Since the New Year’s violence, service workers across the French Quarter have navigated a strange dissonance, grappling with the emotional and financial fallout of an assault that hit so close to home while putting on a smile to do what they do so well: Show tourists a good time in a romanticized city that could live or die by their spending.

The Cat's Meow has ordered 25 to 30% more alcohol for Super Bowl weekend. See how preparations are coming along.