Suppose you started a new job in February of a certain year. When then should you celebrate your first anniversary? A reasonable answer would be February a year later. That is, unless you use Carnival time. In that case…
NEW ORLEANS (press release) - Known for house-made pastas and seasonal specials, Josephine Estelle is located right off the parade route. The kitchen is open all day (starting at 7 a.m.), which makes it perfect for parade goers to stop…
We are most assuredly in the Season of the King Cake. They are seemingly everywhere. Throughout Carnival Season, both Cochon Butcher (930 Tchoupitoulas St., 588.7675, cochonbutcher.com) and La Boulangerie (4600 Magazine St, 269.3777, laboulangerienola.com) will offer King Cakes ranging…
NEW ORLEANS (press release) – Organizers of Bacchus Bash 2020, the epic, day-long party that precedes the renowned Bacchus parade, announced today the entertainment lineup for this year’s Mardi Gras extravaganza. The free, annual 14-hour block party kicks off at…
There was a time when there was no debate about King Cake. There was, for the most part, only one brand, McKenzie's, and only one flavor, Mckenzie’s- style – which had a slight cinnamon coffeeroll taste. The purple green…
Ed. Note: This has become an annual obsession with me. Several years ago, I was involved in a project in which we discovered the true origins of Carnival’s colors; purple, green and gold. It was not justice, power and…
What is about to unfold here over the next seven weeks is mind-boggling, except that we’ve done it before many times. Every year is better, more elaborate, grander and in some cases unstoppable, until the following year. The Carnival Season…
NEW ORLEANS (press release) –Geoffrey Meeker, owner of French Truck Coffee headquartered in New Orleans, announced the release of the Mardi Gras blend for the 2020 carnival season. Big Chief, a unique blend of naturally processed coffees from El Salvador,…
You know you’re getting old when you get excited about a new calendar, but here I am. I got a brightly colored calendar for 2020 that features hand-drawn pictures of food with hand-lettered recipes (this month is borscht!), and…
Carnival Historian and New Orleans Magazine editor Errol Laborde shows WWLTV's Eye On Carnival what is in store as the city anticipates Carnival season 2020.
So, today we experience a community funk because of what happened in the Superdome yesterday. Fate is good to us, however, because our big disappointment happens to be followed the next day by Twelfth Night and the beginning of…
NEW ORLEANS (press release) – On Jan. 6, King’s Day, Executive Pastry Chef Maggie Scales of the Link Restaurant Group will offer several flavors and sizes of King Cakes at both Cochon Butcher and La Boulangerie on Magazine Street. Chef…
Twelfth Night is celebrated annually on Jan. 5. It is the last day of the Twelve Days of Christmas and is the traditional end of the Christmas season. It is also known as Epiphany Eve as it is followed…
As we move from the holiday season to Carnival season, there are a lot of great things to do around town. As usual, the Radiators will be at Tipitina’s for their annual winter anniversary reunion. This year the shows run…
While New Orleans is the most well-known place in Louisiana to celebrate Mardi Gras, Louisianians know there are lively parades and events for weeks all over the state. From Shreveport to Eunice and everywhere in between, here's your guide to…
By the time the 2020 Carnival season reaches its climax on Mardi Gras, Feb. 25, numerous Louisiana cities and towns will have wrapped up their perennial schedules of pre-Lenten parades, balls and other festivities. In one community, however, all proverbial…
Chef Nathan Richard of DTB (dtbnola.com) was crowned the 2019 King of American Seafood for his luscious crawfish and goat cheese king cake with cream cheese pepper jelly and Cajun caviar. “I’m serving it at DTB with optional caviar during…
Hardly anyone knows it, but this year the Cajun Courir De Mardi Gras approaches the 70th anniversary of its revival. Had it not been for a few men wanting to rescue a lost ritual there would be no customs to…
NEW ORLEANS (press release) – Following the sold-out success of 2019, Bywater Bakery announces the return of its annual King’s Day Block Party on Monday, Jan. 6, 2020. Officially kicking off Carnival Season, which culminates Feb. 25 at Midnight on…
NEW ORLEANS (press release) – Since Willa Jean opened nearly five years ago, the staple New Orleans restaurant has been serving their version of King Cake with great fanfare. Back by popular demand, Kelly Fields is once again serving her…
There were two revealing news stories about Carnival coming out of Jefferson Parish last week. One came from a report in The Times-Picayune based on a public records request. The report gave results of the Mike Yenni administration’s review…
Last week, the Krewe of Nyx announced that it would break Carnival tradition by staging a summer version of its parade to be held in July in addition to its regular Carnival season march. This was supposed to be…
Random Thoughts About Carnival 2019
I once worked in an office where on the day after Mardi Gras I noticed the two girls at the front desk each had ashen crosses on their forehead. At first I thought it was touching that they had gone…
What a year!
When a wet Mardi Gras is a metaphor for life
King cake lovers can vote for their favorite king cake flavor in celebration of Mardi Gras season
NEW ORLEANS (press release) – Chef Kelly Fields, the culinary genius behind Willa Jean in the Central Business District, will keep her doors open for locals and visitors alike during the party, to enjoy a cocktail, festive brunch or delicious Caramel…
Louisianans cast nearly 3,500 votes for their favorite brands and flavor varieties throughout competition
A true Carnival bummer
Errol Laborde holds a Ph.D. in political science from the University of New Orleans and is the editor-in-chief of Renaissance Publishing. In that capacity he serves as editor/associate publisher of New Orleans Magazineand editor/publisher ofLouisiana Life magazine.
Errol is also a producer and a regular panelist on Informed Sources, a weekly news discussion program broadcast on public television station WYES-TV, Channel 12. Errol is a three-time winner of the Alex Waller Award, the highest award given in print journalism by the Press Club of New Orleans. He also received the National and City Regional Magazine Association Award for Best Column for his New Orleans Magazine column, beating out 76 city magazines across the country. In 2013, Errol received the award for the "Best News Affiliated Blog," awarded by the Press Club of New Orleans.
Errol’s most recent books are Krewe: The Early Carnival from Comus to Zulu and Marched the Day God: A History of the Rex Organization. In his free time he enjoys playing tennis and traveling with his wife, Peggy, to anywhere they can get away to, but some of his favorite spots are the Caribbean and historic locations around Louisiana. You can reach Errol at (504) 830-7235 or errol@myneworleans.com.
