Sunday, October 17. Drago's Gives Again. The day was dominated by lunch at Drago's, the one in the Hilton Riverside downtown. Drago's doesn't ordinarily open on Sunday, but they did for a few hours today at both locations. Reason: two separate fund-raisers for two schools. What they took in downtown went to Christian Brothers School in City Park. Tommy Cvitanovich (Drago's son, and the main man at the restaurant) has a son at CBS now. We were there because Jude attended Christian Brothers starting in sixth grade. It changed his life, and set in motion the series of developments that enhanced his life so amazingly. I'd do anything the Christian Brothers asked of me. (They also taught me during my senior year in high school. See yesterday's diary entry.)
Mary Ann, who orchestrated these plans, was working with bad information. We were headed there to get inside the doors as they closed at three--we thought. Really, they shut down at two. Tommy insisted we come anyway. We found ourselves among a decent crowd of regulars, family, and late arrivals. The kitchen was still very much open. Drago and Klara Cvitanovich were there. At the opposite end of the generations was a substantial contingent of cute, mostly-little grandchildren to fuss over.
So here came the platters of char-boiled oysters. Tommy said that, through even the worst of the oil spill, only three shifts at Drago's were without oysters at all. The ones they had today were prime. Big ones. The four of us went through three dozen. (ML only eats the sauce with bread.) Then gumbo. (Jude's first since coming back. Gumbo=home for him). Fleur-de-lis shrimp--unbattered, fried, coated with spicy aioli and peanuts. Grilled chicken and pasta. Crabmeat Mediterranean for me: a pile of crabmeat on top of a green salad with lemon and vinaigrette (below). Meanwhile, on the big screen, the Saints won their game. (I think.)
There comes a time on some Sunday afternoons when everything is finished. All the plans played out. Game over. Full enough from Sunday brunch/dinner that you know there will be no supper, or desire for it. The only thing left to do is to start getting ready for Monday. It disjoints the week. I hate that moment. And here it is.
Drago’s. CBD: 2 Poydras. 504-584-3911.
