Mauriceville ready for crawfish tribute this weekend

Get out your stretchy pants. It's time once again for the AYCE in Mauriceville, better known as "all you can eat" crawfish at the annual community festival paying tribute to the crustacean.

Nearly 50 years ago, crawfish farming was beginning and Mauriceville had one of the first farms in Texas, leading to the nickname, "Crawfish Capital of Texas." And that became the community's reason to celebrate with a special event.

The tradition continues with the annual Mauriceville Crawfish Bash on Friday night and all day Saturday. And with Friday being Cinco de Mayo, the festival is taking on a Mexican flair with "crawfish and sombreros." Friday night will even feature sangria wine and crawfish tacos.

It might be hard to determine what is the biggest attraction. The festival will have a full carnival, family activities, games, live music, crawfish races, a crawfish eating contest, and a variety of foods and drinks.

All that adds up to lots of activities, but for some, the "all you can eat" crawfish may be the biggest draw. On Saturday, a giant tent will be set up for people to settle down and pig out on spicy mudbugs, potatoes, and corn.

"All you can eat" tickets are $35 in advance and are available through the Mauriceville Heritage Association's Facebook page and website, http://www.crawfishfest.org. The tickets will be $45 at the event. Some 20 crawfish teams will be boiling up the foods and the crowd will be able to help choose their favorites.

The Mauriceville Heritage Association is a non-profit group that has been assisting the small town area for decades. The crawfish festival is the group's biggest fundraiser, along with being a way for the community to gather. The group uses its money to help a number of activities in the community, including youth groups and livestock shows, a senior citizens Christmas party, donations for Blue Santa program for needy children, plus scholarships to local students.

The Crawfish Bash will be at community center, 7441 Cohenour Road off State Highway 62. There is no entrance fee, but parking will be $10 per vehicle on the improved parking area.

The carnival will be setting up and be open Thursday. The carnival company charges for rides.

Gates for the festival will be open Friday from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. and then from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. The annual Crawfish Parade will be held before the gates open. No coolers will be allowed, but people may bring their own chairs.

Friday night's entertainment will be a DJ. Live music will be featured throughout the day on Saturday. The music lineup has Caleb and April from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., Chris Hantz and Royboy from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m., Texas Thunder from 4 to 6 p.m., and Junior Lacrosse and Sumtin' Sneaky from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m.