King cake, a traditional Mardi Gras dessert. Photo by Jenni Field/Flickr

Q: I would like to purchase a king cake right before fat Tuesday and I’m wondering if you have any local suggestions?
Kristen: Yes! A few options for you. You can always find beautiful ones at Suarez Bakery. Renaissance Patisserie in SouthPark makes them as well, though you’d have to call and preorder to pick it up over the weekend as they’re closed on Mondays and Tuesdays. CynTucci’s up in Mooresville is taking preorders for them, but pickup is on Feb. 16, so Fat Tuesday itself. Another great option depending on where you live is Chocolatier Barrucand in downtown Concord. If you’re looking for something a little different, Your Mom’s Donuts is doing a king cake donut. It’s about the size of six regular donuts, and comes complete with a small plastic baby in it. That one is available for pick up on Feb. 13 and Feb. 14.

Q: Any restaurants doing special Valentine’s takeout meals?
Kristen: You’re in luck! We just published a list of places earlier today. You can find that here. We’ll be continually adding to it throughout the week.

Q: Do you (or can you work on) a list of the various ghost kitchens around town? I see more and more are popping up but have a hard time of keeping track of everything.
Kristen: That’s a great idea! No, we don’t have an official list, but I will definitely get started on that. A few of my favorites are L’Ostrica; Your Farms, Your Table; Patrick’s Gourmet; Horace’s Hot Fried Chicken; and Sun’s Kitchen.