Hogs For The Cause

My 2015 update on Hogs for the Cause! Hog-​tasticly 5 stars!
This festival has grown by lards and jowls every year, and this year could not have been more perfect.
I’m just pulling some numbers from a news article so you have an idea about this festival before I get into why I love it. First off, what’s the cause you ask? Hogs raises money to offset the expenses families incur when coping with pediatric brain cancer. This year, the 82 participating teams raised $ 750,000+ and they’re still tallying other sales and admission.
Why I love this festival? It has so much heart in it… whether someone is a family member directly affected by the cause, a friend supporting a team, or someone that just LOVES pork in all forms! This festival still feels local. The City Park festival grounds are the best. Tons of parking, well-​kept grounds, and even a little shade under the Oaks in some spots. I wouldn’t be surprised if more festivals find their way to this beautiful space. Once you’re in there, you’ll see everyone and their mother. If you arrive hungry, you might as well wear a bag over your head till you get some bacon or cracklin’ in your belly.
This year, I bought a Pork Pass at 86.35 (including taxes + fee on Eventbrite). This was definitely the way to go. Admission for both Friday and Saturday night, as well as $ 45 worth of coinage to spend on drinks and food. I still had chips left over when I left on Saturday that I gave to a friend.
Friday night was a lot more organized this year with great stage music and the best «tent parties» that remind you of your college days of drinking pink punch and jammin’ out to Manny Fresh playin’ on the 1s and 2s that goes late into the night. On Friday night, wear comfortable tennis shoes ’cause you’ll be hoofin’ it around and dancin’ like a fool. Just sayin’… There isn’t as much in the way of pork on Friday night since everyone is cooking, but Theo’s pizza will save your life. The next day, grab your Bloody Mary before you get to the festival, because they don’t have Bloodies in the festival… That was my mistake.
Saturday, get out there around noon’ish so that you can try anything and everything that your heart desires. We didn’t really have a plan that day, but we knew to support our friend’s tents with dishes that’ll change every year. I really enjoyed Sweet Swine O’ Mine’s pulled pork nacho bag on top of Zapp’s Crawtators, and Messi Swine’s pork belly on a stick.
Again, I suggest bringing sunscreen, a hat, and a chair and/​or blanket to sit on. I think next year it’d be great if they had a communal «pigging out» table section but the ground was pretty dry so you’ll be alright in a hippie circle.
This year there were two stages to choose from to enjoy with really great music. Drinks, ATMs, and bathrooms were easily accessible wherever you were at the festival.
I didn’t stay till the very end to hear the winners announced but the teams really outdid themselves this year with serious decorations, stuffed wild hogs, rotisserie alligator, about 10 men dressed in pig costumes, and, of course, very imaginative and deliciously classic pork dishes.
I look forward to 2016, and seeing how this amazing festival grows!

Black Label Barbecue had the pleasure of teaming up with Food Drunk NOLA Food Truck for our first time @ #Hogs4thecause to form «TEAM DRUNKEN PIGS». Monsoon rains on Friday turned New Olreans City Park into a swamp over night. We slushed through the mud, continuous rain, lightning and wind. But they got pumps out and drained most of the water prior to Saturday event time. Saturday it was sunny and 75 degrees.
No matter how we ended up in the event rankings, there is no doubt that served a lot of delicious food and helped to raise money for a wonderful cause. PJ Hanes of Food Drunk NOLA is an innovative and determined chef with a plethora of passion for food. We couldn’t have done the event with out him. We bonded over the smoke, fire, beers, torrential rains and a whole lot of pork. We served a ridiculous amount of BBQ to a record crowd of over 20,000 hungry people.
Thank you PJ for giving up your time and resources to participate in this unforgettable weekend! A really special thanks to all of our sponsors who gave donations to support the Hogs for the Cause and our Team Drunken Pigs.
Some of the food we served included Smoked Crawfish, «When Pigs Fly Fries» (duck & pork fat fries with rosemary smoked himalayn salt), Drunken Pig Waffle Cones (waffles cones with pulled pork, spicy slaw & bbq sauce & Crack Poppers. We received rave reviews from all the lucky fans who tasted them. Thank you all for eating our food!
Check out some our pics and others in the NOLA Defender Article «Hogs for the Cause Setup (PHOTOS)» written on March 28^th, 2014, photos taken by Rachel June.
Here are our results out of 90 teams. drum roll…
22^nd Sauce
46^th Shoulder
30^th Ribs
48^th Beans
34^th Porkpourri
27^th Whole Hog
34^th Fundraising
26^th Overall
We will definitely participate as a team again but we will bring a much larger team!
Semper Fi!
Special thanks to all of our «Team Drunken Pig» Sponsors:
Thanks to Becker Hall and Rene Louapre & all who helped to put together
HOGS FOR THE CAUSE !

This is one of my favorite festivals all year, not just for the food but because its a good time that helps children fight cancer. I was finally able to get out there and pig it up this year and it was grand. All the different vendors had their own unique sauces and styles. its a barbecue lovers dream in New Orleans to have an event like this and has spawned a lot of new bbq restaurants throughout the area. This will definitely be a yearly event for me.