Just don't eat there

If you're in New Orleans and the restaurant you've booked thinks so highly of itself that it makes you sign a contract in case of no-show, you don't need to eat there. Even in the post-Katrina Landrieu-Treme-Hospitality-Zone Era of rampant Disneyfication there are still plenty of places you can go and eat just as well for cheaper and with less hassle. But during Jazzfest, which brings with it the most trend-conscious asshole type of tourist imaginable, some of the trendier places can obviously get away with this sort of thing.