Pastry News

These Mardi Gras pastries in Dallas beat regular King Cake by a mile

King Cake beignets from Dusty Biscuits Beignets

Dusty Biscuits

Mardi Gras in 2023 is February 21, and that means king cake, the flashy seasonal treat that has been a New Orleans tradition since 1870.

With its proximity to Louisiana, Dallas has always had a bounty of king cake options from which to choose, everywhere from supermarkets to local bakeries. Whether any of those king cake options are any good is another topic.

The baby is a cute schtick. King Cakes come with a little toy plastic baby that gets baked into the dough; whoever gets it and doesn't choke on it supposedly has good luck. There's that.

But the cake itself .... NewOrleans.com says that a prototypical king cake is somewhere between cinnamon roll and coffeecake, and is "frequently packed with fruit fillings and decadent cream cheeses."

Hm. That might be true in New Orleans — but Dallas king cakes always seem dry and bready, with the only distraction being the signature garishly colored sugar, so crunchy, it hurts your teeth.

It's almost as awful as kolaches.

Fortunately, Dallas has some creative king cake spinoffs that celebrate the spirit of king cake without forcing you to actually eat king cake.

Here are five:

la madeleine king cake danish King Cake Danish from La MadeleineLa Madeleine

Mardi Gras Danish at La Madeleine. The French bakery chain first introduced this seasonal pastry in 2019. It's described as a flaky Danish with a strawberry & cream cheese filling, topped with a fondant glaze and dusted with purple, yellow, & green sugar. It's basically croissant dough, fashioned into a Danish-like round shape, similar to their other Danish offerings such as lemon-blueberry Danish and ham & Swiss cheese Danish. $3.99, and it'll be available through March 7.

Overeasy king cake cupcakes King Cake cupcakes from Overeasy, festively iced.Overeasy

King Cake Cupcakes at Overeasy. The breakfast-and-lunch spot at the Statler Dallas hotel is doing special, house-made King Cake Cupcakes, featuring a vanilla cupcake topped with a colorful vanilla creme swirl rendered in the signature colors, and topped with a plastic baby. But you'll have to be quick because these are available for one day and one day only: on Mardi Gras day itself, February 21. You can enjoy them at the restaurant or get them to-go. The cupcakes are $2.99 each, $13.99 for a half-dozen, or $22.99 for a dozen. Best to order ahead of time by calling 469-320-8998.

Empire king cake Empire Baking Co King Cake is filled with cinnamon and pecans.Empire Baking Co.

Brioche King Cakes at Empire Baking Co. Dallas' premiere bakery is doing King Cakes for the first time. It being Empire, it's not like the others. They use a brioche dough into which they roll layers of cinnamon, chopped pecans, and a brown-butter glaze — almost (OK, exactly) like a giant cinnamon roll. It's then iced and dusted with sugar, but with a ratio of more icing and less sugar than the usual King Cake. They're selling them at both their Inwood Village and SMU locations on Fridays-Saturdays through February 19, then on Monday, February 20 and Tuesday, February 21. $35.

humble pie king cake It's a pie version of King Cake by Humble Pie.Humble Pie

King Cake Pie at Humble: Simply Good Pies. As this East Dallas pie shop notes, "We are a pie shop, so it made no sense to make a king cake." Instead they do this "Bon Temps" King Cake pie version, filling their flaky pie crust with a sweet-and-tart citrus chess pie with cinnamon swirl, topped with traditional icing and sugar. And of course, a baby in the center. The shop has a special connection to this item: It was the last pie they were forced to pitch after their location caught on fire in March 2022. The pies are $45 and are available for order through February 21.

Dusty Biscuits king cake Dusty Biscuits' beignet version of a king cake.Dusty Biscuits

Mardi Gras beignets at Dusty Biscuit Beignets. Fort Worth beignet shop does one of the most clever New Orleans crossover items, combining two NOLA favorites — King Cake + beignets — into one. Fluffy fried beignets get drizzled with a sweet cream cheese glaze, dusted with cinnamon sugar, then colored powdered sugar. They're such a signature that they do them year-round, and are 3 to an order for $6. During Mardi Gras season, they also do a mini-king-cake version, using their same beignet dough, but in a traditional round, with an iridescent purple plastic baby in the center. The mini-cake is $12 and officially serves 2 to 4.

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Where to Eat

Where to eat in Dallas right now: 8 fresh new restaurants for November

Google/Siqi Wang

Pizza at Centrale Italiia

For many people, the big dining-out event in November will be Thanksgiving, and wouldn't you know it, CultureMap Dallas has a list for that. But you can't eat tofurkey every day. You crave something different, something new, and this edition of Where to Eat has them all.

Here’s where to eat in Dallas for November:

Casa Brasa
New restaurant in the former Nick & Sam's Grill space across from Preston Center is the latest from prolific chef Omar Flores (Whistle Britches, Muchacho Tex-Mex). It's an Argentinian take on grilled meats and sushi with Prime cuts of beef and seafood. Menu items range from Black Hawk Farms Ribeye Tomahawk to the house signature roll with snow crab, grilled jalapeño, asparagus, smoked daikon, chili mayo, topped with Wagyu beef, crispy leeks, and roasted piña salsa.

Centralé Italia
Buzzy concept from Restaurant Works (Cru, Princi Italia) just opened at Preston Hollow Village in the former Pakpao space across from Trader Joe's, with a menu of wood-fired dishes, pizza, and pasta. Founder Patrick Colombo (of Sfuzzi's fame) calls the pizzas "neo-Neapolitan" with a non-floppy crust — achieved via a long-fermented dough and an oven that uses gas, wood, and coal to add to the flavor profile. The wine selection focuses on Italian vintages, and a rectangular bar in the center of the dining room creates an instant scene.

The Devonshire Club
New neighborhood spot by Lisa and Elia “Tom” Georgalis (Ivy Tavern) replaces Nikki Greek Bistro & Lounge, the couple's attempt to do upscale Greek food. They're giving the people what they want: a more casual bar with upscale bites, dominated by sharable items you can drink to, such as Smoked Salmon Rillettes with spoon-shaped crackers, and Duck Confit Quesadilla with Brie and tart cherry. With the bar focus, that means cocktails, happy hour (from 3-7 pm), and late night hours on weekends until 2 am.

Dragon Casa
North Dallas newcomer boasts an unusual fusion on its menu with Mexican-inspired Chinese dishes. The owners, who also own Dragon House, call it “Chino Mex,” with fun items such as pork bun fajita, with pan-fried pork buns served in a fajita skillet, and tacos with Chinese fillings, such as kung pao chicken and Mongolian beef. The menu also includes Dragon House favorites including their acclaimed dumplings along with house-made noodles and dim sum.

Gyu-Kaku Japanese BBQ
New Japanese barbecue house in Deep Ellum, which took over the former Niwa Japanese space, is part of a Tokyo-based chain which has 50 locations across the U.S. including Plano and Addison. They do yakiniku-style dining where you grill your meat yourself, from choices such as miso-marinated Angus skirt steak, shabu beef, and hanger steak. It’s a group experience: The table chooses a course of proteins and shares salad, miso soup, rice, and vegetables. The menu also offers a la carte items including sushi rolls, cabbage salad and dumplings.

Jakes Burgers
Many a Jakes fan lamented the day that the Jakes Burgers on Henderson Avenue closed in 2021 after 18 years. But now the local burger chain is back in East Dallas on Greenville Avenue, providing easier access to double patty burgers on poppyseed buns and frosty schooners of beer. The menu also offers sandwiches like the chicken club, mac & cheese, and seasonal items like poutine or funnel cake fries. The new location is in the former Grub Burger Bar space in Energy Square, and is one of 12 locations in DFW.

Le Beef Steak + Frites
New Plano restaurant at The Shops at Legacy North seems to be "inspired" by Medium Rare, the Washington, D.C. concept with a pared-down menu featuring steak frites — steak and French fries — and little else. Le Beef takes the same basic approach, charging $29.95 at dinner or $23.95 at lunch and throwing in an artisan salad. If you don't want the obvious top blade steak, Le Beef also offers chicken, house jalapeño cheese sausage, or vegetarian plate. One nice note: Their wine list includes many French varieties, including Billecart Champagne for a mere $80 per bottle.

Live Más Café
New drink concept from Taco Bell just made its Dallas debut — one of the first places in the U.S. to get it. The concept is similar to McDonald's (now closed) CosMc's venture, with a focus on drinks: specialty coffee, fruity Refrescas, Churro Chillers made with pastry crumbles, and Baja Blast Dream sodas. Everyone's chasing the young consumers who crave specialty drinks. The concept is like a restaurant-inside-a-restaurant and is located at the Taco Bell across from DART's Mockingbird Station. More locations are in the works including one that will open in Houston on November 20.

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