Man, you shoulda been here. I had raw oysters tonight at Lüke in New Orleans, with old friends. The guy whose wrist you see in the photo, he’s an actual Iron Man competitor. And a fellow oyster-loving Francophile. We were like pigs in you-know-what tonight at Lüke. Two dozen raw oysters, and then pork, pork, pork. Below, my pal’s plat Lyonnaise — homemade sausage with mustard. My Jägerscnitzel dinner was great, but his was spectacular, by my lights, at least. Look here, when you are in New Orleans, go to Lüke. The service was fantastic, and the food was hearty and transporting. With the oysters we had a tart Crémant d’Alsace that was more stimulating than Champagnes I’ve had. What a happy place to be, Lüke! I would eat here every day if I had the opportunity. Lüke is John Besh’s most popular restaurant, and it’s easy to see why.

Tomorrow: Domenica for Thanksgiving lunch. I’m fairly stressed out for various reasons, but boy oh boy, New Orleans — especially John Besh’s New Orleans — is what the doctor ordered. You could plan a whole vacation around it.