Five sweet treats you shouldn’t miss on the Great River Road

Wednesday, June 26, 2019

Save room for dessert—here are some of the most iconic desserts you’ll find along the Mississippi River, from handcrafted pies to freshly fried pastries.

Homemade candy, ice cream and chocolate at Lagomarcino’s

If you’re in the mood for ice cream when you’re driving through the Quad Cities of Illinois and Iowa, there’s one place you have to stop: Lagomarcino’s. With locations in downtown Moline, Ill., (the original) and Davenport, Iowa (opened in 1997), this soda fountain/candy store/ice cream parlor has been in business since 1908 and still makes their own candy, chocolates and ice cream to this day. In 2006, Lagomarcino’s received a James Beard America’s Classics award.

World-famous beignets at Café du Monde

There’s no shortage of delicious food in the Crescent City, and that applies doubly to anything targeting your sweet tooth. Pralines, bananas foster, bread pudding, pecan pie—that’s enough to satisfy any connoisseur of desserts. But the one thing that’s sure to draw a crowd are Café du Monde’s world-famous beignets. Head to the French Market (or one of the eight other locations in the New Orleans metro area) to sample these fried-dough delights that are covered with powdered sugar. Don’t forget the chicory coffee au lait!

Pie at the Stockholm (Wis.) Pie Company

Want a pie like the ones Grandma used to make? Well, there’s no place that’ll get you closer than the famous Stockholm Pie Company, where fruit and nut pies are handcrafted from scratch daily at this store in the charming Wisconsin Great River Road town of Stockholm. You’ll also find cream pies, seasonal specialties and travel-size 6-inch pies available daily, as well as a general store featuring Wisconsin cheese, craft beer, wine, local specialties and gift items.

Banana pudding at the Fulton Banana Festival

When you think of bananas, your first thought probably isn’t a town of 2,500 people on the Kentucky-Tennessee border. But Fulton, Ky., (and South Fulton, Tenn., its neighbor to the south) have hosted the Banana Festival for more than 50 years, commemorating Fulton’s location as a prime railroad spot between New Orleans and Canada in the late 1800s. (At one point, more than 70 percent of the bananas consumed in the U.S. passed through Fulton.) A highlight of the festival, held annually in September, is the creation of a one-ton banana pudding—said to be the world’s largest, and who are we to argue—that is distributed to hungry festival attendees.

Mississippi mud pie at The Crown Restaurant

Head south to Indianola, Miss.—home to the B.B. King Museum & Delta Interpretive Center—to find this Mississippi delicacy at the highly regarded The Crown Restaurant, which has received attention in everything from Southern Living to Cook’s Illustrated. This cozy restaurant is only open for lunch (11am-2pm Tuesday through Saturday), but offers great confections from head cook Evelyn Roughton, including the famous Mississippi mud pie—a rich dessert made with pudding, cake, whipped cream, biscuits, chocolate and other delights (it gets its name for its resemblance to the state’s dark soil).

(Photo: Illinois Office of Tourism)

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