No burgers, just beignets: New Orleans’ Jazz Fest returns

The New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival is back, and while global headliners like Pearl Jam, Lenny Kravitz and Burna Boy promise to pack the stages, the real crowd-puller might just be the food. Starting Thursday and spanning two long weekends, the festival—affectionately known as Jazz Fest—brings together a melting pot of sounds and tastes that are unmistakably New Orleans.

First launched in 1970, Jazz Fest is both a tribute to the city’s musical roots and a celebration of its deep cultural identity. Though it now boasts a genre-spanning lineup, from country stars like Luke Combs to hip hop royalty Lil Wayne, the soul of the festival remains its homegrown heritage. “We started out to reflect New Orleans to the world,” says longtime producer Quint Davis, “but now it’s just as much a part of New Orleans as Mardi Gras.”

Beyond the 14 music stages and Grammy-winning acts, what sets Jazz Fest apart is its uncompromising focus on local cuisine. For many, the event is less about the music and more about indulging in the city’s rich food traditions. “The menu we feature you can’t find anywhere else,” says Michelle Nugent, the festival’s food director. “Everything is handmade and home-cooked.”

Nearly 70 food vendors—many of whom have been participating for decades—serve up a distinctive selection of Creole and Cajun dishes. Expect pheasant, quail and andouille gumbo, pecan catfish meunière, alligator sausage, and one of the festival’s most legendary treats: the praline beignet. This sweet hybrid, created by the late Loretta Harrison of Loretta’s Pralines, marries the classic French pastry with a local praline twist. Her son, Robert Harrison III, continues the legacy with pride. “My mum was a genius,” he says. “She took two New Orleans staples and mashed them together.”

Equally iconic is the Cochon de Lait Po Boy, a French bread sandwich filled with slow-roasted suckling pig, coleslaw, and a secret “wertie” sauce courtesy of Walker’s Southern Style BBQ. “We dry rub those pork butts every night,” says Shayne Brunet, who’s manned the family stall for more than 20 years. “They smoke all night long.”

And then there’s the crawfish. Lots of it. From the rich Crawfish Monica—creamy pasta with crawfish tails created by chef Pierre Hilzim and named after his wife—to the flaky, unexpected crawfish strudel, shellfish dominates the festival menu. Hilzim says they go through nearly two million crawfish over the course of the event. “To be able to put a dish in the lexicon of food in this city — I’m very humbled by that,” he reflects.

As for the music, the lineup remains as diverse and dynamic as the food. Alongside international acts are local legends like Trombone Shorty, Big Freedia, Irma Thomas, Harry Connick, Jr. and Mardi Gras Indian leader Big Chief Monk Boudreaux. The Roots, Kacey Musgraves, and Santana also feature on this year’s bill.

This year’s festival poster celebrates Grammy-winning local band Tank and the Bangas. Their frontwoman Tarriona “Tank” Ball, who first sang at Jazz Fest as part of her high school choir, says performing for a hometown crowd brings its own magic. “You want to make it extra special,” she says. “Because your auntie is out in the crowd, your little cousins—cause it’s home.”

Between beignets, brass bands, and a whole lot of crawfish, Jazz Fest is more than a festival — it’s New Orleans on a plate and in full song.