For the first weekend of June, the city will celebrate the 10th Annual New Orleans Oyster Festival. Stretching the whole weekend, the event at Woldenberg Park will be jam packed from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. on both days. The festival's two most popular events-the oyster shucking and oyster eating competitions-will be held Saturday at noon and Sunday at 11:45 a.m., respectively. The mainstage will have music from local artists before and after the two main events.
This year's Acme Oyster Eating World Championship will be a heated one. The 2018 oyster-eating champion Darron Bredden, who ate 40 dozen oysters in eight minutes to earn his belt, will face off against the 2016 champion Adrian Morgan, who ate 44 oysters to win that year. But the other contestants aren't pushovers either. The 2017 champion Michelle Lesco, professional eater Adam Moran from the United Kingdom, and the first Acme Oyster-Eating Champion Crazy Legs Conti are all registered to compete this year.
While the Oyster Festival was created to support restaurateurs and oyster farmers, the weekend event is also to raise money for coastal restoration through ORA Estuaries and the Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries Foundation. So head on out to Woldenberg Park on June 1 and June 2 to enjoy local seafood, experience the non-stop events, and protect our coasts all at once.