The Quarter Fest Hits a Quarter Century!
There are 365 great days a year to be a tourist in New Orleans, but the weekend of April 11-13th of 2008 is one of the better ones as the Crescent City proudly rings in the 25th anniversary of one of the greatest events of the spring – the French Quarter Festival! Put together by the French Quarter Festivals, Inc. organization, the Quarter will be showcasing everything that makes it unique, highlighting the culture and heritage of this amazing city along with events, giveaways, live shows, and obscene amounts of food.
This FREE ADMISSION event is often touted as the “World’s Largest Block Party” and will have over 250 hours of free entertainment. Around 60 food and beverage booths will be set up near the Mississippi River from Jackson Square to Woldenberg Riverfront Park. 15 stages with free live performances will be set up throughout the neighborhood as well.
Basically, for this festival, all you need money for is to get food, drinks, and whatever touristy memorabilia you may want to take home as tangible memories. Local residents attend en masse to sample dishes from favorite restaurants in bite-sized (or, to travellers, merely slightly smaller) portions. New Orleans standards like jambalaya, gumbo, red beans and rice, etoufee, po’ boys, pralines, and muffalettas can be had, and good old American hamburgers, fried chicken, and Lucky Dog hot dogs (of A Confederacy of Dunces fame) abound as well. Exotic dishes for the more adventurous traveller include Cajun meat pies, alligator sausage, oyster batties, corn and crawfish bisque, shrimp and grits, crawfish bread or remoulade salad, alligator burgers, and so many more. Each plate ranges in price, but nothing seems to be above $7 this year, from my cursory viewing of the whole menu of vendor selections. Tropical Isle and Pat O’Brien’s will ensure that you can double fist a Hand Grenade and a Hurricane – a feat that will impress anyone, should you not keel over when done.
The music schedule is also up already! The Kohlmeyer/Brass Band Stage will be my spot for sure, since the best brass bands of the city will be cranking out tunes there until 8 pm. You can find Cajun/Zydeco music in front of the U.S. Mint, where the Quarter ends and the Marigny begins, and in the heart of the Quarter, huge stages will be set up in Jackson Square. Woldenberg Riverfront Park boasts the main stage, but the Pavillion Stage has a full roster as well. Latin music can be found on the World Stage, and smaller stages will be set up throughout Bourbon and the 300, 400, 500, and 700 blocks of the neighborhood.