Reasons to Love Houston

Houston’s Many Festivals Are the Best Way to Celebrate Culture

Mark your calendars for some of our favorite annual events.

04/10/2025 By Uvie Bikomo

Mardi Gras

Where to Buy King Cakes This Year in Houston

Whether the colorful cakes we’re familiar with or the French-style galette des rois, Houston restaurants and bakeries have it all.

01/07/2025 By Sofia Gonzalez and Daniel Renfrow

Laissez Les Gay Temps Rouler

Houston’s Only Queer Mardi Gras Krewe Throws the Campiest Balls in Town

Krewe of Olympus, originally founded in New Orleans in 1970, has made itself at home in the (other) Bayou City.

02/12/2024 By Daniel Renfrow

FAT TUESDAY

How to Celebrate Mardi Gras in Houston

Let the good times roll with these local festivities.

02/09/2023 By Shelby Stewart

MARDI GRAS

Here's How Galveston Is Kicking Off Its 111th Mardi Gras Celebration

Take an hour drive out of the city for some Lousiana fun.

02/18/2022 By Jessica Lodge

Laissez les bons temps rouler

Our Favorite Krewe of Saints Houses in Galveston

Neighborhoods across the island have lit up their homes in celebration of Mardi Gras.

02/10/2021 Photography by Jeff Fitlow

Did you get the baby?

5 Must-Haves for Your Mardi Gras Celebrations

Here’s how to have an at-home Carnival.

02/09/2021 By Raven Wuebker

Bead Somebody

How to Celebrate Fat Tuesday at Local Restaurants, Bars

Get yourself a steaming bowl of jambalaya or gumbo, and don't forget the Hurricane.

03/05/2019 By Timothy Malcolm

I'm Just Here for the Crawfish Bread

Laissez les Bon Temps Rouler With These Mardi Gras Picks

What's purple, green, and gold all over?

03/01/2019 By Abby Ledoux

light it up

5 Things You Must Do This Weekend, Feb. 9–11

Kam Franklin sings to trees, liberal rednecks, a Mardi Gras kickoff, and more.

02/08/2018 By Morgan Kinney

Let the Good Clothes Roll

Want/Love/Need: Mardi Gras Edition

If I had a dollar for every time someone asked me, “What should I wear to Mardi Gras?” ...

02/08/2018 By Laura Furr Mericas

Fat Tuesday!

Get Wild With Three Brothers' King Cake Cheesecake and King Cake Petit Fours

Three Brothers Bakery has a pair of interesting twists on the king cake.

02/07/2018 By Joanna O'Leary

The Drawl

The Houstonian's Guide to Mardi Gras in Louisiana

Wait. You don't celebrate Mardi Gras by climbing a greased pole to retrieve a guinea hen? You do now.

01/30/2018 By Gwendolyn Knapp

All Aboard

How to Mardi Gras Like the Locals Do

Galveston’s 12-day, 105-year-old celebration is also among the nation’s most inclusive.

02/05/2016 By Sarah Rufca Nielsen

Under 100

100 Miles or Less: Mardi Gras with the Locals in Galveston

Join the state's largest Mardi Gras celebration this weekend.

02/02/2016 By Katharine Shilcutt

Under 100

100 Miles or Less: The Best Mardi Gras You've Never Heard Of

In Port Arthur, a Southeast Texas-style Fat Tuesday celebration enters its 23rd year.

01/19/2016 By Katharine Shilcutt

Don't Eat the Baby

Celebrate Kings' Day With a Culinary Epiphany

Bistro Provence offers a traditional French take on the king cake.

12/29/2015 By Jennifer Nguyen

Mardi Gras

Bravado Spice Plans a Fat Tuesday Takeover at Royal Oak

James Nelson and the Bravado Spice crew are putting the "fat" in Fat Tuesday on February 17.

02/13/2015 By Katharine Shilcutt

King of Kings

Where to Find the Best King Cakes in Houston

These classic Mardi Gras pastries taste best when they're faithful to their Louisiana roots.

01/14/2015 By Chris Abshire

Good Times Roll

Where To Go For Carnival This Year

Let our own Traveling Wizard show you the world-renowned party, from New Orleans to Rio

01/08/2015 By Bill Wiatrak