Maccentric: Maccentric hosted their annual customer appreciation event May 14 in celebration of eight great years of Maccentric in Shreveport. The party was hosted at Shreveport’s Great Raft Brewing’s Tasting Room. Maccentric is the only locallyowned Apple Authorized Service Provider in Shreveport-Bossier City. There was delicious food and drinks provided by Ki Mexico, Some Like it Hot and Geauxsicles. Local favorite Engine also brought their unique musical stylings.

Mudbug Madness: Live music, crawfish eating contests, tasty food and attractions and games for the children were all part of Mudbug Madness. The festival was held May 22-25 in Festival Plaza. New this year was a festival app that anyone could download for free, which could answer almost any question a festival-goer might have about food costs, entertainment performance times and, of course, where to get fresh cooked crawfish. Downtown Shreveport Unlimited is the presenting organization for the festival, which is in its 31st year.

Jack White: Jack White, former frontman of The White Stripes, performed June 2 at the historic Shreveport Municipal Memorial Auditorium to a sold-out crowd of more than 3,000. Opening for White was Kelley Stoltz. White took to the legendary stage just after 9 p.m. Many songs were from his days with White Stripes, like “Seven Nation Army,” “Steady, As She Goes” and “Hello Operator.” White told a story in between songs about a conversation with his manager and how he demanded to come to Shreveport. The final song of the evening was “Goodnight, Irene,” written by Huddie Ledbetter.

Nest Fest: The fifth annual Nest Fest was held June 21 at the Bossier Civic Center, which included a design competition this year with seven contestants. The event raises funds and awareness for the Renesting Project in memory of Lauren Leigh Colvin. Renesting provides furniture and household goods for those served by such agencies as Providence House, the Fuller Center and Volunteers of America. Nearly 900 individuals have been served. The evening included a silent auction, music by Johnny Earthquake and the Moondogs and tasty cuisine. Silent auction items were divided into art, collectibles, dining, jewelry, ladies boutique, sports, autographs, travel and Vera Bradley. Underwriters included Access Midstream, Anita Mary Tipping Steinau Foundation, Twisted Root Burger and Willis-Knighton Health Systems. Myron Griffing, owner of SPACE: interiors, was awarded first place for best vignette.

Shreveport Green: For the second year, the pecan orchards at The Oaks of Louisiana played host to the tasty Shreveport Green fundraiser FEAST! on June 12. The event featured a menu of delectable foods grown or raised in Shreveport-Bossier City, including everything from the blue crab-crusted catfish to the butter for the bread. Chefs Jason Brady from Wine Country, Michael Brady from Fresh at Brookshire’s, as well as, the resident chefs in The Oaks kitchens Cameron Wallace and Billy Wiethaupt III prepared the food. Great Raft Brewing was on hand with some of their beer, and Eagle Distributing had a collection of wines that paired nicely with the evening’s menu.

Rich Table: A farm to table culinary experience, with Shreveport native Sarah Rich and her husband and partner Evan of San Francisco’s Rich Table paired art and food, was the monthly UNSCENE! event June 20. Produced by the Shreveport Regional Arts Council, Shreveport’s Municipal Memorial Auditorium played host to the successful event. Sixteen area visual artists were paired with area culinary artists for an unique culinary experience. Following the food and art inside the Municipal, the crowd moved outside to the drive-in theater that was set up across the street. The Disney cooking classic movie “Ratatouille” was shown on a large, inflatable screen.

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