The Big Easy is coming to Williamsburg!
Brooklyn’s biggest Mardi Gras party is bouncing into music venue the Hall, with four days of jazz bands leading up to a Bourbon Street-style bash and foodie feast on Feb. 9. The “New Orleans Mardi Gras Crawfish Boil” on Fat Tuesday will have a heaping helping of bumping jazz from the Jambalaya Brass Band and Cajun cooking that embodies the soul of Mardi Gras, said the Hall’s head chef.
“With the food, music, and Mardi Gras decorations, it’s trying to bring some of that spirit to New York — nothing more, nothing less,” said Michael Psilakis, known for the modern Greek food served at his MP Taverna outposts. For this event, he experimented with a wide variety of traditional New Orleans-style food and drinks to match the music and the revelry required for a real Mardi Gras party.
“The goal is to create a platform for people to enjoy themselves and to reach a state of kefi — that’s a Greek word that means a state achieved in a somewhat utopian blend of music, friendship, alcohol, and food,” he said.
Accordingly, the kitchen will serve a wide variety of classic New Orleans dishes, but the highlight is a crawfish plate with a pound-and-a-half of crustaceans shipped directly from Louisiana and served with the traditional corn on the cob and red bliss potatoes. For drinks, Psilakis and his krewe will also mix up Hurricane cocktails and their own take on a Bourbon street classic: the crawgator daiquiri, a heady blend of rum and a half-dozen tropical and citrus fruits.
Visitors can burn off some of that food when the seven-piece Jambalaya Brass Band takes the stage. The outfit follows in the tradition of New Orleans “second line” brass bands, which play celebratory music at the end of funerals, designed to lift the spirits of the people. The up-tempo, bouncing brass is irresistible, said the band’s leader.
“It’s a joyous noise, you walk in and it’s so joyous you have to dance — it’s a celebration of life,” Ric Frank said.
The band will play a mix of originals, traditional New Orleans jazz, and modern takes on the genre by artists like Trombone Shorty and the Dirty Dozen Brass Band.
During the run-up to Fat Tuesday night, the Hall host New Orleans psychedelic legend Dr. John and the Nite Trippers on Feb. 5 and 6, and a Zydeco Lundi Gras party on Feb. 7.
“New Orleans Mardi Gras Crawfish Boil,” at the Hall [470 Driggs Ave, between N. 10th and N. 11th streets, (718) 387–4001, www.theha
