Everything you need to know about Saturday’s Night Market BTR
After getting rained out on its original date, this food-focused fest is back 🍙🪭
Grab a boba and a banh mi, dance to some K-pop, and pick up original art celebrating Baton Rouge’s rich Asian culture. Rescheduled from earlier this month due to weather, Night Market BTR will be held this Saturday, May 30, from 4 p.m. to 10 p.m. in downtown Baton Rouge.
Since it launched in 2023, the food-focused fest has become one of the hottest tickets in town for discovering new flavors, artisans and entertainers in the Capital Region.
“This is a big celebration for the city,” says founder and organizer Laura Siu-Nguyen. “A lot of people tell me it’s their favorite event.”
Night Market BTR launched three years ago at the Electric Depot, where it drew 5,000 attendees and famously backed up traffic from the interstate along Government Street because of overwhelming interest. The event moved downtown in 2024 and doubled attendance, attracting about 10,000. Last year, numbers jumped to 13,000 when the market shifted to its new home at North Fourth Street and Spanish Town Road and expanded hours.
Attendees are encouraged to buy tickets in advance. They’re modestly priced at $5 and help offset security costs, which have risen considerably for local events and parades in Baton Rouge, Nguyen says. Tickets will also be available at the door for $10. The festival entrance is on North Street. A clear bag policy will be in place.
Once through the gate, expect to find 52 makers and food vendors set up on both sides of North Fourth Street.
Food vendors are one of Night Market BTR’s most anticipated components, Nguyen says. The festival has become an incubator of sorts, helping businesses like Offset Smoker and Oni 225 develop strong followings and open full-time operations. Those two will be back this year, along with brick-and-mortar restaurants like Sambath Donuts and Little Kitchen and pop-ups like Get Your Mom and Dim Sum, Rougaroux and K-BBQ Boy. Nguyen says some culinary booths will be debuting their businesses at this year’s Night Market.
With so many unexpected foods to try, some attendees come to the event with a strategy, Nguyen says.
“There’s a group that’s been going to Night Market since the beginning with like 20 people, and each of them stands in a different line so they can try different things,” she says.
Joining the food vendors along North Fourth Street are numerous artists and makers, including Succulent Boutique by Ing, Sunsai Art and Kintsugi Jewelry Kokoro. Nguyen says the event gives patrons a chance to see the depth of creativity in Greater Baton Rouge’s Asian community.
Entertainment kicks off at 5:30 p.m. with 14 different performers or groups taking the stage on Spanish Town Road. Among them are Korean and R&B singer Ace Allias, the Southern Lotus Lion Dance Association and LSU’s Tiger Love Dance Team.
Night Market BTR is one of hundreds of night markets around the country, which celebrate Asian culture by recreating a traditional night bazaar, a cultural touchstone and social hub of Asian neighborhoods worldwide. The Baton Rouge event is held in May to coordinate with Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month.
For tickets and more information, see nightmarketbtr.com.
