I visited the Gulf Coast and ate my weight in king cakes. These are my favorites.
I visited the Coast for a second time, and I ate more king cake than any sane person should.
I’m Nick Wooten, McClatchy’s Southern Trends and Culture reporter. I’m based in Columbus, Georgia, but my work occasionally brings me to the Sun Herald, our sister newsroom.
I’m a Georgia native, but I’ve grown to love the water, the seafood and the hospitality of Coast. One of my objectives on this trip was to eat as much king cake as I could in the midst of Mardi Gras season.
I’ve got some experience with the treat from my time in Shreveport, Louisiana. But this week, I was fully immersed. I’ve sampled a lot. Some were savory. Some were sweet. Some were big pieces, and others were small. Sometimes, I had more than one piece.
Here are some highlights from my tasting journey from Biloxi to New Orleans.
Fleur de Lis Gourmet Bakery, Gulfport
The French-style delicacy known as the pithivier was my favorite of all the cakes I tried. Sun Herald editor Justin Mitchell brought in a raspberry and cream cheese filled pithivier from Fleur de Lis bakery, also know as a Galette des Rois. It’s a puff pastry pie.
The cake was covered in beautiful, sugary shades of shimmering gold, green and light purple. The crust reminded me of croissants. The raspberry filling was sweet, and there was just the right amount of cream cheese.
Haydel’s, New Orleans
Sports reporter Patrick Magee brought a Haydel’s cream cheese king cake to the office, and I ate several pieces of it.
I often find more traditional cakes have this cinnamon roll quality to them. But Haydel’s reminded me more of a pound cake. The cream cheese doesn’t ooze out. It’s almost like its baked into the dough. The end result is a fluffy cake that doesn’t feel too heavy on your stomach.
The cake also has a nice lemon zing towards the end as the flavors register in your mouth. It pairs well with a cup of black coffee in the afternoon.
Melissa’s Bakery, Gulfport
The blueberry and cream cheese king cake at Melissa’s Bakery is something else. The sweet pastry dough is thick, and the icing features more muted shades of green, purple and gold — almost like spring or Easter egg colors.
It’s really good. The filling-to-dough ratio is impeccable. You don’t find yourself wondering where the filling went, even on the corner pieces.
Palace Casino in Biloxi
I needed a break from the cheese and fruit.
The Palace Casino’s Millionaire is the perfect answer to a king cake rut. It’s got nuts, chocolate and icing drizzled on top. On the inside is Bavarian cream. It’s almost like a Boston cream pie with a little cinnamon.
It’s a decadent dessert that makes for a nice change of pace when you’re still in the Mardi Gras spirit but groan at the mention of eating another traditional king cake.
Boudin king cake
I love boudin. Therefore, I love this cake. It features Melissa’s Bakery king cake dough filled with a whole pound of Now Dats Cajun Gourmet’s bloodless boudin.
You’ve got to reheat it in the oven, and as it heats, you can smell the garlic butter that was brushed on top. It comes with a side of pepper jelly for dipping. But I bet a little mustard and hot sauce would an even better addition. But that’s just me.
You can get the boudin king cake at Melissa’s in Gulfport or at Now Dats Cajun Gourmet in Long Beach.
Where do you get your favorite king cake? E-mail me at nwooten@mcclatchy.com
This story was originally published February 13, 2020 at 5:00 AM.