Slidell

I don’t care what anybody says, how many of my friends put it down, or how many times I hear «dirty Dell» or the fact that SPD falsified a police report when they arrested me 5 years ago. You know what? I still love Slidell.
The fact that I own my home in the middle of the city AND I’m located on a 1.5 acre wooded lot with a bayou running through only solidified my love of this city. The city is growing and that is good for business, entertainment and recreation, but it’s BAD for traffic. My only complaint about Slidell is they need some serious road widening all over the place.
Slidell is located:
30 minutes from downtown New Orleans
25 minutes from Mandeville/​Lakefront/​Covington area
15 minutes from the pristine Honey Island Swamp
35 – 45 minutes from the MS Gulf coast
15 minutes away from Big Branch Marsh
20 minutes away from Fountableau State Park
Slidell has a decent small town nightlife which can be just as fun as going downtown on some nights. It has really great restaurants. I don’t shop too much since the rise of the internet, but it’s got good shopping as well!
I’ve seen some shithole little small towns, my friend, and let me tell you, Slidell is not one of them. In the next few years, I foresee that Slidell will no longer be one of those small towns, but will still have that down home, small town feel.
And I will still be here, and I will still love it.

I never really think of Slidell as the North Shore since it doesn’t involve driving across the Causeway. Instead it’s more like the more genteel cousin of Covington/​Mandeville. The drive over the Twin Span is usually much more pleasant than the Causeway.
Slidell is a bit of a hidden gem. People like to write it off as a podunk town but it’s grown a great deal in the past ten years and become a great place to live and visit. It may never be the tourist destination of New Orleans but there’s lots to see and do as a day trip, plus great restaurants (Beer and Tacos is a fave of mine). Be sure to check out Old Spanish Trail on your visit.

When reviewing a city I’ve noticed that people usually do one of two things. They either profess their undying love or pure hatred and I doubt that would make for an interesting review in this case, so I will do something a bit different. This review will tell the story of the founding of the city in a 1000% accurate and factual way that is meant to be taken seriously under penalty of death.
It was a dark and stormy night that June 21^st, back in the year of our lord 1822. General Slidell Rando had set sail from the wilds of Yscloskey, LA with his fleet of schooners. General Rando was on the hunt for the treasure of Jean Lafitte when he entered Lake Pontchartrain. What he found, was something far more valuable.
As they approached the north shore of the lake, Olé Slidell (as his friends called him), was asleep in his cabin. «Land Ahoy!» shouted Big Picayune Jones, Slidell Rando’s first mate. General Rando sprang from his bed and ran to the poop deck.
You see, General Rando was a bit of a joke in the Navy. He told wild tales of his adventures, but he had yet to actual discover any new land mass like his cousin Barataria Rando of Marrero. This was his chance to finally show the world that he was not a joke, and bring pride to his family name.
Olé Slidell grabbed his first mate and rowed ashore. What he discovered was a beautiful place. There was the lake to the south and the Pearl River to the north. He was most impressed when he discovered the natives were quite friendly. They even directed him to their world famous Army surplus store and neighboring watering hole known as Scuttlebutt. It was there where things took a turn for the worst.
Slidell and Picayune both had their eye on one of the women in Scuttlebutt. Neither would give in so they decided to settle their differences like men by engaging in the ancient tradition of the high five competition. Each roamed around that fine establishment, their hand aloft, just waiting to see who would be victorious. In the end, General Rando had won. Feeling dejected, Picayune Jones headed north and founded his own town right across the border.
General Slidell Rando decided that he had grown tired of the Navy and settled in his new found land. As the ultimate high five champion the locals decided to name the city after him. Rando, Louisiana flourished under his leadership all the way until 1829. At that time they realized many people were confused at the town’s similarity to nearby Rando Mandoville. It was at that point they decided to name the town after General Rando’s first name and it has forever since been known as Slidell.
I hope you learned something from this review.

The Dell! I love Slidell. This is my home. She’s been very good to me.
First I’ll have to tell you the story of how I came to call this town home. About sixteen years ago I was in a relationship with a guy I thought I’d marry one day. He cheated and I was devastated. We, predictably, broke up and he started to date the girl he cheated with. I was terrified that I’d run into them in the small town we were living in. That would have (in my mind) reduce me to tears and in turn I’d be publicly humiliated. I had an aunt who lived here. No better time to start over, right?
When I first moved here I loved so many things right away. The small town feel of this city is so seductive to me. It’s just across the lake from Nola, which happens to be my favorite city in the world, but far enough away from the hustle and bustle of the big city. The schools here are wonderful. It’s a fantastic place to raise a family. But the thing I love the most about Slidell are the people who live here.
After Katrina it was a daily occurrence to walk into any store and strike up a conversation with another resident, long time or just recently moved here because the flood water destroyed their lives elsewhere, and end up laughing, crying and embracing one another by the end of the conversation. People here look out for and love each other. The sense of community is so very nice. I’m happy to call Slidell my home.
I ran into that old boyfriend not too long ago. Time has not been very kind to him. He’s still single and recently moved back in with his parents. He admitted to me during our conversation that he always regretted cheating on me and that I was the best thing that had ever happened to him. Hell yes! Thank you, karma =)

As a result of Hurricane Katrina, the city of Slidell has grown by leaps and bounds. It is evident not only by the talk of the town, but the construction & new businesses that are abounding.
Traveling I-​10 east or west bound there are a total of 4 Slidell exits (2 in each direction); with this being said, one might think this is a Podunk town. But au contraire mon frere, it maybe small, but it’s bursting at the seams with little surprises.
Gause Blvd, Front Street, Old Spanish Trail, Brown Switch, just to name a few, are streets that are teeming with quaint stores and restaurants. Everyday I «find» a new reason to venture out more into Slidell.
It has the feel of a small country town where «everybody knows your name», but it demands the respect of a major metropolis as a result of the «popping up all over the place» new businesses & new construction.
Don’t sleep on Slidell, it’s a hidden treasure.