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"   Produced By Casey Hale &amp;amp;amp; Steven Schwartz  For antiques dealers Casey Hale and Steven Schwartz, the collecting bug first struck during a vacation to New Orleans in 1997. &amp;quot;I kept looking at this McCoy vase, and on the last day I said if it was $75 or less, I was going to buy it,&amp;quot; remembers Casey. &amp;quot;Well, it was $75, I bought it, and within two or three months we had acquired 300 pieces of McCoy.&amp;quot; Since that fateful purchase, the men have been back to New Orleans every year to shop for Urban Country, the antiques store they now own in Venice, Calif. &amp;quot;After Katrina hit New Orleans, our hearts broke for the city as well as for all of the people we&amp;#039;d gotten to know when we visited,&amp;quot; says Casey. &amp;quot;We realized that the best way to help the city recover would be to patronize the antiques shops and restaurants that have inspired us over the years,&amp;quot; adds Steven. &amp;quot;New Orleans may be down, but it can&amp;#039;t be beaten.&amp;quot;    Sweet Dreams Soniat House: Located on Chartres Street in the quieter, less touristy section of the French Quarter, this charming 33-room hotel occupies three elegant 1830 townhouses. Expect period antiques, spacious galleries (left), and two lush interior courtyards, where breakfast is served. Hotel Monteleone: This Royal Street landmark has welcomed guests to the Quarter since 1886. In addition to comfortable rooms, the hotel has a beautiful rooftop pool that overlooks the Mississippi River. &amp;quot;Despite all that has happened to the city since Hurricane Katrina, New Orleans still has a beautiful, mysterious quality that is hard to describe,&amp;quot; says Casey. Garden District &amp;quot;Magazine Street in the Garden District is my favorite place to shop in New Orleans, hands down,&amp;quot; says Steven. The first stop for Casey and Steven is always Bush Antiques, an expansive two-story shop overflowing with 19th-century French furniture, garden salvage, and religious objects handpicked by owner Allain Bush. Other must-see antiques shops: Simon of New Orleans, which features chandeliers, Italian serving trays, and exuberant signs painted by artist Simon Hardeveld; and La Belle Nouvelle Orleans, whose garden statuary, ornate iron gates and fences, and large warehouse filled with European case pieces are a big draw. Additional favorites include Dodge Fjeld and UP--a quirky shop located on the mezzanine level of the clothing boutique Winky&amp;#039;s--which carries home accessories, such as vintage handbags repurposed into one-of-a-kind wall clocks. At Mother&amp;#039;s, regulars line up for heaping, reasonably priced portions of seafood gumbo, \u00E9touf\u00E9e, crispy fried oysters, and collard greens with salty ham. At Tee-Eva&amp;#039;s takeout window, order red beans and rice, sugary pecan pralines, or an icy, fruit-flavored &amp;quot;snoball.&amp;quot; Hit Franky &amp;amp;amp; Johnny&amp;#039;s for generous servings of spicy boiled crawfish and draft beer. For rich chicory coffee and fresh beignets, Caf\u00E9 du Monde is a must. For one of the best burgers in New Orleans, visit Port of Call. Craving old-school New Orleans dining? Reserve a table at Galatoire&amp;#039;s, Arnaud&amp;#039;s, or Upperline, where the food and service are dependably top notch. &amp;quot;When you schedule a trip to New Orleans, you really need to stay at least a week just to eat at all of the city&amp;#039;s fabulous restaurants,&amp;quot; says Steven. When it comes to the historic French Quarter, Casey and Steven prefer the offbeat vintage stores--Le Garage, Collectible Antiques, and Vieux Carre Vinyl--at the south end of Decatur Street. &amp;quot;There are a lot of shops on Royal Street as well, but they tend to be more expensive and carry lots of high-end European antiques, which we don&amp;#039;t collect.&amp;quot; says Steven. &amp;quot;You can&amp;#039;t go to Decatur Street expecting to find fine Americana,&amp;quot; cautions Casey, &amp;quot;but you will find something fun.&amp;quot; After shopping, Casey and Steven save time to explore the French Quarter&amp;#039;s cobblestoned side streets. They check out the artwork displayed by local artists around Jackson Square; browse the carefully edited selection of Southern fiction, including many first editions, at Faulkner House Books; and people watch at Caf\u00E9 du Monde, the city&amp;#039;s 24-hour outpost for cafe au lait and sugar-dusted beignets. "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.countryliving.com/life/travel/a420/new-orleans-after-katrina-0107/>