Cooke Street Carnival is a grassroots neighborhood festival that happens each Fall on Cooke Street which is located in the Idlewild Neighborhood, just a few blocks East of Historic Oakwood in Downtown Raleigh. The event was inspired by the Notting Hill Carnival in London, Mardi Gras in New Orleans, as well as your typical Southern Fall Festivals/Carnivals that happen all around North Carolina each year.