Tuesday, December 29, 2009. Two Losses. The Godparents At Bonefish Grill (Again?) Today was to be the day when the Jesuit High School Class of 1968 would have its annual reunion lunch at the Court of Two Sisters. It was cancelled for a sad reason. Louise Fein--the wife of Court of Two Sisters owner and classmate Joe Fein--died a few days ago after a long fight with brain cancer. It's hard to hear news like this about people my own age without thinking, "Here it comes." I push the thought away and sympathize instead. And I have another opportunity to do that. John Fury's wife Tillie also died a few days ago. She was always at Fury's restaurant, telling everyone who came in to just sit anywhere. (If, indeed, there was a place to sit in that popular but small restaurant.) It won't seem right not having her there.
For the past few days, Mary Ann has been trying to reach Oliver and Carolyn Kluna. It's yet another Christmas tradition. They are Jude's godparents, and we have had dinner with them at this season almost every year since he was born. Come to think of it, that tradition predates not only Jude's birth but my marriage. I met the Klunas in 1974, when I wrote newspaper ads for their Sleep Factory stores. They became good enough friends that Oliver was my best man. For many years, we celebrated Christmas by going to the grand dinners at the Sazerac--a precursor to the Reveillon dinners.
We got hold of them in the nick of time. Jude is definitely leaving tomorrow. Mary Ann might be. The Klunas volunteered to cross the lake to have dinner with us. Mary Ann asked whether I could stand going to Bonefish Grill again. Why not? This will make three meals there--enough to write a review.
What we learned was nothing new. Given the corporate uniformity for which chain restaurants are famous, you'd think they'd be the most consistent of restaurants. Quite the opposite is true. The crab cakes and the crab chowder--dishes we liked on earlier visits--were not nearly as good. The fish tacos Jude asked for were borderline inedible, and he didn't eat them.
Grilled salmon was served in a finger-sized piece, grilled to a char--way overdone. The best dish of the night was a pecan-encrusted fresh-water trout with artichokes, which looked and tasted great. And bang-bang shrimp were less spicy than last time--an improvement, actually.
My dish was good enough but puzzling. I was intrigued by the bacon-wrapped sea scallop, sold three to the order as an appetizer. I asked whether an entree could be had of them. The waiter said that it could, but that I will still get only three scallops, plus two side dishes. Any way I can get, say, six scallops? Not unless you buy two full orders, which would kick the price way up there. You can count on a chain to use a very sharp pencil when planning its platters. The three scallops were good but left me wanting more.
The Klunas were impressed by how the kids have grown, and all that. And they had some news. Tomorrow, they will sell the building on Tulane Avenue where they had their main Sleep Factory store for many years. "The end of an era!" Carolyn said. It's their final exit from Mid-City, where they lived and worked for decades.
Bonefish Grill. Covington: 200 River Highlands Boulevard 985-809-0662. Seafood.
