FOOD/DRINK
New Orleans Wine & Food Experience (NOWFE)
Multiple Locations; Times Vary
Wednesday, May 23 - Sunday, May 27
nowfe.com
One of the city’s premier events, the New Orleans Wine & Food Experience is a five-day celebration of what New Orleans does best: eating and drinking. Entering its 26th year, the festival has become one of the most incredible culinary events in the nation. Hundreds of wineries and restaurants participate, featuring new dishes created by the city’s hottest chefs and over 1,000 wines from around the world, with special tasting events from wineries. You can enjoy grand tasting events, promenade evenings in the French Quarter, and seminar series to hone your palate. Check out the event’s website at nowfe.com for more information on locations and times of events.
FESTIVALS
Bayou Boogaloo
Bayou St. John
Friday, May 18 - Sunday, May 20
thebayouboogaloo.com
The Mid-City Bayou Boogaloo is an outdoor festival full of entertainment, which has worked with community partners such as Friends of Lafitte Greenway, Morris Jeff Community School and more to raise more over $120,000 in its 12-year history. This year, anyone arriving to the festival before 3:00 p.m. will enter free of charge; after 3:00 p.m., festival goers will be charged a gate fee. Some of the performers this year include Naughty Professor, Bag of Donuts, Cha Wa, and Mainline. There will also be a marketplace with local pottery, glass, jewelry, photography, and other arts and crafts. And let’s not forget the fourth annual Paddle Battle race, which has become one of the festival’s highlights. Although this is a family-friendly event, anyone 16 years old and under must be accompanied by an adult. Kids under 12 are free all day everyday!
Plaquemines Parish Seafood Festival
225 F. Edward Hebert Blvd., Belle Chasse
Friday, May 18 - Sunday, May 20
plaqueminesparishfestival.com
Founded in 2004, the Plaquemines Parish Seafood Festival celebrates the rich and diverse culture and people of Plaquemines Parish. Visitors to the festival can enjoy a wide array of fresh local seafood, along with a selection of other unique food items. The festival also features continuous live music from a number of popular area bands, as well as traditional Cajun musicians. There will be a large number of craft booths and carnival rides at the festival, in addition to the Seafood Queen Pageant and helicopter rides offering a scenic view of the mighty Mississippi River.
Bugs & Brew
Fulton Street
Saturday, May 19; 3 - 8 p.m.
drfnola.org/bugsnbrew
The Bugs & Brew Crawfish Cook-Off and Beer Festival will feature a crawfish boiling competition, crawfish-inspired dishes from local restaurants, a Louisiana beer garden, local music, and children’s entertainment. This family-friendly festival will benefit the Drew Rodrigue Foundation, a New Orleans non-profit honoring a local football coach who battled cancer.
Tremé/7th Ward Arts and Culture Festival
N. Claiborne Avenue between Ursulines Avenue and Columbus Street
Friday, May 25 - Sunday, May 27
treme7thwardcd.org
Celebrate the history, traditions, and culture of two of the oldest, most notable neighborhoods in America under the Claiborne Avenue overpass at the inaugural edition of this festival. Featuring high-spirited tours of historic sites in both the Tremé and 7th Ward neighborhoods; a bar crawl; and music by performers including the Tremé Brass Band, Shannon Powell, James Andrews, and Kermit Ruffins and the BBQ Swingers, this event will demonstrate the joie de vivre of these historic neighborhoods and how they have survived slavery, disease, segregation, discrimination, interstates, and hurricanes.
New Orleans Greek Festival
Bayou St. John: 1200 Robert E. Lee Blvd.
Friday, May 25 - Sunday, May 27
greekfestnola.com
Opa! It’s almost time to go Greek at the 45th annual Greek Festival. This year, the festival is dedicating the celebration to New Orleans’s 300th birthday. There will be homemade food and plenty of wine, as well as traditional dancing. You can even take home a piece of Greece with the large shopping selection at the festival, which includes groceries specializing in Greek food, Hellenic imports, and Greek clothing. Don’t miss out on some of the most authentic gyros around.
Gonzales Jambalaya Festival
120 S. Irma Blvd., Gonzales
Saturday, May 26 - Monday, May 28
jambalayafestival.org
Come out and enjoy the 51st annual Gonzales Jambalaya Festival, hosted right in the jambalaya capital of the world. Gonzales was labeled the jambalaya capital of the world by Steve Juneau to promote the city, but the phrase stuck around and inspired a successful festival celebrating it. The first year the festival was held was in 1968, and by 1971, the festival had approximately 50,000 people in attendance. This year’s festival will have a range of food to satisfy everyone’s taste buds, and it wouldn’t be a jambalaya fest without the Best Jambalaya in Louisiana contest. Other activities include live music and rides. Your whole family will enjoy the vast variety of food, fun, music and activities that have made the Jambalaya Festival the can't-miss highlight of the year.