Where to Celebrate Mardi Gras 2015 in New York

Referred to as “Fat Tuesday,” the joyful festival of Mardi Gras precedes the ritual fasting of Lent (and takes place shortly after Valentine’s Day, which, lets be honest, can be even more stressful).  So it’s the perfect excuse to laissez les bons temps rouler (let the good times roll) with bead throwing, Hurricane sipping, King Cake feasting, and crawfish sucking celebrations at restaurants throughout New York!

Louro: Since chef Dave Santos holds his themed Nossa Mesa Club dinners on Mondays, you can start your Mardi Gras festivities one day earlier, by taking part in his $75, 8-course feast with cocktail pairings.  Dishes include Okra Hush Puppies and Frogs Legs, Oyster Po Boys, Shrimp and Grits, Cajun Catfish, Crab and Crawfish Etouffee, Chicken and Sausage Gumbo, and Bananas Fosters Beignets, accompanied by Brandy Milk Punch, a New Orleans Buck, a “Category Five” Hurricane, a Sazerac, and spiked Napoleon House Coffee.
louronyc.com

Great Jones Café: This raucous, 30-year-old Cajun café is practically synonymous with Mardi Gras, so there’s no way it wouldn’t make our “Best of Fat Tuesday” list.  There’s no cover charge for their annual party, which features 45’s from New Orleans-based artists playing away on the jukebox, a dining room strewn with colorful beads, fruity, boozy Hurricanes and frosty Abitas, and a traditional menu of Boiled Crawfish, Jambalaya with cornbread, Hambone Gumbo, Blackened Catfish, and rounds of sugar-dusted King Cake (if you find a plastic baby inside your slice, it means you’re King or Queen for the day!)
greatjonescafe.com

King Bee: This charming East Village newcomer specializes in Acadian fare, which explores the French and Canadian roots of Louisiana cooking.  So in other words, it’s the perfect spot to spend a (slightly less rowdy) Fat Tuesday, with refined takes on regional favorites such as Caraway Ployes (pancakes) topped with trout roe and maple cream, mayo-swathed Crawfish on brioche toasts, Gumbo z’Herbes over jasmine rice and chili oil, Poutine Rapee served with partridgeberry preserves, and spice-scented Gateau de Sirop or slices of Doberge Cake; a delicious dessert staple in New Orleans, featuring layers of custard and chocolate buttercream.
kingbeenyc.com

Lulu’s Dove House: The Sons of Essex is bringing back its sultry dinner series dubbed Lulu’s Dove House; essentially, a 1920’s-era, Big Easy bacchanalia, peopled by beautiful, scantily-clad women.  $60 will buy you an evening of entertainment from jazz musicians, Cirque De Soleil acrobats and burlesque dancers, as well as a three-course Creole menu from chef Danny Valadares, featuring Cajun Crab Cakes with Old Bay aioli and plantain chips, Shrimp, Okra and Andouille Sausage over polenta, and a Bananas Foster Sundae with vanilla bean pudding for dessert.
sonsofessexnyc.com

The Lion: John DeLucie’s The Lion will host its very first and very chic Masquerade Ball (black tie suggested, masks mandatory) on the Sunday before Mardi Gras, with tickets going for $50-90 each. Admission includes elegant passed hors’d oeuvres, such as Oysters, Crawfish and Shrimp, live entertainment and (if you splurge on a VIP ticket), an open bar of classic New Orleans cocktails, such as Sazeracs, Vieux Carres, French 75’s and Absinthe Frappes.
thelionnyc.com

Grand Central Oyster Bar Brooklyn: The Brooklyn outpost of Grand Central Oyster Bar has reworked their menu for Fat Tuesday, adding on a number of shellfish-focused, Big Easy-inspired dishes.  Think Crawfish Boils, Poisson Rouge Court Bouillon, Blackened Catfish and Seafood Etouffee for dinner, and Shrimp and Grits and overstuffed Po’Boys for lunch.  Cocktail offerings will include Mint Juleps, Sazeracs and Bourbon Street Hurricanes for $7 all day, and be sure to don your masquerade finest; whoever wears the most creative mask will receive a gift card for the restaurant!
oysterbarbrooklyn.com