Mississippi Picnic Los Angeles 2009
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UPDATE (9/14/2009): The event organizers asked me to mention that they served fries and catfish until 7pm, and the head count was more like 650-700. In any case, it was a fun event, and I highly recommend keeping it on your radar for next year.
First things first: I had never heard of the Mississippi Picnic. But apparently it’s been happening in Los Angeles for 33 years now, and as it turns out, it’s quite a unique and extraordinary event.
Tucked away in a shady nook in Elysian Park, the one-day-only Mississippi Picnic is a relatively small affair, with this year’s estimated attendance hovering around 500 people. But as far as an attendee is concerned, the less people, the better. Because once you pay your $20 admission, the event becomes an all-you-can-eat-and-drink extravaganza of fried catfish:
Pork ribs:
Hushpuppies, coleslaw, fries:
Not to mention sweet tea and Mississippi beer. (OK, there was also Tecate and a Louisiana brew, but you get the idea).
The food was exceptional, particularly the perfectly smoked ribs and crispy hushpuppies. But my condolences to anyone who showed up past 3 p.m., despite the fact that the event ran until 8 p.m. The hushpuppies were the first item to run out, followed shortly by the ribs. (However, when I left around 4 p.m., smoke was still billowing from the trailer-hitched on-site smoker, so it’s possible there was a later reemergence of the ribs.) Likewise, the local beers had run dry around 3:30, leaving only Tecate (and I’m uncertain how long even that lasted). On the upside, the sweet and unsweetened teas continued to flow freely, and no matter your tea preference, both brews were quite delightful.
Despite the limited capacity of this well-kept secret, I’d certainly encourage all foodies out there to check out a future installment of this culinary event.
