Bourbon Vieux

I attended a private party here a month ago and had a great experience. The food was ok, the drinks were ok and the entertainment was good. The best part about this place is the balcony overlooking Bourbon Street.

I give them 1 star simply based off of the price they value the venue in accordance with the lack of premium service they offer. The wait staff and bartenders were great and deserve more stars, but the managements lack of knowledge for their venue is subpar.
Here’s our experience if you feel like reading all the way through:
I just wanted to reach about my experience with your restaurants while in town for my wedding weekend. I was married the weekend of June 5 – 7 in New Orleans. It was an amazing weekend and we sort of laughed on Sunday when we realized that we had spent just about every meal with Creole Cuisine restaurants. We did our rehearsal dinner at Bourbon Vieux with 50 – 60 people, I did my groomsman lunch at my local favorite (Pierre Maspero’s) 20 people, and we did my mother in laws birthday brunch at Broussard’s with around 40 people. Tony at Maspero’s was absolutely amazing. He was extremely helpful and had our table waiting for us when we arrived on Saturday, June 6^th. Broussard’s was equally as accommodating as we were a little more unsure of the exact number, but since there were more than we expected the staff made room and the food was excellent as always. As for our experience with Bourbon Vieux, I will say that the food and the service staff was amazing. I do question the level of accommodation from Monica who was specifically designated to our event for our rehearsal dinner at Bourbon Vieux. From the beginning of our communication about this event we were in contact with Stephanie. On the night of our event we met Monica, who mentioned she would be our point of contact for the evening. I showed up early to double check that my slide show would work. It was a good thing that I did because prior that week Stephanie mentioned all I would need was a computer to hook it up. Once on site Monica showed me a completely different adapter that wasn’t previously mentioned the week prior. I went on a wild goose chase for an hour to find the adapter so that I could play this slide show that I spent hours putting together. They were also very unknowledgeable about how to get the sound to work. If it weren’t for the tech savvy bartender we may not have figured it out. Seems to me if I was the person in charge of running the venue I would know the in’s and out’s of my location. By the time we figured this out I literally had to run down Bourbon St. to my hotel where my guests were already in the lobby in suits & dresses while I was sweating and in shorts. Due to this situation it was completely my fault that my wife & I were 30 minutes late to the event. The night went well, but at the very end (8:20 which was 20 minutes over our contract) Monica mentioned to my wife, that we owed for an additional plate. Which was incorrect and then mentioned that she was going to charge us for the 30 minutes we went over (10 minutes prior & 20 minutes post). I am unsure if this is how your company teaches its managers or staff to run their business, but seems to me if I was at fault for the hour and half of wasting another persons time that I would be a little more accommodating. Not even pointing out that it was extremely unprofessional to approach my wife who had zero to do with the payment of the event and as we all know brides can be a little emotional. My wife handled it well and brushed it off. Three weeks went by and we didn’t hear a word so we figured that they in fact realized that they equally were unaccommodating and wasted my time so maybe they didn’t charge us. Only to find out that without even sending an email or receipt or any type of communication they just charged our card for a petty $ 434.61 compared to the $ 6,000+ we spent. I am not as concerned about the $ 400 as much as I feel that the actions of specifically Monica does not exemplify any of the other interactions we have had no limited to just our times during this weekend. I frequent Maspero’s & Broussard’s when back home as my entire family still lives in New Orleans. Our only negative experience the entire weekend was with working with Monica at Bourbon Vieux and the way business was handled. Prior to sending this I wanted to see what they had to say about the charges and Stephanie mentioned that our guests showed up 10 minutes early. I think with a little common courtesy and common sense as the host, if Monica would have told them that it is not open or ready until 5pm that my guests would have gladly paid cash for a cocktail at Bayou Burger until 5pm

This is an amazing venue on Bourbon Street. The live music is fantastic upstairs. The bathrooms are spacious and clean. The food is top notch. The bartenders were nice, and the waitstaff were timely and efficient. I had a ton of fun on the balcony above Bourbon Street. The balcony wraps around the corner of the building and street, giving you a fantastic 720° view of all the action.
Make sure you have lots of beads available to throw down to passersby. It’s a tradition!

Bourbon Vieux is one of the best kept secrets for wedding reception venues in New Orleans. If you’re planning a smaller, more intimate wedding, under 75 people, Bourbon Vieux is perfect. Its located right in the heart and center of Bourbon Street.
I planned a destination wedding in Nola with 50 guests and choose the Bourbon Vieux because of its proximity to all of the action of Bourbon St. I was skeptical because I was planning from afar and I wasn’t finding many reviews /​pictures of the room setup during a wedding but I couldn’t be happier for choosing the Bourbon Vieux. Our guests were wowed by the abundance of food, décor and balcony this place had to offer.
Also, Taylor and Steffanie could not have been more helpful. They answered all of my emails and calls immediately. Thanks, ladies!

This place is f*cking b*llshit. They kicked me out of the event I was attending because I brought a straw into the bathroom. Apparently, according to the unprofessional management, that means you’re doing cocaine, and that they can kick you out. Absolutely ridiculous.

Hands down the best balcony to be at for Mardi gras. Yes the cover is a bit expensive but you have open bar and buffet for the entire time you’re there. They alternate the people from the balcony every hour as well so everyone has more than enough time to get a good spot and a couple of hours of fun time before giving other people a chance. It’s a good way to drink a ton and have fun during Mardi gras.

When looking for a wedding venue a few years ago, we found Bourbon Vieux. At that time, they seemed a bit unorganized and I also experienced the «run around» with trying to get in and see someone about renting the place. In the end, we opted for another place.
Fast forward three years and I’m in town with friends for New Years Eve and the Bourbon Vieux came up as one of many places hosting NYE parties.
For 165 bucks, they were offering a open bar and all you can eat buffet from 8PM to 1AM.
Pros:
Great Location
Clean restrooms
They poured some good top shelf liquors
The food was really good.
The staff was all very friendly
The 165 price seemed to weed out any of the «undesirables» that can ruin things like this.
They didn’t pack the place. The bar lines were never too long, the food was easy to access and although a bit more difficult, a place on the balcony was usually able to be found.
Cons:
*They had assigned seating, and could not accommodate our group of 6 at one table. We were one of the last people to buy tickets, so I assume this would not be the case if I booked earlier. To be fair, they did disclose this before we purchased.
*The check in was a bit slow. We waited in line 20 – 30 minutes
*The liquor selection was great, the beer selection was limited to abita amber (from the can). disappointing considering they are owned by bayou burger downstairs that has one of the most impressive selections of beer in the French Quarter.
*they closed the doors promptly at 1am… Way too early for Bourbon Street on New Years Eve…
In all, I feel they did a great job on this NYE party… we all had a great time… If I wasn’t fortunate enough to have a private balcony at one of the hotels, I would go back here again for a NYE or Mardi Gras Party

Started calling BV for appt. to view venue 11 months before date. Told on 3 – 4 occasions the caterer was not available. Now 9 months before date showed up to ask to see venue. Caterer still not available but was shown venue. Decided we would like to speak with caterer to discuss menu. CATERER STILL NOT AVILABLE. Now 6 months from date, other venues are booked. FINALLY caterer available. DATE IS BOOKED. I would not take a chance booking a venue where the only person available to discuss dates, menu and prices is on vacation more than she works. If a problem arises no one is available to speak with.

Mardi Gras 2011 Review
This is the place to be on Bourbon Street if you want to be on a balcony. There are a few balconies you can get to on Bourbon street that do not charge cover, but if you want a location with lots of foot traffic, this is it. It’s about 5 blocks from the beginning of where Bourbon street begins which is good because when people first enter the madness that is Bourbon street, they aren’t quite ready to reveal themselves (use your imagination). But five blocks in, and this is a very long street, people tend to let their inhibitions go. The other place I saw that sold balcony access online was called The Cat’s Meow, but that location didn’t have as much traffic so I’m glad we didn’t pay for that.
I started looking for balcony rentals online a few days before our trip and I didn’t realize Bourbon Vieux would fill up so fast. By the the time I booked, Friday and Saturday were sold out, which were the cheapest of the nights.
The prices for the balcony rental during Mardi Gras went like this (price is per person):
Friday 6pm to 1am $ 80
Saturday 6pm to 1am $ 80
Sunday 6pm to 1am $ 140
Monday 6pm to 1am $ 140
Fat Tuesday 12 noon to 11pm $ 250
We almost went for the Fat Tuesday rental but I’m glad we didn’t because we were pretty burnt out by Tuesday from the previous 4 nights of partying (fri, sat, sun, and mon).
We ended up booking the place for Monday night which actually worked out really well. Of the four nights we spent on Bourbon Street, it ended up being our best night of partying due to the comfort of being above the madness (on a balcony), having a clean bathroom to use all night, and having a table to sit at all night when we weren’t on the balcony.
So what did our $ 140/​person get us?
— All you can drink «premium» alcohol (Absolut vodka, Jack Daniels, etc.)
— Buffet all night with pretty good food for a buffet (3 to 3.5 stars for food)
— alternating use of the balcony every other hour (250 ppl split into two groups so that everyone has a chance to use it to throw beads at people)
— clean bathrooms
— tables to sit at (come early if you want a good table however)
Was it worth it? Totally. After walking on Bourbon street for the previous 3 nights we were getting tired of having people push us around to get by, having beads hit us everywhere, trying to find bathrooms to use, stepping in vomit, etc. If you plan to come to Mardi Gras and you’re not sure if you should book a night at this balcony, just do it. Go for one of the nights earlier in the week (end) like Friday or Saturday if they’re not already booked by then. I don’t think it would be worth the $ 250 they were charging on Fat Tuesday.
Fat Tuesday for my group ended up being pretty anti-​climactic after the previous 4 nights of partying. We couldn’t even drink anymore because we were so hung over from all the previous nights.
Here are some tips if you decide to book at Bourbon Vieux, or just tips for visiting Mardi Gras and specifically Bourbon Street:
1. Don’t wear nice shoes. They will get trashed by the end of the week and you’ll want to throw them away.
2. Don’t buy cheap throw beads because you can get them free from the parade floats, and the throw beads are everywhere. No one does much for those beads.
3. Before going to Mardi Gras, stock up on premium, large ball beads (we got ours at
which had great prices), specialty beads (ones that light up), glow necklaces/​bracelets (the ones you break and they light up for a few hours), and feather boas ($ 25 each on Bourbon Street!) if you can find them.
4. Bring a megaphone if you don’t want to keep screaming from the Balcony. All the Radio Shacks in New Orleans sold out.
5. Get to Bourbon Vieux earlier if you want to get a good table. We got there at 8pm, 2 hours after it started at 6pm, and we were too late. Fortunately we found a group that allowed us to share their table when they were on the balcony (you get use of the balcony for 1 hour, every other hour.)
6. You don’t really need a car in the French Quarters, everything is walking distance and parking is impossible/​expensive.
7. Random note, there was this small guy on the street who tried to instigate fights with people on the balcony by throwing beads at the people on the balcony and hitting us in the face from below. I actually got pretty worked up about it, but didn’t go down to do anything. But one of the people on the balcony actually went down there to give him a piece of his mind but ended up getting jumped by 4 additional people from the street. Apparently it was a trap set up by a bunch of punks, where they used the smallest guy to instigate a fight. The police ended shutting our part of the street down for a while, but after about 20 minutes, the partying resumed and all was well again on Bourbon Street.
Summary:
Balcony: 5 stars
Alcohol selection: 4 stars
Food: 3 to 3.5 stars
Cleanliness: 4.5 stars
Overall: 4 solid stars