When is Mardi Gras? Why Fat Tuesday is celebrated, the origins of the holiday
Get your beads and King Cakes out! Mardi Gras is officially upon us!
The annual celebration is one of the most iconic cultural events in the United States, known for exuberant parades, festive music and indulgent foods. Fat Tuesday, the grand finale, marks the culmination of weeks of revelry and excitement.
But why do we celebrate? Let’s take a closer look at the rich history behind this lively holiday, which stretches back centuries to ancient traditions and French colonial influences.
Mardi Gras is a weeks-long celebration that culminates on Fat Tuesday, the day before Ash Wednesday.
Fat Tuesday, often seen as the final burst of excitement before the solemn preparations for Easter, is today, March 4.
The Carnival season, or Mardi Gras season, officially begins on Epiphany, Jan. 6, and lasts through Fat Tuesday.
It’s a time for celebration and is seen as a final burst of excitement before the solemn observances of the Easter season, which commemorates the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
The origins of Carnival trace back to ancient times, rooted in pagan festivals that celebrated the arrival of spring. In the 4th century, these festivals were adapted by Christians and incorporated into the liturgical calendar as a period of indulgence before the penitential observance of Lent.
Back then, people celebrated “Boeuf Gras,” meaning “fatted calf,” according to USA TODAY. It’s a time for people to enjoy things such as fatty foods, sugar, alcohol and other items considered “decadent.” They’d give themselves until the Tuesday before Ash Wednesday, or what is often called Fat Tuesday, to indulge.
The tradition then made its way through the colonies, and around 1699, French Canadians arrived in what is now Mobile, Alabama, according to USA TODAY.
Mardi Gras’ origins can be traced back to France and Italy, but today, New Orleans is the largest and most famous place for the event.
While New Orleans has made a name for itself in terms of Mardi Gras, other countries also celebrate the event, including France, Italy, Brazil, Germany, Trinidad and Tobago and Belgium, each with their own distinct traditions and festivities.
While Louisiana is home to one of the world’s most renowned Mardi Gras celebrations, Texas embraces the Carnival season on a smaller scale.
Unlike the citywide revelry of New Orleans, most Texas cities host localized events at private venues and businesses. However, the most notable celebrations take place in coastal towns near the Louisiana border.
For instance, Beaumont’s annual Mardi Gras Southeast Texas festival, which ran from Feb. 28 to March 2, draws thousands of visitors each year.
Texas is also home to the nation’s third-largest Mardi Gras celebration — Mardi Gras! Galveston. Now in its 114th year, the festival attracts more than 350,000 visitors annually, according to Visit Galveston. The two-weekend event kicked off on Feb. 21 and will host final events today.
This story was updated to add a photo gallery.
When is Mardi Gras? When is Fat Tuesday 2025?
Why is Mardi Gras celebrated?
Do other countries celebrate Mardi Gras?
Does Texas have any Mardi Gras celebrations?
Fat Tuesday is Paczki Day
PULASKI, Wis. (WBAY) – Tuesday is Paczki Day. Bakeries across the country have been busy making paczkis and king cakes for Fat Tuesday.
The paczki (pronounced “poonch-key”) is a traditional Polish treat before Lent. It resembles — but don’t call it — a jelly-filled doughnut.
In Northeast Wisconsin, having a paczki on Fat Tuesday is a tradition. It promises good luck (for extra luck, eat two).
It’s also a tradition to see long lines of people buying paczkis by the box at Smurawa’s Country Bakery in Pulaski — a community with a Polish heritage.
Cars were already parked outside at 5 a.m., half an hour before the bakery opened.
Last year, the bakery sold 34,000 paczkis, according to owner Greg Smurawa’s sister, Carrie Calaway.
Calaway said preparations started last weekend, and the owner’s daughter fried 5,000 more paczkis Monday night.
The bakery sells over a dozen flavors of paczkis. Raspberry is the most popular flavor, by far, but prune, French cremes, and other fruit fillings also sell well.
Copyright 2025 WBAY. All rights reserved.
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Packzi Day: List of Chicago-area bakeries selling the Polish treat on Fat Tuesday
In some parts, it’s known as Fat Tuesday. But in Chicago, Tuesday, March 4 marks Paczki Day.
Paczki, pronounced “puhnch-kee, ”is the name for the Polish tradition that occurs on Mardi Gras every year in preparation for the season of Lent. The tradition quickly expanded to Chicago and other communities where a large number of Polish individuals settled during the 20th century. Since then, many people have come to enjoy the plump pastry, regardless of religion or background.
What’s the difference between paczki and doughnuts? Chicago Polish bakery explains
At Orland Park Bakery in the suburbs, more than 40,000 packzi are prepared and ready for pre-orders pick-ups and walk-ins, even in the rain.
“I’ve talked to your customers, and I say, ‘how will the weather stop you?’ They say, we will stand in line, snow, rain or shine,” NBC 5 reporter Jenn Schanz said, live from the bakery Tuesday morning. “Nothing is going to stop them from getting their pączek.”
As the delicious tradition continues, here’s what to know about Fat Tuesday, Packzi Day, and where to find the tasty treats in the Chicago area.
Fat Tuesday is the final day of Carnival season, taking place the day before the start of Lent. The name comes from the literal English translation of the French phrase “Mardi Gras”. In New Orleans and all across the country, the day is celebrated with parades, balls and festivities.
In the Catholic tradition, the Lenten period begins on Ash Wednesday, the day after Mardi Gras. The Tuesday before is seen as the last day for feasts and merriment, as Lent is observed as a time of sacrifice and fasting. The Encyclopedia of Alabama- the state where Mardi Gras was first celebrated in the U.S.- says Fat Tuesday refers to the practice of eating a fattened calf to prepare for fasting during Lent.
The name for the celebration comes from the Polish pastries traditionally consumed on the day, deep-fried flat dough filled with fruit or cream and topped with powdered sugar.
The celebration began in the 1700s, when people traditionally attempted to use the ingredients that would otherwise go to waste during Lent, including lard and sugar.
Though the popular polish pastry – pronounced “puhnch-kee” — may look like a traditional American doughnut, there are key differences in their ingredient lists.
“A doughnut has water, salt, sugar, yeast. Paczek has eggs, yolks, lemon oil, milk, butter, and lots of eggs,” Dobra Bielinski of Delightful Pastries in Portage Park said.
Dozens of hungry customers lined up outside her bakery last year early to get their hands on a paczki.
Bielinski also noted that paczki has only a thin glaze on top, unlike the thick frosting found on some doughnuts.
“We eat it for the dough as much as the filling,” she said. “When you eat it, it doesn’t collapse. It fluffs right back up.”
If you’re thinking about indulging and contemplating getting a treat on Fat Tuesday, which is March 4th this year, you have plenty of choices.
Bakeries
Grocery Stores
