The Grasshopper was born here. So was a stand-up bar that New Orleans has leaned on since 1856.
Tujague's opened in 1856 next to the city's first public market and is the second-oldest restaurant in New Orleans, behind only Antoine's. It now sits at 429 Decatur Street in the French Quarter, a short move from its original Decatur address. The Connected Table notes the house marked 170 years in 2026.
The bar
The draw is the stand-up bar, long billed by the house as the oldest in America, where the Grasshopper and the Whiskey Punch were first mixed. The mirror behind the bar came from a Paris bistro in 1856 and, per the restaurant's own history, was already decades old on arrival. You order standing, the old way.
What to order
Start with the Grasshopper, the mint and creme de cacao cocktail Philip Guichet built here in 1918 for a New York competition, where it placed second. The Whiskey Punch is the other house original. For food, the Creole kitchen runs the brunch the city credits Tujague's with starting. Difford's Guide lists the bar among the Quarter's historic stops, and the Grasshopper runs around 13 dollars, a fair price for drinking a cocktail at its birthplace.
The room
The room reads as a working Creole bar rather than a museum, even with the age stamped on every surface. Pressed-tin ceilings, the long wooden bar, and the Paris mirror set the tone, and the house leans into the history rather than hiding it. New Orleans & Company points visitors to the bar first and the dining room second, which is the right order; the bar is the reason the name carries.
What regulars say
The repeated notes across reviews and guides line up. Drinkers come for the Grasshopper and the history, rate the bartenders for knowing both, and treat the stand-up bar as the seat to ask for. The Connected Table's 170-year piece frames the appeal as continuity, the same drinks in the same room across generations. The common complaint is the Quarter foot traffic at peak hours, which is the trade for a corner this central. Regulars suggest an early visit to get the bar to yourself.
The drinks list reads like a tour of New Orleans cocktail history rather than a trend menu. Beyond the Grasshopper and the Whiskey Punch, the bar keeps the Sazerac and the city's other standards in regular rotation, poured by staff who can tell you where each one came from. The food side runs Creole staples and the famous brunch, which means the room works for a long sit-down as easily as a single drink at the stand-up bar.
Who it is for
It is for drinkers who want the history in the glass, not a modern cocktail lab. Skip it if you came for a quiet date; the room runs busy and the Quarter foot traffic comes with it. It belongs on any serious New Orleans cocktail bar route, alongside Arnaud's French 75.
Good to know
The 2026 address at 429 Decatur Street is a short move from the original corner, so older guides may list the previous spot; the bar and the Paris mirror moved with it. Reservations help for dining, but the stand-up bar takes walk-ins, which is the seat to ask for. The Quarter location means foot traffic at peak hours, and an early visit buys a quieter room. The Creole kitchen and the brunch the house is credited with starting make it a meal as much as a drink. Pair it with The Carousel Bar for a historic-bar route through the Quarter.
Best time to go
Brunch and the early evening before the Quarter fills are the windows that work. For more nearby, see the New Orleans bar guide and our best bars in the French Quarter.
Sources: Tujague's official site and history page (2026); New Orleans & Company; The Connected Table; Difford's Guide; NewOrleansRestaurants.com.
