Dos Jefes sits on the corner of these two worlds. Step on in. This place is more like a hangout than a chichi cigar bar, with velveteen recliners and a sofa sharing space with a diner booth, Formica-topped tables and an old church pew. Two wooden Indian chiefs, the dos jefes for which the place is named, keep an eye on the action, one wearing sunglasses like the bust of Professor Longhair over at Tipitina's. Still, nothing could be more New Orleanian.
Ceiling fans spin overhead, as they do in nearly every New Orleans home.
A stuffed fish arches above the bar, and near the jukebox sit three video poker machines, which have cropped up in seemingly every watering hole since gaming was legalized in New Orleans in the mid '90s. The crowd reflects the easygoing mix of ages and walks of life that the natives take for granted. Old neighborhood eccentrics sit at the bar aside workers, a young couple with their Boston terrier, and graduate students from Tulane and Loyola universities. They come for smokes, conversation, pool and nightly live music. We have too many regulars.