.
Oh my goodness, I would do this in a heartbeat. I love a good raw bar!
Wow, my mouth is watering. It looks fabulous.
I agree, it would be a wonderful treat for Mothers Day. Can't wait for next years invite!