GONZALES - The 57th Annual Gonzales Jambalaya Festival kicked off Friday and will run through Sunday. Each day the festival will have live band performances and a cooking contest. The finalists will compete on Sunday and the champion will be announced.

The festival is free to the public and is located at 219 South Irma Boulevard. There's a carnival, pageant, car show and a 5K run.

"It's what we're known for, were the jambalaya capital of the world and we promote the city of Gonzales everywhere we go, here locally but we've had guys cook in Washington D.C., we've had them cook all over the nation for the city of Gonzales," says Mike Gonzales, president of the Jambalaya Festival Association.

Go here to find the full schedule for the weekend.