Give it up!

Monday, February 18, 2010

Mum's still the word on Mary Beth Babcock's special guest.

It will be someone of note, hinted the owner of Dwelling Spaces at 119 S. Detroit Ave. — someone she'll pair with an 8-foot robot and a blue whale.

"We are also waiting on some musicians to confirm to play at the shop," said Babcock, one of the merchants in the Blue Dome District who are gearing up and decking out for their first Mardi Gras parade and celebration starting at 7 p.m. Tuesday.

Like other Blue Dome merchants, Babcock is constructing a float for the parade — hence the robot and blue whale, "all things that we love at Dwelling Spaces."

The floats will start moving west on First Street near Greenwood Avenue at 7 p.m., turn south on Detroit Avenue, then east on Second Street before ending at Greenwood. After the parade, most establishments in the area will be open, offering food and drink specials and live entertainment. You'll even find beer troughs on a few corners — near Blank Slate, Yokozuna, Dilly Deli and El Guapo's.

And you better believe you'll see lots of beads in the traditional purple, gold and green of Mardi Gras.

New Orleans has been synonymous with Mardi Gras for generations with images of bead-strung Bourbon Street signs and jazz-fueled frivolity probably pop-pop-fizz-fizzing to the minds of Tulsans who have ever visited — or, most recently, watched the Saints win the Super Bowl.

But the Blue Dome Merchant's Association wanted to bring a little of the Big Easy to the 918. Having celebrated St. Patrick's Day and Cinco de Mayo, a Mardi Gras celebration seemed like a fun idea — one planners hope will bring more attention to a slowly burgeoning downtown entertainment scene.

"Fat Tuesday will hopefully grow to be as exciting and fun as St. Paddy's Day in the Blue Dome District," said David Ellis, one of the new owners of Dirty's Tavern at 325 E. Second St., where entertainment will include live music, hurricane drink specials and Mardi Gras beads.

Speaking of beads, Muriel Hakim has boxes of them in her office. She's coordinating the carnival. And she's already planning a special headpiece to wear on Fat Tuesday — but it, like Babcock's guest of note and some of the floats you'll see in the parade, will remain secret until that night.

"Some people are just really going all out," she said.

The association hopes the parade and subsequent street-party atmosphere will lure people from the area back downtown. Misconceptions that Tulsa has no night-life downtown are still common, said Hakim, who intends for this event to correct that.

She and the Blue Dome merchants are banking on this being big enough to bring back next Mardi Gras.

"We are trying to create more events in downtown Tulsa to continue stimulating the economy," Babcock said. "There are so many ambitious business owners that are thrilled to be in downtown Tulsa. Now, we just need support from the community to keep it thriving and growing."
Mardi goings-on
From live music to Cajun dishes, there’s something to whet your appetite literally and figuratively on Mardi Gras in the Blue Dome district.

Here’s a sampling of what some establishments have to offer.

Arnie’s Bar
318 E. Second St. $2.50 Pabst Blue Ribbon and $3 Corona week of Mardi Gras.

El Guapo’s
332 E. First St.
$1 tacos, $2 Tecate, $3 Bohemia Beer, $5 Cazadores tequila shots and $6 Cazadores margaritas.

Mcnellie’s
409 E. First St. $5 hurricanes on Fat Tuesday.

Yokozuna
309 E. Second St.
Karaoke all night, $3 Estrella beer and $6 Bull Frog cocktails — a mix of Jeremiah Weed sweet tea-flavored vodka, lemonade and tart cherry juice.

Blue Dome Diner
311 E. Second St.
Cajun menu and beer specials all day with New Orleans reggae-funk band Ego Culture playing at 9 p.m. on Mardi Gras.

Enso
230 E. First St.
Heady P and Dub Nasty are slated to perform plus $4 SoCo lime shots and $4 Abita beers.

Joe Momma’s
112 S. Elgin Ave.
The Zuits will perform Tuesday night, and specials include a Cajun-themed menu for the day as well as $2 PBR tall boys, $1 Miller High Life and $2 Miller Light and Coors Light cans.
Cajun cookin’
Just when you thought those New Year’s resolutions were showing some progress, here comes Mardi Gras.

Mardi Gras — also known as Fat Tuesday, Carnival and Shrove Tuesday — is a last-ditch effort to eat, drink and be merry before the Lenten season begins, and it is a particularly special day for some Tulsa-area restaurants.

So, why fight it when Tuesday rolls around? Just loosen your belt and promise to do better beginning Ash Wednesday.

— Scott cherry, World Scene Writer

Copeland’s of New Orleans
3320 W. Kenosha St., Broken Arrow
After 4:30 p.m., order the crawfish boil (two pounds for $12.99 or five pounds for $30) with corn and potatoes. Hurricanes will be flowing from the bar. There also will be face painting for the kids and music from Big Daddy and the Blues Kickers.

Hebert’s Specialty Meats
2101 E. 71st St.
The party is on from 4 to 9 p.m. with free beer (as long as it lasts) and free samples of étoufée, gumbo, boudin and red beans and rice. Other goodies for sale include king cake, boiled shrimp, oysters on the half shell, grilled steaks and sausage and $2 longnecks.

Chicory & Chives
3121 Charles Page Blvd.
A Louisiana-style shrimp boil will be served 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. for $12.99. This feast will include 12 large shrimp, chicken-and-sausage gumbo, new potatoes, corn on the cob, cocktail sauce and andouille sausage cooked in traditional spices.
Hurricane warning
The hurricane drink is aptly named.

With all the rum that goes into a traditional version, it can definitely blow you over. And the fruit juices masking the liquor’s potent punch? Consider that the eye of the storm.

“Hurricanes embody the French Quarter and Mardi Gras,” said David Ellis, who owns Dirty’s Tavern, 325 E. Second St., with Seth Auch and Mitch Horn.

New Orleans tavern owner Pat O’Brien created the drink in the 1940s, Ellis said, and it’s been a symbol of Bourbon Street ever since.

“We want to bring as much of that atmosphere to Dirty’s on Fat Tuesday,” said Ellis, who’ll have live music Mardi Gras night. But “you can’t do that without serving hurricanes.”

He shared the hurricane recipe his bartenders will be using Tuesday.

New Orleans-style Hurricane

1 ounce white rum

1 ounce Jamaican dark rum

1 ounce Bacardi 151 rum

3 ounces orange juice

3 ounces unsweetened pineapple juice

½ ounce grenadine syrup

Crushed ice

1. Combine all ingredients, mix well — shake or stir.

2. Pour over crushed ice in hurricane glass. Best enjoyed through a small straw.

Garnish with fruit wedge, if desired.

Read more from this Tulsa World article at http://www.tulsaworld.com/scene/article.aspx?subjectid=43&articleid=20100213_278_D3_Rhonda865474