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New Orleans: Dining & Touring Around 2019 New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival

NNPA NEWSWIRE — Plan a late April or early May vacation to New Orleans around the annual New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, and your opportunities for enriching yourself with NOLA’s wonderful culture grow exponentially.

Published

7 years ago

May 10, 2019

Oakland Post

By Dwight Brown, NNPA Newswire Contributor

Plan a late April or early May vacation to New Orleans around the annual New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, and your opportunities for enriching yourself with NOLA’s wonderful culture grow exponentially.

When you’re not at the Fair Grounds listening to your favorite artists, you get to explore the city. Concerts begin around 12pm and end by 7pm, so you can tour by day and dine out at night.

Get around town, and you’ll find that people on the streets often say hello. The neighborhoods (French Quarter, Garden District, Tremé, City Park) are either lively or calm and often shrouded with stately oversized oak, cypress and magnolia trees. Greek revival, Colonial and Victorian houses are so beautiful you’ll be tempted to buy one. And bars stay open to the wee hours—some all night—so If you’re looking for a good time, you will find it.

Eat like a king or queen.

Commander’s Palace Shrimp & Tasso Henican by Dwight Brown

Commander’s Palace — This James Beard Foundation Award-winning Haute Creole restaurant is easily one of NOLA’s most famous. Dating back to 1893, it was remodeled in 1969, adding large windows so customers could enjoy the view. How good are the chefs at Commander’s? This is the place that launched famed Chef Emeril Lagasse’s career. Come here on a night when you feel like an elegant meal with impeccable service. The dining rooms are just formal enough to make you feel like royalty, but friendly enough for you to have a good time. Located in the tony Garden District, a trip here will give you a chance to experience a neighborhood other than the famed French Quarter.

TIPS:

It’s hard to choose appetizers but go with either the Shrimp & Tasso Henican (set in 5 pepper jelly and Crystal hot sauce beurre blanc), or the adventurous Chili and Lemongrass Glazed Alligator.
Pecan Roasted Gulf Fish is hearty and light, as is the flavorful Black Skillet Roasted Halibut entrees.
Throw caution out the door for dessert. Feast on the Creole Cream Cheese Cheesecake or Pecan Pie à la Mode.

oBou Restaurant Interior by Dwight Brown

SoBou – Set on picturesque Rue Chartres in the French Quarter, and attached to the W Hotel (free parking!), this contemporary Creole restaurant is away from heavy foot traffic on Bourbon Street. It has a low-key and refined atmosphere that attracts sophisticated adults. Floor-to-ceiling windows open up to the streets. People flock here for the food, drinks and ambiance. The signature cocktail is the Taylor Bird Sazerac, which is the rage of NOLA: Rye, brandy, bitters, Steen’s cane syrup and Herbsaint rinse. It’s a nice way to set yourself up for a swank dinner and memorable evening.

TIPS:

How does Wild Shrimp Crawfish Boil Beignets sound for an appetizer?
For dinner, their NOLA Style BBQ Shrimp “Shortcake” is served with a buttermilk biscuit and the Rustic Griddle Seared Gulf Fish is topped with a brandy flambeed brown butter.
You’ve probably never heard of a Bread Pudding Lollipop. But now you have. Taste the Toulouse Red Absinthe Soaked Strawberries, too.

Brennan’s Rhubarb Glazed Lamb by Dwight Brown

Brennan’s – That very attractive pink Vieux Carre building (circa 1795) at 417 Royal Street in the French Quarter is the home of the iconic establishment Brennan’s. This is the restaurant that launched the Brennan culinary dynasty back in 1946. The old-world charm and setting with modern NOLA cooking and precision service are the hallmarks of this classic dining experience. It’s best known for its nearly daylong and elaborate brunches, but dinner here is an equal treasure. After dinner or brunch, take a tour of the restaurant that invented the flaming dessert Bananas Foster. It’s steeped in history.

TIPS:

For starters, the Chicken Fried Sweetbreads with a Bacon-sherry Jus is as delicate as the Louisiana Seafood Filé Gumbo is hearty.
There is something so tasty about the Rhubarb Glazed Lamb with its Piri Piri Spiced Lamb Rib Pithivier and Spring Vegetables, or the Raviolo of Chevre & Sheep Feta.
Bananas Foster is an obvious choice and the Seasonal Sorbet is refreshing.

Palace Cafe Jay-Ray and Gee Singers by Dwight Brown

Palace Café — If you’re staying downtown in a hotel on Canal Street, that makes the Palace Café at 605 Canal a convenient excursion. The two-story restaurant looks like a French bistro, with a dazzling and dramatic central, spiral staircase that adds to the room’s allure. If you’re lucky, at some point during your meal, the lively Jay-Ray & Gee acapella singers will weave through the brasserie taking requests and singing in perfect harmony. Ask them to sing the classic soul song “Up on the Roof” and they will do it with special verve. It’s easy to take the warmth of the Palace with you when you leave.

TIPS:

The signature starter is the light and fluffy Crabmeat Cheesecake, which is something like a quiche, only soft and more flavorful.
The Andouille Crusted Fish entrée is covered with Andouille breadcrumbs, roasted and comes with a chive aioli.
You won’t go wrong with the Vanilla Bean Crème Brûlée or White Chocolate Bread Pudding.

Dooky Chase’s Restaurant Buffet Line by Dwight Brown

Dooky Chase’s Restaurant — This classic soul food restaurant dates back to 1941, when it was a sandwich shop in the Tremé district. Over the years, restaurateur

Leah Chase has turned it into NOLA’s must-dine restaurant. History lurks in every corner, as back in the ’60s, upstairs at Dooky’s was a meeting place for Thurgood Marshall, Dr. Martin Luther King and other social activists who would strategize their fight for civil rights. James Baldwin, Sarah Vaughn, Quincy Jones and President Barack Obama have all dined at this landmark. Dooky’s is to NOLA what Sylvia’s is to NYC; it’s a community treasure where local politicians gather along with locals and tourists.

TIPS:

The restaurant is opened daily for a lunch buffet or a la carte orders and serves dinner on Friday nights. Plan accordingly.
Crispy fried chicken, red beans and rice, Shrimp Clemenceau and lima beans are staples.
The Peach Cobbler with a scoop of ice cream is a nice way to put a smile on your face.

Things to Do

City Park Pepsi Tennis Center Corey Clarke Teaching Pro by Dwight Brown

City Park/Pepsi Tennis Center — Tennis pro Corey Clarke has been a coach at this well-run and friendly tennis center for decades. Take a lesson with him, or the other pros, and you can play on any of the 26 lighted courts, which include 16 hard courts, 10 clay courts and also a practice court with two backboards. The complex is part of the 1,300-acre City Park, which is just a 15-minute drive from downtown. Tennis in City Park dates back to 1922. The 3700 sq. ft Clubhouse dates back to 2011. Tennis has come a long way in NOLA and playing here is a nice way to meet locals.

TIPS:

If you don’t have anyone to play with there’s always the Monday Night: Tennis “Drop In” Doubles ($8).
Tuesday Night: Advanced Adult Tennis Clinic 6:30 – 9 pm ($25).
Wednesday Night: Beginner Adult Tennis Clinic 6:30 – 8 pm ($25) and Intermediate Adult Tennis Clinic 8 – 9:30 pm ($25).

New Orleans Museum of Art by Dwight Brown

New Orleans Museum of Art – NOMA is just down the road from the Pepsi Tennis Center in City Park. New Orleans’ largest museum was built in 1911. These days the vast gallery is filled with a permanent collection of over 40,000 artifacts. Next to paintings by Renoir, Degas and Picasso are works by local artists from the city and state. Exhibitions of paintings, sculptures, glass, furniture, ceramics and crafts are augmented by a strong collection of over 12,000 photographs. You can walk around and gaze on your own, or take a guided tour to get the inside scoop on the artists and their work. Recent exhibitions include Bondye: Between and Beyond (12 sequined prayer flags inspired by the religious Haitian rituals of Vodou) and Timothy Duffy: Blue Muse (tintype portraits of American musicians, some of them are black blues musicians.)

TIPS:

Stroll around the foot paths at the five-acre Sydney and Walda Besthoff Sculpture Garden.
The Gold Log Cabin exhibit glistens and has eye-catching textures. You have to take a photo (no flash).
In 2018, Ndubuisi C. Ezeluomba, PhD. became the Françoise Billion Richardson Curator of African Art. The fruits of his labor can be found on the 3^rd floor in the museum’s permanent Africa Art collection.

Topnotch cuisine. Tennis in a multi-purpose park. African Art in a city that celebrates its African connections. And a whole lot of music too!

It’s guaranteed, if you come to NOLA for the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, or any other time of the year, you’ll have a great time. And if you come back again, you will feel like you’re returning home.

Visit travel writer Dwight Brown at DwightBrownInk.com and at BlackPressUSA.com

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2026 Lucid Air Grand Touring Review — Is This $136K EV Sedan Worth It?

AUTONETWORK ON BLACKPRESSUSA — Finished in Stellar White Metallic with the Tahoe Grand Touring interior, this Lucid makes a strong first impression. The shape is sleek and low, but it still feels elegant instead of trying too hard. Features like soft-close doors, powered illuminated door handles, 20-inch Aero Lite wheels, and the Glass Canopy Roof help the car feel expensive before you even start it.

Published

3 weeks ago

May 3, 2026

Oakland Post

The 2026 Lucid Air Grand Touring is the kind of luxury EV that makes people stop and ask a simple question: Is this really better than a Tesla Model S, Mercedes EQS, or BMW i7? At $136,150, it has to do more than look futuristic. It has to feel special every time you get in it.

Finished in Stellar White Metallic with the Tahoe Grand Touring interior, this Lucid makes a strong first impression. The shape is sleek and low, yet it still feels elegant rather than trying too hard. Features like soft-close doors, powered illuminated door handles, 20-inch Aero Lite wheels, and the Glass Canopy Roof help the car feel expensive before you even start it.

Inside is where the Air Grand Touring really makes its case. The 34-inch Glass Cockpit Display and retractable Pilot Panel screen give the cabin a clean, modern look that still feels different from other EVs. The Tahoe Extended Leather and Lucid Black Alcantara headliner lifts the sense of occasion, and the front seats are a highlight. They are 20-way power-adjustable, heated, ventilated, and include massage. That matters because luxury buyers at this price expect comfort first.

Rear passengers are not ignored either. You get 5-zone heated rear seating, a rear center console display, and power rear and rear side window sunshades. Add in the Surreal Sound Pro system with 21 speakers, and the Air feels like a true long-distance luxury sedan.

Lucid also gives this car serious EV hardware. The dual-motor all-wheel-drive system, 900V+ charging architecture, and Wunderbox onboard charger are big talking points. Buyers in this segment care about range, charging speed, and everyday ease, not just raw performance. That is where the Lucid continues to stand out.

On the technology side, the Air Grand Touring includes DreamDrive Premium, with 3D Surround View Monitoring, Blind Spot Warning, Automatic Park In and Out, Automatic Emergency Braking, and a Driver Monitoring System with distracted and drowsy driver alerts. This one also has DreamDrive Pro, which adds future-capable ADAS hardware.

There are still some real-world annoyances. Based on your notes, the windshield wiper control is hard to find and use, and that matters more than people think in a high-tech car. When controls become less intuitive, even a beautiful interior can feel frustrating.

Still, the 2026 Lucid Air Grand Touring succeeds where it matters most. It feels luxurious, advanced, comfortable, and thoughtfully engineered. For buyers who want an EV sedan that feels truly premium and less common than the usual choices, this Lucid makes a very strong case.

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Snoop Dogg Celebrates 10 Til’ Midnight at the Compound

LOS ANGELES SENTINEL — The album is paired with a film that stars Snoop Dogg, Hitta J3, G Perico, and Ray Vaughn, and one of the strongest elements of the whole project is that the production stayed rooted right here in Los Angeles.

Published

3 weeks ago

May 3, 2026

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Snoop Dogg celebrated the premiere of 10 Til’ Midnight at his Inglewood recording studio & multipurpose facility, The Compound, but the night felt like much more than an album release. It felt like Los Angeles. It felt like legacy. And it felt like another major move from one of the city’s greatest cultural architects as he continues to prove that he is not just dropping music — he is building moments, shaping narratives, and pushing the culture forward in real time.

What made the event so powerful was the clarity behind the vision. During a panel conversation with DJ Hed, Snoop opened up about the heart behind 10 Til’ Midnight, explaining that the project was created to help bridge older and younger generations while also speaking to the long-standing divisions between Bloods and Crips in a unique way through film. That alone gave the project a different kind of weight. This was not just about songs. This was about using creativity as a tool for connection. This was about taking a story rooted in Los Angeles and telling it in a way that could bring people together.

Snoop Congratulated By Rapper & Fellow 10 Til Midnight Cast Member G Perico (CreativeLB/KreativeKapturez)

The album is paired with a film that stars Snoop Dogg, Hitta J3, G Perico, and Ray Vaughn, and one of the strongest elements of the whole project is that the production stayed rooted right here in Los Angeles. The film was shot in the city, including at WePlay Studios in Inglewood, which gave the entire project an even deeper hometown feel. It was not just a West Coast story in content — it was a Los Angeles-made production from the ground up.

That matters because, in a city like this, authenticity still carries weight. Snoop understands how to make sure that what he creates does not just represent Los Angeles on the surface, but actually comes from it.

What also makes 10 Til’ Midnight significant is that it represents another major step in Snoop’s evolution as both an artist and executive. Public reporting around the project identifies it as his 22nd studio album, but the bigger story is what it represents in this season of his life. This is one of several consecutive moves he has made in his 50s that show he is still building, still expanding, and still finding new ways to reinvent what the next chapter looks like.

Snoop Dogg at the Premiere of 10 Til Midnight (CreativeLB/KreativeKapturez)

Now, as the head of Death Row Records and the newly aligned leader of Death Row Pictures, he is taking the brand into a new dimension. That is what made this moment feel bigger than music. Snoop is not just protecting the legacy of Death Row — he is stretching it. He is expanding it beyond records and into film, visual storytelling, and larger creative worlds that can continue carrying the label’s impact forward. Public reporting has noted that this project arrives as part of that broader cinematic push.

That is a major Los Angeles move because the city has always been built on the intersection of music, film, neighborhood identity, and cultural storytelling. With 10 Til’ Midnight, Snoop is leaning all the way into that intersection.

The room at The Compound reflected that. It felt like a private premiere, but it also felt like a statement — a reminder that Snoop Dogg’s staying power has never been based only on nostalgia. It comes from his ability to remain connected, remain visionary, and remain in tune with how to move the culture without losing the essence of who he is.

That is why this premiere mattered. It was not just about celebrating another album. It was about witnessing a Los Angeles legend continue to evolve, continue to unify, and continue to use art to tell stories that hit deeper than entertainment alone.

In that sense, 10 Til’ Midnight became more than a project launch. It became another example of how Snoop Dogg is still taking Los Angeles to the next level — using music, film, and legacy together to build something bigger than a moment.

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OP-ED: Small Businesses Need Minnesota to Act on Pass-Through Tax Policy

MINNESOTA SPOKESMAN RECORDER — A Twin Cities immigrant entrepreneur who built several businesses including grocery stores in underserved neighborhoods is calling on Minnesota lawmakers to extend the Pass-Through Entity tax option before it expires, warning that its loss would hit small businesses already recovering from Operation Metro Surge with higher federal tax bills.

Published

3 weeks ago

May 3, 2026

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A Twin Cities Small Business Owner Is Urging Minnesota to Extend a Tax Policy That Could Save Thousands of Businesses

By Daniel Hernandez | Minnesota Spokesman Recorder

I came to the United States as a teenager with a clear goal: to build something meaningful through hard work. I put in long days in construction, restaurants, and landscaping; doing whatever it took to learn, save, and eventually start my own business.

Over time, I built and ran several successful ventures, including an event photography company, a magazine, a tax and accounting firm, and now grocery stores serving neighborhoods across the Twin Cities where other retailers chose not to invest. I’ve created jobs, supported families, and committed to communities that deserve stability and opportunity.

That’s why I’m speaking out now.

Small business owners in Minneapolis and the communities we serve are recovering from serious disruptions, including the impacts of Operation Metro Surge. That event hit immigrant communities especially hard. In my own case, I lost nearly half of my 60 employees and saw revenue drop by about 85%. While I worked to provide competitive wages, health benefits, and paid time off, the real hardship fell on the people who lost their jobs and income.

Even as we rebuild, small businesses are facing another challenge. The Minnesota Legislature is considering letting an important tax policy expire: the Pass-Through Entity tax option.

Here’s what that means in plain terms.

Many small businesses, including mine, are pass-through businesses. That means the business itself doesn’t pay income tax. Instead, the owners report the income on their personal tax returns. But under current federal rules, there’s a limit on how much state tax we can deduct. That often leads to higher federal tax bills.

The Pass-Through Entity option fixes that. It allows the business to pay the state tax directly, which means the business can fully deduct those taxes on its federal return and lower the total amount of income taxed federally. The result is straightforward: small business owners pay less in federal taxes, without reducing what the state collects.

This policy is not new or controversial. Thirty-six states already offer it. It doesn’t cost Minnesota anything, it’s revenue neutral. And it benefits more than 66,000 businesses across the state.

In a state where the cost of doing business is already high, it’s hard to understand why we wouldn’t offer the same basic tax treatment as states like California and Illinois.

Small businesses have carried a heavy load in recent years, through a pandemic, rising costs and public safety disruptions. We’ve adapted, reinvested and stayed committed to our communities. What we need now are practical policies that support that work, not make it harder.

If the Minnesota House does not act soon, many businesses will face significantly higher federal tax bills. That’s money that could otherwise be used to hire workers, raise wages or reinvest in local neighborhoods.

I urge Gov. Tim Walz and members of the House Tax Committee to pass House File 3127 and extend the Pass-Through Entity election.

Small businesses are the backbone of our communities. We’ve proven our resilience. Now we need our state leaders to show the same commitment to us.

Daniel Hernandez is the owner of Colonial Market located at 2100 E. Lake St.

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