18 king cakes. 12 hours. Which Mississippi Coast bakeries were this expert’s favorites?
Twelve hours, 55 miles and 18 South Mississippi bakeries pushed the King Cake King of New Orleans closer to his goal of eating 150 king cakes this season.
Wearing a cape and crown of purple, green and gold, New Orleans resident Brendon Oldendorf spent a single February day driving county to county to sample the Mardi Gras staple.
“People in New Orleans forget that Mardi Gras is celebrated elsewhere,” Oldendorf said. “And Mississippi’s king cake trail really surprised me. Several bakeries could easily compete in the New Orleans king cake market.”
The trail started in Pascagoula at 5 a.m. when the king and his court tasted the unique offerings of Crazy B’s.
“I had my first ever king cake cookie cake and king cake kabob in Pascagoula,” said Oldendorf. “And I see why people go crazy about Crazy B’s.”
The entourage had filled their bellies by the time they reached Gautier, but that didn’t stop them from sampling the sweet confections of Founding Fathers. The Chantilly king cake delighted at least one New Orleans taster, who said the king cake was better than Maurice’s of Metairie.
Ocean Springs and Biloxi offered seven stops on the tour, including TatoNut, French Kiss Pastries, Le Bakery and Greenhouse Biloxi.
“Donut king cakes don’t get better than TatoNut. And just a short walk away, the lemon king cake from French Kiss Pastries defines lemonicious,” said Oldendorf. “Le Bakery produces the best smells. And then I had my first king cake biscuit at Greenhouse Biloxi. Wow!”
Celebrating its 100th year in business, Electrik Maid stuck with its tried and true king cake.
“Electrik Maid is dripping with history. It has a direct lineage to McKenizie’s of New Orleans, the bakery that popularized king cakes,” Oldendorf said.
Iced with buttercream, Electrik Maid’s king cake has remained faithful to the original McKenzie’s recipe.
Deep in a sugar rush, the tour continued west.
“I’m not sure when Biloxi becomes Gulfport,” said Oldendorf, “But we really enjoyed the bakeries in that area. Cheeky Monkey makes an exceptional dough. Fleur de Lis produces a galette de rois that is almost too pretty to eat. And historic Quality Bakery of Gulfport, celebrating 75 years, is a perfect example of a cream cheese king cake.”
Nearing the end of their expedition, the crew sampled king cake marshmallows and doberge cake from Dolce in Long Beach.
By the time they reached Bay St. Louis, they craved something savory. “Thankfully, Beachside at Buoy’s had a muffuletta king cake waiting for us. It was in the top three I ate all day.”
And then it was back to the sugar with stops at Serious Bread and Mockingbird. Dubbed the Coastal King Cake Trail by his royal highness, the day’s ventures brought the king’s total to 133 king cakes from 94 bakeries.
“It was a great day. Mississippi saved the best for last. My favorite of the entire trip was the bride’s cake at Susan’s Sassy Sweets in Waveland. Legit good!”
Here is Mississippi’s Coastal King Cake Trail:
Pascagoula: Crazy B’s, Anderson’s, and Jerry Lee’s (Ramey’s)
Gautier: Founding Fathers
Ocean Springs: TatoNut, French Kiss Pastries
Biloxi: Le Bakery, Greenhouse, Electrik Maid, Fantasy Donuts, Cheeky Monkey
Gulfport: Fleur de Lis, Quality Bakery
Long Beach: Dolce
Bay St. Louis: Mockingbird Cafe, Serious Bread, Beachside at Buoy’s
Waveland: Susan’s Sassy Sweets. Sugar Pop and King Donuts closed before the King arrived.
This story was originally published February 17, 2023 at 7:30 AM.
