Now that I am a seasoned fest-goer (you know, with one fully day already under my belt), I walked in today with a plan. I went directly to the rosemint tea stand and bought a large ($4) in case they decided to run out again. From there I walked across the grounds to the food stand selling the oyster/crawfish combo platter ($12) that I missed last week. My plan was to sample the large platter before it got to hot and my appetite for fried, rich foods expired. I was not disappointed.

Consisting of a crawfish sack, oyster pattie and crawfish beignet, the combo platter is a good deal for the money. Although I found the beignets to be a little overcooked and the filling of the crawfish sack to be under seasoned, the oyster pattie may have made an oyster fan out of me. Well seasoned (which means to me that my nose runs slightly) and full of large fresh oysters, the pattie was the highlight of this plate. The remoulade on the beignets was also very good.

While sitting at a picnic table, a woman and her son joined me. We started talking about the food and I asked her if she had any recommendations. She surprised me by pulling out a list of eight or nine items. I was too polite to ask if she was planning on eating them all today as it is the final day. Her top recommendations were the fried crawfish and eggplant, spinach and artichoke and a crawfish bisque. Her son heartily recommended the alligator pie. She shared with me that one year while she was pregnant but not feeling well enough to go to Jazz Fest, she sent her husband in with a list of foods and Tupperware.

I think that I will be sticking with lighter fare until The Husband arrives so that he can share the dishes with me. I know that he is anxious to try the crawfish monica. So little time.