Cinco de Mayo moves Margaritas!

Oddly enough, Americans celebrate May 5, Cinco de Mayo, with unabashed whimsy and  heavy alcohol consumption, while those in Mexico go about their business as if it’s any other day. Many of  Louisiana’s Mexican restaurants look forward to an  influx of business and the opportunity serve their signature margaritas to the masses. 

In Baton Rouge, La Carreta, Superior Grill and Mestizo see droves of people, many that hop from restaurant to restaurant to take advantage of music, food and of course, the tequila-laced drinks.

Chihuahua beauty pagent contestants will compete in
two categories at Mestizo Saturday--Snooky and Paula Dean.
Photo courtesy of 225 Baton Rouge.

“Every year our celebrations gets bigger and bigger,” said Jim Urdiales, owner of Mestizo. “This year, our celebration will span both Saturday and Sunday with a Chihuahua beauty contest and a tamale eating contest all to encourage a festival like atmosphere.”

Mestizo’s Chihuahua contest will feature two categories—the Snooky for the under 10 pound toy breed and the Paula Deen for those tipping the scales at 10 pounds or more. A “Pimp your Sombrero” contest encourages patrons to get creative with the iconic headgear. Local artists will be onsite selling their creations, and on Sunday, the restaurant will have comedy and karaoke segments.

“We are really focusing on social media this year,” explained Urdiales. “To capture those individuals who are out and about and drive them to our restaurant, we’ll constantly provide photos of the action.” 

In New Orleans, Superior Grill will host their annual Cinco de Mayo block party with live music and margaritas specials throughout the day. This event attracts thousands and has been known to rival other events in town for attendees.

Where Y’at Magazine in New Orleans hosted a pre-Cinco de Mayo Margarita Mix-off Finals at Manning’s on Fulton Street last night and we have the top three winning recipes!

Tales of the Cocktail founder Ann Tuennerman posted photos to her Twitter and Facebook accounts during the event and felt the competition showed great imagination of the bartending professionals.

"I am constantly excited and encouraged by the level of talent in our local bars and restaurants," said Tuennerman, known also as Mrs. Cocktail. "The ingredients were creative and the end results were all delicious."

Rayne team places third at National ProStart Invitational

Rayne High School's ProStart Management Team takes
third place at the National ProStart Invitational.

The Louisiana Restaurant Association Education Foundation (LRAEF) is proud to announce that the Rayne High School ProStart^® Management team placed third in the country at the National ProStart Invitational in Baltimore, Maryland on April 30, 2012.

Rayne won the management competition, and the right to represent Louisiana on a national level, at the LRAEF ProStart Student Competition February 29, 2012 in Kenner.

Rayne High School’s team consisted of educator Kandice Dequeant and students Kelsey Burleigh, Sebastian Hebert, Katherine Meche and Andre Rochon.

Competing on a national stage, among 41 teams from across the U.S., Puerto Rico and Guam, Rayne High School’s task was to create a restaurant concept. Their entry was a small plates/ tapas restaurant called Petit Mangeŕ, Jazzy Cajun Tapas, with the tagline, “Small Bites, Big Flavor.” Petit Mangeŕ means “small food” in Cajun French.

LRAEF Executive Director
Alice Glenn travels with the
Rayne and Hammond ProStart
teams as they represent Louisiana
at the National ProStart Invitational.

“The LRAEF is very proud of Rayne’s management team,” said LRAEF Executive Director Alice Glenn. “These young men and women represented Louisiana wonderfully with their talent and creativity. The LRAEF strives to prepare these high school students for a life outside the classroom and I can confidently say that they are a bright part of the future of our industry.”

The mission of the ProStart program and competition is to increase student awareness of careers in the restaurant/foodservice industry and to provide the restaurant industry with a forum to present and recruit ProStart students. Participating students complete a nationally-endorsed, dynamic and comprehensive curriculum which encourages them to learn all aspects of operating and managing a restaurant or foodservice establishment, in school and in structured hands-on worksites.

The LRAEF would like to sincerely thank its ProStart Student Competition Sponsors: Diamond—Auto Chlor Services and the Louisiana Hospitality Foundation; Platinum—Performance Food Group-Caro; Gold—Louisiana Culinary Institute; Silver—Ovations; Friends of ProStart—Mestizo Restaurant and Notini’s Restaurant and Contributing Sponsors—Capitol City Produce, Centerplate, Drago’s Seafood Restaurant, Pontchartrain Center and Sysco New Orleans.

The mission of the LRAEF, a 501 (c)3 non-profit organization, is to promote the industry as a career choice to our current and future workforce, offer scholarships and professional development. If you would like to make a donation, please contact Alice Glenn, aglenn@lra.org or (504) 454-2277, ext. 565.