Mardi Gras Feasting in Minneapolis: Where to Find the Celebratory Flavors of Fat Tuesday
Dig into a colorful Mardi Gras parade of king cake, cajun food, beignets, and other New Orleans-style treats at Minneapolis restaurants and bakeries.
In Minneapolis, Mardi Gras might look a little different than it does on the streets of New Orleans, but you don't need to travel to Louisiana to enjoy those classic Fat Tuesday flavors. From king cake in Minneapolis to jambalaya and plenty of deep-fried delights, Minneapolis restaurants and bakeries are getting in the carnival spirit with late winter specials that will bring the flavorful pre-Lenten party to your table. Laissez les bon temps rouler!
Why are there so many indulgent baked goods and fried foods eaten on Mardi Gras?
Mardi Gras—also known as Fat Tuesday, Shrove Tuesday, or Pancake Tuesday—is the last day before the beginning of Lent, traditionally a time of fasting and self-discipline for many Christian communities. Globally, the custom of eating sweets, butter, and richer foods (and generally getting up to some carnival mayhem) took hold to offer a last burst of indulgence before the somber, reflective season begins on Ash Wednesday. In America, Mardi Gras was brought to America by French colonists, which is why you’ll find the biggest Mardi Gras celebrations in cities in formerly French-colonized territories like New Orleans, Mobile, Biloxi, Galveston, and St. Louis.
Where to Find King Cake in Minneapolis
Celebrate Mardi Gras in Minneapolis with one of the most iconic dishes of the holiday, the tri-color king cake iced and sprinkled in purple, gold, and green. The sweet brioche dough is braided or shaped into an oval, and often filled with chocolate, cream cheese, nuts, and/or coffe cake-style cinnamon sugar. A hidden trinket, typically a tiny plastic baby figurine, is tucked inside the cake, and the person who finds it is bestowed with good luck and is traditionally responsible for hosting the next Mardi Gras celebration.
You can pre-order a whole king cake at Isles Bun and Coffee, where the sweet braided braided dough is topped with cream cheese frosting. Wuollet Bakery also offers king cake in Minneapolis during the Mardi Gras season with the classic purple, gold, and green decorations. Sarah Jane's Bakery has pre-orders for their King Cake that feeds 8-10 people.
Where to Find Other Mardi Gras Sweets in Minneapolis
Beignets at St. Genevieve: This cozy, Parisian-inspired cafe in Minneapolis’s Lynnhurst neighborhood offers a French-accented brunch on Saturdays and Sundays, where you’ll find fried and powdered sugar-coated beignets on the menu year round.
Pączki at Sarah Jane’s Bakery and Kramarczuk's: Pączki are Polish donuts made with an extra-rich dough that are deep-fried, filled, and then covered with powdered sugar or icing. A traditional snack for Fat Tuesday, you can find pączki in Minneapolis at Sarah Jane’s Bakery in Northeast Minneapolis (filled with custard, raspberry, peach, or strawberry rhubarb) and at Kramarczuk's (filled with chocolate custard, vanilla creme, or raspberry) for pre-order and pickup on Mardi Gras.
Pancake Day Specials for Shrove Tuesday at Merlin’s Rest: This Irish pub in Minneapolis’s Longfellow neighborhood hosts an annual Pancake Day celebration on Shrove Tuesday, slinging pancakes and toppings traditionally linked to Mardi Gras in the UK and Ireland because they’re a good way to use up the eggs, butter, and sugar that would be avoided during start of Lent.
Where to Find Cajun Food for Mardi Gras in Minneapolis
Cajun Specialties at Smack Shack: One of Minneapolis’s early food truck-turned-restaurant success stories, North Loop’s Smack Shack has a menu packed with sustainable seafood and cajun flavors perfect for a Minneapois Mardi Gras feast. From jumbo peel-and-eat shrimp and jambalaya to catfish po boys and lobster poutine over cajun fries (really), the regular menu has plenty to offer—plus they always bring out New Orleans-inspired specials, king cake, and Hurricane cocktails on Mardi Gras proper.
Cajun Tapas at Guacaya Bistreaux: At this Caribbean tapas bar in North Loop, Panamanian chef Pedro Wolcott combines Latin Caribbean and Louisiana cajun flavors—think cajun-spiced salmon with Louisiana hot sauce beurre blanc, charbroiled oysters with cajun garlic citron butter and citrus panko, New Orleans-style barbecue shrimp, and traditional jambalaya.
Seafood Boils at the Cajun House and Cajun Boiling: If you’re looking to celebrate Mardi Gras in Minneapolis with a Cajun-style seafood boil, this pair of boil-focused restaurants offer lots of options for filling the table with fragrant shellfish, potatoes, corn, and sausage. Cajun House in Dinkytown offers Asian-cajun fusion and Cajun Boiling on Eat Street offers traditional boils alongside fried seafood, po boy sandwiches, and beignets.
