[StBernard] The sweetest festival in Louisiana

[Westley Annis]

The sweetest festival in Louisiana

Don Ames Reporting
 
It's probably the ultimate festival for those with a sweet tooth.

This weekend marks the first ever "Sugar Fest" in St. Bernard. The event takes place Sunday, from noon to 6, on the grounds of the LeBeau Plantation in Arabi. That's the largest plantation still existing in the New Orleans area. 

Although it's the first "Sugar Fest" in the parish, it's also a commemorative event. "We're going to be celebrating 100 years of processing sugar in our community," says Gidget McDougall, Tourism Director for St. Bernard Parish.

The Domino Sugar Refinery is celebrating 100 sweet years in St. Bernard and will be giving away its products for free at the fest.

The Domino facility is the largest sugar refinery in the world. It produces seven million pounds of sugar per day. "It's huge," says McDougall, "and it's right her in little old Arabi, five miles from downtown New Orleans."

The event will feature live music, local food, lots of sugary desserts, fine arts and hands on children�s activities. Unique to this festival is the emphasis on sugar and sugar activities including the Domino�s Sugar Exhibit with sugar products, vintage photographs and sugar history lectures. 

There will also be sugar sculptures, sugar demonstrations, a sugar cube art project by local schools, sweets contest, children�s cupcake decorating, games and the unveiling of the first annual "Sugar Fest" Poster which will be on sale the day of the event. Tours of the Old Arabi Historic area will also be available.


>From New Orleans, take N. Rampart to St. Claude, which turns into St. Bernard Highway, and take a right on Friscoville. The plantation is on the riverfront.