Metairie is located on the south shore of Lake Pontchartrain between the cities of New Orleans. It is the first suburb of New Orleans, Louisiana and is known as one of the oldest cities in the United States. It is a census-designated place in Jefferson Parish, Louisiana and the parish's largest community. As of 2000, the population of Metairie was 146,136.

The name of the parish came from the French word, Metairie, which was a term for a tenant farm that paid landlords with a share of the produce. The parish was named after this term as this served as the area's main activity from the 1760s to the 1930s. The first settlers of Metairie were the French and settled along the Metairie Ridge. Native Americans used this ridge as a road which was later on paved in the 1920s and now called Metairie Road.

Today, the area which surrounds Metairie Road is now know as "Old Metairie" where various shops, professional buildings and shopping centers now dot the district. Old Metairie is now one of the most picturesque areas of Metairie. Among the number of malls located in Metairie, the Lakeside Shopping Center is by far the highest grossing mall in the New Orleans metropolitan area. Bars and nightclubs also opened up in a section of Metairie called "Fat City". Metairie is also known for holding a large Mardi Gras season, a more family-friendly version of the New Orleans Mardi Gras.