Gambit

Not picking up after my dog I'd rather not say

Photo by Sophia Germer / The Times-Picayune The Krewe of O.A.K. holds its Mardi Gras parade on the last big weekend of Carnival, when parades are everywhere. Its Midsummer Mardi Gras is a blast of costuming and revelry that attracts costumed revelers and many of the small walking krewes and dance troupes from a variety of Carnival events. “It’s two weeks of Carnival boiled down to one hot night,” says Andrew Quaid, who reigned as the krewe’s 2024 monarch, Robustus XXXVIII.

Louisiana state Sen. Royce Duplessis of New Orleans says it’s hard being a Democrat in the state legislature these days. With Republican supermajorities in both the House and the Senate, "every day you're swimming upstream, and every day you're fighting a battle on a vote that you're likely not going to win,” he told Gambit Editor John Stanton on The Get Down.

The New Orleans City Council Aug. 20 voted to use money it recovered from New Orleans Area Habitat for Humanity to continue to fund free legal representation for residents across the city facing evictions. The council put $750,000 to fund the Southeast Louisiana Legal Services’ Right to Counsel program through the rest of the year. Monique Blossom, Louisiana Fair Housing Action Center's director of policy and communications, spoke in support of the council’s decision.

BECOME A GAMBIT MEMBER AND JOIN OUR KREWE TODAY For more than 40 years, Gambit has covered New Orleans, for New Orleans. We’ve stood up to city hall with you, cheered the Saints with you, danced in the streets with you and cried over our collective loss with you. And we’re plannin’ on being here for 40 more. To do that, we need your help. Become a Gambit member today and help us continue our mission SUPPORT GAMBIT

Deanna Holdcraft and Paul DeSana Photo provided by Witches Brew Deanna Holdcraft and Paul DeSana met in Arkansas, where they both had professional careers. In the last couple of years, they moved to New Orleans and opened their own coffee and tea shop, Witches Brew Coffee Co. in Mid-City. At the shop, Holdcraft makes custom pies, cakes, pastries, scones and breads, and they offer an array of coffee drinks, teas, matcha and more.

Celebrating the Life & Legacy of Our Beloved Grand Marshal Eva Evelyn Wilson paraded her way into this life on January 2, 1943, in the city she would forever call home, New Orleans, born to the late Celeste and Ralph Dykes. And perhaps there was no better place for Eva to be born, because New Orleans did not simply shape her; she became a part of its culture. Eva was educated in the New Orleans Public School System and graduated from Booker T.

An audit released Wednesday found the City of New Orleans is potentially paying for trash and recycling services at thousands of vacant, duplicate or otherwise ineligible addresses. The report by Louisiana Legislative Auditor Mike Waguespack found the city is paying for once-a-week pickup at 164,625 locations as of March 2026.

Elvin Garza and Iris Cardona serve tacos and more at Tacos Diva. Photo by Maddie Spinner / Gambit Define diva as a single Honduran mom working day and night to make a better life for her two sons, and you’ve met Iris Cardona, a.k.a. the Tacos Diva. Cardona, 40, moved to New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina and started her Tacos Diva food truck, cooking homemade Mexican, Honduran and Salvadoran food. Now, she has her own brick-and-mortar restaurant.

Elvin Garza and Iris Cardona serve tacos and more at Tacos Diva. Photo by Maddie Spinner / Gambit Define diva as a single Honduran mom working day and night to make a better life for her two sons, and you’ve met Iris Cardona, a.k.a. the Tacos Diva. Cardona, 40, moved to New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina and started her Tacos Diva food truck, cooking homemade Mexican, Honduran and Salvadoran food. Now, she has her own brick-and-mortar restaurant.