Twelve Mile Limit

Address: 500 S. Telemachus Street, (corner Baudin St), New Orleans, Louisiana, 70119, United States
Tel: +1 504 488 8114
Website: view Twelve Mile Limit’s website
Door: Open door
Style: Cocktail bar
Food: Bar Snacks
Established: 2011

Review

This residential area of Mid City was 9-feet under water after Hurricane Katrina. Six years on, the water has gone and despite being told the area was not one we should hang around in late at night, it boasts an amazing little bar. It's housed in a pre-fab-style building that doesn't exactly look salubrious, and neither does a Sellotaped and handwritten label on the door that reads 'Ring Buzzer, Pull Door' promise much more. Once you pull that door, however, any expectation that you might be entering a sleepy or sleazy dive bar is quickly banished.

Inside, you'll find a buzzy, unpretentious atmosphere, with plenty of good-looking young people drinking the five or six cocktails that are listed on a blackboard by the door. There are manga cartoons playing on a big-screen TV, and old arcade games and a pool table providing entertainment. Drinks are tasty, well-made and classic in their style. The Twelve Mile is, for example, a spirited drink made with rum, rye, brandy, pomegranate and lime, while the Praying Mantis is Fernet Branca, rum agricole, orgeat and lime, all at $6. Knock 'em back with tasty bar snacks that include chicken wings, brisket and sausages.

Outside of the French Quarter, this was by far our favourite bar on our trip this time - it just ticks all the boxes of a good bar, from the quality of the drinks and friendly service to the fun-loving crowd, quirky entertainment and a relaxed vibe, no pretentions at all. The name, by the way, references the distance off-shore that dictates when alcohol can be served outside the jurisdiction. Get in a cab and go there.