After enjoying dinner at Mother’s Restaurant, Café Du Monde in New Orleans felt like the right time to have fresh beignets for dessert — especially as the air was quite chilly for that Halloween night. 15 minutes was all the time that was needed to walk the distance of 0.7 miles between the two establishments.
Café Du Monde in New Orleans. Restaurant Review.
To clarify, Café Du Monde is not a restaurant. Only beignets and some beverages are served. The original location is an original French Market coffee stand that is inside of a historic building.
A wooden plaque which hangs on the wall has the following words etched into it:
Café Du Monde
THE ORIGINAL FRENCH MARKET COFFEE STAND, SERVING CAFÉ AU LAIT AND HOT BEIGNETS (FRENCH DOUGHNUTS) 24 HOURS A DAY, YEAR ROUND. THIS FAMILIAR NEW ORLEANS LANDMARK HAS BEEN LOCATED IN THE FRENCH MARKET SINCE THE EARLY 1860’S.
Much of the iconic building is open-air seating. Limited seating is available inside of the building behind the windows. Some of the customers wore costumes for Halloween.
Customers seat themselves. Once seated, a server descends upon the table. All types of people seem to serve there. Few of them seemed cheerful. One tall grizzled waiter seemed like he had worked there for at least 40 years. He did not have all that much of a sense of humor. I suppose that is part of the ambiance.
Menus for dining and for the company store are not only available on the walls…
…but they are also on every metal napkin holder that is on each table.
The beignets came shortly after they were ordered. They were covered in mounds of powdered sugar. They mimicked a winter wonderland. You can go skiing off of these beignets.
An order of three beignets costs $3.85. They were larger than I expected.
I ordered a large hot chocolate, as I do not drink coffee. Coffee or hot chocolate is served in a sealed paper cup, from which one pours the hot liquid into the cup on the saucer. The hot chocolate was rich and satisfying. $4.53.
The beignets were hot, fresh, airy, and delicious. The outside was just shy of crispy; and the inside was nice and doughy.
Final Boarding Call
I recommend trying a beignet at the original location of Café Du Monde at least once just for the experience. Only cash is accepted.
I simply sat myself at a table with no wait. Plenty of empty tables were available. However, be prepared for a long line of customers, as that is not uncommon.
Café Du Monde
800 Decatur Street
New Orleans, Louisiana 70116
United States
1-504-587-0833
Operating Hours
Despite signs that claim that the establishment is open 24 hours, the official Internet web site of Café Du Monde indicates that the operating hours of the original location are:
- 7:15 in the morning through 11:00 in the evening Sunday through Thursday.
- 7:15 in the morning through midnight Friday and Saturday.
Street parking is available out front much of the time; but metered parking spots and pay parking lots are also available nearby.
All photographs ©2023 by Brian Cohen.
