Stan's Last Stand
OPEN: JANUS FILE #0391
As I mentioned in my last entry, today is the final day for Stan's Fish Sandwich in St. Matthews. They decided to go out with as big a bang as possible, calling it "Stan's Last Stand." And after my second visit a few days ago, I decided that I wanted to stop by one more time.
I made my way to Stan's late this afternoon. The festivities were not contained to just the restaurant. The shopping center (not sure if that's the best term for it, but I don't know what else to call it) where Stan's is located has a open courtyard in the middle, and the party was taking place there as well. (It's probably a good thing; the restaurant itself probably had more people inside than the fire marshal would have allowed.)
Another local establishment, Homemade Ice Cream And Pie Kitchen, provided a decorated cake that said something like, "Thanks for 24 great years!" I'm not completely certain on the precise wording; by the time I got there, they had already started cutting the cake and giving out slices. I picked up a slice, and it was quite tasty. (Homemade Pie Kitchen has several locations here in Louisville. I'm pretty certain I've visited one of them before, so if I do stop by, it's going to be another FoodQuest Rerun.)
A couple of local bands had set up in the courtyard, and they were playing. I really didn't pay attention to what they were playing at the time, because now no particular song is sticking in my head. If they had been covering, say, The Beach Boys or Jimmy Buffet, it probably would have stuck in my head.
I arrived as they were starting an oyster roast in the courtyard. They were grilling oysters in the shell, and from what I could tell, the oysters were going as fast as they could be grilled. I approached the table as people were snatching up that last of one batch, so I had to wait a few minutes for another batch to finish grilling. Once the fresh batch was brought to the table, I grabbed four oysters -- I was interested in just a taste, and that seemed to be enough to give me that. Of course, I was so clueless that I had to ask for instructions on how to open the oysters. After watching someone else opening a couple, I quickly picked up on the right technique.
I'm not sure how large I was expecting the oysters to be. Maybe a little larger than they turned out to be, but they were still succulent little morsels, to which I added some of the restaurant's cocktail sauce.
After that, I went to the restaurant proper. As the saying goes, there was a line out the door. It wasn't quite wrapped around the building, but I think it could have easily done so given enough time. Of course, there was also a steady flow of people coming out of the restaurant.
The line was actually moving pretty quickly, and when I finally made it through the door, I saw a notice on a dry erase board stating that the only item on the menu today was their signature item -- the fish sandwich. I glanced at my watch at that point, and with some rapid calculations, realized that if I ordered a sandwich, I would probably miss the #29 TARC that would be coming by within 15 minutes or so. Time to abort that plan.
I picked up a button that said "Stan's Last Stand" with today's date. And I signed a couple of guestbooks both inside the restaurant and in the courtyard. I already knew that the most appropriate thing to say was a line from the late Douglas Adams. In fact, it was the title of one of his Hitchhiker's Guide books:
"So long, and thanks for all the fish."
I even mentioned the line to one of the staff running the oyster roast. She seemed to be amused, and I hope she shares it with everyone else.
And with that, I made my way to the bus stop.
CLOSE: JANUS FILE #0391
As I mentioned in my last entry, today is the final day for Stan's Fish Sandwich in St. Matthews. They decided to go out with as big a bang as possible, calling it "Stan's Last Stand." And after my second visit a few days ago, I decided that I wanted to stop by one more time.
I made my way to Stan's late this afternoon. The festivities were not contained to just the restaurant. The shopping center (not sure if that's the best term for it, but I don't know what else to call it) where Stan's is located has a open courtyard in the middle, and the party was taking place there as well. (It's probably a good thing; the restaurant itself probably had more people inside than the fire marshal would have allowed.)
Another local establishment, Homemade Ice Cream And Pie Kitchen, provided a decorated cake that said something like, "Thanks for 24 great years!" I'm not completely certain on the precise wording; by the time I got there, they had already started cutting the cake and giving out slices. I picked up a slice, and it was quite tasty. (Homemade Pie Kitchen has several locations here in Louisville. I'm pretty certain I've visited one of them before, so if I do stop by, it's going to be another FoodQuest Rerun.)
A couple of local bands had set up in the courtyard, and they were playing. I really didn't pay attention to what they were playing at the time, because now no particular song is sticking in my head. If they had been covering, say, The Beach Boys or Jimmy Buffet, it probably would have stuck in my head.
I arrived as they were starting an oyster roast in the courtyard. They were grilling oysters in the shell, and from what I could tell, the oysters were going as fast as they could be grilled. I approached the table as people were snatching up that last of one batch, so I had to wait a few minutes for another batch to finish grilling. Once the fresh batch was brought to the table, I grabbed four oysters -- I was interested in just a taste, and that seemed to be enough to give me that. Of course, I was so clueless that I had to ask for instructions on how to open the oysters. After watching someone else opening a couple, I quickly picked up on the right technique.
I'm not sure how large I was expecting the oysters to be. Maybe a little larger than they turned out to be, but they were still succulent little morsels, to which I added some of the restaurant's cocktail sauce.
After that, I went to the restaurant proper. As the saying goes, there was a line out the door. It wasn't quite wrapped around the building, but I think it could have easily done so given enough time. Of course, there was also a steady flow of people coming out of the restaurant.
The line was actually moving pretty quickly, and when I finally made it through the door, I saw a notice on a dry erase board stating that the only item on the menu today was their signature item -- the fish sandwich. I glanced at my watch at that point, and with some rapid calculations, realized that if I ordered a sandwich, I would probably miss the #29 TARC that would be coming by within 15 minutes or so. Time to abort that plan.
I picked up a button that said "Stan's Last Stand" with today's date. And I signed a couple of guestbooks both inside the restaurant and in the courtyard. I already knew that the most appropriate thing to say was a line from the late Douglas Adams. In fact, it was the title of one of his Hitchhiker's Guide books:
"So long, and thanks for all the fish."
I even mentioned the line to one of the staff running the oyster roast. She seemed to be amused, and I hope she shares it with everyone else.
And with that, I made my way to the bus stop.
CLOSE: JANUS FILE #0391