For New Orleanians looking for last-minute gifts to buy in person (most shipping deadlines have passed, y’all), buying local restaurant merchandise is a turn-key option to consider in addition to purchasing gift cards and other restaurant or bakery wares. From cozy vintage tees to cookbooks and flatware, a number of New Orleans favorites are selling marvelous merch this holiday season. Here are Eater’s top picks for last-minute gifts, all available to pick up in person right now.
Church Alley Coffee & Grocery
4201 Canal Street Ste A, Mid City
Show your love for this community-oriented gem of a coffee shop with an array of gear options available in-store, including vintage tees, tanks, locally made keychains, and more. The cafe also sells eco-friendly food wraps, a great gift for anyone overloaded with takeout containers (so everyone).
Cochon Butcher
930 Tchoupitoulas St., Warehouse District
There’s probably a Butcher lover in your life, so stop in at New Orleans’s top sandwich destination to grab hats, shirts, or socks for them this Christmas. If the porcine-lover has enough clothes, the restaurant also has Butcher-branded enamelware, simple with a vintage vibe, available for onsite purchase as well.
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Congregation Coffee
240 Pelican Ave., Algiers Point
Beloved Westbank coffee roaster Congregation offers a number of great gifts for coffee lovers this year, from T-shirts to sweet coffee mugs and pottery to an adorable baby onesie. Congregation also offers three, six, and 12-month coffee subscription gifts; choose the coffee and the grind and it’s the gift that keeps on giving long after the holidays.
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Domilise’s Po’ Boys and Bar
5240 Annunciation St., Uptown
It’s always fun to visit Domilise’s, so stop by and grab a T-shirt, which comes in an array of colors, for your favorite po’ boy fan this Christmas — bet you can’t leave without ordering a couple sandwiches and sharing a laugh with one of the employees. The shirts are seriously classic.
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Faubourg Wines
2805 St Claude Ave., Marigny
We love the design on the shirts from Faubourg, the Marigny’s charming, small producer-oriented neighborhood wine shop. Even better, the various T-shirt and tank styles were printed by local shop Purple Monkey Design. Faubourg has a bunch of fun options for stocking stuffers as well, particularly of the tinned fish variety.
The Joint
701 Mazant St., Bywater
Bywater barbecue staple the Joint has a killer T-shirt design, available at the corner spot in various styles for just $20. While you’re there you can also pick up a bag of the dry butt rub or rib sprinkle or jars of either of its barbecue sauces as a stocking stuffer. Or, go with the BBQ bundle, just $50 for local pickup.
Li’l Dizzy’s Cafe
1500 Esplanade Ave., Treme
Gift some Li’l Dizzy’s gear to your favorite fried chicken fan this year, which includes a signed Baquet Family Cookbook for $20, caps, T-shirts, and polo shirt, and a stocking stuffer gumbo mix for $8. It’s all available in-store between Monday to Saturday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. We especially love black and gold T-shirt design.
Picnic Provisions and Whiskey
741 State St., Uptown
The Commander Palace-owned fried chicken and sides spot in Uptown sells an array of gear, allowing you to create a next-level picnic basket gift for the holidays. There’s sartorial picnic gear, as in branded T-shirts, as well as traditional picnic gear, as in wine, beer, pepper jelly, and more. Pick and choose from the many offerings to create your custom basket.
Pizza Delicious
617 Piety St., Bywater
NY-style pizza favorite Pizza Delicious has some seriously great t-shirt designs, including this vintage pizza box illustration printed on a faded mustard shirt with burgundy text. There’s also a riff on the classic E.T. moon image — E.T. has been turned into the shop’s bicycle delivery guy, with pies piled high, a frequent sight in the Bywater neighborhood.
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Tân Định
1705 Lafayette St, Gretna
Possibly New Orleans’s favorite Vietnamese restaurant, not just the Westbank’s, sells super cute t-shirts. Grab one (we especially love the faded purple color) and a gift card for someone you know will bring you when they spend it.
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Turkey and the Wolf
739 Jackson Ave., LGD
The hit sandwich spot has been known for its stylish merch since day one, with chef-owner Mason Hereford consistently pumping out new options, often featuring designs by local artists. Christmastime this year is no exception, as the restaurant is stocked full of goodies — shirts, the popular rope hat, and stocking stuffers like pins and patches, with more shirt designs expected to drop over the next few days. For another option, Hereford’s forthcoming cookbook, to be released in February 2022, is currently on pre-order through Garden District Book Shop, an order that ensures a signed copy.
Willie Mae’s Scotch House
2401 St. Ann St., Treme
Willie Mae’s recently released a very cool T-shirt design — the “One Way to Willie Mae’s” shirt that every fan of the Treme landmark is trying to get their hands on. There are still a number of size larges available for purchase at the restaurant ($20), as well as tanks and hats. For other sizes, T-shirts, and baby onesies, visit the restaurant’s online store.
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