Jambalaya Festival Association plans to return its annual Memorial Day weekend festival to Lamar-Dixon Expo Center next year after this year’s successful first run.

JFA President Mike Gonzales said Monday that despite a few hiccups, cooks and festivalgoers had mostly positive things to say about the new festival site.

The festival, held from Thursday to Sunday, moved this year from its longstanding location along Irma Boulevard in Gonzales to Lamar-Dixon.

Festival announcer Todd Long called the new site “the future of the festival.” And Mike Gonzales agreed.

An afternoon thunderstorm “washed out things” on Friday, but the cooking continued, Gonzales said. He said the covered barns provided a safe space for the cooks to prepare the rice concoction the festival is known for.

“The cooks kept cooking, but the people just didn’t come after the rain,” he said. The sand used for the ground base caused a few issues, but cooks developed different strategies to correct any issues.

Bands continued to perform in two air-conditioned buildings on the grounds. Gonzales said festivalgoers enjoyed the air-conditioned buildings but there were a few issues with sound inside.

The larger location offered more space for food and craft vendors and parking was not an issue.

Gonzales said there were no arrests, praising law enforcement and Ascension Fire District 1 for providing security and emergency services. The Ascension Parish Sheriff’s Office’s Task Force brought in security towers. 

The announcement of the winning cooking team came Sunday around 6:30 p.m. inside, with a “nice crowd on hand.”

“This year’s winner, Jared White, and his wife, Brittany, brought back the husband-and-wife winning team tradition that we started years ago,” Gonzales said. “Me and my wife, Tootsie, were the first, Scott Duplechein and Kelly were the second, and Jared and his wife brought back the husband-and-wife winning team.”

White, 40, of Darrow, said he plans to build a room in his new house later this year to accommodate all the cooking trophies his family has won throughout the years. 

In addition to Jared and Brittany’s win, their son, Jayden, won the festival’s inaugural Junior Champion cooking title.

“It was a great weekend for our family,” White said Monday. “It was a long journey to this win.”

White said he and his wife worked for over 11 years to perfect their jambalaya recipe, winning last year’s Boucherie Festival title and other smaller contests.

This was the festival title he’s been hoping for, he said.

White said the new cooking site “was just great for the cooks … with lots of space, lots of concrete to be able to move our stuff around easily and we didn’t get muddy despite two rainstorms.”

“Parking was easier and the food variety was terrific,” he added. “Everyone seemed to enjoy themselves.”

White, a JFA board member, said he’s looking forward to returning to Lamar-Dixon next year to defend his title. He plans to represent the festival throughout the year by cooking jambalaya at other fairs and for area nonprofits and charity events.

JFA uses the money it raises at the festivals to provide jambalaya for groups needing fundraisers. 

“We enjoy giving back and sharing this tradition,” White said.