The 31st annual Mudbug Madness Festival will be held, May 22-25, in downtown Shreveport’s Festival Plaza. This popular event is really all about live Cajun and Zydeco music as well as Louisiana cuisine. In addition to hot, boiled crawfish by the platter, Mudbug Madness Festival fare usually includes Cajun and Creole dishes like jambalaya, etouffee, boudin, dirty rice and more. Toss in some barbecue vendors and a heavy sprinkling of decadent festival foods like funnel cakes, fried candy bars and alligator on a stick, and you’ve got a food line-up that’s equally capable of satisfying foodies in search of authentic Louisiana tastes and, well, folks who eat fried candy bars. I recognize that the two groups may not be mutually exclusive.
Since food vendor details for this year’s Mudbug Madness Festival don’t appear to be listed on their website, I thought I’d point out that festival organizers have launched an app in the iTunes App Store which does compile a complete list of foods available from every single food vendor at the festival. The free iOS app also lists music performers by stage, children’s entertainment schedules and more. Here’s a link to download the app.
While we’re talking Mudbug Madness eats, here are three things that I plan on devouring at this year’s event:
Creole Chicken & Sausage Sauce Piquant, $7
Lila Davis Catering (Booth Spaces 5-6)
Why: A bowl of this rich, flavorful Creole sauce with chicken and sausage was one of the best things I ate at last year’s Mudbug Madness Festival. Clearly the genuine article and made from scratch.
Brisket Nachos, $7
DDT BBQ & Catering (Booth S4, near the Swamp Stage)
Why: I’ve been kind of obsessed with barbecue recently, and my curiosity will likely lead me to eat some form of barbecue nachos being sold by DDT BBQ – they’re doing pulled pork and chicken nachos, as well.
Funnel Cake, $6
Diamond J Catering (Booth space 13)
Why: Because no festival experience is complete without eating some form of fried dough covered in sugar, and a hot, crispy funnel cake is undeniably one of life’s great guilty pleasures.
For more information on the Mudbug Madness Festival, visit the official festival website.
