Why I love New Orleans: Dog Day Afternoons

There are endless reasons why I love New Orleans, but one of them is that it is a truly dog-friendly city.  In fact, for crazy dog lovers, like myself, it's pretty darn close to heaven on earth.

Moxie is my awesome 9-year-old Cairn Terrier, She is my constant sidekick, and unofficial mascot of my small business, The Marigny Boudoir. Being the baby of the Boudoir can be tedious; watching me sew for hours on end is not exactly her idea of a good time. So it’s great to live in a place where I can take her on walks and bring her into a variety of bars and cafes that are not only totally cool with her joining the crowd and hanging out, but have dog-lovin’ bartenders who are happy to pay tribute to their furry patrons with lots of treats and attention.

 We‘re on the Marigny side of Esplanade Avenue, where there are several locations just within a few blocks of each other that gladly welcome four-legged friends.  Below are some pics of Moxie in her favorite bar crawl destinations, like the Golden Lantern on Royal (they have plaques on the bar dedicated to some of their favorite canine customers), Buffa’s on Burgundy (the bartenders are very generous with bacon), Cosimo’s on Governor Nicholls St. (their back room with a couch is great for lounging with your pup), and R Bar on Royal (they always keep fresh water out and Meaty Bones on hand). All of these places are super laid back joints that are more geared toward locals than tourists, and it’s common for Moxie to meet up with a few doggy pals from the neighborhood while I chat and enjoy a cocktail or two. If it’s close to dusk, we’ll usually wrap up our excursion with a brief romp at Cabrini Park.  Area residents will often be there after work with their pups to play Frisbee or ball or just for a smiff-o-palooza before calling it a day.

  I love this city for so many reasons, but I really cherish and appreciate New Orleans for understanding that dogs just make everything better…and they really are the coolest drinking buddies.

I'm Mariana Howard and this is the 20th anniversary of my first visit to New Orleans. I put down roots here in 2012 and started my small business, The Marigny Boudoir.  We offer original, retro-style sleep masks and bedroom accessories, all hand sewn by me.  You can find my creations locally at The Glitter Box in the French Quarter or Belladonna on Magazine St.  You can also purchase via etsy at the link below.