NEW ORLEANS — “It’s more civilized in the morning.”
Ducking into a seafood market for a working lunch on Tuesday, that was oyster shucker Greg’s response when I shared that I’d never seen Bourbon Street this quiet.
To be fair, it was also the first time I’d seen Bourbon Street in the daylight.
The streets of the French Quarter were still wet from overnight street cleaning. There were more people working to set up the Super Bowl LIX festivities than tourists roaming.
While Bourbon Street is relatively quiet with the game just five days away, the law enforcement presence is anything but.
Multiple national security guards can be seen huddling at nearly every intersection, and the Kansas City Chiefs’ hotel on the edge of the French Quarter is surrounded by armored vehicles, motorcycle cops and a secured entrance around the entire building.
When Greg denied a man from entering the restaurant with an outside beverage, the verbal exchange quickly escalated onto Bourbon Street. That’s where the man was quickly confronted by a national guard woman and told to quickly move along.
This week poses an enormous test for New Orleans following the New Year’s Day terror attack in the French Quarter, and as the city attempts to prove it deserves to stay in the informal Super Bowl rotation.
New Orleans is preparing to play host to its record 11th Super Bowl on Sunday, but its first since 2013.
President Trump is expected to become the first sitting president to attend the Super Bowl on Sunday, further heightening the level of security around the city.
While the presence of law enforcement isn’t noticeably present just a few blocks away from the French Quarter, more than 2,000 federal agents have been deployed across the city in conjunction with local police and hundreds of national guard troops.
Armored checkpoints and mandated bag search will run until the day after the game, but the party is just getting started. It’s festival season in New Orleans, concluding with Mardi Gras on March 4.
Greg said he has worked for decades at several of the finest restaurants in New Orleans. He’s planning to take Wednesday off to rest up ahead of the weekend and the busy run through Fat Tuesday.
Shaking his head with a smile and a massive fresh Gulf oyster on the house, he chuckled from experience.
“It’s going to be crazy for the next six weeks.”
–Derek Harper, CEO of Field Level Media, is on the scene for his 14th Super Bowl.
