Annual Oak Street Po-Boy Festival

This was first time at this festival, but it won't be my last. The weather was perfect, and arriving early was definitely a good idea. As I strolled down the tree-lined street, I was drawn in to booth after booth because of the aromas of their creations. Non-food vendors were uniquely placed between the restaurants that were just as enticing. I researched the list of participating restaurants to identify my must haves, and they did not disappoint.The live bands were energetic and fun and helped me work off some of those calories.

Coming from the north we had to try out this festival! Who doesn't love a good sandwich? Wrist bands are $5 each if you want food. Husband and I both got one when we didn't need to. The event is free unless you want food. The street was packed! Parking is a nightmare as well. Come early to find a good spot I guess! Tried all new to me things! Soft shell crab, crawfish, po-boys and blueberry limeade. All was very good but the crawfish Mac and cheese was amazing. Some of the prices were pretty steep for what you get but understandable since it's a festival. Some stand allow you to use your card but most only accept cash. The lines can be crazy at some stands but clearly worth the wait! Overall this was a fun tourist thing to do!

This event is always a good time! I've gone almost every year for the past ten or so years and look forward to it every year. It's your typical festival, but it has the charm of Oak Street, dozens of po-boy options (as well as other foods if po-boys isn't your thing), and local music. Also, I love how it's in November so it's usually not too hot.The alcohol selection is okay. This year I was expecting a variety of beer, especially since there's so many great local breweries, but only a couple of local beers were represented at the festival. Hopefully they'll expand in future years.Although it's gotten bigger and more crowded over the years, in recent years the festival has done a better job at making sure there's enough vendors so that people don't have to wait in line for long. Obviously the most popular vendors, especially those who won an award at the festival, might have a long line, but I waited only 15 minutes for the po-boy that won this year's best po-boy award at the festival. I got Parkway Tavern's "James Brown" with slow roasted BBQ beef, Louisiana golden fried shrimp, torched pepper jack cheese with a Crystal and Tabasco infused aioli, dressed with lettuce, tomatoes, and pickles. It was pretty good, but not as hot and fresh as I was hoping for (fried shrimp weren't very crispy or piping hot like). But I understand that at festivals vendors are making food for the masses, so I have no beef (ha ha...) against Parkway.

Me thinks that the schedule change messed them up a bit this year. Having to move the festival back a few weeks due to weather resulted in a few noticeable hiccups.First and foremost there were no banners over the street. Usually there are two very large "Po-Boy Festival" banners stretching across Oak Street. They were missing this year. Also missing was the stage at the end of the street that also had a very large banner. We knew where we were of course so it wasn't a big deal but aesthetically it was not as nice this year. The most unforgivable omission however had to be no GW Finns lobster Po-boy. No GW Finns at all actually. No fault of the Festival I'm sure but it makes me wonder if the last minute schedule change messed them up somehow. They are on the roster of vendors on the web site but they were not on the program at the event. I was hoping they forgot to put them on the map but to my dismay we heard that they dropped out this year. Ouch!! Another vendor attempted a fried lobster po-boy but they added buffalo sauce and the lobster was chopped too small and it resulted in an over battered almost clam strip like product (see pic). It was just ok. The weather was perfect and we found a couple new entries very much to our liking. I can't remember the vendor but the crawfish mac n cheese was the star of the show for us. Plenty of crawfish in a giant bowl of cheesey shells (see pic). For $10 it was about a pound of the good good. Also had a Cochon de lait and fried shrimp po-boy that should not have been as delicious as it was. Pork, shrimp and gravy oh my!!Mama had the crab bisque again and it was delicious but they took away the bread bowl and served it in a styrofoam bowl with a small hunk of bread. Not all bad considering the stomach space it saved. In conclusion this year was toward the bottom of the ranking of the 8 years in a row we have been but it is still better than any other festival she has drug me too this year. See y'all next year.

So the poboy fest seems to grow bigger and bigger every year....about 40 food vendors this year encompassing seven blocks of Oak St. Loved most of the new foods I tried at this year's fest. My favorite though was the vanilla ice cream filled donut with bananas foster sauce from Blue Dot Donuts (probably one of the best things I've ever eaten for $5).It is kind of strange, though, that the organizers of this festival let any business get a booth here to sell whatever they want even though it is the po-boy festival. I ate at seven different places and only four of those places even offered a po-boy. I guess money does really talk!Come early to avoid the inevitable crowds and shortage of food, bring lots of cash, eat as much as you can handle, and enjoy the music and good times of New Orleans.

Fun fest. Its a one day event. Well attended. Very neighborhoody (a good thing). LOTS of Po-boys to try. We walked thru once to pick where we would eat, and found a band on the levee side of Oak St. Los Poboy Citos. Great Latin style music, awesome musicians and sound ... gotta say, best trumpet player I've heard in town. Started with The Ninja Sushi Restaurant had a 1/2 ribeye with 1/2 crab po boy (2 separate po boys) with kimchi and a meat bite with Korean BBQ sauce on the side. Great flavor. I put Sriracha sauce on the crab (my mistake) kind of overpowered the crab. My friend who would be my gf had a brisket and pastrami po boy from Blue Oak BBQ, with a side of roasted garlic Mac and cheese. The po boy was packed with deliciousness, and had a nice cabbage slaw that added nicely. The pastrami gave a good, salty bite that paired well with the brisket. The mac and cheese was good, liked the garlic and toasted bits on top. The next stop was the Ajun Cajun for a soft shell crab po boy. Wow. The tempura was dynamite and the sauce they used had a nice spice and a little heat on the back end. Listened to the Lost Bayou Ramblers at the Pint Alley stage. This was some old time French Cajun music, very nice, mellow then bordering on rowdy songs. I liked these guys. Both music acts we saw were top notch, and along the street, various places had music blasting. So much fun. I gotta wonder about people who bring dogs to walk these crowded fests. What are you thinking? Your great Dane's love to smell food and crowds? Your tiny jack Russell hasn't been stepped on in awhile? Leave them home, I think most people would appreciate it.

Was really looking forward to this event and I was not disappointed. My only letdown was that I couldn't eat more. The bands were great and the people watching was even better. Can't wait to go again next year. I'll be sure to skip breakfast and be better prepared.

I've finally reached 100 reviews! YAY! I'm so glad to review the Po-boy Festival because I look forward to this festival all year long! This is by far one of my very favorite festivals in New Orleans. So many great food vendors and restaurants take part in the Po-boy Festival, and each year it's definitely growing in popularity. The crowds over the past few years are growing, but it's always a great group of people that comes out! Tourists and locals alike. Maybe it's been because the weather has cooperated the past few years (I'm knocking on wood as I'm typing this). It was a gorgeous day yesterday! Let's talk about the food because that's what this festival is all about, and always bring a buddy with you to the festival to share with because you can't eat it all on your own. I'll mention my absolute favorite item this year was the Smoked Beef Bourguignon Po-boy with French Onion Dip from Boucherie. I hope they won for best po-boy because I tell you it was just out of this world delicious, and I seriously could have eaten that one po-boy all day and been content. I am hoping and keeping my fingers crossed that Boucherie brings this item back for the next festival because I will be the first and last person in line at their truck. Some other items we tried were the Buffalo Chicken Meat Pies from Wayfare, these were excellent and cooked to order which was pretty awesome because they were fresh and piping hot. Then there's the Food Drunk food truck. We had Duck Fat Fries with mustard dipping sauce and Crab/Crawfish mac & cheese from Food Drunk. I'll say without a doubt those were the best fries I've ever had in all my life! The mac & cheese needed more seasoning, but the fries!!! Still dreaming about those fries! LOL Then there's Walker's BBQ & the famous Cochon De Lait Po-boy! I'm told it's ahh-mazing! Just as I described the Smoke Beef from Boucherie, apparently this is the pork version of heaven on a po-boy. We also had the Crab Grilled Cheese from Diva Dog. In my humble opinion this was a waste of money. There was hardly any crabmeat on the sandwich and it was basically a $10 grilled cheese that was just ok. More crabmeat would have made a world of difference. We also tried the Icy Hot Chocolate from Blue Frog Chocolates. I thought I died and went to heaven when I took my first sip! Absolutely delicious!A couple other things beyond the po-boys... This festival is dog friendly! So many people had their dogs with them, and some were even in costume! My favorite was the po-boy dog! (see my pic) The owners made his costume & he was too cute! There was also an art market at the festival this year. I'm honestly not sure if there is usually an art market associated with this festival but it's tucked away, and you have to look for it. I checked it out and I think the variety of items available was pretty good, but mostly catering to tourists. No biggie, I still bought something! Another of my favorite things at the festival this year was Jon Cleary! He's a beast on the piano! Jon has been in the New Orleans area for the past 20 years or more learning the music culture here and he's a New Orleans legend! It was so much fun to see him perform and see the crowd singing along and dancing. It's obvious New Orleans loves to hear Jon Cleary perform, I know I do! Hope to see you out at the festival next year!

This was my second poboy fest. I have nothing bad to say about it. The lay out is great. It's stretched down Oak Street. The booths are spaced out enough that the lines don't get crossed. Not only are there delicious poboys, but drinks and other foods as well. Some of the restaurants down Oak street have their bars open incase you want a drink that isn't available at the small bars they place through out the fest. There is live music, face painting for the kids, and some novelty shops open. This is one of my favorite festivals in New Orleans!

Not really worthy to try. Hot and too busy. Pay for the admission and also pay for the food. I rather go somewhere else!