Photo by Joe Imel/Daily NewsThe staff of 440 Main & Micki’s on Main rehearse a little revelry in preparation for Mardi Gras events at the restaurant and bar - festivities that continue today through Tuesday.

In New Orleans, elaborate parades, masks, beads and more rule for the days leading up to Fat Tuesday, and one local business is bringing that flavor to Main Avenue.

The 440 Main Restaurant and Micki’s on Main Bar & Grill will once again bring Bourbon Street to Fountain Square, letting the good times roll with a special New Orleans menu, live music and, of course, hurricanes.

“It’s just full of fun,” said Micki Holmes who owns 440 and Micki’s with her husband, Tom. “It’s something for Bowling Green to look forward to in the middle of winter.”

The restaurant’s decor is reminiscent of Mardi Gras, with purple, green and gold napkins and banners and large masks adorning the walls. Tom Holmes said they have 17,000 sets of beads ordered from New Orleans specifically for the event.

A special Mardi Gras menu has been put into play at 440 Main, one that Tom Holmes said is “infused with Louisiana flavor.”

In addition to the favorites that everyone likes on the menu, Micki Holmes said there will also be blackened red fish, stuffed prawns and bourbon-glazed smoked duck.

Turtle soup, frog legs and Louisiana oysters on the half-shell will also be on the menu, along with a traditional ratatouille and andouille pudding as side dishes. Meals will be topped off with a white chocolate pecan bread pudding and Bananas Foster for desert.

All the specials will be available for dinner today through Tuesday, which is Fat Tuesday.

The event also will feature live music with Venus 12 playing today, the Tyronne Dunn Experiment on Friday, Ernie Small Blues Band on Saturday and Somethin’ Fierce on Tuesday.

Music will begin at 8 p.m. each night, except Saturday, when Ernie Small will begin at 8:30 p.m.

“We usually get the bands that people enjoy the most,” Tom Holmes said.

This is the 11th year the restaurant has hosted a Mardi Gras celebration, which has grown, Tom Holmes said. When it started, Micki Holmes said only a handful of people showed up.

“Now it’s so neat to see people come in with their own masks and their own beads,” she said. “It’s just become a special celebration here on (Fountain Square).”

New Orleans influence has been in Bowling Green for more than 100 years, Micki Holmes said. She said a train here once had a regular run to the city. As natives of New Orleans, Tom Holmes said the idea behind Mardi Gras is to get all the partying in before Fat Tuesday, because the next day, Ash Wednesday, “you have to repent and give up your sins for 40 days during Lent.”

“It’s just who we are,” Micki Holmes said. “There’s been a cajun influence here for a long time, and I guess you can say we want to keep that tradition going.”