Oak Street Home of the NOLA Po-Boy Fest

The Oak Street Po-Boy Festival brings thousands to Oak Street in Carrollton, a New Orleans community.  Patrons will enjoy food, music and friends with a nice small-town main street vibe.  Oak Street has become known as a main street in the community although it never was planned to have a municipal market.

Oak Street made its debut in New Orleans during the 1831 development project which was headed by the New Orleans Canal and Banking Co.  The land that was purchased was the Macarty Plantation and soon became Carrollton.  The riverfront for the plantation would be used to connect with New Orleans via railroad.  This area is now called the New Basin Canal and is located at the Interstate 10 corridor.

Carrollton became a hubbub of commercial activity on the riverfront.  This was around the same area as the current Carrollton Market’s location on Dublin Street.  Today the street names and numbers due to road and street cars being added.  Oak Street has become the main street today due to its central location, electrified streetcar and its own shuttle service.

There was a time though when it was not the place to go due to the new highways that would connect the parish.  The historic urbanism and those who valued the rich history of Oak Street brought it back to life.  The new pedestrian-scale blocks helped the process and was a great addition to the centralized location.  Intimate and quaint yet urbane also is the perfect way to describe Oak Street.  That’s part of what has made it the perfect place for the NOLA Po-Boy Festival.