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Terrebonne Parish, Bayou Country

Houma, Louisiana: heads season, tails season and Bayou Country shrimp

Houma is the heart of Terrebonne Parish, a town built on shrimp, crabs, oysters and crawfish. Here is how it eats through the year, its very local festivals, and a tails season pasta for your own kitchen.

A seafood boil of shrimp, potatoes, corn and sausage spread on a table with a shaker of Port A Shrimp Shack

Bayou Country eating

Houma was founded in 1834 as the seat of Terrebonne Parish, which is French for good earth. Bayou Terrebonne runs through the middle of town, the Intracoastal Waterway crosses it, and the Houma Navigation Canal runs 36 miles to the Gulf. The city takes its name from the Houma people, and the tourism bureau notes that the name means red, possibly for the sun or for their crawfish war emblem.

Life here has long turned on fishing, trapping, sugarcane, shrimping, oysters and crabs, and the food follows the water. Cajun, Creole, Vietnamese and Native American cooks all shape what lands on the plate.

The Houma tourism bureau's Bayou Country Crawfish Trail has more than 40 stops, and it splits the year in two. Heads season starts as Mardi Gras approaches and is all about boiled crawfish, peeled at the table with potatoes, corn and sausage. When it winds down in early summer, tails season begins, and the tail meat goes into jambalaya, fettuccine, gumbo, étouffée, crawfish pie and stuffed po-boys.

Shrimp, crabs and the coast road

Down LA 56 toward Cocodrie and out at Pointe-aux-Chenes, anglers fish for speckled trout, redfish, black drum and sheepshead, and offshore charters go after yellowfin tuna and snapper. Shore crabbers work the piers on Island Road.

Louisiana's spring inshore shrimp season opened May 13 in 2026, and the fall season for this stretch of coast opened August 17. Brown shrimp generally run May to July and white shrimp from mid August to mid December. Markets on the Crawfish Trail sell live and boiled blue crabs alongside the crawfish. The meat markets are worth a stop too: Bourgeois Meat Market in Gray has been smoking meats and making boudin for more than a century.

What is in season

The Houma food calendar

Shrimp and oyster seasons are set each year by the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries. Crawfish timing follows the farms and the weather.

WhatWhen
Weenie Spaghetti Festival at Courthouse SquareIn season nowJanuary
Heads season: boiled crawfishIn season nowLate winter to early summer
Tails season: crawfish in pasta, pies, étouffée and po-boysIn season nowEarly summer on
Roux for a Reason gumbo cook-offIn season nowMarch
Brown shrimp seasonIn season nowMay to July Official dates
White shrimp seasonIn season nowMid August to mid December Official dates
Rougarou Fest and the fall food festivalsIn season nowOctober

Festivals and events

Houma food festivals

Dates from Explore Houma, the parish tourism bureau. Check before you go, since small festivals move. Dates update every month: confirmed means the organizers posted it, expected means it follows the usual pattern.

The next twelve months in Houma

  1. Oct2026
  2. Nov
  3. Dec
  4. Jan20279
  5. Feb
  6. Mar6
  7. Apr3
  8. May
  9. Jun
  10. Jul
  11. Aug
  12. Sep

From the lineup

Bottles for a Bayou Country kitchen

One for tails season, one for the boil, and one for the table.

Gulf Coast Blackening

Some Heat, 3 oz, $9

Smoky and herby with a pepper build. It seasons crawfish tails and cream without drowning them, and it is our blend for trout and redfish.

Port A Shrimp Shack

Some Heat, 3.5 oz, $9

Our boil seasoning, citrus and celery forward. Built for shrimp, and it works dry on anything that comes out of the fryer.

Grand Isle Hook Set Sauce

Some Heat, 8 fl oz, $12

Louisiana style and bright. Eggs first, then boiled shrimp, crawfish, oysters and gumbo.

Cook it at home

Tails season crawfish fettuccine

When heads season is over, the tail meat goes into pasta. This is the rich, creamy version you find across Bayou Country, and it takes about 30 minutes.

What you need

  • 1 lb Louisiana crawfish tails, with the fat
  • 12 oz fettuccine
  • 4 tbsp butter
  • 1 onion and 1 bell pepper, finely chopped
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1.5 cups heavy cream
  • 1 cup grated Parmesan
  • Gulf Coast Blackening
  • Green onions and parsley

How it goes

  1. Cook the fettuccine in well salted water until just tender. Save a cup of the pasta water.
  2. Melt the butter in a wide pan and cook the onion and pepper until soft, about 8 minutes, then add the garlic for a minute.
  3. Add the crawfish tails with their fat and about 2 teaspoons of Gulf Coast Blackening. Stir for 2 minutes.
  4. Pour in the cream and simmer until it thickens a little, 4 to 5 minutes, then stir in the Parmesan.
  5. Toss in the pasta, loosening it with the pasta water. Taste, add more seasoning if you want it, and finish with green onions and parsley.
Worth knowing. The yellow fat in the bag of tails is where the flavor is. Do not rinse it off, and start with less seasoning than you think, then add more at the end.

Another one from our kitchen: Port A Shrimp Boil

Questions

Questions about Houma

What are heads season and tails season in Houma?

It is how the Houma tourism bureau's Crawfish Trail splits the year. Heads season, from around Mardi Gras into early summer, is for boiled crawfish. Tails season follows, when the tail meat goes into pasta, pies, étouffée, gumbo and po-boys.

When is Rougarou Fest?

Rougarou Fest is held each October in downtown Houma. The 2026 festival runs October 23 to 25, and admission is free.

What is weenie spaghetti?

Spaghetti cooked with sliced hot dogs in a red gravy, a Bayou Country comfort dish. Houma gives it its own festival every January.

When is shrimp season around Houma?

The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries sets the dates each year. In 2026 the spring inshore season opened May 13 and the fall season for these waters opened August 17. Brown shrimp generally run May to July, white shrimp mid August to mid December.

Do you ship to Houma?

Yes. We ship anywhere in the U.S. Orders go out within two business days, and shipping is free over $45.

Run a shop, market or kitchen in Houma? Carry JollyGringo'z by the case. Tell us about the shop and the price sheet, the case packs and a sample bottle come straight back.

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Keep going

More Louisiana towns near Houma

Jefferson Parish

Grand Isle, Louisiana

Fishing rodeos, speckled trout, redfish and Gulf shrimp

Orleans Parish

New Orleans, Louisiana

Barbecue shrimp, po-boys, gumbo and the spring festivals

East Baton Rouge Parish

Baton Rouge, Louisiana

LSU tailgates, crawfish, red beans and SugarFest across the river

St. Martin Parish

Breaux Bridge, Louisiana

The Crawfish Capital of the World and the first crawfish étouffée

All 25 Louisiana town guides

Before you go

The organizers

More from us

Where our facts come from

We checked every date and title on this page against these sources in October 2026. Festival dates move, so confirm with the organizers before you travel.

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Ten small batch rubs and sauces, low on salt so you can season heavy. Any four, 15% off, and free shipping over $45.

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