NEW ORLEANS (press release) – The Roosevelt New Orleans, A Waldorf Astoria Hotel is pleased to announce the date for the 75th Anniversary of the “Stormin’ of the Sazerac.” Featuring a luncheon, fashion show and second line, this year’s event will be held on Friday, Sept. 27, and tickets are now available online.
The Roosevelt New Orleans’ annual Stormin’ of the Sazerac celebrates the courageous group of ladies who gathered to storm the hotel’s Sazerac Bar on Sept. 26, 1949. They marched into the bar demanding equality and a stiff drink, at a time when women were only allowed to be served at the bar on Mardi Gras Day. The 2024 event invites today’s bold, barrier-breaking New Orleans women to join in the one-of-a-kind celebration featuring libations, fine cuisine and entertainment in the lap of The Roosevelt luxury.
This year’s event will be emceed by WDSU news anchor Sula Kim and will take place in the hotel’s famous Blue Room and the world-renowned Sazerac Bar.
The festivities will commence in the Blue Room at 1 p.m. with a three-course lunch, fashion show, live entertainment and recognition of the 2024 Reigning Spirit of the Sazerac. Following the luncheon, attendees will gather at 3 p.m. in The Roosevelt’s lobby to once again “storm” the Sazerac Bar with a spirited second line. To properly honor the original “Stormin,’” guests are encouraged to wear late 1940’s and 1950’s attire including hats, veils, peep-toe shoes and gloves.
The 2024 fashion show will pay tribute to the starlets and fashion mavens of yesteryear and today. Models in dresses provided by French Quarter retailer Italy Direct will showcase looks inspired by some of the hotel’s most glamorous guests of the 20th century, as seen through a 21st century lens highlighting vintage-inspired fashion donned by today’s celebrities.
This year, Nina Compton, chef/owner of Compère Lapin restaurant, BABs Nola and Nina’s Creole Cottage, will reign as the Spirit of the Sazerac, an honor recognizing an exemplary woman whose bravery and determination reflect those great New Orleans ladies who stormed the Sazerac Bar decades ago.
After falling in love with New Orleans while filming Top Chef in 2013, Compton and her husband and business partner Larry Miller left Miami to open Compère Lapin in 2015. The restaurant’s menu — featuring dishes deftly crafted with notes of Caribbean, Italian and New Orleans influences — quickly won over New Orleans diners and helped launch Compton’s star. She was named one of Food & Wine Magazine’s Best New Chefs in 2017 and won the James Beard Award for Best Chef: South in 2018.
A dynamic ambassador of New Orleans culture, Compton represents the best of a new generation of tastemakers, and The Roosevelt New Orleans is proud to welcome her into this one-of-a-kind sisterhood.
The Roosevelt New Orleans — a legendary New Orleans landmark, rich with history — invites all New Orleans ladies to come celebrate years of ‘herstory’ and drinks at this historic event. Stormin’ of the Sazerac luncheon tickets are $115 each, excluding tax and gratuity. To make a reservation, click here or call 504-335-3129.
Follow The Roosevelt New Orleans, A Waldorf Astoria Hotel on Facebook and Instagram at @theroosevelt_no.
