New Orleans has always had a soft spot in my heart. I come from a family that plans their next meal, during the meal that precedes it – and New Orleans is foodie paradise. Add to that, some of the friendliest, most open people you’ll meet, great music and a “laissez les bon temps rouler” vibe and you’ve got yourself a great town.

I have visited my beloved NOLA many times, but always avoided Mardi Gras due to my proclivity for keeping my clothes on and aversion to thick crowds. But this year, I made an exception.

Fresh off the Super Bowl victory and the election of a new mayor, the town feels even more electric than visits past. Yesterday, I parked it Uptown with countless families who had staked out their traditional parade viewing/picnicking spot along the grassy street car tracks on St. Charles Ave. We whiled the day away chatting, people watching and noshing nonstop on amazing food, breaking only to hop up on a ladder to watch one of five parades pass by. Got the throws to prove it! I ate some of the best jambalaya (cooked in a cauldron right there), discovered the Cajun Grasshopper (cream cheese stuffed jalapeno topped with flank steak wrapped in bacon- yum), and tasted some great mini muffeletas and slivers of king cake. Kids (mostly in Brees #9 jerseys) were everywhere – tossing around the nerf football or plush toy animal throws they had caught in the last parade.

At the end of the day, my perception has changed. Away from Bourbon Street, Mardi Gras IS a family-friendly event. And the only breasts I saw yesterday were those in the Popeye’s chicken bucket next family over.