Gumbo on the Beach

One of the reasons that I like going to Galveston is because you can get some of the best seafood. The seafood is fresh and reasonably priced too.

I stopped by the Gumbo Diner for lunch and it was full of people. All of the tables were full but there were a few empty seats at the bar. This place is not very large but they have a reputation for excellent food.

I knew what I wanted when I walked in the door. I ordered a “little daddy” bowl of seafood gumbo without shrimp, but with extra crab meat. The name is mis-leading because the bowl is not little.

I watched the cook prepare this rotting steam pot with my gumbo. I should have taken a picture of it. There are four pots that can tilt toward the cook when a connection is loosened. The four pots are also connected to a steam source.

Each bowl of gumbo is individually prepared from a common stock, but the seafood ingredients are added separately. A man sitting next to me ordered chicken and sausage gumbo, and his wife ordered crawfish etoufee.

The atmosphere in the diner is lively, a little loud and very friendly. I had a conversation with the couple next to me because they were celebrating 44 years of marriage. I told them that that was wonderful and that they were blessed. The husband said “or something”. He said, We stayed together so long because we couldn’t decide what to do with the children. Neither of us wanted custody of children, so we had to stay together.” He was such a comedian and his wife went right along with him.

I asked the wife how her crawfish etoufee was and she told me that it was great. The waiter asked how my food was and I told him that it was delicious. He asked if I had ever ordered the crawfish etoufee and I told him no. He came back with a small sample for me to taste. It was creamy and had a good flavor, but I have tasted better at Papadeauxs, another seafood restaurant the I like.

The lunch experience was awesome. The waiter got a big tip and he gave me my adult beverage on the house. He said “Happy Birthday!” It was not my birthday. It was a great ending to my week in Galveston. Right as I was leaving, the weather had turned to perfect.

It was cool, breezy, and partly cloudy with sunshine and blue skies peeking through.

I’ll be back for another visit in the spring time.