Las Vegas restaurants planned toned-down Mardi Gras festivities

Even in New Orleans, Mardi Gras — which is Tuesday — won’t be the raucous celebration it usually is. Ingenious residents of the Big Easy who’ve had to forsake their beloved traditional parades because of the pandemic have taken to decorating their porches this year instead.

It’ll be quieter than usual in Southern Nevada as well, except at Lola’s: A Louisiana Kitchen at 1220 N. Town Center Drive (the downtown location at 241 W. Charleston Blvd. remains closed for now).

“There are a lot of Louisianans here,” said owner Lola Pokorny, who hails from the pelican state herself. “It’s huge for all of us.”

That will mean live music, a celebratory atmosphere and specials such as duck gumbo, $12 for a cup; individual king cakes that serve two to three, $10; and $10 Hurricanes.

What about those who are not Louisiana expatriates?

“They can come and experience it, if they haven’t ever experienced it,” Pokorny said.

Another Louisiana export is the New Orleans-based District Donuts. Sliders. Brew. in the Block 16 Urban Food Hall at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas. District is celebrating Fat Tuesday with the King Cake Donut, a riff on the traditional cake with colored yellow, green and purple sugars on top and the obligatory plastic baby (for the uninitiated, a classic king cake contains a plastic baby, and whoever gets it in their serving is supposed to host the next Mardi Gras party). Available through Thursday, the doughnuts are $4.50 each.

The Vegas Test Kitchen is celebrating with Fat Tuesday on Fremont from 1 to 8 p.m. Tuesday. Priced at $120 per couple, it includes a NOLA-inspired welcome cocktail, oyster-stuffed quail, andouille sausage gumbo, with potato salad from Main St. Provisions, crawfish cakes from This Mama’s House, muffaletta pizza from Yukon Pizza, and a slice of cream cheese king cake pie from PopNpies; add-ons are available. Tickets are at secretburger.com.

Other cultures celebrate this last day of the good life before the beginning of Lent’s austerity, including the Poles. The Polish Deli at 5900 W. Charleston Blvd. has paczki through Tuesday. Pronounced “puhnch-kee,” they’re sort of likesimilar to doughnuts but richer and a bit sweeter, and at the Polish Deli, they come with custard, raspberry, plum or apricot filling, $2.50 each.

The celebration is called Carnival (or Karnival) in numerous countries including Brazil, so Via Brasil Steakhouse, 1225 S. Fort Apache Road, will present the Brazilian Carnival Party from 5 to 10 p.m. Friday. Festivities will include a rodizio dinner in the dining room, $56.99, plus happy hour food and drinks at the bar and on the patio, $35 open bar, samba dancers, acrobatic and aerial performers, stilt walkers and a DJ. Call 702-804-1400.

And remember: If you’re dining in, masks are mandatory, but Mardi Gras masks are encouraged, along with costumes, at Lola’s.

Contact Heidi Knapp Rinella at Hrinella@reviewjournal.com. Follow @HKRinella on Twitter.