Patricia Altschul Has Already Taken the Southern Charm New Orleans Crew Under Her Wing

We can only imagine that one of the best parts about being a part of the Southern Charm New Orleans crew is that you have an instant connection with the Charmers from Charleston as part of the latest installment of the Southern Charm franchise. "We feel supported. So whenever you feel supported about something you're doing, that's always great," Southern Charm New Orleans cast member Tamica Lee told The Daily Dish. "We feel like we're in the family, you know what I mean? Like a little Southern Charm family." 

And the NOLA crew has already gotten a warm welcome to the family by none other than Whitney Sudler-Smith, who serves as executive producer on the new series, as well as his beloved mother Patricia Altschul. The Big Easy bunch celebrated Patricia's birthday and the series premiere of Southern Charm New Orleans in their home city earlier this month. And it sounds like this is the start of a beautiful friendship. "Patricia wants us to come stay with her this summer in Charleston," Southern Charm New Orleans' Reagan Charleston, who has also clocked in some gal time with Naomie Olindo, gushed to The Daily Dish. "[Patricia's butler] Michael will bring us the martinis. I would be in heaven."

Getting to know Whitney has also given the Southern Charm New Orleans cast a glimpse into what their lives could be like in the future. "It's just funny because we've been hanging out with Whitney a lot. So I'm just walking through the Dome with him, and people are like, 'Whitney! Oh my God, we love you!'" Southern Charm New Orleans cast member and Tamica's husband Barry Smith said during an interview with The Daily Dish. "It was fun."

After five seasons on Southern Charm, Whitney has also been able to impart some valuable knowledge to the New Orleans Charmers about their new lives in the public eye. "Hanging out with Whitney has been awesome. He's definitely trying to guide us and navigate through these uncharted waters," Southern Charm New Orleans' Justin Reese told The Daily Dish. "The biggest thing he said [was], 'Look, a lot of people are gonna be coming at you in different ways, so just stay humble, know who your good friends are. ... Stay true to you."

Barry, Tamica, and Reagan also agreed that those were some good words of wisdom from Whitney, as well as to stay away from reading fan comments on social media. "Whitney said just stay off of Twitter. Don't read the comments! Tweet, but don't read the comments, which I did immediately," Reagan admitted. "He should have never told me not to because I hadn't even really thought of it, and that was the first thing I did." 

Luckily, the NOLA squad is mostly feeling the love from fans, whether it's online or in person. "It's kind of surreal. You get out [of] the car, and people just automatically assume you're someone because you're getting out at NBCUniversal and people are taking pictures with you," Barry said. "I'm always the guy behind the camera because my wife is Tamica. I know the angles. Now I have to learn how to take a selfie."

See more of the Southern Charm New Orleans crew Sundays at 9/8c. Check out a preview of an upcoming episode, below.

Tamica Lee Walks Out on the Ladies