New Orleans, LA -
You may say “Tomato” or even “Tomaahto,” but in New Orleans, they say “creoles.” For just a few weeks each summer these oddly shaped but beloved delta-bred, red natives come to market and they are incredibly good eating by themselves, in a great salad or as part of some to-die-for Creole concoction.
To welcome Creoles back to the tables of South Louisiana, and to cook up some New Orleans style fun,the French Market Corporation down on Decatur Street in the French Quarter throws a terrific little one-day party. No French Quarter event is complete until a parade passes by and the Creole Tomato Festival is no exception. The parade will make its way from Esplanade up Decatur to Canal then back down Chartres to Bienville.Then it's back across to the river to wind through the French Market some more. Carriages and vintage convertibles carrying dignitaries and the St. Bernard Tomato Festival Queen will roll amidst second lining Mardi Gras Indians, the Baby Dolls from Treme, Scull and Bones Bone Gang, the French Quarter Floozies, Storyville Stompers, Black Bottom Brass Band, and the walking, dancing Tomato Girls. During the day listen for more great music from Gospel to Jazz.
Food booths where samples of Creoles and Creole inspired dishes are served, will line the Farmers Market area. What's more, boxes and baskets of just-picked Creoles from the fields of Benny Becnel are for sale and French Market craft vendors and vegetable vendors offer all sorts of other treasures besides. There’s a rumor that Creole tomato seedlings with a perfect pedigree will be available in the Children's area of Dutch Alley. Kids can decorate pots, plant the little beauties then take them home for a souvenir of another great day in the French Quarter. No matter how you say it or how you slice it, the French Market Tomato Festival is big red fun! 
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