Diners speak highly of this onetime speak-easy

Appeared in THE BOSTON GLOBE - May 19, 2004

By Jonathan Bloom, Globe Correspondent

GREENWOOD, Miss. -- Ever wonder what dining out in the Prohibition era felt like? You can get an inkling at Lusco's, a Greenwood restaurant that still features curtained booths made famous in those days for allowing Mississippi diners to, ahem, eat in peace.

Charles and Marie Lusco opened a grocery store in Greenwood in 1921 and were serving food out of the store's kitchen by 1933. Some say Marie's cooking was a precursor to the modern "prepared food" section of the supermarket. Her handiwork blended family recipes from her ancestral homes of Sicily and, more recently, Louisiana. Word of her cooking spread, and the grocery store gave way to a restaurant. The aforementioned booths, private rooms with a flowered cloth curtains, were added so Greenwood's thirsty citizens could sample Charles's home brew.

While the 21st Amendment repealed the federal ban on booze in 1933, the Magnolia State didn't get around to doing the same until 1966, after every other state in the country. So Lusco's had reason to keep its curtains. Today, Lusco's is licensed to serve beer and wine coolers, but patrons must bring their own liquor and wine. Yet, with the curtain closed and the cork popped, it was fun pretending that our wine made us renegades.

Lusco's is still in the family and still draws a crowd. The salads are unusual. Lusco's Special Salad ($5.25) features a bed of lettuce topped with capers, black olives, and anchovies. Even without the dastardly anchovies, the tangy house dressing and capers provide the requisite saltiness. Shrimp or crabmeat can be added to any salad for $4.25.

Between courses, it felt a bit weird being isolated in the ample, pale green, private room, left to wonder when our entrees might arrive. For that very reason, the booths have ancient buzzers installed to page the waitstaff. While we were tempted to ring, we resisted, as the menu suggested that "good food takes time to prepare, so enjoy yourself." Sound advice. All the more time to examine the framed Willie Morris poem written on a Lusco's tab and a photo of father-son quarterbacks Archie and Peyton Manning.

When the main course arrived, we weren't disappointed. Lusco's bills itself as a steak and seafood place, but nobody in my group was in a $30 T-bone mood. While the catfish was tempting, I'd had it the previous two nights, so I went with the red snapper fillet ($11.50). I chose "wet" over "dry," and the tender fish came bathed in a light lemon-butter sauce. Broiled shrimp with Lusco's shrimp sauce ($13.25) was another keeper, as you could really taste the Louisiana influence in the brown, nutmeg-tinged sauce. Both "wet" plates were ideal targets for bread sopping. Finally, the decadent pralines 'n' cream ice cream parfait ($4.50) was devoured almost too quickly to describe. In a word, it was yummy.

While the family and restaurant have stayed the same -- the Luscos' great-grandson Andy Pinkston and his wife run it -- the neighborhood has deteriorated. Even though one local in our party didn't think it necessary, a restaurant attendant walked us to and from our car. It makes an odd ending to a night out. Then again, you don't go to Lusco's for normal.

Lusco's, 722 Carrollton Ave., 662-453-5365. Open for dinner Tuesday-Saturday, 5-10 p.m.

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Contact Jon: jon@jonathanbloom.net