The new restaurant located at the corner of Kings Highway and Creswell Avenue seems perfectly situated to serve the Highland and South Highland communities. Which makes me wonder: why hasn’t this location been working previously?
Columbia Cafe served as the unofficial headquarters of Highland, where a mix of people enjoyed a small, set menu of dishes that were pricey, but the low-light atmosphere and homely bar area still made it feel accessible. Then came STIR Tapas, a misfire in both idea and execution, which was ambitious, but did not recognize the audience in that location. Sevendipity touted a sterling reputation, having served the downtown area for three years before attempting the location. Both bad luck and a souring reputation, despite excellent food, eventually ended their tenure. These recent failures have given rise to the widely-held belief that the spot is doomed or cursed.
Now comes The Highland Table, opened by Lesleigh Monsey, who started out selling her homemade butter at the Shreveport Farmers’ Market. Based on name alone, this is certainly the “feel” that has been missing since Columbia Cafe closed. Angie Posey, previous owner of Some Like It Hot food truck, was recruited to steer the kitchen as chef, and the menu is varied, providing something for everyone.
My wife and I were invited to preview the restaurant in June, and we had the option to fill out lengthy feedback sheets at the end of the meal both times we ate there. We have sampled the Catfish Cakes and Butter Flight for appetizers, with the correct assumption that any form of fried seafood cake was going to be excellent, and we were surprised how much we enjoyed the butter flight, especially the garlic butter. For the main courses, we’ve had the Hot House Sandwich, which checks the box for a quality vegetarian option, the Bacon Wrapped Skillet Meatloaf, the Loaded Mac & Cheese, and the Taco Potato Pie. The sandwich was surprisingly filling despite the size, the meatloaf was actually quite good and I felt like it elevated what is often considered a cheap, homemade meal. The Loaded Mac & Cheese was delicious and came across as a thoughtfully put together dish, rather than a kids meal. Dessert included the Brownie Ice Cream Sandwich, which seemed like a recipe that was still being tweaked, and the Cinnamon Apples, cooked diced apples with granola and ice cream.
Those two meals were beta, scratched from my memory as my friend Matt and I dined there for lunch this afternoon, July 15. I noticed that some of my suggestions from the post-meal surveys were heeded, specifically the walls which were now covered by prints from photographer M.C. Rollo. Also, a pleasant change from the previous restaurant incarnations: the main entrance is now the front door rather than the steel gangplank that leads to the bar. The table configuration lends itself to more seating on new, beautiful, sealed wooden tables, though the bench along the window felt rickety.
I ordered the BOYB (Build Your Own Burger) where I topped off a bacon burger patty with Creole mustard, mushrooms, avocado, and Swiss cheese (Hey! It’s my burger not yours, I can do what I want!). I decided to treat myself and also order the Truffle Oil Fries, substituting them for the Lays potato chips, mainly because I’ve never tried truffle oil fries before. Matt, my lunch date, ordered the Hearty Beef version of the Potato Pie. When I visited during the preview meals with my wife, she noted that the potato wasn’t cooked completely through, leaving her disappointed and unable to eat her entire meal. Unbelievably, Leslie, the owner, came up to us during the meal to check if the potato was cooked through (which it was) without me mentioning that this had been a problem in the past. Talk about really listening to feedback and addressing problems! I’m sold just on that alone!
With Angie behind the grill, I knew I would not be disappointed with by burger as I was a big fan of the Some Like It Hot food truck. The truffle oil fries did not bring the pizazz I thought they would, and in the future I’d be just as happy with regular fries. At $10, the BYOB burger is on par with what you can get at other places around town (read: actual restaurants, not the dollar menu). Matt enjoyed his potato pie and assured me that he would be coming back very soon, with or without me. At $8, he felt like he received a filling meal, and I must admit, I was a bit envious of his order.
Finally, and this was a real sticking point for me with the previous restaurants at this location, Highland Table understands the need for great service. Jacob, our server, was on top of it, and even though credit card sliders on mobile phones were used in the June preview meals, checkout is now done on a POS system. I cannot stress enough how much this matters to me. Sure there’s a learning curve on POS systems, but I find it MUCH more prefereable to cringing while a server fumbles with a cheap card reader on their phone.
The Highland Table is now open, Great Raft beer is being served, and they look better suited to survive than STIR or Sevendipity. Although we went for lunch, they do have dinner-worthy menu items such as Skillet Pork Chops, Chicken Cordone, and Roast Beef. The Highland Table seems poised to be the restaurant that we’ve all been hoping for, and judging from their excellent job listening to customer feedback, they will be able to adapt to what their patrons want. So go give them a try, be honest with your feedback, and let’s work with them to make this restaurant a success.
*RANT: To everyone who complains about the parking at this location to such an extent that there has actually been consideration of a valet parking service for the location – STOP. There is ample parking along Rutherford St., in the lot by Columbia Park across from Creswell Elementary, and directly across Creswell Ave. after 5pm. You can do it. You can walk one block to the restaurant. If you can waddle across the parking lot to Target, you can park in any of the streets surrounding the location.*