By Khalida Sarwari
For Campbell’s annual New Orleans-inspired Boogie on the Bayou festival this weekend, organizers are really pulling out all the stops. Got a craving for alligator but don’t have time in your schedule for a trip down South? You can have it prepared two different ways depending on how health-conscious you are. Got a sweet tooth only a beignet can satisfy? The festival will have plenty of those, too.
The wide array of options at the two-day festival are sure to appeal to most everyone’s tastes: 24 food vendors, 100 artisans and entertainment on three stages. The sight of colorful masks and beads, sounds of zydeco, jazz, brass and Dixieland, and smell of jambalaya in the air are sure to transform the streets of Historic Downtown Campbell into “The Big Easy.”
Now in its 34th year, Boogie is known to draw crowds of up to 30,000 people, said Neil Collins, executive director of the Chamber of Commerce. That’s about as many people Collins anticipated will show up this weekend.
“It could very well exceed that,” he said.
Vendors from Louisiana are coming to display their finest fare. Though there will be the typical crawfish, jambalaya, and rice and beans; some are bringing alligator meat for those with more adventurous taste buds. One vendor will sell deep-fried alligator on a stick, and another will serve the rare delicacy sauteed. Wonder what it tastes like?
“Like pork. It’s not a heavy, gamey meat,” Colllins said, assuring visitors, “It tastes good.”
The list of musical acts includes Sauce Piquante, Motordude Zydeco, Key Lime Pie, South Bay Traditional Jazz Society and Bug Horn Rex.
The festival will also feature a Strutters Parade at 1 p.m. on both days beginning from the Cajun West stage near the Sonoma Chicken Coop. The parade will be similar to a Cajun congo line, Collins said, where marching bands will hand out beads. The marching bands are California Repercussions on Saturday and Bug Horn Rex on Sunday.
For the young ones, specifically those under 11, the “Crawdaddy Kids Zone” on S. Second Street outside of Rocket Fizz is the spot to be. Activities include a mini carnival, bounce houses and teacup rides. A clown on stilts will tie balloons for the little ones and the kids at heart.
The roots of Boogie on the Bayou go back 34 years to Prunefest, a festival hosted by the Prune Association, Collins said.
“When they decided they no longer wanted to promote prunes, they changed the theme to Boogie on the Bayou,” he said. “They just wanted something fun that the community could rally around.”
Boogie on the Bayou will begin at 10 a.m. on both May 19 and May 20. The festival will end at 6 p.m. on Saturday and 5 p.m. on Sunday. Admission is free. For more information, visitwww.campbellchamber.net/boogie.html or the Boogie on the Bayou Facebook page.
Boogie on the Bayou is back for its 34th year and is expected to draw a crowd of 30,000
