For thousands of visitors, Soulard Mardi Gras is one crazy Saturday of parade-watching, bead-catching and bar-hopping. But real revelers know Mardi Gras is not just a single day, but an entire season of great food, fancy parties, family activities, even fitness. Go! reporter Diane Toroian Keaggy talks to some of the Mardi Gras mavens who bring the bon temps to the early events.

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SSM Cardinal Glennon Winter Carnival

When 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Saturday; parade starts at 4 p.m. • Where Soulard Market Park, Eighth Street and Lafayette Avenue • How much Free • More info stlmardigras.org

What if you were a born performer but too sick to strut your stuff?

That is the case for Keith Jones, 8, of Cottage Hills. He loves singing but has to be careful about going out, especially in the heat. Keith has ectodermal dysplasia, a group of disorders that can lead to abnormalities in the eye, inner ear, fingers and nerves. In Keith's case, the disorder has stunted his sweat glands.

"His body cannot regulate his temperature," explains his mother, Letecia Jones. "But he is funny — a very funny character. He's like a 50-year-old in an 8-year-old's body. He just knows so much."

On Saturday, Keith will lead the Winter Carnival Children's Parade from Soulard Market Park through the streets of Soulard. The parade wraps up an afternoon of family-friendly fun featuring two of St. Louis' favorite party animals — Fredbird and the Rally Squirrel — as well as performances from Muny Kids and Babaloo. Kids can also make their own masks, capes and crowns to wear during the march.

"He loves anything where he is the center of attention," Jones says. "He isjust a true performer. He actually puts on performances at Cardinal Glennon for the nurses during their lunch break. Michael Jackson is his favorite."

Keith has not been able to attend school recently and says he is excited to be around kids at the parade.

"It will be fun to pass out balloons and ride in a cart and pass out candy," Keith says.

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Crystal Cajun Cook-Off

When Noon-4 p.m. Feb. 4 • Where City Hall, 1200 Market Street • How much $40 • More info stlmardigras.org

Anyone who has watched "Top Chef" knows how tough it is to prepare the perfect dish.

But imagine the challenge of judging all of that impeccably prepared food.

"Oh, it's pretty fun," veteran judge Ligaya Figueras says with a laugh.

Figueras, of Sauce Magazine, is returning to judge the Crystal Cajun Cook-Off, where chefs from Monarch, Scottish Arms and other dining destinations prepare Cajun and Creole classics. A field of 10 amateurs will face off in a separate competition.

The trick to judging, Figueras says, is to come hungry and stay away from the hurricanes.

"They kept wanting to give us drinks, but you have to hold off on the booze until after you've tried everything," Figueras says. "You get a whole portion, but to me it takes about three bites to know. You try to get every component into the spoonful. The way that plating happens now there are so many components. You don't want to miss that smear of bourbon pecan molasses on the side."

At this particular contest, judges are discouraged from watching the chefs. That means Figueras won't know for certain who made the best dishes until the winner is announced, though she may have her suspicions.

"Chris Lee (of Cafe Ventana) was the winner last year, and his signature was all over that dish," Figueras says. "A big part of the fun for me, besides eating all of these amazing dishes, was identifying the different styles."

Tickets cost $40 and come with unlimited beer, hurricanes and four samples prepared by a local caterer. Spectators are invited to watch the cooks in action, but only the judges taste the final results. Revelers have asked Figueras for her leftovers and she has, on occasion, obliged.

"I don't have germs — I don't care," Figueras says. "If I wasn't three bites and out, I would be 500 pounds."

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Southern Comfort Taste of Soulard

When 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Feb. 11-12 • Where About 30 neighborhood restaurants and bars • How much $25 • More info stlmardigras.org

Chef Roger Cox is new to Molly's in Soulard but not to traditional Mardi Gras cooking. This Alabama-bred cook has eaten his way through countless Mardi Gras parades and parties.

"Oh, I'm ready for this," Cox says. "We've been planning for months."

Molly's is one of 30-plus restaurants participating in the annual Taste of Soulard on Feb. 11-12. A free trolley will shuttle participants Saturday. Revelers will have to hoof it Sunday, which is also the day of the Beggin' Pet Parade. The $25 ticket includes six dishes and one Southern Comfort drink. Dishes range from boudin sausage balls at Market Grill to Cajun rice, shrimp and scallop bowls at the Great Grizzly Bear to bread pudding with whiskey sauce at Soulard's Restaurant.

Molly's will serve its alligator rangoon, the restaurant's take on alligator cheesecake, a staple on New Orleans menus.

"New Orleans cooking tends to be rich, so starting your meal with a cheesecake or savory bread pudding is not unheard of," Cox says. "We decided to make that more interesting by wrapping it in a wonton and then deep-frying it with a huge pocket for the good stuff. That's sort of a Midwest slam dunk."

He plans to serve about 2,000 rangoons, which are much larger than the crab rangoons most Chinese takeout places serve. The rangoons will be stuffed with about 60 pounds of alligator — "All of the good meat comes from the tail," says Cox — and 60 pounds of housemade andouille sausage mixed with spicy cream cheese.

Cox has lost 30 pounds since arriving in the Midwest. He grew up eating grits and likes to incorporate "a little bit of hillbilly" into his cooking. He also is a master of the classic French techniques diners associate with fine New Orleans establishments like Commander's Palace.

"Cajun cooking is extremely rustic," Cox says. "It's associated with people who ride to school in a flat-bottom boat. Creole is more from the city and influence of French, Acadian, Spanish, Haitian culture. So I think it's really great we can take that variety and combine it with classical techniques to make our sort of cuisine."

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Champion's Dinner

When 6-10 p.m. Thursday • Where City Hall, 1200 Market Street • How much $100 • More info stlmardigras.org

To the best of chef Chris Williams' knowledge, the Culinary Institute of America is the one place where minors are not only allowed, but required, to drink.

As a student there, Williams learned how to build a menu around wine. žœ

Today, as chef of Soulard's acclaimed French restaurant Franco, Williams shares that knowledge with a new generation of cooks.

"The wine course at the CIA is very thorough," Williams says. "We tasted 10 wines a day. We'd go through it and talk about, ‘What are we tasting? Why are we tasting it? Where is it from? Why is that important?' When I got done, I really understood the map. From there, you keep tasting and learning to build with it. I really encourage my cooks to think about those things — why we use different wines and vinegars in building flavors."

For the second annual Mardi Gras Champion's Dinner, Williams developed a menu first and then picked the right wines with a team of event organizers. Williams says it's easier for chefs to pick the food first and then select the right wine. But that doesn't mean everyone agreed.

"We tasted a number of wines and gave them a yay or nay based on what we liked, what we didn't like, what was right powerwise," Williams says. "That was really important. You need to pick a wine that matches the strength of the dish. Sometimes, you just know it, and sometimes it's a real back-and-forth."

The Champion's Dinner debuted last year at the World's Fair Pavilion in Forest Park. This year, it moves to City Hall, which has no kitchen. Williams is setting up a massive tent in the parking lot to accommodate his stoves and staff. The menu features beet carpaccio, goat cheese timbale with creamy champagne-truffle vinaigrette, duck leg "prosciutto" with watercress, walnuts, tomato and grilled bread, braised pork belly and frisee with grain mustard sauce, beef daube with winter vegetables and puff pastry, and petit fours of coconut macaroon, dark chocolate framboise truffle, orange blossom madeleine and passionfruit marshmallows.

The dishes each reflect a moment in Williams' culinary evolution. The beets are inspired by a dish he learned to make as an extern at the famed New York restaurant Le Bernardin, the "prosciutto" is a recent invention that exemplifies Williams' skills as an innovator and technician, and the daube serves as a tribute to Eddie Neill and Cafe Provencal where Williams worked as a young cook.

"The menu builds appropriately and has variety. It is still very simple but the techniques are a lot more complex than you think," Williams says. "I think it all speaks of my experience. It was my voice as a chef speaking."

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Beggin' Pet Parade

When 1 p.m. Feb. 12 • Where Steps off at Menard Street and Allen Avenue • How much Free; pet registration is $10 • More info stlmardigras.org

Soulard Mardi Gras could attempt to break any number of Guinness World Records — most beads, most red Solo cups, most public urination arrests.

But organizers have chosen to break a record with real bite: most dogs in costume. This year, Beggin' Pet Parade volunteers will document every registered dog dressed in a tutu, a sequined cap, a tuxedo shirt or some other costume. The goal is to break the record of 603 dogs set last May in Tokyo.

"We're going for a thousand dogs," says Kate Jente, Beggin' Strips assistant brand manager. "We're confident, based on last year's registration numbers, that we can break that."

Last year, more than 1,800 pets registered for the parade — a record. Countless other owners and their pets just showed up, which is permissible. However, only registered pets will count toward the record.

A $10 donation benefits the Open Door Animal Sanctuary, a shelter for all breeds of dogs and cats. Paradegoers can register online or from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the parade's start at Menard Street and Allen Avenue. All participants receive a doggie bag and a bandana.

The parade steps off at 1 p.m., heads south to Russell Boulevard, east to Ninth Street and then north to Soulard Market Park. To document the attempt, volunteers will click off registered dogs as they pass through designated chutes. Unfortunately, cats, goats and llamas do not count toward the total, though any species is welcome to march (scamper? trot?) in the parade. Judges along the route will pick the best costumes to compete for a place on the royal pet parade court. Finalists will face off immediately after the march in Soulard Market Park.

"Any element outside of collar counts as a costume," Jente says. "It can be as simple as a bandana, which is why we will have a bandana for everyone who registers. We've been known informally as one of the nation's largest pet parades, and I think this will take it to a whole new level."

But, we must ask, at what cost to dog dignity? After all, does any bulldog want to wear a ring of pink tulle?

Jente insists so, though she concedes she's never actually asked one. Jente's favorite costumes include a dog with a tray of hurricane cups strapped to its back and a St. Bernard pulling a wagon that looked like a French bakery.

"It was just not the costume but the fact that they set up the presentation of what New Orleans street might look like," Jente said. "Pet owners are incredibly creative."

Jente's dog, a Boston terrier, will wear a handmade Mardi Gras costume.

"It's a velour material with purple on one side and green on the other, with yellow fringe," Jente said. "He wears it every year to stay warm and to show his spirit."