Tobacco Road 12th Annual Crawfish Boil & Seafood Fest

Miami’s oldest bar is turning 100 this year and this past weekend it hosted its 12th Annual Crawfish Boil and Seafood Fest. It’s amazing to think that it has been ten years since I first came across Tobacco Road. It was a love affair from the start; from endless happy hours with buckets of Carib, Road Burgers, and amazing live music, to being where Leslie and I first met. It’s not just the personal memories, there is inherent history in this bar that you feel from the minute you step through the door.

I have to admit, this was our first time at the Road’s Crawfish Boil, but as soon as we arrived we knew it’d be a good time. This festival is not just for the crawfish enthusiast, people from all walks of life come together to enjoy good fresh seafood, cold drinks, and live music. In spite of the weather which was not cooperating at times, we—along with a few hundred people—were happy to squeeze in under the tents. At the center of the festival, the crew from Rosey Baby dished out the Mudbugs, Gumbo, and Shrimp Po’boys, while The River Seafood & Oyster Bar provided Fire Roasted Oysters. Along the perimeter, local food trucks like Ms. Cheezious, Latin Burger, and Los Chamos offered their seafood creations along with their regular fare.

As opposed to the smaller backyard boils we’ve been to, [ like this one ] the process here was slightly different. For starters, the crawfish were boiled 50 lbs a batch in two massive square kettles with metal strainers. A hoist was used to transfer the crawfish between kettles. Once cooled, they were lifted to a nearby table and given a final dusting of spice. Having to keep up with the demand of hundreds of festival goers produced short soak times, that didn’t allow the crawfish to take in enough spice. This left the heads lacking of juices and the meat a little bland. But, as the day went on the soak times increased as did the flavor being imparted to the crawfish. The price per order was $18 for about a pound of crawfish.  It seemed a bit steep, considering the average person can put down 3 to 4 lbs.

What’s a Cajun inspired festival without some live music? Taking the stage first were The Wholetones, a local band playing a cool mix of bluegrass, folk, and punk. They were followed up by a Tobacco Road staple IKO IKO with their brand of “urban swamp blues.”

Closing out the night with some cold beers, good tunes, and great company made for another memorable night at the Road. But, we couldn’t leave without having a Grilled Blue and Bacon (or two) from Ms. Cheezious, not exactly Cajun, but a temptation too good to pass up. Whether you make it out to Tobacco Road for a festival or are just stopping in after work, you are bound to have a good time making your own history and being a part of theirs.