Keeping A Delectable Vigil At Impastato's

[title type="h6"]Tuesday, October 1, 2013.[/title] Mary Ann left this morning on her solo driving odyssey to the West Coast. First stop was Forth Worth, 550 miles. That's nothing to her. Tomorrow, she will do 625 miles to Albuquerque, which is something to her. She has two television appearances scheduled there, to promote her book "The Suzy Homemaker Chronicles." She will hang with her sisters for the next few days in Santa Fe, where they will attend the hot-air balloon festival, and perhaps go up in a balloon. (Long story; more later.) Then to Tucson for another TV appearance, and the next day to Los Angeles, where The Golden Boy Jude is waiting for his mommy (in her dreams). Meanwhile, back at the ranch, I trudged ever onward, stopping briefly to chew on an old, dried-up sandwich. Mary Leigh also stayed behind, because she has not one but two jobs: decorating cakes in a bakery, and sub-managing an art store. The two of us, plus The Boy, consoled one another for missing that long, long road in a car blasting down the highway with Mary Ann at the wheel. And to celebrate her making it to Fort Worth without mishap. Impastato's relieved much of the tension with the usual dinner. Pasta combination, including the best fettuccine Alfredo in a four-state radius. Nice crisp salad of romaine leaves, tomatoes, and the unique Creole-Italian vinaigrette Joe Impastato's brother Sal makes for him. Chicken parm for The Boy. More pasta for ML. And a beautiful piece of speckled trout in a buttery sauce of mushrooms and artichokes, my favorite dish here and one of the best trout concoctions in town. On the way out, I took the stage to sing two songs for a large table of ladies celebrating the eighty-fifth birthday of one of them. Her favorite song is one I know (but who doesn't?): "The Way You Look Tonight." When I segued into "Some Enchanted Evening," Mary Leigh waved at me across that crowded room to say that she and The Boy would be leaving now. Impastato's. Metairie: 3400 16th St. 504-455-1545.