All Things King Cake in Coastal Mississippi

February 05, 2019 by Jonathan Brannan

A Tasty Tradition

We have a saying in Coastal Mississippi during Mardi Gras: “King Cake calories don’t count!” It’s just science, folks. Mardi Gras is a time to indulge, and a King Cake is the absolute best way to get into the spirit of the season.

If you’ve never heard of a King Cake, let us give you a little background. The French celebration of Mardi Gras made its way to the Gulf Coast way back in 1699 when French explorers landed along the banks of the Mississippi River. Since then, there have been old traditions celebrated and tons of new traditions added to the holiday each year.

The tastiest tradition was the King Cake, a pastry-like sweet cake shaped like an oval and topped with icing and sugar. Traditionally, the icing is three different colors; purple for justice, green for faith, and gold for power. The origin of these colors can be traced back to the night celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ. The colors are in honor of the jewels worn on the crowns of the three wise men. The King Cake’s Christian ties also explains the tradition of putting small gifts in and around the cake, including a tiny plastic baby to represent Jesus himself.

The typical rule for eating King Cake is that if you find the plastic baby in your piece, you are tasked with providing the King Cake for the next Mardi Gras party. So, we put together a great list of some of the best places to get freshly baked King Cakes along Coastal Mississippi.

We’ve even included some fun takes on the tradition that put a little twist on the tasty Mardi Gras confection. So, get out there, have your King Cake and eat it too!

Get Your King Cake On

We’ll begin our King Cake crawl at one of the most well-known spots in South Mississippi:

PAULS PASTRY

Paul’s Pastry Shop

1 Sycamore Road, Suite A, Picayune, MS 39466

Moving down the road to the beautiful city of Bay Saint Louis, there's a specialty bakery who lives up to its name:

SERIOUS BREAD

Serious Bread

131 Main Street, Suite D, Bay Saint Louis, MS 39520

Next up is a baker in Gulfport who puts as much love in her King Cakes as she does her wedding cakes:

MELISSAS

Melissa’s Bakery

15335 Dedeaux Road, Suite 3, Gulfport, MS 39503

Let’s travel over to Biloxi, where one location has been baking for nearly 100 years, and others are starting new King Cake traditions:

ELECTRIK

Electrik Maid Bake Shop (began baking in 1924)

1833 Pass Road, Biloxi, MS 39531

LE BAKERY

Le Bakery

280 Oak Street, Biloxi, MS 39530

WHITE PILLARS

White Pillars

1696 Beach Boulevard, Biloxi, MS 39531

From Biloxi, it’s just a short drive over the bridge to the next stop in Ocean Springs, featuring a bakery that specializes in vegan culinary adventures:

APRON STRINGS

Apron Strings

434 Porter Avenue, Ocean Springs, MS 39564

Pascagoula is the closest city in Coastal Mississippi that claims to have celebrated the first Mardi Gras; Mobile, AL. That means it’s got to have some tasty King Cakes, right?

CRAZY BS

Crazy B’s

1759 Market Street, Pascagoula, MS 39567

ANDERSONS

Anderson’s Bakery

2033 Market Street, Pascagoula, MS 39567

A short drive up to Dixie Depot will be worth it when you take a bite of their delicious King Cake and other treats.

DIXIE DEPOT

Dixie Depot

21000 MS-613, Moss Point, MS 39562

King Cake Iterations

Some of the tastiest King Cakes in Coastal Mississippi are actually twists on the traditional treat. Check out some of these delicious takes on the classic Mardi Gras delicacy that will deliver your fill of carnival goodness.