NEW ORLEANS – Late Show with Stephen Colbert bandleader Jon Batiste took viewers on a wild ride through the city in his latest trip to his hometown.
Batiste started the segment, “Piano 1-0-Fun: New Orleans,” with what he presented as six things everyone visiting New Orleans needed to know.
Things quickly took a turn for the silly, and then the surreal, as Batiste’s guide to the city went off the rails.
Among the non-stop barrage of jokes and one-liners, Batiste poked fun at the unique spelling of many local street names.
Batiste’s third lesson had to do with food, specifically Batiste’s favorite local meal, the humble poboy sandwich.
“You can find the best poboys in unexpected locations, like grocery stores and gas stations,” he said.
Batiste proceeds to lay out the route to his favorite poboy in New Orleans.
“You take Chartres to Natchez, down to Tchoupitoulas,” he said.
And that’s where the best sight gag of the piece fits in, as Batiste instructs the viewers to “hang a right on Smith Street,” with a doctored street sign reading “Bjonlignounolas” appearing on the screen as he says “Smith.”
From “Bjonlignounolas” Street, viewers are instructed to correctly answer a wizard named Dennis’ riddle to earn the best poboy in town.
What do you think of Batiste’s take on the spelling of local street names?