Gretna, Louisiana

Everything Gretna is known for

1 song mention this city 1 artist from here

Music in Gretna

Songs About Gretna

miss'ippi
nick shoulders
10%

Artists From Gretna

F
Frankie Ford
r-n-b Pop: 16

Rivers & Roads in Song near Gretna

Songs written about the waterways and highways that run near Gretna.

Mississippi River 135 songs St. Charles Avenue 2 songs Bourbon Street 21 songs Toulouse Street 2 songs US Route 90 6 songs Basin Street 6 songs

Musical Heritage

Fats Domino's Yellow-and-Black House RoadyGoat

1960

On the corner of Caffin Avenue and Marais Street at 1208 Caffin Avenue stands the longtime home of Antoine 'Fats' Domino, the New Orleans rock-and-roll pioneer behind 'Blueberry Hill' and 'Ain't That a Shame.' He bought the compound around 1960 and lived here for decades, a pink-and-yellow landmark in the Lower 9th Ward. When Hurricane Katrina's levee failures flooded the neighborhood in August 2005, Domino, then 77, stayed home and was rescued by boat, then airlifted to safety. In the chaos he was briefly and wrongly presumed dead, and someone spray-painted 'R.I.P. Fats, You will be missed' on the house. He survived, lived until 2017, and the city later renamed a stretch of the avenue in his honor. The house remains a quiet pilgrimage site.

4.1 mi away

History of Gretna

Cafe du Monde RoadyGoat

1862

At 800 Decatur Street, in the French Market on the edge of New Orleans' French Quarter, Cafe du Monde has been frying beignets and pouring chicory coffee since 1862 — making it the city's oldest coffee stand. It opened mid-Civil War, while Union troops occupied New Orleans. The signature order: three square, holeless beignets buried in powdered sugar, with a cafe au lait cut with roasted chicory root, a wartime habit born when coffee ran scarce and locals stretched their supply. The original stand keeps famously long hours and runs nearly every day of the year, closing only on Christmas and when a hurricane threatens (so 'open around the clock since 1862' is a charming overstatement — it's long hours, not truly 24/7). Order the beignets; expect to wear the sugar.

3.0 mi away

Acme Oyster House RoadyGoat

Acme Oyster House has been shucking on Iberville Street in the French Quarter since 1910. The chargrilled oysters — swimming in butter, garlic, and Parmesan — are a New Orleans invention that spread nationwide. The shuckers behind the marble counter are as fast as any in the Gulf. In a city of legendary food, Acme is the first stop for most visitors.

3.1 mi away

Willie Mae's Scotch House RoadyGoat

Willie Mae Seaton opened her Scotch House in New Orleans' Treme neighborhood in 1957. In 2005, the James Beard Foundation named it an America's Classic. Two months later, Hurricane Katrina destroyed it. Volunteers from across the country — including teams from the Southern Foodways Alliance — rebuilt the restaurant from the studs. The fried chicken, with its impossibly crispy, almost translucent crust, is worth every minute of the wait.

3.7 mi away

The Cabildo - Louisiana Purchase

1803

The Spanish colonial government building on Jackson Square where the Louisiana Purchase transfer ceremony took place on December 20, 1803, doubling the size of the United States.

3.0 mi away

Congo Square

1740

The open space in what is now Louis Armstrong Park where enslaved Africans gathered on Sundays to play music, dance, and trade, creating the foundation of American popular music.

3.4 mi away

William Frantz Elementary School

1960

On November 14, 1960, six-year-old Ruby Bridges became the first Black child to attend an all-white elementary school in the South, escorted by federal marshals past screaming crowds.

4.2 mi away

Preservation Hall

1961

Legendary French Quarter jazz venue founded in 1961 to protect and honor traditional New Orleans jazz.

3.1 mi away

St. Louis Cemetery No. 1 - Marie Laveau

1801

The reputed tomb of Marie Laveau, the Voodoo Queen of New Orleans, in the oldest cemetery in the city, established in 1789.

3.4 mi away

Homer Plessy Historical Marker

1892

Marker at the corner of Press and Royal streets where Homer Plessy was arrested in 1892 for sitting in a whites-only railroad car, leading to the Supreme Court case that legalized segregation for 58 years.

3.8 mi away

Things to Do in Gretna

food 2.2 mi away
Commander's Palace

New Orleans' legendary Creole restaurant in the Garden District since 1893. 25-cent martini lunch.
food 3.0 mi away
Cafe Du Monde

Beignets and chicory coffee at 3 AM in the French Quarter since 1862.
historical 3.1 mi away
Preservation Hall

Traditional New Orleans jazz in an intimate crumbling venue since 1961. No air conditioning. Pure music.
food 3.7 mi away
Willie Mae's Scotch House

New Orleans' fried chicken temple since 1957. James Beard Award winner. Destroyed by Katrina and rebuilt by volunteers who couldn't let it die.
quirky 1.9 mi away
Mardi Gras World

Where Mardi Gras floats are built year-round. Walk through giant sculptures and try on costumes.
food 3.1 mi away
Acme Oyster House

New Orleans French Quarter raw bar since 1910. Chargrilled oysters and cold ones on the half shell. The shuckers are faster than your eyes.
food 3.9 mi away
Po-Boy shops of New Orleans

Parkway Bakery Domilise's or Mahony's — overstuffed fried seafood sandwiches on French bread.
nature 10.0 mi away
Cajun Swamp Tours

Airboat through Louisiana bayous with alligators and cypress knees. The real Cajun country.

Everything Near Gretna

55 stories, landmarks & places within ~20 miles — the same local lore RoadyGoat plays as you drive through.

Explore Gretna on the Map
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