French Quarter Fest – Friday

We did a lot of roaming our second day of the 32nd annual French Quarter Fest starting at The Mint with a bowl of Pulled Pork over Roasted Corn & Cheese Grits ($7) from Squeal. We got a hug from Winks’ Dwight Henry, star of Beasts of the Southern Wild and 12 Years a Slave before making our way to the French Market where we watched a few minutes of a dance class. Then we walked along the river to Jackson Square for Ponchatoula Strawberry Shortcake ($5) from GW Fins.

French Quarter Fest 2014 – Thursday

French Quarter Fest is known as the “largest free festival in the land” and as “The World’s Largest Jazz Brunch.” It’s also been my favorite festival since I first attended in 2010 – and that’s saying a lot in a city with hundreds of festivals a year. With over 20 stages all over the French Quarter, the fest offers 4 days of local music and food. We managed to see 6 bands and eat from at least 6 restaurants in one afternoon.

Satchmo Fest and White Linen

One of the luxuries of living in New Orleans is that good food and good music are so prevalent that you can skip things and they come back around. Last year, I dedicated myself to Satchmo Fest, the celebration of all things Louis Armstrong, and I skipped White Linen Night entirely. This year, I had lunch at Satchmo and spent the evening at White Linen.

Got Gumbo?

Tonight, I attended the 11th Annual Got Gumbo? cook-off at the Royal Sonesta in the French Quarter. My taste-buds are still after-glowing. The ballroom was lined with tables from 20 different local restaurants competing in up to 6 categories. Half were judged by a panel and the other half were determined by our votes. There was even a Jazz band. What fun!