The smell of gumbo will be all over downtown New Iberia this weekend as the World Championship Gumbo Cookoff takes place Saturday and Sunday.

The cookoff is a two-day event that pits cooking teams from all over the state (and sometimes beyond) against each other as they compete to win first place in their respective categories.

Categories for the cookoff include amateur chicken and sausage, amateur seafood, amateur melange, professional seafood and professional non-seafood.

Thousands of people head to Bouligny Plaza every year to take part in the action, and a lineup of bands are placed at the Steamboat Warehouse Pavilion to provide hours of entertainment along with the delicious food.

This year’s musical lineup includes Bad Boys, Chubby Carrier and the Bayou Swamp Band, Nonc Nu and Da Wild Matous, Geno Delafose and Swampland Revival.

More than 75 teams will be cooking up delicious food in a variety of categories during the two day event, and those attending will have the chance to try it all.

The event has been put on annually by the Greater Iberia Chamber of Commerce for more than 30 years, with the exception of the COVID-canceled 2020 event. Initially created as a way to raise revenue for the chamber, the event has expanded to become one of the most prominent Iberia Parish festivals.

The World Championship Gumbo Cookoff is separated into two daily events. On Saturday, the Cajun Creole Foodfest and Meanest Beans Cookoff will take place in Bouligny Plaza, where teams who cook in non-gumbo categories will be competing against each other.

A junior division of gumbo cooking will also take place Saturday, which includes younger team members who will be making gumbo against other young people.

The gumbo division will begin on Sunday, with event-goers being able to purchase a bowl starting at 11 a.m.