Riverfront Réveillon: A Taste of 1940s New Orleans
December 5, 2025 |
The New Orleans Center for Creative Arts’ (NOCCA) Culinary Arts and Entertainment Production Design departments are excited to present “Riverfront Réveillon: A Taste of 1940s New Orleans,” an immersive, 1940s-themed dining experience on Friday, December 5 (6 pm) at NOCCA’s Lupin Hall (2800 Chartres Street). Guests will enjoy a four-course dinner, beginning with Cajun-inspired hors d’oeuvres followed by three seated courses with wine pairings for $150 (inclusive of tax and gratuity). Tickets are now available to purchase at http://riverfrontreveillon.eventbrite.com, and all proceeds will support NOCCA’s Culinary Arts and Entertainment Production Design departments.
Travel back to the 1940s — when mobile phones were restricted to Dick Tracy comics, and when America’s baby boom birthed one of New Orleanians’ most beloved icons, Mr. Bingle. The nation was changing quickly during those post-war years, but through it all, one local tradition remained constant: the réveillon dinner.
“This dinner is a love letter to New Orleans,” said Chef Dana D’Anzi Tuohy, chair of NOCCA’s Culinary Arts department. “In learning about these special holiday dishes, students have the opportunity to think about their own families and their traditions, their own ways of being with one another during special times of the year. It encourages them to think about food and how the foods we make in turn make our community.”
The 2025 Riverfront Réveillon menu includes:
- Hors d’oeuvres: Cajun-Inspired Appetizers, served with Bois-Brincon Cremant de Loire Brut
- Soup: Smoked Tomato Redfish Courtbouillon, served with Buil & Gine Rueda Nosis (2023)
- Entree: Slow Roasted Duck, Sweet Potato Dirty Rice, served with Weingut Dr. Heger Tuniberg Pinot Noir (2019)
- Dessert: Gateau di Syrop, Fig Leaf Ice Cream, Fresh Fig Compote
The evening will begin with a cocktail hour, accompanied by an abundance of appetizers and a menu of performances to bring out the 40s flavor. Afterward, guests will step onto the stage of Lupin Hall, where NOCCA’s talented Culinary Arts students will present a meticulously curated meal with wine pairings, inspired by New Orleans holiday fare. Guests will be seated banquet-style to enjoy the meal and additional entertainment.
“By the 1940s, radio was well established, movies and records were everywhere, and the television was becoming a must-have in every home,” said Blake Coheley, NOCCA’s Director of Admissions. “We have some of the world’s best music to choose from for this event, and it’s going to sound incredible. The students are so excited to share this snapshot of an era with our guests.”
For more information and to purchase tickets, visit http://riverfrontreveillon.eventbrite.com, and follow us on social media @nocca.nola and @noccafoundation.
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ABOUT NOCCA AND THE NOCCA FOUNDATION
The New Orleans Center for Creative Arts (NOCCA) was founded in 1973 and opened its doors to students in 1974. Today, NOCCA is Louisiana’s arts conservatory for high school students, offering intensive instruction in Classical Music, Creative Writing, Culinary Arts, Dance, Drama, Entertainment Production Design, Jazz, Media Arts, Musical Theatre, Vocal Music, Visual Arts, and academics. Students come from across Louisiana, attending via full-day, afternoon, and after-school sessions. Admission to NOCCA is by audition, and there is no tuition.
The NOCCA Foundation is NOCCA’s nonprofit partner, providing supplemental funding for NOCCA and advocacy for its world-class program. Some of the Foundation’s more notable endeavors include: a Student Support Program that pays for students’ classroom supplies as well as fees associated with important summer training programs across the country; an Artists-in-Residence Program that brings more than 100 professional visiting artists into NOCCA’s classrooms each year; the capital campaign for NOCCA’s current home and expansion projects like Press Street Gardens; a wide array of arts classes for adults; and concert, gallery, and literary events for the community. The Foundation also oversees rentals of the NOCCA campus, making it available to arts organizations, individuals, corporations, and other groups.
Tickets click-> HERE
