After the half marathon, I happened upon this place called Manning’s. I took a look at the menu, and most of the appetizers had pepper jelly on them. Sounds weird, right?
I asked what pepper jelly was. Everyone standing by the hostess stand said it was so awesome. They explained that it was a very sweet tasting sauce that they all thought was incredibly delicious. I was a little skeptical, but figured it didn’t hurt to try something new.
I sat down and was greeted by the sweetest waitress I’ve ever met. It’s worth going to Manning’s just for Kandice. Since I was in New Orleans, (vegan friends (Wendy and Marty), close your eyes), I wanted to try some meat I’d never tried. So, I ordered some duck wings.
They were freaking delicious! Also, I’m addicted to pepper jelly now. The name is misleading, because it sounds weird, and pepper doesn’t make me think of anything sweet. But, it is num num num. I didn’t think I’d like wings that were sweet. (I like spicy stuff!) But, seriously, yum.
I wasn’t super duper hungry after that, but I just had to try the poutine (which I’d never even heard of before). All of the people I’d met in the restaurant said it was an absolute must.
Chili cheese fries are in my top favorite foods, and poutine is fries with pork, cheese, and the new pepper jelly I adore so much. I told Kandice I needed to go on “break” from eating. lol! She was really patient as I kept being all, “um, 10 minutes from now?” (She comes back in 10 minutes.) “I’m so sorry. Can I just have 5 more minutes?”
Now, if you’re reading this, you’re probably thinking, “Well, Aurora, it sounds like you didn’t need any more food if you needed to prep for it like that.” Okay, well you might be right. I know being healthy is great, and moderation is great, but I did need more food, because these were crazy good! Don’t worry too much, though. I had a few bites and took the rest to enjoy later.
I don’t want to oversell this place, but I’m gonna go ahead and say it was probably the best experience I’ve ever had a restaurant. Yep. I’m saying it.
The hostesses were sweethearts. Kandice was my new friend. The food was all brand new to me, and it tasted incredible! The restaurant was wonderfully well themed with football plays drawn on some walls, and inspiring quotes on others. There were even pictures of the Manning family on the ceiling if you looked up.
After I paid, I scribbled a tiny thank you note to Kandice for her awesomeness on the back of an extra receipt. As I was leaving, I looked at t-shirts with Kisha (the hostess (another new friend of mine)).
(Side note here: I saw that the t-shirts said est. 2012! That’s right, Manning’s is brand new. I’m getting on this bandwagon early, people.)
Anyway, while I was talking to Kisha, Kandice ran over and gave me a hug! How sweet of her! We all took a picture together and said goodbye. So sad. Between the best expo yet, the incredibly fun race, and the best meal I’ve ever had, New Orleans has got me! I’m already ready to go back, and I just left today!
The cab driver on the way to the airport told me to come back next month for Jazz Fest… I wonder if there are any half marathons happening in New Orleans around that time… 😉