Gentilly Festival Will Be Held At Pontchartrain Park
The Gentilly Festival is a three-day event full of music, art and food with three stages located in Pontchartrain Park. The festival is a free event that will run on Friday from 6pm – 9pm and on Saturday and Sunday from noon – 8pm. The festival will be located at the playground at Press and Prentiss Drives.
This fall-filled New Orleans festival will also raise funds to support first responders and nonprofits that serve the Gentilly community. “It’s going to be really exciting. We’re keeping our flavor, our flair of the community. We’re trying to unify and reunite the neighbors post-pandemic,” says chair and organizer of the festival Gretchen Bradford.
This year there will be over 25 food vendors and an eclectic range of entertainment. There will be restaurants, caterers and food vendors from the area serving up their dishes at this year’s festival. Many local caterers that are starting a business will introduce themselves through the festival. There will also be veteran Gentilly food fest vendors that will also provide delicious assortments. “We’ve got a little Latin, a little hip hop, brass, funk……….We got a little bit of that New Orleans bounce. We can touch many different audiences,” says Bradford.
The festival is a great event for the whole family. This year there will be a Kids’ Village which will include pony rides, an entertainment stage, pottery making, face painting and more crafts. For the adults, there will be tons of local organizations which will provide services and tell about what they have to offer for Gentilly residents, and for an additional charge a VIP Champagne Experience.
The Gentilly Festival is not just for locals, as the festival also attracts tourists and those who used to live in Gentilly and are back to visit for the event. The festival will kick off with “Jazz Under the Stars” with live music and DJ’s. Performers include Brian Quezergue Quartet, Indys Blu, Quiana Lynell and DJ Juane Jordan.
This is a fun time for Gentilly and all of New Orleans. “We promote happiness,” says Bradford.