The Gator Finds a Place at the Tailgate
The New York Times
Alligator, long a food source for Louisianians, has become more popular nationally. But its big moment comes at an annual football matchup in Baton Rouge.
BATON ROUGE, La. — The members of Hoppy’s Corner Tiger Tailgate have gathered in some fashion at the same spot across the street from Tiger Stadium for nearly every Louisiana State University home football game since the 1970s. But their tradition of roasting whole alligators didn’t begin until about 12 years ago, as a way of teasing fans of the University of Florida Gators.
“I had to get it out of my ditch,” joked Lance Cortez, 41, of Thibodaux, La., on a chilly Saturday in October, as he rubbed Tony Chachere’s Original Creole Seasoning and garlic powder on a wild alligator he’d lugged to the tailgate in a cooler. A patch of skin left on its back spelled L.S.U.
Mr. Cortez’s gator and another, larger farm-raised one were tied down to a homemade rotisserie built with a windshield-wiper motor. The reptiles, their mouths stuffed with apples, would spin for hours over hot coals.
