As afternoon slipped into evening on the Old Mandeville lakefront, the breeze picked up, the waves near the seawall danced more sprightly, and the time felt right for an aperitif, a spritz of aromatic spirits and bubbles to set the mood and raise the curtain on the meal to come.
It was also prime time at the new waterfront restaurant called Aperitif Spritz + Bites, and soon its lake view had drawn people to the umbrella-shaded porch tables.
Aperitif has swiftly become a hot spot, with a feel somewhere between a beach house dining room and clubhouse bar, and it’s right in tune with the feel of Old Mandeville these days.
This once-sleepy north shore town doesn’t feel so sleepy anymore. With new restaurants and bars and the breezy golf cart traffic shuttling between them, it carries the buzz of those waterfront towns down the Gulf Coast now getting so much attention, though this destination is closer to home.
On a recent weekend, I used dinner at Aperitif as the anchor for a one-night staycation from my New Orleans home to explore.
I found a proper bed and breakfast with a view of the lake and charted a route between spots to eat and drink that were all just a few blocks from each other.
After early dinner, it was a drink on the porch at Pat’s Rest A While, the rebirth of a historic lakefront summer camp as a modern restaurant, and a fine perch to watch the setting sun paint the lake in changing hues. Then it was on to a new wine bar called Noir Bistrot and then a wine shop-turned-cocktail lounge, the Grapeful Ape.
To end it was an Old Mandeville standby, Donz on the Lake, and yes this Donz is spelled with a Z. It’s a longtime waterfront watering hole that's been spruced up a bit but deep down is still a dive, in the Louisiana way, scruffy, friendly, another fine perch for lake-watching.
It all started with a road trip dinner, and turned into just the kind of quick weekend adventure that helps the New Orleans summer sail past a bit more smoothly.
