Whether you call it Fat Tuesday, Mardi Gras or Carnival, the days before the start of Lent mean huge celebrations around the world. Luckily you don’t have to travel to Brazil or New Orleans to get in on the fun — these 13 spots are bringing the party to Chicago with food and drink specials, live music, giveaways and more.
The Boundary
1932 W. Division St. 773-278-1919
Order a slice of $8 king cake made with cinnamon brown ale cake, nut crumble and cream cheese frosting and eat it carefully since if you find a plastic baby hidden inside you’ll win a $250 Visa gift card. The Wicker Park restaurant also offers other New Orleans-inspired dishes from Feb. 9 to 13, including shrimp po’ boys ($14) and alligator gumbo ($8).
Cactus Bar & Grill
404 S. Wells St. 312-922-3830
Slurp down two pounds of crustaceans as fast as you can for a shot at winning the bar’s eighth annual Fat Tuesday crawfish eating contest from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. Feb. 13. The winner of each round gets a hurricane in a souvenir glass and the top finisher takes home a $100 gift certificate. The contest is free to watch and the $20 entry fee supports Chicago area animal rescue organizations. Tickets: eventbrite.com
Carnivale
702 W. Fulton Market 312-850-5005
Combining the traditions of New Orleans and Brazil, the West Loop restaurant hosts silk aerialists and flag and samba dancers during dinner on Feb. 13 and serves specials including baked oysters with Andouille sausage ragout ($13), grilled beef with chimichurri ($36) and king cake with ice cream ($13).
Fat Cat
4840 N. Broadway 773-506-3100
Feast on a buffet of Louisiana crawfish, chicken and Andouille sausage jambalaya, red beans and rice, Cajun fried catfish, hush puppies, corn bread, and king cake for $30 at the Uptown bar’s 10th annual Mardi Gras celebration at 5:30 and 8 p.m. Feb. 13. They’ll also hand out beads, play zydeco music and serve drink specials, including $5 Abita beer, $30 hurricane punch bowls and $11 Sazerac cocktails. Tickets: eventbrite.com
Frontier
1072 N. Milwaukee Ave. 773-772-4322
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The West Town restaurant’s annual Fat Tuesday shrimp boil at 6 p.m. Feb. 13 offers all-you-can-eat seafood, red beans and rice, corn, potatoes and king cake for $35. If you’re not that hungry, opt for a $13 shrimp po’ boy or $10 jambalaya. Either way you’ll want to linger with $4 Abita beer, $6 hurricanes and $7 Sazerac cocktails while listening to music from the Four Star Brass Band.
Heaven on Seven
111 N. Wabash Ave. 312-263-6443
The Loop spot serves Cajun fare year-round, but they’re offering specials for Mardi Gras including barbecue shrimp rice fritters ($13.99) and green tomato Parmesan with Creole tomato sauce ($14.99) along with hosting live music Feb. 9, 10 and 13.
House of Blues
329 N. Dearborn St. 312-923-2000
Get your fortune told by a palm reader and catch performances by a brass band and magician at the River North spot’s Carnival of Mardi Gras celebration from 5 to 9 p.m. Feb. 13. Admission is free, but you can get in on a $29.95 crawfish boil, which comes with a hurricane or beer, or just take advantage of specials including $4 Abita beer. RSVP: eventbrite.com
Mon Ami Gabi
2300 N. Lincoln Park West 773-348-8886
The Lincoln Park French restaurant goes French Quarter at 6:30 p.m. Feb. 13 with a special dinner including oysters Rockefeller, duck gumbo, jambalaya and king cake with praline ice cream. The $65 meal includes hurricane punch and red and white wine pairings.
Nacional 27
325 W. Huron St. 312-664-2727
The River North club kicks off its Carnival celebration from 10 p.m. to 2 a.m. Feb. 8 with a set from DJ-X. Brazilian dancers and drummers perform starting at 9:30 p.m. Feb. 9 while samba dancers take the floor at 10:30 p.m. Saturday. Hurricanes are $10 throughout the weekend.
The Pony
1638 W. Belmont Ave. 312-453-9397
You can feel good about indulging from Feb. 8-13 since the Lakeview bar will donate $1 from every $5 hurricane sold to the Red Cross Relief Fund. For extra New Orleans flavor, the spot also offers a special menu of po’ boys, $4 Abita drafts and $5 hand grenades.
Porkchop
1516 E. Harper Court 773-493-9333
Enjoy some bayou flavor at the chain’s Hyde Park location, which serves a smoked alligator sandwich with fries and coleslaw made from kudzu ($13) plus $9 hurricane, Sazerac and hand grenade cocktails on Feb. 13.
Rizzo’s Bar & Inn
3658 N. Clark St. 773-799-8161
Keep the party going from noon to 9 p.m. Feb. 17 at BeadQuest, TBOX’s 10th annual Mardi Gras bar crawl. For $20 you’ll visit 10 Wrigleyville bars enjoying specials on Cajun food, beer and hurricanes and collecting beads for a chance to win prizes. Tickets: eventbrite.com
The Sedgwick Stop
1612 N. Sedgwick St. 312-265-1907
Catch a burlesque performance by the Harlequin Girls from 8 to 10 p.m. Feb. 13 at the Old Town bar, which will also serve $10 gumbo and $7 hurricanes. Admission is $20 and includes a Stolen Rum hurricane. Tickets: eventbrite.com.
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Samantha Nelson is a RedEye freelancer.