Creole Tomato Fest

It was a big weekend with the Creole Tomato Fest,  Naked Bike Ride and the Pride Parade (my next 2 posts). The Fest features cocktails, food booths, music and more. We try to never miss a chance to see Little Freddie King and his band playing their true-blues so we were thrilled to find him on the schedule. A local treasure, King looked as sharp as a tack but was as laid back as an easy chair.

We started our fest-feast with a bright and flavorful Burrata Caprese from PIZZA Domenica ($8). My favorite dish every year is

Creole Tomato Fest

It was warm but breezy for the 32nd annual Creole Tomato Fest,  Naked Bike Ride and the Gay Pride Parade (my next 2 posts). The Fest featured cocktails, food demos and kid play areas but we focused on the food booths and music. Little Freddie King and his band commanded the stage with blues. A beloved local musician, King kept the crowd dancing with his guitar riffs and gravelly, soulful voice.

We headed to George’s Produce Co. for my favorite dish every year, The Pontchartrain – sliced Creole tomatoes with lump crab meat dressed in remoulade ($8).

Creole Tomato Fest, Naked Bike Ride and Festigals Parade (R-rated)

What a busy weekend in the French Quarter! The 29th French Market Creole Tomato Fest fed us music and delicious dishes all weekend while the women of Festigals partied and paraded and the World Naked Bike Ride rolled past bewildered tourists.

We started Saturday at the Creole Tomato Fest with my annual favorite, Sliced Creole tomato with lump crab and Remoulade dressing  ($7) from George’s Produce. Good thing because they sold out early. Paul Sanchez and his all female band played while we tried the  gator sausage and tomatoes ($7) from A Bite Outside, Who Dat Coffee Cafe‘s delicious Remoulade tossed with boiled shrimp with Creole tomato slices and a salad garnish ($7) and yummy Crawfish beignets with roasted corn and Creole tomato sauce ($6) from J’s Seafood Dock.

Creole Tomato Fest 2014

The Creole Tomato Fest continues to evolve in its 28th year. Now that the Cajun-Zydeco  Festival has moved to next weekend, the Tomato Fest has moved almost entirely to the French Market, but this year the layout was a lot easier to manage (thank goodness). With more manageable lines and crowds, we ended up eating far more starting with a beautiful Creole Tomato, Burratta Cheese & Pesto Sauce ($6) from The Three Muses.

Creole Tomato and Louisiana Cajun-Zydeco Festivals

This weekend was the  27th annual Creole Tomato Fest and the 7th Louisiana Cajun-Zydeco Festival.  I had been looking forward to the festivals for 2 main reasons – the amazing Heirloom Tomato Salad I get every year from Covey Rise Farms and the Sliced Creole Tomatoes topped w/lump crabmeat and Remoulade Dressing ($7) from George’s Produce. If I had kids, I would love this fest for its many activities for children. The Tomato Fest has miniature golf, circus arts, crafting, storytelling, swing dance lessons, face painting and a “decorate a secondline hanky” booth.