Disclosure :: This post is sponsored but we are so excited that Fête Française is back that we couldn’t wait to share!
BONJOUR, Y’ALL!
Don’t Miss Fête Française 2024! New Orleans’ Premier French Festival!
Feel French at Fête Française! On Saturday, March 23 from 11 am – 5 pm, Fête Française will transport you from Magazine Street to France. When I think of Fête Française the popularized saying, “Je ne sais quoi” comes to mind. This phrase is used to describe a certain quality or characteristic that makes something special, or unique. The saying is perfect to describe something that must be experienced because words simply cannot capture its essence.
I first experienced Fête Française in 2002, when I moved to New Orleans and stumbled on a call for volunteers for a relatively new festival in town. The move to New Orleans combined my Louisiana roots with my love for a European lifestyle. I answered the call for volunteers when the school was only 4 years old and 22 years later, Fête Française is my favorite festival of the year.
With our strong ties to France, it makes sense that Ecole Bilingue hosts New Orleans’ Premier French festival. This event is fun for the whole family and has something for everyone. As we do in New Orleans, let’s start with the food.
Fête attracts top restaurants and vendors in the city. Crawfish may be hard to find right now but mussels are plentiful. Les Deux Papas is an exclusive vendor at Fête, serving delicious moules-frites (mussels and fries), while St. James Cheese Co. ceremoniously serves Raclette. What can be wrong with melted cheese over potatoes? The festival also features traditional French dishes such as ratatouille, crêpes, French onion soup, and lamb tagine. Other food vendors include N7, Bacchanal, Rimon, Swinetini’s, Gail’s Ice Cream Truck, and so much more.
Saturday, March 23 from 11 am – 5 pm, General Pershing at Magazine Street. Free admission and free bike valet available.
“La vie en rose” means to live with a positive outlook, trying to see beauty in the everyday. And the positive vibes will be flowing at Fête in Bacchanal’s Rosé Room. Hancock Whitney’s champagne bar is there for those who prefer bubbles in their grapes. Urban South’s Beer Garden, Superior Seafood’s frozen French 75s, along with the festival signature Lillet cocktail “joie de vivre” (joy of life) are just a sampling of other drinks to whet your whistle (don’t worry, there are plenty of non-alcoholic beverages, too). You don’t need to know French to attend the festival, but amazing cultural partners such as the Alliance Française, L’Union Française, and the Krewe of Joan of Arc will be there to talk and celebrate all things French, so visiting Fête can be just as educational as it is fun.
The beauty of this festival is the appeal for all ages. Toddler Town is a special section of the festival where young children can enjoy a magic show, bubbles, Le Jouet play structures, and even a quiet space. Older kids will enjoy interactives like the gyroscope and rock wall. Idyllic French lawn games flow throughout the festival, leading you to the La Petite Stage, which hosts numerous acts ranging from children’s performances to instrumental concerts. Don’t forget to take a picture with the Merry Antoinettes or a member of the Krewe des Fleurs.
It is impossible to feel French without a tote bag on your shoulder filled with fantastic finds from Le Marché. This open-air market evokes a European market with local goods, both authentic and poetic. Peony, a clothing store with French flair inspired by international travels, pairs perfectly next to Simon’s funky French New Orleans phrases.
The highlight of the market is surely Les Petite Entrepreneurs, the EB student version of “Lemonade Day.” These students sell everything from hand-rolled beeswax candles to bath bombs. My children have participated in LPE for the past three years and I’m so proud to see them understand business development and market analytics.
Is this all music to your ears? Well, you haven’t even heard the best part! The festival boasts an incredible music lineup starting with Galactic featuring Jelly Joseph as the headliner, and 2024 Grammy winner Louis Michot of Lost Bayou Ramblers. RAM, the preeminent Haitian band of the mizik rasin movement rounds out the day.
Join me and the francophile and francophone communities in New Orleans to celebrate the qualities of France that we hold dear to our hearts: a joie de vivre; a certain…je ne sais quoi!
Ecole Bilingue de la Nouvelle-Orléans is New Orleans’ independent French-Immersion school, serving over 420 students from 18 months through 8th grade.
***Fête Française would like to send un grand merci to their leading sponsors Hancock Whitney, First Horizon, Where Y’At Magazine, and Urban South***
For more information about Fête Française, visit www.fetefrancaise.com or their Facebook page.
About the Author
Ann Irwin is a native of Breaux Bridge, La but lived in Austin, Paris, Baton Rouge, and Greece before settling down in New Orleans with her husband Jimmy. A life-long Francophile (someone who loves French culture), Ann volunteered at Fête Française throughout law school and in her early law career before returning to the festival, this time as a parent. She and Jimmy have two children at Ecole Bilingue, James and Odelia.
