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January 5-11 2026 Volume 47 Number 1
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JANUARY 5 — JANUARY 11, 2026 VOLUME 47 || NUMBER 1
CONTENTS
NEWS Opening Gambit ............... 6 Blake Pontchartrain........... 9 PULLOUT The Pearl........................... F E AT U R E S Arts & Entertainment ........ 5 Eat & Drink .....................18 Music Listings ................. 23
GIVEYOURCUSHIONS A LIFT!
Music ............................ 25 Going Out ...................... 26 P H O TO V I A W I K I M E D I A C O M M O N S BY L I A JA RYS H
11
Revel ’round the World
Puzzles ......................... 27 P H O TO BY S A R A H D I L O R E N ZO / T H E A P, P H O TO V I A W I K I M E D I A C O M M O N S BY @ R O B E R T M O R A L E S , P H O TO V I A W I K I M E D I A C O M M O N S BY V F B I A C OV E R D E S I G N BY D O R A S I S O N
@The_Gambit @gambitneworleans
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Sales and Marketing Manager
Staff Writers | JAKE CLAPP,
ABIGAIL BORDELON (504) 636-7427 [abigail.bordelon@gambitweekly.com]
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GAMBIT (ISSN 1089-3520) IS PUBLISHED WEEKLY BY CAPITAL CITY PRESS, LLC, 840 ST. CHARLES AVE., NEW ORLEANS, LA 70130. (504) 486-5900. WE CANNOT BE HELD RESPONSIBLE FOR THE RETURN OF UNSOLICITED MANUSCRIPTS EVEN IF ACCOMPANIED BY A SASE. ALL MATERIAL PUBLISHED IN GAMBIT IS COPYRIGHTED: COPYRIGHT 2026 CAPITAL CITY PRESS, LLC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
5
Ringin’ in the year
Joan of Arc Parade
Fan Expo hosts Hobbits, comics, cosplay and more | by Jake Clapp THERE WERE STARTS AND STOPS AND FRUSTRATIONS FOR MORE THAN 30 YEARS from filmmakers trying to adapt
J.R.R. Tolkien’s fantasy epic “The Lord of the Rings” to the screen. The Beatles took up the cause in the ’60s. John Lennon reportedly wanted to play Gollum, but it never came together, leaving the world to wonder “what could have been?” An animated film rolling together “The Fellowship of the Ring” and “The Two Towers” was released in 1978, and Rankin/Bass tried its hand with “Return of the King” on TV a couple years later. And anyone who has spent enough time on Reddit likely has seen clips from a Soviet television adaptation that’s more fever dream than film. Then, director Peter Jackson, who at that point was known for his horror comedies “Braindead” and “The Frighteners” and the drama “Heavenly Creatures,” took up the charge with an appropriately epic, three-film vision. His “Lord of the Rings” trilogy was a massive commercial and critical success that fans still obsess over 25 years later. 2026 marks the 25th anniversary of the trilogy’s first chapter, “The Fellowship of the Ring,” and there are events this year celebrating the occasion. Warner Bros. Pictures in January will re-release the trilogy into theaters, first with the full 11-plus-hour extended editions and then later the relatively shorter 9-hour theatrical cuts. And cast members will visit fan conventions to share stories and answer questions about the films, including at Fan Expo New Orleans this weekend. Elijah Wood, Sean Astin, Dominic Monaghan and Billy Boyd — who portrayed the Hobbits Frodo, Sam, Merry and Pippin, respectively — are among the celebrity guests at this year’s Fan Expo, which runs Friday, Jan. 9, through Sunday, Jan. 11, at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center. The four actors will take part in a “Lord of the Rings” 25th anniversary celebration on Saturday and will tell on-set stories and address audience questions. They also will be signing autographs and taking photos with attendees during the convention (there is an additional fee). Boyd also will take part in a separate “Rings” related storytelling session on Sunday, and Monaghan appears Saturday on a panel about the TV series “Lost” with actors Josh Holloway and Francois Chau. Astin will join up with Corey Feldman, Joe Pantoliano, Kerri
‘Lord of the Rings’ actors Billy Boyd, left, Dominic Monaghan, Elijah Wood and Sean Astin PROVIDED PHOTO BY BILL WATERS
Green and Robert Davi on Sunday for an event focused on “The Goonies.” Fan Expo touches on a range of genres, from sci-fi, fantasy, superheroes and horror to anime, video games and tabletop gaming, and hosts panels with movie and TV actors, voice actors and comics creators, workshops and more. There also will be artists with tables at the convention, cosplay competitions, gaming sessions, a dedicated kids’ zone with activities and local groups, like the Louisiana Ghostbusters, the Star Trek group U.S.S. New Orleans and the local factions of Star Wars’ Galactic Empire and Rebel Alliance. Fresh off a somewhat controversial retirement match (as if anyone in the WWE is really retired), actor and wrestling superstar John Cena will be at Fan Expo Saturday. He’ll be joined by comics writer Victor Dandridge for an interview about his WWE career, acting and role as the D.C. character Peacemaker. Dandridge also will interview actor Hayden Christensen on Friday about playing Anakin Skywalker in the Star Wars saga — a role he has recently been celebrated for after getting another chance with the character in “Obi-Wan Kenobi” and “Ahsoka.” Christopher Lloyd has been no stranger to fan conventions in recent years around the anniversary of “Back to the Future,” but this year he’s teaming up with Christina Ricci for an “Addams Family” reunion. Lloyd played Uncle Fester and Ricci was Wednesday in the 1991 movie and the 1993 sequel. They’ll talk about those movies on Sunday. There also is a panel about the “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles” live action trilogy with the half-shell heroes Ernie Reyes Jr., Brian Tochi, Robbie Rist and Kenn Scott. Actors and on-screen Weasley siblings Bonnie Wright and James and Oliver Phelps will reunite for a Harry Potter event. Actors and comedians Thomas Lennon and Cedric Yarbrough will host a “Reno 911!”
panel. And Jaime Pressly and Ethan Suplee will talk about their time on the show “My Name is Earl.” Pressly also will be interviewed about being a Y2K symbol, and — not as light-hearted — Suplee will take part in a panel about “American History X.” The weekend also will include sessions with Helen Hunt, James Marsters, Dean Norris, Gates McFadden, Josh Holloway and more actors. And there are events with anime, animation and gaming voice actors like Brad Swaile, Terri Hawkes, “Hazbin Hotel’s” Lilli Cooper and Joel Perez and “Transformers: Beast Wars” voice Ian James Corlett. This year, the New Orleans Black nerd group Blerdfest is organizing the Friendiverse Lounge, an area set aside for gaming sessions, art and craftmaking and a silent disco. Blerdfest organizers also will take part in a couple of workshops and panels about their work. Blerdfest throws its own fan festival in June. New Orleans artists Branden “BMike” Odums and his nonprofit Eternal Seeds also will have a lounge set up for youth with art and workshops. Some panels and workshops also will share tips on how to build an artist portfolio and break into the comics or gaming industries. Actor and director Michael Scott throughout the weekend will give voice acting classes, and he will host a Voices of Fan Expo competition on Saturday. There are themed cosplay meetups throughout the weekend, and family-friendly wrestling group Bizarro Wrestling will be staging matches. After things wrap up at the Convention Center on Friday, the restaurant and bar Junebug will host Comics Xplosion with live art competitions between comics artists. And Fan Expo’s official animethemed after party takes place Saturday at Tipitina’s. Harajuku Night will feature performances by J-rock band PuriKura Panic, nerd rock group The Suzaku 7 and dance group Sweet Supernova. Tickets are $27.98 via tipitinas.com. Single-day tickets are $40 for Friday, $61 for Saturday and $50 for Sunday, and three-day passes are $89. There also are VIP upgrades available as well as specials on family and child passes and youth tickets. Find more information and tickets at fanexpohq.com/fanexponeworleans.
The Krewe de Jeanne d’Arc makes its annual trek through the French Quarter on Jan. 6, the birthday of Joan of Arc. The Queen is Sandy Rosenthal, founder of Levees.org, and the King is Greg Lambousy, director of the New Orleans Jazz Museum. Rory Davis serves as Joan and will ride a white horse, leading costumed groups representing her devoted followers and the trials of her faith. The parade follows a new route due to road work in the historic district. It starts at 7:30 p.m. at Bienville and Front streets, proceeds to Chartres Street, returns to Decatur Street to pass Jackson Square and the golden statue of Joan of Arc and then
PHOTO BY SCOTT THRELKELD / THE TIMES-PICAYUNE
loops back to Chartres before ending at the French Market. Throws include painted soldiers, handmade journals, a medieval songbook and more. Visit joanofarcparade.org for information.
Fortune Feimster
Since making her debut on NBC’s “Last Comic Standing” in 2010, Fortune Feimster has released numerous specials, including “Good Fortune” and “Crushing It,” released in December 2024. She also has become a film and TV star, serving as a regular panelist on “Chelsea Lately” and starring in “The Mindy Project.” She performs at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 7, at Orpheum Theater. Tickets $45.05 and up via ticketmaster.com.
Funky Uptown Krewe
Mannie Fresh and the Funky Uptown Krewe celebrate the beginning of Carnival with a streetcar ride on Tuesday, Jan. 6. Mannie Fresh DJs and the Kings of Brass provide music. Krewe members toss vinyl records. The procession starts on S. Carrollton Avenue at Willow Street and follows the Phunny Phorty Phellows. PAGE 21
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Community food drives by organizations like the Southeast Dignity Not Detention Coalition, Familias Unidas en Acción and Puentes New Orleans are helping get groceries to immigrant families worried about leaving home during the Trump administration’s anti-immigrant raids in New Orleans. The Southeast Dignity coalition recently said it has been able to support more than 400 families with food and hygiene items through community donations.
THE NUMBER OF BRANDNEW MEMBERS OF THE NEW ORLEANS CITY COUNCIL WHO WILL SOON TAKE OFFICE. Musicians’ Village rentals PHOTO BY JONAH MEADOWS / THE TIMES-PICAYUNE
Residents voice frustration over Musicians’ Village rent tripling. Is relief coming? A COMMUNITY MEETING NEAR MUSICIANS’ VILLAGE DEC. 18 DREW OUT RENTERS, neighbors and cultural
Rev. Jane Mauldin, a grandmother and pastor connected with the North Shore Unitarian Universalists church in Lacombe, has been working to inform people about ICE and Border Patrol activity in her area. Many New Orleanians have been using digital methods to track and fight back against Catahoula Crunch, and Mauldin was recently featured by MS NOW for her time spent driving her car around the Northshore and using social media to monitor federal agents’ actions.
Border Patrol’s local actions pushed several area churches to cancel Christmas services as many immigrant families decided to stay home out of fear of being detained, WWL-TV reported. Pastor Melquisedec Castillo of Faro De La Alianza, a group of Hispanic pastors, told WWL his church and others have seen a major drop in attendance in the last month.
advocates to voice their frustrations and concerns about Habitat for Humanity’s sale of eight rental units to a private company that’s now tripling the rents on several New Orleans culture bearers. About 30 people attended the meeting, hosted by City Council Member Eugene Green, who represents the area. Missing, though, were representatives from New Orleans Area Habitat for Humanity and new landlord Sam Madi. Green said he invited Habitat and Madi to the meeting at St. Josephine Bakhita Catholic Church, but neither showed up. Among those who spoke was Marjorianna Willman, the executive director of Housing Authority of New Orleans (HANO), who said she spoke to Madi, earlier this week and he told her he would hold off on increasing rents for the Musicians’ Village units. “I will say that the owner did tell me that he would make sure that the rents are stabilized at the current rate. He would hold them to that rate for at least a year until there was some way of coming to resolution,” she said. “I don’t have it in writing ... but I am repeating what I heard, and I’m repeating on record.” Residents, though, are skeptical until more details are provided.
“I accept no promises,” said longtime renter Lolet Boutte, a member of the noted Boutte family. “I accept printed words with a different colored ink signature.” New Orleans Area Habitat for Humanity on Sept. 23 sold 32 rental properties — a total of 52 rental units — for $1.7 million to Madi’s company Stable Housing LLC. That included four doubles, or eight rentals, in Musicians’ Village, a neighborhood built by Habitat to provide housing for musicians and other culture bearers in the wake of Hurricane Katrina and the federal levee failures. Habitat had not been raising the rates on its Musicians’ Village rentals, meaning some tenants have been paying between $300 to $400 a month. New Orleans Area Habitat for Humanity Executive Director Marguerite Oestreicher told Gambit last week the organization couldn’t afford to upkeep its rental properties and was in the process of selling them all off. The new landlord in recent weeks informed tenants at Musicians’ Village their rents would be tripling to around $1,100 to $1,200, with phased increases starting Jan. 1. The residents, some of whom are elderly culture bearers living on fixed incomes, have said they can’t afford those costs. “There are three of us who are past 70,” said Boutte, 81. “I don’t
Those include Aimee McCarron of District A, Jason Hughes of District E and Council Member At-Large Matthew Willard. The rookies have previous government experience to draw from. McCarron served as her predecessor Joe Giarrusso’s policy director, and Hughes and Willard both served in the state legislature. Eugene Green, Freddie King, JP Morrell and Lesli Harris will also be sworn in for their second terms.
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want to have to move again in my entire life. If you can keep us in place, somebody work out something.” Brandi Kelley, who said she had been helping her late godmother, Vodou priestess Mama Lola, and Lola’s daughter, Maggie, with rent in the neighborhood, said they’d been paying rent “faithfully and on time to Habitat” since 2009. “This was never about fair market value,” she said. “This was to provide a place for the musicians and culture bearers to come back from Hurricane Katrina.” Kelley said neighbors had created a tight-knit community over the years through barbecues and crawfish boils. “This is a community that we have formed together, and we should have been offered dignity, courtesy, professionalism,” she said. “That’s New Orleans. We’re a community, and we weren’t treated like a community.” Green said he was “disappointed” that Habitat didn’t offer the longtime renters a chance to buy the homes or carve out protections for them in the sale.
“We are disappointed because this was an opportunity to potentially create some homeowners, but if nothing else, it was an opportunity to, if a property was sold, have some sort of covenants in it that protected certain people,” he said. Green, who owns New Orleans Real Estate Corp., also said he believed Habitat could have gotten more money for the properties, which they sold for an average of $54,000 each. “Every house could have sold for over $100,000,” he said, adding, “There may be things that I don’t know, but I don’t know if I think an appraisal came in with those low prices.” Willman of HANO told Gambit Madi provided her with a list of the eight tenants in Musicians’ Village and the housing assistance they were currently receiving. She said at least two are getting Section 8 federal housing vouchers, which can be increased to help cover the rent hikes. For the others, she said HANO does provide competitive project-based vouchers, and that the organization could potentially work with the owner on vouchers for the
Musicians’ Village renters. The cycle for applying for and awarding those vouchers starts early next year. Willman said HANO was in the process of reaching out to the eight tenants. “I do think that there’s options out there, and we’re just going to work with them as best we can,” she said. Green said his office would hold another community meeting on the rentals in the future. — Kaylee Poche
Mayor Cantrell vetoes law barring her from spending city funds as she exits office
THE NEW ORLEANS CITY COUNCIL JAN. 8 IS EXPECTED TO OVERRIDE OUT-GOING MAYOR LATOYA CANTRELL’S VETO of an ordinance barring her
from signing new contracts or otherwise spending city funds through the end of her tenure Jan. 12. As part of its efforts to address massive budget shortfalls this year and projected ones in 2026, the City Council Dec. 18 passed the ordinance, which bars Cantrell from spending funds from the Sewerage & Water Board, American Rescue Plan Act
funding, proceeds from the Wisner trust or any other “new” revenue sources between the date of passage and the 12th. Part of the reason the council passed the ordinance was Cantrell’s use of one-time money like the ARPA funds to pay for long-term projects. Additionally, the council has identified significant sums of federal funds being spent for questionable purposes. In a Dec. 29 letter to the council announcing her veto, Cantrell argued the prohibition is “overbroad” and could effect spending “in response to an emergency.” That, however, is highly unlikely. Even if an emergency were to occur, the city would almost certainly not have to pay up front for costs associated with it. Normally, the city is billed by contractors for services rendered, none of which would likely come due before Cantrell leaves office Jan. 12. Earlier this month Cantrell vetoed the 2026 budget after the council rejected her plan’s sweeping 30% across the board cuts in favor of Mayor Elect Helena Moreno’s more targeted spending bill. The council easily overrode that veto. — John Stanton
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NEWS
New Orleans Municipal Auditorium could be on the FEMA chopping block THE MUNICIPAL AUDITORIUM RENOVATION PROJECT, ALREADY THE CENTER OF YEARS OF CONTROVERSY, is now
under threat from an expiring end-of-year deadline to spend federal Hurricane Katrina disaster grants, creating a new round of uncertainty for the 95-year-old auditorium that once served as the city’s premiere venue for Mardi Gras balls, graduation parties and touring concert acts. The five-story building took on several feet of water and suffered severe roof damage from the 2005 hurricane, and, after drawn-out negotiations with city officials, the Federal Emergency Management Agency awarded $38.5 million to stabilize the building in 2017. Work finally began in August after years of arguing between Mayor LaToya Cantrell and community activists over plans for the site. An $8.2 million roof replacement is underway and additional remediation is planned for the interior and exterior. The city can only use FEMA grant money for work done prior to the spending deadline, meaning an extension or new funding is needed to keep the project going. City officials are expecting FEMA to announce a six-month extension for Katrina recovery projects on Wednesday, but not all those projects are expected to be included. Mayor-elect Helen Moreno, who takes office on Jan. 12, said Tuesday she is concerned the Municipal Auditorium is on FEMA’s chopping block. “We finally are to the point where we can get things going on Municipal Auditorium, so to miss out on the funding that we’re owed would be really detrimental,” Moreno said at a City Council meeting. Moreno may need to come up with new funding for the auditorium project even if it is included in a six-month extension, since the roof replacement is the only portion expected to be complete by midyear. The timeframe for the interior and exterior work isn’t clear.
The Municipal Auditorium and Congo Square in Armstrong Park in New Orleans on Thursday, June 20, 2024. STAFF PHOTO BY CHRIS GRANGER
Without the extension, an estimated $40 million will be needed to finish the roof and complete the additional work, according to city records. Few public works projects in New Orleans have sparked interest like Municipal Auditorium, a cultural touchstone located next to Congo Square, where African slaves once gathered to perform traditional rites that eventually gave rise to jazz music. Mayor LaToya Cantrell’s plan to convert the auditorium to a new City Hall drew outrage from community activists who consider the site sacred, and a 2023 spending deadline passed amid the controversy. The deadline was extended, and Cantrell in 2024 came to an agreement with a coalition of community leaders on a long-term vision for the auditorium and the surrounding Louis Armstrong Park. The coalition, known as Save Our Soul, eventually wants to turn the auditorium into a multiuse cultural center as part of a master plan for the park. The current project is meant to prevent further deterioration to the building, but air conditioning and more interior work will be needed in the future to make it usable, said Save Our Soul member Glade Bilby. “The roof has been open for 20 years, so it’s really a mess,” Bilby said. Louisiana Legislative Auditor Mike Waguespack told City Council
members on Dec. 23 that FEMA is likely to approve a six-month extension, but some projects would not be included. Waguespack, who is monitoring city finances, said city and state officials included Municipal Auditorium on a “critical to extend” list. “Hopefully they’ll take that into account,” he said. FEMA officials confirmed they would respond to the extension request by Wednesday and declined further comment.
A list of projects affected by FEMA’s decision on the extension wasn’t available on Tuesday, but the bulk of remaining Katrina funds are for road construction projects. Roughly $500 million remains unspent from $1.7 billion for roads, according to state records, and it’s unlikely the city could spend that amount by midyear. City officials say another three years are needed to finish up all the planned road projects, meaning a significant amount of grant money could be forfeited unless there are future extensions. Moreno and other city officials have fretted about the potential for losing funding for projects currently underway, which could leave dozens of residential blocks torn up for unknown lengths of time. They hope a six-month extension would at least allow contractors to finish those nearing completion and secure some of the open sites. An upcoming $510 million bond issue that voters approved in November could be an alternative funding source for projects — including Municipal Auditorium — stripped of FEMA funds, but the bond issue wasn’t intended for capital projects already covered by federal grants. It’s not clear when the bonds will be sold. — Ben Myers / The Times-Picayune
Protestors second line back to Congo Square after marching to City Hall in protest against the proposed move of City Hall to the Municipal Auditorium. PHOTO BY SOPHIA GERMER / THE TIMES-PICAYUNE
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BL AKE PONTCHARTR AIN™
Hey Blake,
Is it true that Sid and Marty Krofft, the creators of my favorite 1970s TV children’s show, “H.R. Pufnstuf,” once had an adult puppet show on Bourbon Street? When and where did it play?
Dear reader,
THE KROFFT BROTHERS, THE IMAGINATIVE MINDS BEHIND 1970S TV SHOWS SUCH AS “H.R. PUFNSTUF” AND “LAND OF THE LOST,” brought
a musical adult puppet revue to Bourbon Street in the 1960s. The Kroffts created their “Les Poupees de Paris” puppet show in 1961, modeling it after the musical revues seen in Paris’ Lido and Folies Bergere clubs. It opened in California before traveling to Las Vegas, the 1962 Seattle World’s Fair and the New York World’s Fair in 1965. In 1966, “Les Poupees” came to New Orleans, opening at The Lido, at 231 Bourbon St. According to The TimesPicayune, the local producers included Harry Batt Jr. and John A. Batt, the uncle and father of actor Bryan Batt. “‘Les Poupees’ sports a menagerie of marionettes dressed (and undressed) lavishly in a spectacular musical revue in miniature,” wrote David Cuthbert in the Jan. 9, 1967, States-Item. “The talents of many stars provide the ingenious puppet figures with voices.” They included Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Bing Crosby, Gene Kelly, Liberace, Jayne Mansfield and Pearl
thank you for all the JOY in 2025 wishing you all the
BLESSINGS in 2026
Puppeteer Sid Krofft PHOTO BY MAURICE SEYMOUR / THE TIMES-PICAYUNE ARCHIVE
Bailey, as well as can-can dancers and a singing puppet named Pelvis Essley. “Apparently Elvis and the Colonel (Tom Parker, Elvis Presley’s manager) unlike other entertainment figures, would not lend the famed name to a puppet,” wrote Times-Picayune entertainment critic Frank Gagnard. “As its title indicates, the show is flavored with continental spice and is intended for adults,” Gagnard explained in December 1965. T-P writer Emile Lafourcade called it a show which “fascinates, amuses and captivates the viewer because Sid and Marty Krofft and their crew have done with marionettes what the late Walt Disney had done with animated motion pictures.” The show’s run on Bourbon Street was relatively brief, according to Marty Krofft. “I think we were there about a year and a half, and then they ran us out of town,” he joked in a 1996 Times-Picayune interview. “I think all those strip joints were bugged that we were doing so well with the puppets. I guess that’s what happened ... I love New Orleans.”
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BLAKEVIEW THIS WEEK WE FLY BACK 80 YEARS TO JAN. 13, 1946, WHEN WORLD WAR II ICON AND AVIATION PIONEER GEN. JAMES “JIMMY” DOOLITTLE came to town to dedicate
Moisant International Airport, now known as Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport. Doolittle received the Medal of Honor for his raid on Japan during WWII. Even before that, Doolittle set air racing world records in the 1920s and was a revered aeronautical innovator. “Lt. Gen. Jimmy Doolittle pulled a string on the yellow cloth covering a marble tablet yesterday and the world’s largest commercial airport was dedicated here,” reported the New Orleans Item on Jan. 14, 1946. “Newsreel men and newspaper photographers nearly knocked each other over in their attempts to snap the crucial moment.” Doolittle, who was welcomed to town the day before with a military parade, praised Moisant as one of the finest commercial airport terminals in the world. “Like all fliers, I have a very warm spot in my heart for airports. ... From the air, they are a comforting and reassuring sight,” Doolittle said. “Several times during my life I would have given all of my worldly possessions to have been able to look down on an airport one-tenth the size of this one.”
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From ancient Rome to Royal Street, Carnival traditions are a worldwide phenomenon B Y M AT T H A I N E S
IN THE DAYS LEADING UP to Mardi Gras, we tend to think of New Orleans as one of a kind. “Everywhere else it’s just Tuesday,” is the caption we proudly post on our various social media platforms, usually alongside a photo of ourselves in costume with a Jean Lafitte’s purple drink in hand. But the truth is, while we are walking in St. Anne’s or cheering on Zulu and Rex, millions of people around the globe are celebrating as well. Some parade in colorful costumes, while others stuff their faces with stacks of pancakes and butter. Some wear elaborate masks at secret soirées, while folks in other parts of the world heave citrus fruit at one another in the streets. As in New Orleans, the party often lasts longer than a single day. We aren’t only celebrating Fat Tuesday, we’re celebrating Carnival — a festival that can be traced back thousands of years ago and an ocean away.
Pre-Christian roots
CARNAVAL IN RIO
PHOTO BY SAR AH DILORENZO / THE AP
MANY OF THE ANCIENT WORLD’S most important holidays were centered around the fear and uncertainty of a long winter and/or the promise of springtime.
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PANCAKE DAY IN THE UNITED KINGDOM
PHOTO BY LE WIS WHYLD / THE AP
CARNAVAL DEL TORO IN 2014
PHOTO VIA WIKIMEDIA COMMONS BY @ROBERTMOR ALES
PURIM
P H O T O B Y T R AV I S S P R A D L I N G / T H E A D V O C AT E
The Babylonians celebrated their Sacaea, a five-day festival announcing the arrival of spring. The Romans commemorated the Winter Solstice — the longest night of the year — with their Saturnalia, and the Athenians marked the end of winter with their Dionysian festivals. Historians believe one purpose of these celebrations was to raise morale during the annual calendar’s most challenging and dangerous period, when the days were short, the temperatures were low, and food was scarce. A hallmark of these festivities that would have certainly raised the collective spirit was the temporary disposal of class roles. During Sacaea, for example, the Babylonians encouraged masters and slaves to reverse roles through the outfits they wore. Meanwhile, the Roman Saturnalia featured a cake with a bean hidden inside. Anyone who found the bean — even if they were a peasant or a child — would be crowned the king of Saturnalia. In fact, we can see a lot of these old customs in how we celebrate Carnival today, including begging for coins, beads and food thrown by faux royalty on floats, and of course through our king cake.
Another feature of these ancient precursors to Carnival was the encouragement of gluttony, both through heavy drinking and stuffing one’s face with food (it’s not called “Slim Tuesday,” after all). “In the Northern Hemisphere, this period we now call Lent was typically a time of food scarcity,” British food historian, author and podcaster Neil Buttery told Gambit. “The meat you saved for winter was running low or threatening to spoil, and the crops you planted for spring hadn’t yet produced food.” “The feast before this scarcity was one last chance to put on a few pounds and raise morale before the long season of forced fasting,” he adds.
To eat the cow or not to eat the cow?
IN MORE RECENT MILLENNIA, Christianity has become the dominant belief system in much of the world. Hoping to convert pre-Christian pagans to their growing religion, church leaders opted to absorb the customs of these earlier societies rather than abolish them. Many of the traditions of the Roman Saturnalia, for example, are still present
REVEL 'ROUND THE W O R L D PHOTO BY FERNANDO VERGAR A/ THE AP
in the Christmas season. Similarly, the traditions of Carnival are believed to be remnants of both Saturnalia and another Roman festival, Lupercalia, a pagan fertility festival in February — described as a “circus-like orgy” — marked by feasting and revelry that commemorated the transition from winter to spring. Of course, pagan or Christian, the primary problem facing societies in the Northern Hemisphere during this time of year was identical: food was about to become dangerously scarce. Today, the 40-day Lenten period is said to mirror Jesus’ 40 days in the wilderness. Christians are asked to remember Christ’s sacrifice and prepare for his resurrection by repenting for their sins. Just as modern Christians are asked to show self-discipline by giving up certain pleasures during Lent, earlier followers of the religion were asked to give up meat. The reason was likely a matter of life or death. Imagine it is March and your children are hungry. The winter harvest is dwindling and it will be weeks until the Earth once again bears fruit. You do have a cow, though it is not yet mature.
You might be tempted to slaughter said cow, providing relief for your children — an understandable choice. The church, however, is worried about the long-term well-being of the town. If that cow is allowed to mature, it can reproduce to provide future milk and meat for the masses. Many Christian rules were tools to keep the town working toward a common goal instead of meeting more personal ends. The abstinence of Lent was a tool for survival. And so was Carnival. In fact, the term comes from carnavale — Italian for “goodbye to meat.”
Goodbye to meat
BUT IT WASN’T JUST MEAT, it was also products that came from animals. This explains why Carnival celebrations around the world include one last chance to indulge in products featuring butter and eggs. The British and Irish feast on pancakes with lemon and sugar, while Italians eat sweet dough balls called castagnole or deep-fried cookies called cenci. The Polish, meanwhile, have pączki, the French have beignets and the Germans have fastnacht — all members of the
doughnut family. (In the case of fastnacht, most are filled with jelly, though some are stuffed with mustard as a cheeky pre-Lenten prank.) In Iceland, the day is called Sprengidagur, or “Bursting Day,” and in eastern Slavic countries like Russia, Ukraine and Belarus, their Maslenitsa festival is often referred to as Butter Week or Cheesefare Week. Outside of the Western Hemisphere, for example, even Christians in India spend the day before Lent eating colorful, coconut-filled crepes known as Alle Belle, Goan pancakes or Madakasan, depending on the region. “It all comes from the same tradition,” Buttery says. “People around the world get their fill of the things they can’t eat in the coming weeks, whether that be because their religion or their environment forbids it.” In New Orleans, we feast on king cake, fried chicken, and other decadent treats before dutifully reporting to church on Ash Wednesday — some of us, anyway. We dress in colorful costumes. We dance. We sing. We drink far too much. The way we celebrate is unique, but we are not alone in celebrating. And, while
there are far too many Carnival celebrations to include in one article, we’ll capture some of the highlights below.
USA! USA! USA!
BEFORE WE SPAN THE GLOBE, we should acknowledge that New Orleans isn’t the only Carnival celebration in the U.S. French explorers celebrated the first Fat Tuesday in North America on March 3, 1699, at a spot they appropriately christened Point du Mardi Gras. The site is on the west bank of the Mississippi River, 60 miles south of New Orleans, though future settlers would eventually spread Carnival across the Gulf Coast. The first Carnival season parades in the New World took place in Mobile, Alabama. It is believed this began in 1711, when 16 members of the Société du Bœuf Gras (Society of the Fatted Ox) paraded on Mardi Gras while pushing a cart carrying a large papier-mâché cow’s head. Today, the city hosts more than 40 Carnival season parades. In central Louisiana, in the small towns around Lafayette that make up Cajun country, their Courir de Mardi Gras is
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CARNIVAL IN COLOMBIA
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REVEL 'ROUND THE W O R LD CELEBRATION OF EQUINOX AND MASLENITSA PHOTO VIA WIKIMEDIA COMMONS BY LIA JARYSH
THE BATTLE OF THE ORANGES AT THE CARNIVAL OF IVREA
PHOTO VIA WIKIMEDIA COMMONS BY VFBIA
entirely different. Masked participants in homemade costumes, many on horseback, go from house to house begging for ingredients to make a huge pot of gumbo. Most famously, this includes live chickens, which revelers chase through the mud. But American Mardi Gras isn’t only left to the states along the Gulf coast. Polish communities in Rust Belt cities, for example, celebrate the day before Lent by eating doughnuts known as pączki. In the Hamtramck enclave of Detroit, an annual Pączki Day Parade takes place, while in Parma, Ohio, Rudy’s Strudel bakery hosts a celebration with special flavors of pączki, live polka music, pierogies and mimosas.
The world’s biggest Carnival
RIO DE JANEIRO IN BRAZIL has been celebrating Carnival since as early as the 16th century thanks to Catholic Portuguese colonizers. Those explorers could have never imagined what their festival would become. Today, more than 2 million people take to the streets every day during Rio’s lead-up to Mardi Gras. The celebrations are highlighted by hundreds of street parties, as well as parades featuring more than 200 “samba schools.” These are more akin to community clubs than traditional schools, however, with thousands of neighbors engaging in a year-round effort to prepare elaborate floats, costumes, music, and choreographed dancing rooted in Afro-Brazilian culture.
A Winter Wonderland
IF BRAZIL SOUNDS TOO WARM FOR YOU, head north for Mardi Gras in the snow at the Quebec Winter Carnival. Held since 1894, this is the largest winter festival in the Western Hemisphere, featuring French-Canadian culture, snow sculpture competitions, ice canoe races on the frozen St. Lawrence River, nighttime parades, live music, toboggans, an Ice Palace, fire pits, tons of food, and the festival’s iconic snowman mascot Bonhomme Carnaval.
Caribbean Carnival
TRINIDAD, ANGUILLA, GRENADA AND BARBADOS are just a handful of the Caribbean islands that celebrate what many describe as the most electrifying Carnival in the world. Here, it is a tradition rooted in Black rebellion. In 18th-century Trinidad, enslaved Africans were forbidden from participating in the masquerade balls of European colonizers. Instead, they created their own celebrations, defiantly crafting costumes of colorful feathers. They dance through the streets in parades to the Afro-Trinidadian sounds of calypso. The joy of freedom is palpable in the thousands who still gather in the streets each Carnival, more than 200 years later.
Pancake Day
CROSS THE ATLANTIC OCEAN for something completely different. In the United Kingdom and Ireland, the
pre-Lenten meal of choice is a thin pancake topped with butter and lemon. In Newfoundland, Canada, a tradition similar to our king cake involves a trinket hidden inside the pancakes for children. The day is often called “Pancake Day,” but is officially called Shrove Tuesday. That comes from the word “shrive,” which refers to the absolution before Lent that comes from the required confessions. Celebrations take place in communities throughout the two countries, often with “pancake races” where participants race while flipping pancakes in a frying pan. Some towns have continued the medieval tradition of chaotic “mob football” games involving many participants playing at once with very few rules.
Maslenitsa Festival
COUNTRIES LIKE RUSSIA, Belarus and Ukraine trace their Carnival season feasts to pre-Christian Slavic people, according to Sharon Hudgins, a University
of Maryland professor and author of “T-Bone Whacks & Caviar Snacks: Cooking with Two Texans in Siberia & the Russian Far East.” Their Maslenitsa is known as Butter Week or Crepe Week. “Early Slavs hoped for the short, dark, cold days of the preceding months to be banished in favor of longer ones illuminated by sunlight,” Hudgins told Gambit. This was portrayed as a battle between winter spirits and the god of the sun. By indulging in gluttonous ritual foods, such as a circular treat similar to a pancake, Hudgins says they were doing their part to cheer on the sun’s return. “It makes sense that in Russia they still eat a type of thin pancake called bliny this time of year,” Hudgins adds, “and that you still find costumed merrymakers celebrating the sun and burning an effigy of the Old Witch of Winter.” Today, while smaller town Maslenitsa festivals are still popular, hundreds of thousands of participants attend Maslenitsa in Moscow’s Red Square.
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WINTER FESTIVAL IN QUEBEC
P H O T O V I A W I K I M E D I A C O M M O N S B Y M A R C- L A U T E N B A C H E R
Renaissance splendor
A MAJOR COMPONENT OF CARNIVAL is the erasure of norms and social class. The Carnevale di Venezia in Venice, Italy, does exactly this with two weeks of elaborate masks and ornate costumes at anonymous masquerade balls held in palaces and themed public celebrations in St. Mark’s Square. Costumed participants and spectators are everywhere transforming the city with water parades, music and street theater.
enraged by the tyrant’s disrespect, the townspeople burned down the palace. Centuries later, these events are (very) loosely reenacted. Each year, a young girl plays the part of the defiant woman. The townspeople are armed with oranges (some say they represent the tyrant’s testicles) and the citrus is thrown at those acting as the tyrant’s army. In addition to the Battle of the Oranges, Ivrea Carnival also includes a large bonfire, linking back to ancient celebrations about the end of winter and the return of spring.
Food fight!
El Carnaval del Toro
ANOTHER UNIQUE CELEBRATION is the Carnival of Ivrea in Northern Italy, which hosts the “Battle of the Oranges.” The origins of this celebration are dark. A local 12th-century tyrant set his mind to raping a young commoner on her wedding night. The tyrant’s plan backfired, however, when the young lady decapitated him. Emboldened by her courage, and
BŒUF GRAS PARADES have been a part of Carnival celebrations for centuries. Historically, butchers parade solemnly through the streets with an ox, cow, bull or a sculpted representation of an animal. All of this, of course, is meant to symbolize one final meal of meat before Lent. In Spain’s Ciudad Rodrigo, however, El Carnaval del Toro (Carnival of the
Bull) uses the bovine in a different way. During their multi-day Carnival festival, celebrants run with bulls in the street, and bull fights take place in medieval rings. Costumes signify a battle between good and evil, and brass bands and dances liven up the atmosphere. On “Piñata Sunday” locals and visitors gather to eat one last round of the bull before it is forbidden.
A Jewish Carnival
OTHER RELIGIONS also have similar celebrations. And that makes sense, given that it wasn’t only Christians facing food scarcity this time of year. Purim is a Jewish holiday celebrating the storied salvation of the Jewish people from a plot to destroy them in ancient Persia. At first glance, Purim’s story doesn’t appear related to Carnival. But how can it be a coincidence that this late-winter holiday also calls for colorful costumes, indulgent eating and merrymaking. Purim is also the only holiday in which Jews are
encouraged to get drunk, with holy text reading that followers should drink until they can’t tell the difference between the phrases “Blessed be Mordechai” (one of the story’s heroes) and “Cursed be Haman” (its villain).
Just the tip of the iceberg
AND THIS IS TRULY just a small handful of a world’s worth of Carnival celebrations. Festivals in Cologne, Germany, and Viareggio, Italy, are renowned across Europe, while a Carnival parade and wine festival in Goa — a Catholic region of India — shows how the traditions of Mardi Gras have continued to spread. And in places like Iceland and Australia, Colombia and Japan, Carnival and Mardi Gras continue to grow. Our New Orleans Carnival is special, for sure, and there is a reason we attract more than a million visitors for it each year. But “Everywhere else it’s just Tuesday?” Not so fast.
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New home cooking
FORK + CENTER
The Munch Factory opens in Mid-City | by Beth D’Addono
Email dining@gambitweekly.com
AFTER 15 YEARS OF SERVING MODERN CREOLE COMFORT FOOD IN LOCATIONS FROM GENTILLY TO THE LOWER GARDEN DISTRICT, The Munch
Factory has found a new home. Owners chef Jordan Ruiz and his wife/partner Alexis Ruiz opened in Mid-City in mid-December at 4141 Bienville St., in the space that used to house Frey Meat Co. off N. Carrollton Avenue. “Moving is hard, but some things feel like the right next step for you, and this feels right,” Alexis Ruiz says. “A long time ago, when we first opened, someone asked us, ‘Are you willing to take a risk on yourself?’ And that’s been our driving force.” The couple expanded with a location at the Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport when the new terminal opened. But the family-run restaurant’s New Orleans homebase had most recently been the clubhouse restaurant at the Joseph M. Bartholomew Municipal Golf Course in Gentilly, where it was both a neighborhood lunch spot and a meeting place for golfers. But it was tucked away, and a little too much of a hidden gem. The Mid-City address is much more central. “Having a location in the middle of everything makes it easy for our longtime regulars to find us,” Alexis says. “So many of our customers become family to us. They’ve seen me pregnant with our youngest. We watch their families grow. Being here makes it so easy for people. There’s even parking, and we’re a block from the streetcar.” Jordan Ruiz grew up in New Orleans East, and he attended the Culinary Institute of America. Her family lived in Gentilly. The couple met first in middle school and reconnected years later when she was a server at a restaurant where he worked. “We make a good team,” Alexis says. “Jordan handles everything back-ofthe-house and I can be out front.” The move offered big upgrades in space and equipment for the kitchen. The couple spent five months renovating the space, adding local art and some niche dining spots. “We touched
A taste of 2026 WITH THE NEW YEAR UPON US, IT’S TIME FOR A LOOK AHEAD TO THE HARVEST OF NEW RESTAURANTS taking shape around
town, including the next projects from big names, neighborhood spots and new debuts.Some have been in the works so long it’s reasonable to wonder if they’ll actually open. Others have just recently been confirmed. A few are poised to open very soon. Here’s where they stand and what’s to come.
Bonafried
3101 Grand Route St. John, projected opening early January
A FABULOUS FRIED CHICKEN SANDWICH IS THE BASIS FOR THE BONAFRIED FOOD TRUCK, and very
soon it will be at the center of the menu for its new restaurant. Plans to convert the former Splish Splash Washateria just off Esplanade
Alexis Ruiz serves blackened Gulf fish over fried grit cakes with crawfish and pepper sauce. PHOTO BY MADDIE SPINNER / GAMBIT
everything,” she says. “We made sure Jordan has everything he needs.” As they have ramped up at the new spot, Jordan decided to spotlight some of the favorites from over the years. “We’ve been having fun bringing back some of everybody’s favorites,” Alexis says. Her favorite dish of all time is his Gentilly oysters appetizer, which the chef has been featuring as a special. Fried oysters are served on a bed of creamed spinach with caramelized onions and topped with a Worcestershire reduction. “It’s just one of those perfect bites,” she says. The chef’s mantra is to keep things fresh and house-made. His gumbo is inspired by his grandmother’s, built on a dark and glossy roux and swimming with seafood and hot and andouille sausages. Uncle Jo’s pasta with shrimp, sausage and fried chicken is a signature dish. Spinach and artichoke dip comes with house-fried tortilla chips. Roasted salmon is served over grits with asparagus, and although the menu describes
the local Gulf fish as blackened, Alexis says it is more bronzed. “He doesn’t use a thick layer of spice,” she says. The fish is served over fried grit cakes with crawfish and pepper sauce. The menu also offers sandwiches, like pot roast on a baguette, a halfpound Angus burger and fresh tuna tacos. Aunt Irma’s Hawaiian salad is a favorite, with a mix of greens, cilantro, fried won ton strips and grilled shrimp or salmon on top. “We know ourselves at this point,” Alexis says. “We know our strengths and weaknesses and what works. We know what kind of restaurant we are. People get the sense that we’re really trying. Flavor is everything. Jordan makes New Orleans style food with a spin on it. He brings otherworldly flavors into the mix then brings it back to home.” For now, the restaurant is open Tuesday through Sunday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., but those hours will extend to dinner in January, when the liquor license comes through, Alexis says.
? WHAT
WHERE
WHEN
HOW
CHECK IT OUT
The Munch Factory
4141 Bienville St., (504) 264-7621; themunchfactory.net
Lunch Tue.-Sun.
Dine-in
A new spot for creative Creole comfort food
The Bonafried food truck serves a spicy fried chicken sandwich. PHOTO BY IAN MCNULTY / THE TIMES-PICAYUNE
Avenue into a restaurant for Bonafried were announced in the spring of 2024. The conversion turned out to be much more involved than planned. But now the doors are set to open in early January, likely the first or second week. Stephen Maher and Rebecca Elizabeth Hollingsworth started Bonafried a decade ago as a pop-up. By 2016, they converted a one-time bread delivery truck into a food truck and joined the ranks of mobile vendors. In 2022, Bonafried’s sandwich won the National Fried Chicken Festival award for “best use of chicken in a dish.” PAGE 19
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FORK & CENTER
The restaurant will have a menu of sandwiches, fries and other items, including salads, and it will have a full bar.
Feliciana and Paradise
Café Conmigo
THE LATEST FROM BRG HOSPITALITY, THE COMPANY LED BY JOHN BESH AND OCTAVIO MANTILLA, is on the
2511 Jena St., projected opening mid-January
FREDO NOGUIERA AND RYAN IRIARTE, CO-OWNERS OF HIGH HAT CAFE,
share a heritage as first-generation Cuban Americans. They are tapping those roots for this new restaurant, based on the Cuban cafés of Miami. It’s a few steps from High Hat, in a tiny building that was previously home to the Ice Cream 504 scoop shop. It will have sandwiches, a Cuban-style frita burger, pastries, desserts and a cocktail program.
Espíritu Mezcaleria & Cocina 139 S. Cortez St., projected opening early January
THE FORMER HOME OF ROSELLA SOON WILL BE A SECOND LOCATION for the founders of Espíritu
Mezcaleria & Cocina (520 Capdeville St.), the Mexican restaurant in the Warehouse District. Owners Haley Saucier and Grant Carey are bringing much of the same style and flavors to this new Espíritu in Mid-City. The menu will start with some of the popular tacos from the original and add plates of fajitas and enchiladas. At weekend brunch, look for dishes like huevos rancheros and chilaquiles, as well as live performances with mariachi bands and Latin drag among the possibilities.
Safta’s Table
129 Allen Toussaint Blvd., projected opening February
“NEIGHBORHOOD MEDITERRANEAN” IS THE IDEA BEHIND this project from
Emily and Alon Shaya. This all-day cafe will present some of the flavors for which their Uptown modern Israeli restaurant Saba is known, but in a more casual, deli-style format, with more influences from Greece, Morocco and Italy as well. Safta’s Table is part of a new mixed-use building by the lakefront in the West Lake Shore Shopping Center. It will serve food from breakfast time through dinner, with weekend brunch, and will have wine and cocktails. The restaurant will also be home base for catering and offer grab-and-go packaged items, like hummus and salads, and dishes to heat up at home, like lasagnas, potpies and casseroles.
332 N. New Hampshire St., Covington, projected opening early February
Northshore, part of Covington’s growing restaurant scene. It’s two concepts in one, and both are now nearing completion in the new two-story building that replaced the old Star Theater, right next to the group’s restaurant Tavi. On the ground floor, Feliciana will be a French bistro. Paradise is the rooftop lounge, conceived as a cocktail and wine bar with both open-air and covered areas. The names both reference settings from the work of novelist Walker Percy, who long made Covington his home.
Dolfy’s
4508 Freret St., projected opening March
CHEF ADOLFO GARCIA JR. GREW UP WORKING WITH HIS FATHER
at the family restaurant RioMar. Now the young chef and his wife Sophia Petrou are taking some inspiration from the old place for their new project. Dolfy’s will be centered more squarely on Spanish regional cooking, especially from Basque country. It is taking shape in what had been Ancora pizzeria. The massive wood-burning oven remains and will be a centerpiece of the menu, for dishes like lamb, dry-aged beef and Basque cheesecakes. Also in play are Spanish-style seafood, pinchos (small bites, typically served on bread stuck with toothpicks for snacking), jamon and cecina, a type of air-cured beef. The couple also run Chi Chi’s, the Korean fried chicken and beer joint at 4714 Freret St.
The Crustacean Club 1036 N. Rampart St., projected opening spring
THE CHAMPAGNE BAR EFFERVESCENCE CLOSED IN AUGUST, BUT NOW THE CHEFS WHO RAN ITS KITCHEN from the start are
developing this new upscale seafood restaurant in its place. Brenna Sanders and Evan Ingram are a married couple who have worked at Michelin-starred restaurants in San Francisco and at Restaurant August locally before helping open Effervescence in 2017.
Armada
231 Carondelet St., projected opening fall
AMANDA AND CHEF ISAAC TOUPS OF TOUPS’ MEATERY and their
business partners are planning to create an elegant new downtown restaurant on the ground floor of what started in the 1920s as the Cotton Exchange Building, long ago converted to a hotel. The menu will be a blend of Spanish and French cuisine, and the setting will be luxe, with seating for 175 between the dining room, banquette booths, a private dining room and a bar up front. There will be an open kitchen with a view to a rotisserie. Though initially targeting an opening in 2025, the restaurant is now aiming for October.
WINE OF THE
WEEK
Mildred’s and Upstairs at the Warbler Hotel 1923 St. Charles Ave., projected opening fall
THE WARBLER IS A NEW BOUTIQUE HOTEL NOW RISING on the lot that
once was home to the Trolley Stop Cafe. The six-story hotel will have 58 rooms and a bar and a restaurant, each led by Neal Bodenheimer, founder of the acclaimed Uptown cocktail lounge Cure, and other projects, along with his longtime collaborator Kirk Estopinal. The hotel’s ground floor will be home to Mildred’s, a martini bar and restaurant inspired by European cafe culture. Upstairs will be the poolside lounge on the hotel’s roof, with its own menu in more of a Mediterranean style. The overall project is from Verdad Real Estate, led by principal Joe Mann, a New Orleans native who envisions the Warbler as part of a revival along this part of lower St. Charles Ave.
Callais family restaurant 741 Nashville Ave., project opening second half of 2026
WHAT WAS ONCE A PHARMACY IS SLATED TO BECOME AN AS-YET-UNNAMED RESTAURANT FROM THE CALLAIS FAMILY, a prominent name
in the offshore oil services industry who are making moves in hospitality. The same family brought Gracious Bakery earlier this year. An extensive renovation of the old Uptown property is underway with the plan to open a restaurant with Italian and Cajun flavors. The family is working with Jean-Paul Bourgeois, a Thibodaux native known for his outdoors-meets-cooking series Duck Camp Dinners. — Ian McNulty / The Times-Picayune
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O U T T O E AT Out to Eat is an index of Gambit contract advertisers. Unless noted, addresses are for New Orleans and all accept credit cards. Updates: Email willc@gambitweekly.com or call (504) 483-3106. Angelo Brocato’s — 214 N. Carrollton Ave., (504) 486-1465; angelobrocatoicecream.com — This Mid-City sweet shop serves its own gelato in flavors like praline, salted caramel and tiramisu, as well as Italian ices in flavors like lemon, strawberry and mango. There also are cannolis, biscotti, fig cookies, tiramisu, macaroons and coffee drinks. No reservations. Lunch and dinner Tue.-Sun. $ Annunciation — 1016 Annunciation St., (504) 568-0245; annunciationrestaurant. com — Gulf Drum Yvonne is served with brown butter sauce with mushrooms and artichoke hearts. There also are oysters, seafood pasta dishes, steaks, lamb chops and more. Reservations recommended. Dinner Thu.-Mon. $$$ Bamboula’s — 514 Frenchmen St.; bamboulasmusic.com — The live music venue’s kitchen offers a menu of traditional and creative Creole dishes, such as Creole crawfish crepes with goat cheese and chardonnay sauce. Reservations accepted. Lunch, dinner and late-night daily. $$ The Blue Crab Restaurant and Oyster Bar — 118 Harbor View Court, Slidell, (985) 315-7001; 7900 Lakeshore Drive, (504) 284-2898; thebluecrabnola.com — Basin barbecue shrimp are served with rosemary garlic butter sauce over cheese grits with a cheese biscuit. The menu includes po-poys, fried seafood platters, raw and char-grilled oysters, boiled seafood in season, and more. Outdoor seating available. No reservations. Lakeview: Lunch and dinner Tue.-Sun. Slidell: Lunch Wed.-Fri., dinner Wed.-Sun., brunch Sat.-Sun. $$ Broussard’s — 819 Conti St., (504) 5813866; broussards.com — The menu of contemporary Creole dishes includes bronzed redfish with jumbo lump crabmeat, lemon beurre blanc and vegetables. Brunch includes Benedicts, avocado toast, chicken and waffles, turtle soup and more. Reservations recommended. Outdoor seating available in the courtyard. Dinner Wed.-Sat., brunch Sun. $$$ Cafe Normandie — Higgins Hotel, 480 Andrew Higgins Blvd., (504) 528-1941; higginshotelnola.com/dining — The menu combines classic French dishes and Louisiana items like crab beignets with herb aioli. Sandwiches include po-boys, a muffuletta on flatbread and a burger. No reservations. Breakfast and lunch Mon.-Sat., dinner Fri.-Mon. $$ The Commissary — 634 Orange St., (504) 274-1850; thecommissarynola.com — Dickie Brennan’s Commissary supplies his other restaurant kitchens and also has a dine-in menu and prepared foods to go. A smoked turkey sandwich is served with bacon, tomato jam, herbed cream cheese, arugula and herb vinaigrette on honey oat bread. The menu includes dips, salads, sandwiches, boudin balls, fried oysters and more. No reservations. Outdoor seating available. Lunch Tue.-Sat. $$ Curio — 301 Royal St., (504) 717-4198; curionola.com — The creative Creole menu includes blackened Gulf shrimp served with chicken and andouille jambalaya. There also are crab cakes, shrimp and grits, crawfish etouffee, po-boys and more. Outdoor
$ — average dinner entrée under $10 $$ — $11-$20 $$$ — $20-up seating available on balcony. Reservations accepted. Lunch and dinner daily. $$ Dahla — 611 O’Keefe Ave., (504) 766-6602; dahlarestaurant.com — The menu includes popular Thai dishes like pad thai, drunken noodles, curries and fried rice. Crispy skinned duck basil is prepared with vegetables and Thai basil. Delivery available. Reservations accepted. Lunch and dinner Mon.-Sat. $$ Desire Oyster Bar — Royal Sonesta New Orleans, 300 Bourbon St., (504) 586-0300; sonesta.com/desireoysterbar — A menu full of Gulf seafood includes oysters served raw on the half-shell or char-broiled with with Parmesan, garlic and herbs. The menu also includes po-boys, po-boys, gumbo, blackened fish, fried seafood platters and more. Reservations recommended. Breakfast, lunch and dinner daily. $$ Dickie Brennan’s Bourbon House — 144 Bourbon St., (504) 522-0111; bourbonhouse. com — There’s a seafood raw bar with raw and char-broiled oysters, fish dip, crab fingers, shrimp and more. Redfish on the Half-shell is cooked skin-on and served with crab-boiled potatoes, frisee and lemon buerre blanc. The bar offers a wide selection of bourbon and whiskies. Reservations accepted. Lunch and dinner daily. $$$ Dickie Brennan’s Steakhouse — 716 Iberville St., (504) 522-2467; dickiebrennanssteakhouse.com — The menu includes a variety of steaks, plus seared Gulf fish, lobster pasta, barbecue shrimp and more. A 6-ounce filet mignon is served with fried oysters, creamed spinach, potatoes and bearnaise. Reservations recommended. Dinner Mon.-Sat. $$$ El Pavo Real — 4401 S. Broad Ave., (504) 266-2022; elpavorealnola.com — The menu includes tacos, enchiladas, quesadillas, ceviche. tamales and more. Pescado Vera Cruz features sauteed Gulf fish topped with tomatoes, olives, onion and capers, served with rice and string beans. Outdoor seating available. No reservations. Lunch and early dinner Tue.-Sat. $$ Juan’s Flying Burrito — 515 Baronne St., (504) 529-5825; 2018 Magazine St., (504) 569-0000; 4724 S. Carrollton Ave., (504) 486-9950; 8140 Oak St., (504) 897-4800; juansflyingburrito.com — The Flying Burrito includes steak, shrimp, chicken, cheddar jack cheese, black beans, rice, guacamole and salsa. The menu also includes tacos, quesadillas, enchiladas, fajitas, nachos, salads, rice and bean bowls with various toppings and more. Outdoor seating available. No reservations. Lunch and dinner Thu.-Tue. $$ Katie’s Restaurant — 3701 Iberville St., (504) 488-6582; katiesinmidcity.com — The Cajun Cuban with roasted pork, ham, Swiss cheese, pickles and mustard. The eclectic menu also includes char-grilled oysters, sandwiches, burgers, pizza, fried seafood platters, pasta, salads and more. Delivery available. Reservations accepted for large parties. Lunch and dinner daily. $$ Kilroy’s Bar — Higgins Hotel, 480 Andrew Higgins Blvd., (504) 528-1941; higginshotelnola.com/dining — The all-day bar menu includes sandwiches, soups, salads, flatbreads and a couple entrees. A muffuletta flatbread is topped with salami, mortadella, capicola,
mozzarella and olive salad. No reservations. Lunch Fri.-Mon., dinner daily. $$ Legacy Kitchen’s Craft Tavern — 700 Tchoupitoulas St., (504) 613-2350; legacykitchen.com — The menu includes oysters, flatbreads, burgers, sandwiches, salads and sharable plates like NOLA Tot Debris. A slow-cooked pulled pork barbecue sandwich is served with coleslaw on a brioche bun. Reservations accepted. Breakfast, lunch and dinner daily. $$ Legacy Kitchen Steak & Chop — 91 Westbank Expressway, Gretna, (504) 513-2606; legacykitchen.com — The selection of steak and chops includes filet mignon, bone-in rib-eye, top sirloin and double pork chops and a la carte toppings include bernaise, blue cheese and sauteed crabmeat. There also are burgers, salads, pasta, seafood entrees, char-broiled oysters and more. Reservations accepted. Outdoor seating available. Lunch and dinner Mon.-Sat. $$ Mikimoto — 3301 S. Carrollton Ave., (504) 488-1881; mikimotosushi.com — The menu of Japanese cuisine includes sushi, signature rolls, tempura items, udon noodle dishes, teriyaki, salads and more.The South Carrollton roll includes tuna tataki, avocado, snow crab, green onion and wasabi roe. Reservations accepted. Delivery available. Lunch Sun.-Fri., dinner daily. $$ Mosca’s — 4137 Highway 90 West, Westwego, (504) 436-8950; moscasrestaurant.com — This family-style eatery serves Italian dishes and specialties including shrimp Mosca, baked oysters Mosca and spaghetti Bordelaise and chicken cacciatore. Chicken a la grands is sauteed with garlic, rosemary, Italian herbs and white wine. Reservations accepted. Dinner Wed.-Sat. Cash only. $$$ Mother’s Restaurant — 401 Poydras St., (504) 523-9656; mothersrestaurant. net — This counter-service spot serves po-boys dressed with sliced cabbage like the Famous Ferdi filled with ham, roast beef and debris. Creole favorites include jambalaya, crawfish etouffee, red beans and rice and more. Breakfast is available all day. Delivery available. No reservations. Breakfast, lunch and dinner daily. $$ Neyow’s Creole Cafe — 3332 Bienville St., (504) 827-5474; neyows.com — The menu includes red beans and rice with fried chicken or pork chops, as well as shrimp Creole, seafood platters, po-boys, chargrilled and raw oysters, salads and more. Side items include carrot souffle, mac and cheese, cornbread dressing, sweet potato tots and more. No reservations. Lunch daily, dinner Mon.-Sat., brunch Sun. $$ Nice Guys Bar & Grill — 7910 Earhart Blvd., (504) 302-2404; niceguysbarandgrillnola. com — Char-grilled oysters are topped with cheese and garlic butter, and other options include oysters Rockefeller and loaded oysters. The creative menu also includes seafood bread, a Cajun-lobster potato, wings, quesadillas, burgers, salads, sandwiches, seafood pasta, loaded fries and more. No reservations. Lunch daily, dinner Mon.-Sat. $$$ Orleans Grapevine Wine Bar & Bistro — 720 Orleans Ave., (504) 523-1930; orleansgrapevine.com — The wine bar offers cheese boards and appetizers to nosh with wines. The menu includes
Creole pasta with shrimp and andouille in tomato cream sauce. Reservations accepted for large parties. Outdoor seating available. Dinner Thu.-Sun. $$ Parish Grill — 4650 W. Esplanade Ave., Suite 100, Metairie, (504) 345-2878; parishgrill.com — The menu includes a variety of burgers, sandwiches, wraps, pizza and salads. For an appetizer, sauteed andouille is served with fig preserves, blue cheese and toast points. Reservations accepted. Lunch and dinner Mon.-Sat. $$ Peacock Room — Kimpton Hotel Fontenot, 501 Tchoupitoulas St., (504) 324-3073; peacockroomnola.com — At brunch, braised short rib grillades are served over grits with mushrooms, a poached egg and shaved truffle. The dinner menu has oysters, salads, pasta, shrimp and grits, a burger, cheese plates and more. Reservations accepted. Dinner Wed.-Mon., brunch Sun. $$ Rosie’s on the Roof — Higgins Hotel, 480 Andrew Higgins Blvd., (504) 5281941; higginshotelnola.com/dining — The rooftop bar has a menu of sandwiches, burgers and small plates. Crab beignets are made with Gulf crabmeat and mascarpone and served with herb aioli. No reservations. Dinner Mon.-Sat. $$ Tableau — 616 St. Peter St., (504) 934-3463; tableaufrenchquarter.com — The menu features traditional and creative Creole dishes. Pasta bouillabaisse features squid ink mafaldine, littleneck clams, Gulf shrimp, squid, seafood broth, rouille and herbed breadcrumbs. Outdoor seating available on the balcony. Reservations recommended. Dinner Wed.-Sun., brunch Thu.-Sun. $$$ Tacklebox — 817 Common St., (504) 827-1651; legacykitchen.com — The menu includes raw and char-broiled oysters, seafood platters, po-boys, fried chicken, crab and corn bisque and more. Redfish St. Charles is served with garlic-herb butter, asparagus, mushrooms and crawfish cornbread. Reservations accepted. Breakfast, lunch and dinner daily. $$ Theo’s Neighborhood Pizza — 1212 S. Clearview Parkway, Elmwood, (504) 733-3803; 2125 Veterans Memorial Blvd., Metairie, (504) 510-4282; 4024 Canal St., (504) 302-1133; 4218 Magazine St., (504) 894-8554; 70488 Highway 21, Covington, (985) 234-9420; theospizza. com — A Marilynn Pota Supreme pie is topped with mozzarella, pepperoni, sausage, hamburger, mushrooms, bell peppers and onions. There also are salads, sandwiches, wings, breadsticks and more. Delivery available. Lunch and dinner daily. $ The Vintage — 3121 Magazine St., (504) 324-7144; thevintagenola.com — There’s a full coffee drinks menu and baked goods and beignets, as well as a full bar. The menu has flatbreads, cheese boards, small plates and a pressed veggie sandwich with avocado, onions, arugula, red pepper and pepper jack cheese. No reservations. Delivery and outdoor seating available. Breakfast, lunch and dinner daily. $$
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The Funky Uptown Krewe makes a stop halfway down St. Charles, and it circles Harmony Circle and returns to Fat Harry’s. Visit funkyuptownkrewe.com for information.
Phunny Phorty Phellows
The Phunny Phorty Phellows celebrate the beginning of Carnival season with their ride on the streetcar. Costumed krewe members and the Storyville Stompers brass band board their car at the Willow Street Car Barn, head to Canal Street and loop back. The krewe opens with a toast at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 6. Visit phunnyphortyphellows.com for details.
Eric ‘Benny’ Bloom Quintet
Lettuce trumpeter Eric “Benny” Bloom leads a jam session with drummer Jamison Ross, bassist Peter Harris, tenor saxophonist Ricardo Pascal and pianist Seth Finch. At 8 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 10, at Chickie Wah Wah. Tickets are $26.96 via chickiewahwah.com.
Krampus Ball
The Krewe of Krampus brought its holiday parade to Marigny in recent years and added a Halloween event. Now it’s inaugurating the Krampus Ball to celebrate the passing of the old year and beginning of the new one. There’s a Transfer of the Light ceremony, as well as interactive lights, a DJ, art installations and more. At 7 p.m. Monday, Jan. 5, at New Marigny Theater. Admission is $25 in advance via newmarignytheatre.com or $30 at the door. For information about the krewe, visit kreweofkrampus.com.
‘Disaster! The Musical’
The Barracuda, a floating casino in New York City, welcomes passengers for its maiden voyage and chaos ensues. The comedic jukebox musical is a raucous tribute to 1970s disaster movies and hits of the era, and the boat endures earthquakes and other catastrophes. The show features Donna Summers’ “Hot Stuff,” Eddie Money’s “Baby Hold On,” Gloria Gaynor’s “I Will Survive” and Blue Swede’s “Hooked on a Feeling.” Rivertown Theaters for the Performing Arts presents the show at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Jan. 9, and Saturday, Jan. 10, and 2 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 11, and continuing Jan. 16-25. Tickets $52.19$56.58 via rivertowntheaters.com.
ScatterJEN
New Orleans improvised music group Scatterjazz is taking advantage of the Jazz Education Network
(JEN) conference being in town with a three-night run of shows at the Broadside blending local musicians with a few exceptional visiting artists. On Wednesday, Jan. 7, saxophonist Jeff Coffin, who has played with Dave Matthews and Bela Fleck, will perform in a few configurations with Helen Gillet, Johnny Vidacovich, Tony Dagradi and James Singleton. There are three sets of music on Thursday, Jan. 8, with features by guitarist Jon Bagnato, reeds players Brad Linde and Byron Asher, percussionist Pedro Segundo and more. And Friday, Jan. 9, will see more performances by Steve Masakowski with Phil Degruy, guitarist Dave Stryker, saxophonist Julian Lee, bassist Amina Scott, keys player Monkia Herzig and more. Tickets for Jan. 7 are $27.45, and tickets for Jan. 8-9 are $16.93 per night via broadsidenola.com.
CHILL. POUR. REPEAT.
Tank and the Bangas on a Porch
New Orleans band Tank and the Bangas in 2025 won their first Grammy Award for their album “The Heart, The Mind, The Soul,” which leaned into vocalist Tarriona “Tank” Ball’s poetry and spoken word work. The band is now kicking off 2026 with a two-evening Poetry On a Porch series that will include music, poetry and some surprises, the band says. They perform at 5:30 and 7:30 p.m. Fridays, Jan. 9 and Jan. 16. The location will be given to attendees on the day of the show. Tickets are $38.09 via eventbrite.com.
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Doug Benson
Comedian Doug Benson is known for his love of movies, the basis for his show “Doug Loves Movies,” and weed, the inspiration for his online talk show “Getting Doug With High.” He was a frequent guest on the comedian-loaded game show “@midnight,” and appeared often on shows by fellow comedians, including Sarah Silverman. Jim Gaffigan and Anthony Jeselnik. He’s in New Orleans for shows at 7 and 9 p.m. Friday, Jan. 9, and Saturday, Jan. 10, at Sports Drink. Tickets $29 via sportsdrink.org.
Burns Night
The NOLA Project hosts a Burns Night party, celebrating Scottish poet Robert “Rabbie” Burns. The evening features music, storytelling, sing-alongs, snacks and more and is a benefit for the theater company. At 6-9 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 10, at Jacob Schoen & Son (3827 Canal St.). Suggested donation $22. Find information at nolaproject.com.
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MONDAY 5 30/90 — The Dapper Dandies, 6 pm; Half Shell Boogie, 9 pm ALLWAYS LOUNGE — Betsy Propane & The Accessories, 7 pm BACCHANAL — Byron Asher, 6 pm BJ’S LOUNGE — Red Beans and Blues ft. Smokehouse Brown, 9 pm BUFFA’S — David Doucet, 7 pm CAFÉ NEGRIL — Vibe Tribe, 7:30 pm DBA — Secret Six Jazz Band, 6 pm; The Jump Hounds, 9 pm DOS JEFES — John Fohl, 8:30 pm HOLY DIVER — International & Irrational with DJ Chrischarge, 10 pm MAHOGANY JAZZ HALL — Jenna McSwain, 6 pm; Original Tuxedo Jazz Band, 8 pm MAYFIELD’S 208 BOURBON — Kermit Ruffins ft. Irvin Mayfield: Red Bean Mondays, 6 pm SANTOS BAR — Karaoke a Go Go with Alesondra, 10 pm SATURN BAR — BC Coogan, 8:30 pm SIBERIA — Zashed with Rakuyo, Days of Grief, and Dremm, 9 pm SNUG HARBOR — Charmaine Neville Band, 7:30 pm; 9:30 pm SPOTTED CAT — Jenavieve Cooke & the Winding Boys, 2 pm; Dominick Grillo & The Frenchmen Street All Stars, 6 pm; Amber Rachelle & The Sweet Potatoes, 9 pm
SATURN BAR — 12th Night with Charlie & the Tropicales and James McClaskey, 9 pm SNUG HARBOR — Dave Stryker, 7:30 & 9:30 pm SPOTTED CAT — Chris Christy Band, 2 pm; Sweetie Pies of New Orleans, 6 pm; Smoking Time Jazz Club, 9:30 pm
ROCK 'N' BOWL — Chubby Carrier & Bayou Swamp Band, 8 pm SANTOS BAR — The Dark Disco, 10 pm SNUG HARBOR — Charlie and The Tropicales, 5 pm; Delfeayo Marsalis & The Uptown Jazz Orchestra, 7:30 pm
TUESDAY 6
WEDNESDAY 7
30/90 — Uncut, 6 pm; Xcitement, 9 pm ALLWAYS LOUNGE — Van Ella Bordella, 7 pm BACCHANAL — Raphael Bas, 6 pm BLUE NILE — Irvin Mayfield’s Music Church with Special Guests, 9 pm; 11 pm BUFFA’S — Tom McDermott & Aurora Nealand, 7 pm CAFE NEGRIL — Jason Neville Funky Soul Band, 6 pm; Armani Smith and Soul Ties, 10 pm CHICKIE WAH WAH — Jim Lauderdale and The Game Changers, 8 pm DBA — Vegas Cola, 10 pm DOS JEFES — The Mark Coleman Band, 8:30 pm JAZZ PLAYHOUSE — Brass-aHolics, 7:30 pm LE BON TEMPS ROULÉ — The Soul Rebels, 11 pm
30/90 — Danger, Barnes and Wilson, 6 pm; Neicy B & Kompani, 9 pm ALLWAYS LOUNGE — Freaklesque, 10 pm BACCHANAL — Tangiers Combo, 6 pm BJ'S LOUNGE BYWATER — Twelfth Night Celebrations with Itchy Stiches & Neil Shaw, 9 pm BUFFA’S — Alex McMurray, 7 pm CAFÉ NEGRIL — Super-MostFantastic-Blues-N-Such-Jam, 7 & 10 pm DOS JEFES — Tom Hook, 8:30 pm HOLY DIVER — The Amazing Henrietta, 8 pm JAZZ PLAYHOUSE — Amber Rachelle & the Sweet Potatoes, 8 pm MAYFIELD’S 208 BOURBON — Irvin Mayfield ft. Kermit Ruffins, 6 pm
30/90 — Belle & Her Twisted Katz, 6 pm; Kim in the Wind, 9 pm BACCHANAL — Jesse Morrow, 6 pm BROADSIDE — Jeff Coffin with Johnny Vidacovich, Helen Gillet, Tony Dagradi & More!, 8 pm BUFFA’S — Marty Christian, 7 pm CAFÉ NEGRIL — Jam-ilton, 8 pm; 10 pm CHICKIE WAH WAH — Jon Cleary, 8 pm DOS JEFES — Joe Krown, 8:30 pm HOLY DIVER — Diver-Aoke with KJ EJ, 10 pm HOTEL PETER & PAUL — Candlelight: From Bach to The Beatles, 6:30 pm JAZZ PLAYHOUSE — Big Sam’s Funky Nation, 7:30 pm MAYFIELD’S 208 BOURBON — Irvin Mayfield ft. Kermit Ruffins, 6 pm
THURSDAY 8
Charlie and The Tropicales perform at Snug Harbor Wed. Jan 7 at 5 p.m. PROVIDED PHOTO
MAHOGANY JAZZ HALL — Jamil Sharif and his New Orleans Extravaganza, 8 pm MAISON DUPUY — Audrey LeCrone & The CrawZaddies, 8 pm MAPLE LEAF BAR — Johnny Vidacovich Trio with Amina Scott and Ashlin Parker, 8 pm POOR BOYS — The Magic Mic, 8:30 pm SANTOS BAR — Tainted Love 80’s Night, 10 pm SATURN BAR — Donny’s Demeanor, Shidded, Pig Lizzard, 9 pm SNUG HARBOR — Rick Margitza New Orleans All-Stars, 7:30 & 9:30 pm
FRIDAY 9 30/90 — Carrie Jennings, 2 pm; Lil Red & Big Bad, 5 pm; The New Orleans Johnnys, 8 pm; Street Lyfe, 11 pm ALLWAYS LOUNGE — Bayou Blues Burlesque, 8 pm BACCHANAL — David Sigler, 1 pm; Willie Green, 7 pm BAMBOULA’S — The Rug Cutters, 11 am; Felipe Antonio Quintet, 2 pm; Les Getrex PAGE 24
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& Creole Cooking, 6:30 pm; Bettis & 3rd Degree Brass Band, 10 pm BJ'S LOUNGE BYWATER — Sarah Quintana + Charlie Halloran & the Tropicales, 9 pm BLUE NILE — Kermit Ruffins and the BBQ Swingers, 10 pm BLUE NILE — Kermit Ruffins & The BBQ Swingers, 10 pm THE BROADSIDE — Scatterjazz X Jazz Ed. Ntwrk #2, 7 pm BUFFA’S — Alma Russ, 8 pm CAFE NEGRIL — Bubbles Brown, 2 pm; Jamey St Pierre and the THC, 6 pm; Higher Heights Reggae, 9 pm CHICKIE WAH WAH — Donnas Bar & Grill Residency: Gerald French & Soul Power, 8 pm DBA — Dana Abbott, 6 pm; New Breed Brass Band, 10 pm DOS JEFES —The Spalding Brothers Trio, 9 pm GASA GASA — The Gentlemen Commoners, 8 pm HOUSE OF BLUES — Strangelove: The Depeche Mode Experience, 9 pm THE JAZZ PLAYHOUSE — Trixie Minx’s Burlesque Ballroom at The Jazz Playhouse, feat. Romy Kaye, 7:30 & 9 pm LE BON TEMPS ROULÉ — Organami, 11 pm MAPLE LEAF BAR — Slugger, 9 pm MARIGNY OPERA HOUSE — PB&J: Music Therapy, 7:30 pm NOLA BREWING & PIZZA CO — Bogue Chitto, 7 pm RABBIT HOLE — Black Out Days, 10 pm REPUBLIC NOLA — WeTouchGrass: Anime Rave, 9 pm SIBERIA — Twilight Live Score with Fatplastik, walmart2, Cornhusk Doll & More!, 9 pm SATURN BAR — Hans Williams and Olivia Barnes, 9 pm SNUG HARBOR — Ingrid & Christine Jensen with Ashlin Parker, 7:30 & 9:30 pm THREE MARIES JAZZ CLUB, OMNI HOTEL — Or Shovaly Plus, 9 pm
SATURDAY 10 30/90 — One Track Mind, 2 pm; Sean Hobbes & The High Res, 5 pm; Hotline, 8 pm; Under The Covers, 11 pm ALLWAYS LOUNGE — Ficheraz, 8 pm BACCHANAL — Miles Berry, 1 pm; Pete Olynciw, 7 pm BJ'S LOUNGE BYWATER — Prends Courage, 9 pm
BUFFA’S — Mason Howard Quartet, 8 pm CAFE NEGRIL — Bon Bon Vivant, 6 pm; Zena Moses & Rue Fiya Allstars, 10 pm CHICKIE WAH WAH — Eric “Benny” Bloom ft. Jamison Ross, Peter Harris, Ricardo Pascal, and Seth Finch, 8 pm DBA — Tuba Skinny, 6 pm DOS JEFES — Wolfe Johns Blues Band, 10 pm THE FILLMORE — 610 Stompers Debutante Ball ft. Johnny Sketch & The Dirty Notes, 7 pm GASA GASA — Krewe of Rolling Elvi Present: The Prom, 8 pm HOUSE OF BLUES — COLORS Present: R&B Only, 9 pm THE HOWLIN’ WOLF — Josephine Alphonso and the Peachy Fiends w/ Miss Morning & Jupiter Flood, 6 pm MAPLE LEAF BAR — River Eckert, 8 pm NOLA BREWING & PIZZA CO — T Marie and Bayou Juju, 7 pm ROCK 'N' BOWL — Yeah You Right plus BIRD, 8:30 pm SATURN BAR — Mod Dance Party, 10 pm SNUG HARBOR — Sariyah Idan, 4:30 pm
SUNDAY 11 30/90 — Jeff Chaz Blues Band, 3 pm; The Andre Lovett Band, 6 pm; Manic Mixtape, 9 pm ALLWAYS LOUNGE — Sunday Swing with Secret Six, 8 pm BACCHANAL — Nahem Zdybel, 1 pm; Noah Young, 7 pm BUFFA’S — Karin Danger, 7 pm CAFE NEGRIL — Mike De La Cerda WildBlues, 1 pm; John Lisi & The Delta Funk, 5 pm DBA — The Jump Hounds, 9:30 pm DOS JEFES — Mikayla Braun, 8 pm HOWLIN’ WOLF — Hot 8 Brass Band, 10:30 pm SATURN BAR — Malevitus and Greg Schatz & the Friggin’ Geniuses, 7 pm THE TIGERMEN DEN — Cajun Brunch and Dance, 11 am TIPITINA’S — Fais Do-Do With Bruce Daigrepont Cajun Band, 1 pm; Bonerama Album Release Show, 9 pm SCAN FOR THE COMPLETE GAMBIT CALENDAR
25
MUSIC
G A M B I T > B E S T O F N E W O R L E A N S . C O M > J A N U A RY 5 - 1 1 > 2 0 2 6
Buf’lo rider by Jake Clapp
ABOUT A DECADE AGO, PIG LIZZARD landed in
a battle of the bands in Baton Rouge. It was already kind of a surprise the psychedelic grunge band had made it into the competition at The Varsity Theatre. Pig Lizzard wasn’t known at all outside of the circles who kept an eye on the indie rock and punk bands playing around small bars in the Capital City — and even then, you probably had to stumble upon the strange, chaotic group. A vote on social media put Pig Lizzard as the battle of the bands’ dark horse — but the band blew apart the Varsity during the first round. It was an explosive set of experimental rock, punk and grunge that blissfully ran on the edge of falling apart at any second. Pig Lizzard led the pack and sailed into round two. A few nights later, though, things actually did fall apart. The group had been so shocked at how well they’d done the first night that they got nervous and started drinking ahead of the second round. The show imploded on stage — and not even spectacularly. “I called my mom the next day,” says Will Glass, the band’s guitarist and vocalist. “I was like, ‘Mom, I think Ashley (Glass’ then-girlfriend) is gonna break up with me.’ The show was so bad.” The two didn’t break up. They in fact got married and are now living in New Orleans, Glass’ hometown. Pig Lizzard also has continued, and last year released a new album, “Buf’lo.” And the band — now a five-piece with Glass; drummer Tom Periou; bassist Andrew Silvera; guitarist Cody Young; and Patrick Madore on a custom-built guitar-like instrument — next performs live at 9 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 8, at Saturn Bar with Donny’s Demeanor and Shidded. Pig Lizzard is full of contradictions. The band can unexpectedly play its best show but then fall apart on stage a few nights later. There’s a constant air of detached irony but a deep sincerity in wanting to make meaningful art. What starts as a silly, plucked riff morphs into a raging barnburner. It makes for a band that can be unpredictable but always interesting. “It’s easy to poke fun at basically everything we do, but like — there’s meaning in play,” Glass says. “There’s a pigheadedness in all of us, an ego.
6 2 0 2
The Buf’lo and Pig Lizzard PROVIDED PHOTO BY COLIN RHODE
There’s a lizard instinct. The tension between them is life, and it can pull really negative emotions out of us if you don’t put it to use.” While the current Pig Lizzard lineup came together in 2010, “Buf’lo,” is their first album fully recorded together. Glass, Periou and their friend and classmate Joey Lacour started the band while at Jesuit High School. The trio wrote a few songs and practiced a lot the summer after senior year and dove into playing shows once they started college at LSU in 2008. A debut album soon followed. Lacour left the band while Pig Lizzard was recording another record, and after a break, Young and Madore joined the band to finish the album. After college, Periou left home for work and Pig Lizzard went on a long break, during which Glass released his own acoustic music. But in 2019, Periou returned to New Orleans, and Pig Lizzard reformed. For Glass, “Buf’lo” was written amid a formative time period. Glass and his wife were beginning plans to start a family when in 2020 they traumatically lost their beloved mini-pig named Hank — who had found a loyal social media following during his short time. Many of the songs on “Buf’lo” are written as small scenes and dialogue and probe a range of ideas, from anxiety to the concept of Brahman consciousness. “It was this transition from a character rebuilding [after] trauma into becoming a parent,” Glass says. “What is the world looking like that my child is about to enter? And what’s my responsibility? Because I decided more than this kid did that he was going to enter the world, so maybe we need to prep it and make it smoother for them.” Tickets for the Saturn Bar show are $12.47 via dice.fm. Find Pig Lizzard at piglizzard.com.
SCHOOL REGISTRATION Advertise and we’ll include your
OPEN HO
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IVATE TO UR
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2601 GentDILLARD UNIV illy Blvd ERSITY , New (504) 283- Orleans, LA 70122 dillard.ed8822 For more u informati on visit Dillard.ed u
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GOING OUT
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® Volume 46 Number 4
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Together in spirit by Will Coviello
IN “BLITHE SPIRIT,” CHARLES CONDOMINE HIRES A MEDIUM to come
to a dinner party and lead a seance afterward. While he expects it’ll be good entertainment for his wife and their guests, he also has a more practical purpose. He’s a writer looking for some material for a novel. At first glance, Madame Arcati may not look like the most skilled clairvoyant, but she is a character. Setting her up just to laugh behind her back also tempts fate, and everyone gets more than they bargained for. “Blithe Spirit” opens the year at Le Petit Theatre, and Ricky Graham both directs and stars as Madame Arcati. In the popular British farce, Madame Arcati stirs some unsettled spirits. Charles’ first wife, Elvira, died young, and she doesn’t subscribe to the notion of death ending a marriage. When her ghost returns to her former home, she’s not happy to see his new wife, Ruth, and she longs to reunite with her husband. At first, only Charles can see Elvira, and Ruth is irked by strange happenings. But Elvira is not there just to haunt the place. “It’s really kind of dark that the ghost of his dead wife is trying to kill him so that they can be together in the hereafter,” Graham says. Of course, Elvira’s scheme doesn’t go as planned, and Charles finds himself with two angry wives. The medium struggles to control any of the chaos she’s unleashed. “Blithe Spirit” is one of the most popular works of the prolific English playwright Noel Coward. The show debuted in London in 1941 and soon opened in New York. A few years later, a movie version starring Rex Harrison was released and then in the 1960s, the play was reworked into the musical “High Spirits.” It’s been revived many times in both London and New York. A 2008 reprise saw Angela Lansbury star as Madame Arcati and Christine Ebersole play Elvira. Graham loved that production, but he’s always been a fan of the play.
Ricky Graham, right, directs and stars in ‘Blithe Spirit.’ PHOTO PROVIDED BY LE PETIT THEATRE
“I knew it first as a musical, because when I was a kid at NORD Theater in the ’60s, they did all musicals,” he says. “I got the record album and fell in love with it and then sought out the original play. I fell in love with all of Coward’s plays.” Coward produced pro-British propaganda films during World War II, Graham notes, and on the lighter side, he wrote frothy comedies to entertain people during hard times. Other popular works include “Hay Fever,” “Private Lives” and “Present Laughter.” For “Blithe Spirit,” Graham is sticking to the script and the original time period. The set at Le Petit is a luxe British manor, as one might have looked in the late 1930s. Graham playing Madame Arcati was not the original plan. But when the lead actress had to drop out of the production five days before rehearsal started, he ended up stepping into the role, channeling British-Australian actress Miriam Margolyes’ turn as the medium. The cast includes Vatican Lokey as Charles, Ashley Santos as Ruth and Jessie Terrebonne as the returning first wife Elvira. “Blithe Spirit” runs Jan. 8-25 at Le Petit Theatre. Tickets $42-$92, preview night $22-$37, and student tickets $22 via lepetittheatre.com.
Looking forward to new beginnings and hopeful that this year will bring us Peace, Prosperity and Love! TOP PRODUCER
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PREMIER CROSSWORD PUZZLE TRUANTS UNITED By Frank A. Longo
32 “Gemini Man” director Lee 33 Musk of Tesla 34 Similar to 37 -- scale of hardness 39 Haughty sort 41 Jennifer of “Friends” 43 Riddle, part 2 48 “That’s too hard for me” 49 With 50-Across, soap-infused scrubber 50 See 49-Across 51 Highest point 52 Loch -- Monster 53 Constricting snake 55 -- & Chandon (champagne brand)
57 Opposite of neg. 59 Bodily digit 60 Riddle, part 3 67 “Ben- --” (1959 movie) 68 King, in Paris 69 “-- came to pass ...” 70 Rally cheer 71 A, in French 72 Riddle, part 4 76 Conditions 77 Aves. 78 Unaffiliated pols: Abbr. 79 “TGIF” part 80 Clark’s gal in “Superman” 81 This, in Mexico 84 Uno and due
Keller Williams Realty New Orleans (504) 862-0100 8601 Leake Avenue New Orleans, LA 70118 Each Office Is Independently Owned and Operated. Broked & Agent are licensed in the state of Louisiana
85 Green prefix? 87 Unit of work 88 End of the riddle 95 Place to buy a leash 96 Web, to a fly 97 “Drat!” 98 Tchr.’s union 99 Deeds 101 High-speed net provider 102 Syrup base 103 Wood-shaping tool 106 Riddle’s answer 112 Circus clown’s prop 114 Like dolls with joints that move 115 Wayward 116 Short break 117 Warlike deity 118 Manning of football 119 Composition of quartz 120 Knight’s attire 121 Passing votes 122 -- Diego 123 Teahouse biscuits DOWN 1 Kitties’ calls 2 Hilo “Hello!” 3 Angry with 4 Jazz vibist Jackson 5 Once more 6 African country 7 Biathlon weapon 8 “Drat!” 9 California city that translates to “The Baths” 10 Extremely eager 11 Big jump 12 Gift getter 13 Covered, as with a coating 14 Neighbor of Turkey 15 Secular 16 Thrilled 17 No longer active, as a sgt. 18 Give it a go 25 Choir part 28 Pre-’91 superpower 29 Cool guy on “Happy Days,” with “the” 35 Weaving frame 36 Hathaway of Hollywood
74 Knights, e.g. 37 Part of YMCA 75 Forerunner of the cello 38 Frequently, to poets 80 Loads 39 -- -cone 40 Stuck on with a certain 81 “NBA Today” network 82 -- -Ball adhesive 83 Golf club metal 42 Hide away 43 Common jazz chords 84 Contactless, as a debit card 44 Get the better of, 85 Sites of many piercings slangily 86 The Browns, 45 Capital of 6-Down on scoreboards 46 “Pronto!” 87 Sky streaker 47 Post-WWII alliance 89 Jibber-jabber 53 Godsends 90 Sets of points on 54 Fail to include graphs 55 Early IBM PC standard 91 Eternal 56 Eye, in Versailles 92 Malia Obama’s sis 57 Exams for jrs. 93 Cafeteria food holder 58 Eight, in Mexico 94 Unlucky 60 Reputation, on the 100 Saw logs street 102 Ball of yarn 61 Uncooked meat’s 103 Once more quality 104 Chucklehead 62 With a sharp image, 105 Letters after epsilons briefly 107 Additionally 63 Worry 108 Totally lost 64 Enthusiastic 109 Spanish pot French assent 65 Having been recorded, 110 Comical Idle 111 Guthrie of folk as a video 112 Mani offerer 66 Renter 113 Pothole filler 73 Bits of rain
ANSWERS LAST ISSUE’S PUZZLE: P2 ANSWERS FOR TO LAST WEEK’S PUZZLE ON P2
PUZZLES
ACROSS 1 Whale, bear or human 7 Clergyman’s field: Abbr. 10 Ray of Hollywood 14 Vigilant 19 May of Hollywood 20 “Where did -- wrong?” 21 10th-century pope 22 Speeding driver 23 Loads 24 Speeding driver’s place 26 Teary-eyed 27 Start of a riddle 30 Used a sofa 31 Philosopher Lao- --
Happy New Year from the
G A M B I T > B E S T O F N E W O R L E A N S . C O M > J A N U A RY 5 - 1 1 > 2 0 2 6
2026 Happy New Year!
27
Lot 517: Jim Blanchard (American/Louisiana, b. 1955), “Elmwood Plantation House, River Road, Jefferson Parish,” 1992, watercolor on paper, Estimates: $1,000-$2,000
IMPORTANT WINTER ESTATES AUCTIONS: SESSIONS I & II Lot 626: Pair of Blackamoor Floor Lamps, 20th c., the opposing figures with naturalistic torchiere, Estimates: $1,000-$2,000
Thursday, January 15, 2026 at 10am, Lots 1-375 Friday, January 16, 2026 at 10am, Lots 376-750
Lot 544: The Beatles Autographed Crescent Electric Guitar and Memorabilia, the guitar laser signed, Estimates: $2,000-$4,000
Featuring property from the Estate of Joe Jaeger Jr., Louisiana; Estate of Murphy A. Bourke, Louisiana; and other notable local and regional estates.
Lot 631: Earthshaker! Pinball Machine, by Williams, c. 1989, artwork done by Tim Elliot, designed by Pat Lawlor, Estimates: $1,000-$2,000
Lot 539 : Fifty-Eight Piece Set of Sterling Flatware, Retailed by Marshall Fields, London, 1953, in the “Onslow” pattern, Estimates: $3,000-$5,000
Lot 654: Charles Camoin (French, 1879-1965), “Petits Maisons,” oil on canvas, Estimates: $4,000-$8,000
Lot 432: Mardi Gras Parade Bulletin, Mistick Krewe of Comus, 1909, “Flights of Fancy,” chromolithograph on paper, lithographed by Walle & Co., Estimates: $800-$1,200
Lot 625: Pre-Columbian Tairona Tumbaga Gold Figural Pendant, Estimates: $2,000-$4,000
Lot 632: Rock-Ola CD Jukebox, early 21st c., Estimates: $2,000-$4,000
Lot 645: Dale Chihuly Style Murano Blown Art Glass Chandelier, 20th c., Estimates: $1,000-$2,000
Lot 630: Life Size Shell Oil Filling Station Diorama, by McLaren Classic Restorations, late-1920s-30s style, Estimates: $5,000-$10,000
Lot 528: George Bauer Dunbar (American/Louisiana, 19272024), “Mangrove,” 1984, acrylic on canvas, Estimates: $2,000-$4,000
Lot 511: Alexander John Drysdale (American/Louisiana, 1870-1934), “Bayou Scene with Boat,” 1911, oil on artist board, Estimates: $2,000-$4,000
Lots 672, 487, 481, 683: Selection of Fine Jewelry, including diamonds, emeralds, rubies, amethyst, sapphires, gold, white gold, and jade
Lot 639: Impressive Fighting Eagle Bronze Fountain, in the form of two eagles in flight sparing over fish, Estimates: $3,000-$6,000
Full color catalog available at:
Lot 553: Mardi Gras Ball Invitation, Rex, 1890, in the form of a fan, for the February 18, 1890, ball at Washington Artillery Hall, from the theme “Rulers of Ancient Times,” Estimates: $700-$1,200
Lot 523: Don Wright (American/Louisiana, 1938-2007), “Swamp Scene with Cottage and Mailbox,” 1975, oil on canvas, Estimates: $500-$900
www.crescentcityauctiongallery.com WATCH AND BID LIVE ONLINE FROM THE COMFORT OF YOUR HOME!
Lot 546: Mardi Gras Queen’s Crown and Accoutrement, Rex, 1915, consisting of the crown, scepter, brooch, cuff, and modified necklace/tiara, mounted with numerous rhinestones, worn by the Queen of Carnival for the Tuesday, February 16, 1915, ball at the Athenaeum, from the theme “Fragments from Song and Story,” Estimates: $6,000-$12,000
Crescent City Auction Gallery, LLC
Lot 602: Leo Gausson (French, 1860-1944), “Field with Haystacks by Moonlight,” oil on canvas, Estimates: $1,000-$2,000
1330 St. Charles Ave., New Orleans, La 70130 504-529-5057 • fax 504-529-6057 info@crescentcityauctiongallery.com 25% Buyers Premium For a complete catalog, visit our website at: www.crescentcityauctiongallery.com Lot 634: Massive Brunswick Style Mahogany Fourteen LA Auc Lic AB-411, 1354, 1529 Foot Bar, 20th c., Estimates: $10,000-$20,000
Lot 472: Spanish Colonial School (17th/18th Century), “Flagellation of Christ,” oil on canvas, Estimates: $600-$1,200
Lot 414: Large French Provincial Louis XVStyle Cherry Enfilade, mid 19th c., Estimates: $1,200-$1,800