 f you walk a little further down Bourbon, on the opposite side of the street, at 209, you will come upon:  Galatoire's restaurant, a favorite eating spot for locals and visitors alike. It was founded by Jean Galatoire in 1831, and has been run by the same family since. The building dates from 1831, and has some unusual ironwork on its second and third-floor freestanding balconies. The restaurant is one of the best in the city,
and strangely doesn't accept reservations, so there is almost always a line snaking down the sidewalk, especially for lunch and on weekends. Tennessee Williams considered it his favorite place to eat. Backtrack from Galatoire's and turn left at Bienville. You will pass another fine eating establishment: Arnaud's, on the right at 813 Bienville. Arnaud's was begun by "Count" Arnaud Cazenave in 1918, and after 30 years of running the place, was succeeeded by his daughter, Germaine Cazenave Wells, upon his death in 1948. The main building was built in 1833, and is adjoined by several old Creole houses which increase the size of its dining area. Today it is run by a non-family member, but still continues to serve exqusite Creole cuisine worthy of its founder.
Located on the second floor of Arnaud's is the Germaine Wells Mardi Gras Museum. Named for the daughter who ran Arnaud's for 30 years, the museum was opened in 1952, and proudly displays her private collection of Mardi Gras ball gowns and costumes from the 17 krewes she participated in. ontinue on to Dauphine Street, and turn right. Walk one block and you will come to Conti Street, where you will make a left. At 917 Conti is the: Musee' Conti Wax Museum, one of the most unusual wax exhibits in the country, and one of the spookiest. The museum is housed in a non-descript building (except for the large sign) off of the beaten path, but is included in this walking tour only for reference,
in case you want to visit it on one of your daily itineraries. The displays of wax figures are typical New Orleans, part history and part quirkiness. Three hundred years of New Orleans history is covered, and there is the requisite Chamber of Horrors. Turn around and walk back to Dauphine Street, turn left, and continue to St Louis Street, where you will make a right. In the middle of the block on the right is the:- Dancing Masters House, 826 St Louis. Edouard Bertus, one of the finest dancing masters, or teachers, in the city, built this home for himself in 1842. Five years later it was sold to Elizabeth Belin, the widow of Louis Levant. A curious legend sprung out of this event. Since "levant" means "rising" in French, it was gradually (and mistakenly) thought that this house
was "le Soleil Levant", or "House of the Rising Sun", the famous bordello of song and story. It was a bit of a stretch to connect one to the other, but that was the way in which gosip was spread in those times. It also didn't help that St Louis Street had its share of these "houses of ill repute" up and down its length. Right next door is the:
 Hermann-Grima House. This fine Federal-style center-hall mansion was built in 1831 by a wealthy German-born merchant, Samuel Hermann, and combines both American and Creole elements together seamlessly in its design by William Brand. The elegant brick exterior is painted red with white pencilled mortar joints in the typical American colonial style. Two almost identical fanlighted doorways
pierce the facade at the center on each level; at the ground floor it is recessed farther back from the facade. A gallery runs across the entire front at the second level. The house was purchased in 1844 by Judge Felix Grima, whose family continued to live there through five generations. It was restored to its original condition of the years 1830-1860, and is an excellent example of American architecture. It is also unusual for its location, in the middle of a predominately Spanish district. It is open to the public for tours, which are perhaps the most historically accurate in the city. Continue on until you reach raucous Bourbon Street once again, then turn left, and walk to the corner of Bourbon and St Peters Streets. On the way there you will pass the site of the old:French Opera House,
one of the most famous opera houses in the country at the time it was built in 1859. Today the site, 541 Bourbon, is occupied by the Best Western Inn on Bourbon Street. In its heyday, the opera house's five levels were packed nightly with opera productions and balls every season. Unfortunately it burned down in 1919, and was never rebuilt. On the corner of Bourbon and St Peter is the: Casa Quinones, 623 Bourbon, the home of a well-respected notary, Don Esteban de Quinones. built in 1795, it features fan windows and fine ironwork. Take a right onto St Peter Street. Almost as soon as you do, you will come upon the: Plique-LaBranche House, at 730 St Peter. The house was built in 1825, sold to Giraud Plique, then to Jean Baptiste LaBranche.
It is believed to be the site of New Orleans' first theatre, which burned in 1816. Next door to this house is a New Orleans institution:  Preservation Hall, New Orleans' most famous music hall, was established in 1961 by Pennsylvania tuba player and jazz afficionado Allen Jaffe. The picturesque building was built in 1817 by Agathe Fanchon, and has a porte cochere' with unusual wrought-iron gates, and a wrought-iron gallery. Jazz groups rotate here nightly, and play 20-minute sets, with breaks in-between each group.
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