Food Porn Friday: Feasting at the Fest

Hey there, sexy. Where have you been all year?

Some folks go to Jazz Fest with the A&E section of the newspaper in hand, their favorite acts highlighted on the schedule, the entire day’s music strategized hour by hour, with maybe a few minutes here and there to grab a quick bite and a couple of beers before it’s off to see Rebirth, or Cowboy Mouth, or Alain Toussaint …

I am not one of those folks. For me, and you’ll hardly find this surprising, the food at Jazz Fest is the main attraction, although I adore the music as well. It doesn’t hurt that it’s literally my job to savor the flavors at the Fair Grounds. This year, I covered the carnivorous delights at the Fest, the many international offerings, and a behind-the-scenes story about Patton’s Caterer’s, who are responsible for the single most outstanding plate of food at the festival, year after year, a combination of their famous crawfish beignets with remoulade sauce, an oyster patty (a traditional Louisiana vol-au-vent pastry filled to brimming with glorious oyster dressing), and a crawfish sack.

Oh, the crawfish sack. How do I love thee? Let me count the ways. It’s difficult to describe how eagerly I anticipate that glorious fried crepe filled with magnificent crawfish stuffing and tied with a leek top, a beautiful little present, just for me.

Well, I know it’s not just for me … Patton’s sells upwards of 25,000 of those wonderful little beggar’s purses each year, the preparation of which requires a skilled team of professionals working in shifts with the kind of organization, skill and timing that would make a Swiss watchmaker blanch.

The only thing I can possibly see wrong with that Patton’s combination plate is the fact that — unless I’m attending a Patton’s-catered wedding, bar mitzvah or other event — I’m likely to only enjoy it once a year. Well, maybe several times … Jazz Fest lasts two weeks, after all. And while that fact makes me sad, my sadness also gives way to gleeful eagerness, every spring, when I get to wait in line for that perfect trio of Louisiana treats. At that moment, I could scarcely be happier.

And for you? What were your Jazz Fest Favorites this year?

Native New Orleans food writer Scott Gold, author of The Shameless Carnivore and a blog by the same name, has written for Gourmet, Edible Brooklyn, The Faster Times, and other publications. His Food Porn Friday column for NolaVie offers a weekly mouth-watering photo designed to start culinary conversations in the Big Easy. Catch his weekly food column for The Advocate here.