Hank Fest, featuring jambalaya cook-off, Sept. 17-18

This Hank Williams festival features live music and jambalaya from chefs Joel Nickson of Wishbone, Calvin Woods of Calvins BBQ, Jimmy Bannos of Heaven on Seven, Jackie Shen of Redlight, Charlie Raygoza of Davis St. Fish Market and Charlie Socher of Charlie's on Leavitt.

I'm told there'll be jambalaya all weekend but I gather the most selection will be on Sunday afternoon during the contest. Admission is $5. The event takes place from noon to 10 Saturday, noon to 8 Sunday outdoors, across from Wishbone Restaurant, 1001 W. Washington St.

See the Web site for the music lineup, etc.
http://www.hankfest.com/index.htm

LAZ wrote:This Hank Williams festival features live music and jambalaya from chefs Joel Nickson of Wishbone, Calvin Woods of Calvins BBQ, Jimmy Bannos of Heaven on Seven, Jackie Shen of Redlight, Charlie Raygoza of Davis St. Fish Market and Charlie Socher of Charlie's on Leavitt.

I'm told there'll be jambalaya all weekend but I gather the most selection will be on Sunday afternoon during the contest. Admission is $5. The event takes place from noon to 10 Saturday, noon to 8 Sunday outdoors, across from Wishbone Restaurant, 1001 W. Washington St.

See the Web site for the music lineup, etc.
http://www.hankfest.com/index.htm

I can't imagine where they will be able to hold this festival...unless they are taking over the parking lot across from Wishbone. That's the only "open space" on that corner.

Wow, wish I had known about this earlier - I would have closed down Cal's Friday night instead of the bar I was at. Did anybody make it over there? Hank Sr. is one of my favorites so I may try to make it over on one of the days. It might be the rare event where I'm actually more interested in the music than the food!

Kman wrote:Wow, wish I had known about this earlier - I would have closed down Cal's Friday night instead of the bar I was at. Did anybody make it over there? Hank Sr. is one of my favorites so I may try to make it over on one of the days. It might be the rare event where I'm actually more interested in the music than the food!

Thanks for the post from the future.

Re-reading what I wrote, I realize I was ambiguous. The chefs are providing only the jambalaya, not the live music.

It is, indeed, in the parking lot across from Wishbone.

Kman, if you can transport yourself back to this temporal reality, you can still attend. The kickoff at Cal's is tonight.

I plan to be at the fest on Sunday afternoon.

stevez wrote:

Kman wrote:Wow, wish I had known about this earlier - I would have closed down Cal's Friday night instead of the bar I was at. Did anybody make it over there? Hank Sr. is one of my favorites so I may try to make it over on one of the days. It might be the rare event where I'm actually more interested in the music than the food!

Thanks for the post from the future.

Well it should have been written as 'the bar I will be at' as I already had plans that I couldn't change; sorry if that was confusing.

Kman wrote:Well it should have been written as 'the bar I will be at' as I already had plans that I couldn't change; sorry if that was confusing.

No need to apologize for something which was so darn amusing.

Regards,

Well, this event was kind of a bust. The music was good. The food was good, but they had very little turnout, at least on Sunday.

I tasted four jambalayas, the official contest entries. (I gather there'd been a different mix the day before.)

The most traditional, named best overall, came from Charlie's on Leavitt. I don't know if they have it on the menu. It had a rather soupy texture and was perhaps the least appetizing to look at, but the flavors came together very well.

No. 2, the spiciest and best seasoned overall, was from Jimmy Bannos at Heaven on Seven. It featured orzo instead of rice, and very good sausage. I think this is what they serve at the restaurants regularly.

No. 3, named most innovative, was Jackie Shen of Red Light's Asian take on seafood jambalaya, full of ginger. I loved this, but I wouldn't have identified it as jambalaya without a label. I don't think it's on the restaurant's menu, either, but it certainly made me anxious to visit soon.

No. 4, the most attractive, came from Joel Nickson at Wishbone. It appears to be on the menu as Cajun jambalaya stew. It lost points due to oddly textured chicken andouille.

I also had a very nice smoked brisket sandwich with horseradish from Wishbone. I don't think that's on their regular menu.

I pay a fair amount of attention to things around town and this thread is the only place I heard about this. (Last year or the year before, wasn't it at Schuba's? Some consistency in terms of least neighborhood if not venue might help.)

P.S. Incidentally, the first place I heard about it last year was on an Australian blog, believe it or not.

Mike G wrote:I pay a fair amount of attention to things around town and this thread is the only place I heard about this. (Last year or the year before, wasn't it at Schuba's? Some consistency in terms of least neighborhood if not venue might help.)

P.S. Incidentally, the first place I heard about it last year was on an Australian blog, believe it or not.

There was a half-page ad for it in the most recent Reader, although I'm not able to speak to how well the paper's demographic overlaps the event's target market. But my guess is that most folks burned themselves out Saturday at the Hideout Block Party, which was truly overcrowded. I've never known the Hideout to run out of beer, but shortly before I left around 7, one of my friends came back to the group with a can of Miller Lite and said, "This is all they've got left and I was lucky to get it."