Baton Rouge Major League Baseball fans will have their own corner of the world today.
Barcadia, a bar, restaurant and arcade, opened at 11 a.m. for the Major League Baseball Opening Day party. As MLB games air from midday until late, food and drink menu specials will be available throughout the day, including 75-cent wings, $2 hot dogs and $3 domestic drafts.
In addition to its regular menu and happy hour, Barcadia is offering several stadium-inspired special menu items for the event, including traditional ballpark snacks like nachos, chili cheese dogs, boneless wings, peanuts and Cracker Jacks.
The party is co-hosted by Bite and Booze blogger Jay Ducote and tommysTV founder and producer Tommy Talley.
“We’ve been saying for several years now that Major League Baseball Opening Day should be a national holiday,” Ducote said. “We wanted to do something this year to celebrate that.”
Ducote said he wants to create an atmosphere welcoming any and every type of baseball fan, from the employee on his or her lunch break, to the student leaving class, to a couple grabbing dinner.
“It’s beer and baseball and Barcadia for the day. We thought it would be a really fun way to spend the day and watch all the baseball games,” Ducote said. “To do it in a social environment, where we can invite anybody in town who’s a baseball fan to come join us.”
Barcadia general manager Mikal Stall said the restaurant is enthusiastic about hosting the event and collaborating with Ducote.
“Having more sports available to people, we think it’s a great way to kick it off,” Stall said.
Both Stall and Ducote are expecting a large turnout for the day-long watch party.
“How could you really pass all [the food and drink specials] up, while watching baseball at the same time?” Stall said.
Ducote agreed that people in the area shouldn’t miss this event.
“Students should swing by and try to enjoy the experience of being in a bar that really is trying to celebrate baseball’s opening day,” Ducote said.
Along with Barcadia’s upcoming event, Ducote is working on more ways to expand his résumé.
He recently signed on at White Star Market as a tenant to open his newest project, Gov’t Taco. The booth will be an addition to everything else he does, including his podcast, TV appearances and blog.
“We’re certainly really excited about having the first food service location with my name on it,” Ducote said.
The entrepreneur plans on being heavily involved in the hiring process for Gov’t Taco. While he plans to be at the eatery as much as he can, Ducote said his hires would oversee the day-to-day operations of the booth.
“Getting to put forward whatever flavor combinations we want and whatever’s seasonal and fresh in the form of a taco, that’s the idea behind Gov’t Taco — to be a very kind of modern American-type taco joint,” he said.