The fifth of mayhem

Cinco de Mayo is not a Baton Rouge holiday. No one gets the day off. No courthouse closes. There is no parade, unless you count the slow procession of SUVs inching toward a margarita machine.

Forget Valentine's Day. Forget Pi Day. Forget whatever the restaurant industry invented to put rears in teetering hi-tops. In Baton Rouge, the fifth of May has become something closer to a civic ritual—people who could not locate Puebla on a map felt called to honor its battle with queso.

In honor of the Mexicans who derrotaron the French at the Battle of Puebla, RedEye went looking for Mexican food. Superior Grill on Government was five deep at the bar. Mestizo had tents outside. The new Fuego on West Lee had lines. Modesto on Burbank added live music, in case anyone needed another reason to drink on a Tuesday.

Then came the revelation.

The Taco Bell on Burbank Drive had a drive-thru line spilling into the street. The Bell had timing on its side: Cinco de Mayo fell on Taco Tuesday, when the chain already offers discounted tacos. The first 30,000 rewards members could claim five Diablo Dusted Crispy Chicken Nuggets for a dollar. Somewhere, a brand manager looked at the calendar and heard angels.

As one local restaurateur put it: "People fall into themes for industry-created events." That is a polite way of saying we are programmable, especially when the programming comes with sauce packets.

RedEye found a quieter place. Court to Table, Modesto's sister restaurant, has tacos and margaritas tucked into the menu, and one item that needs no holiday: chips and salsa.

Viva!

—Mukul Verma