"I'm chowing down on a mini King Cake, my breakfast. It's a braided cinnamon Danish sprinkled with purple, green, and gold edible glitter, with a cream cheese filling and a little plastic baby perched astride. The baby represents the infant Jesus and is said to bring luck (and an obligation to host the next fête, if he shows up in your slice.)"
"King Cakes-which are first served on King's Day, January 6, and consumed throughout the Carnival season up until Mardi Gras on February 17-are typically associated with New Orleans. I'm not there, but rather in Mobile, Alabama, the city that actually lays claim to the oldest Mardi Gras celebration in the United States. That party happened in 1703, 15 years before New Orleans was established."
A mini King Cake serves as breakfast: a braided cinnamon Danish with purple, green, and gold glitter, cream cheese filling, and a plastic baby representing the infant Jesus that brings luck and a hosting obligation. King Cakes are first served on January 6 and eaten through Carnival until Mardi Gras on February 17. Mobile, Alabama claims the oldest U.S. Mardi Gras, dating to 1703. In August 2025 Amtrak revived a Mardi Gras Service connecting New Orleans and Mobile, the first Gulf Coast run since Hurricane Katrina in 2005. Travel begins in New Orleans for convenience, with two daily departures (7:35 a.m., 5:31 p.m.), and Mobile International Airport is scheduled to open fall 2026.
Read at Conde Nast Traveler
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