In recent years in New Orleans, new hotels have popped up all over the Central Business District because of its location (close to the French Quarter and the Lower Garden District) and its plethora of beautiful older buildings that have been redone. One standout is the NOPSI Hotel, which opened in July of 2017.
The Preferred Hotels luxury hotel sits in the former headquarters of New Orleans Public Service, Inc., (hence NOPSI) and has been completely reinvented with plenty of historical touches, especially in the epic lobby which still has the original entrance. In the lobby, guests can still see the original transaction tables where New Orleanians paid their bills.
After the building closed in the mid-1980s the building was vacant until it was reimagined as NOPSI.
The lowdown
NOPSI is the perfect place to stay if you're looking to take in a bit of history (at the hotel or at one of its nearby museums) and want to be equidistant from the French Quarter and the nearby Garden District.
The hotel provides distinctly New Orleans touches. Near the conference rooms, there's memorabilia displayed, provided by people who used to work in the historic building.
It's a popular spot for weddings. The former loading dock is now a ballroom, complete with the original brick, plenty of natural light and chandeliers aplenty.
The food and drinks
Their restaurant hotel, Public Service, is a popular spot to visit - even if you're not staying at NOPSI. Public Service is a brand new building but still looks old school New Orleans with a chic twist. It's a new building but the decor blends in seamlessly with the next door lobby to keep the historic nature of the building throughout.
During my recent visit, Chef Neal Swidler prepared an entirely vegetarian menu that was Southern-inspired, complete with an elaborate Pimento cheese spread served with house-made pickles and Hush puppies with cane syrup.
Swidler has worked as a chef for the past 20 years, spending a decade with Emeril Lagasse's restaurants, include NOLA and Emeril's Delmonico.
Other vegetarian options include the pear and goat cheese salad, served with a pepper jelly vinaigrette and candied pecans. But the best part of the meal was dessert. The bread pudding is light and fluffy and almost tasted like French Toast, only even more decadent.
The rooftop is a popular cocktails destination, with a DJ playing at night and a pool for quick dips during the day.
The rooms
There are 217 rooms in a nine-story original brick building that opened in 1927. The rooms are spacious, with the smallest at 500 and suites around 750 square feet.
Many of the rooms boast private terraces with views of the city. Four VIP rooms have terraces similar to the rooftop and have become popular with celebrities and athletes in town for sports games.
Rooms start at $145 but vary seasonally.
Things to do
The hotel is in an ideal location - in the Central Business District, so you can visit the nearby aquarium, the Ogden Museum of Southern Art or the newly revamped World War II Museum. If you're searching for shopping, try nearby Magazine Street which is full of boutiques as well as Ashley Longshore's iconic art gallery. And as it is New Orleans there are more food options than you can eat through during a weekend.
For coffee, try Hi-Volt, for brunch, head to Surrey's Cafe and Juice Bar, and for dinner, Galatoire's offers a taste of old school New Orleans. It's not a weekend in NOLA without a night on the town - head to Pat O'Brien's piano bar for a piano singalong, WINO to taste-test all kinds of wine or Lucy's Retired Surfers Bar for shark cocktails.
