Yes the Bird Dog is in Laurel, and yes it was renovated by the Hometown TV show...but there is little to attract and hold you beyond that. Food was very average and attitudes of the service staff were negative. Look around...there are far better options if you can handle a restaurant that was not featured on HGTV... read more

Nice quaint atmosphere with outdoor dining. Food was good with generous portions for the money. Definitely recommend.

Oh well, we just had to go! Pretty disappointing. I had the Cuban, which was just a ham sandwich with cheese, and my cousin had the Cuban which was totally different from mine. It had something like pork tenderloin. I'll just say we spent $20 each to see the inside of the Cafe that Ben and Erin renovated and they gave us a free sandwich. That's better than saying we spent $20 each for a sandwich that was less than satisfactory. read more

Stopped in for a quick espresso and to enjoy the comfortable front porch. I'm glad I was on the porch because 2 sips into the espresso, I tossed the contents of the cup over the porch rail. I'd return for the food, since we didn't try anything but coffee and chai tea latte (which my wife said was fine) but not for the espresso. And yes, I am quite familiar with good espresso as I am a daily consumer of the beverage. read more

If you're looking for a tourist trap with a pretentious menu and bad food, this is the place. They were out of the first four things I tried to order from the menu. We ended up with bland chicken salad on dry croissants. The "field pea hummus" was ice cold and absolutely nasty. read more

I give this restaurant one star because our food was actually good, but everything else was horrendous. They need a complete overhaul of staff. From the moment we walked in, not a single person greeted us. It only takes a moment to smile and Welcome someone in. We stood at the front for 10 minutes. When we were finally acknowledged, the lady just said, "Y'all can sit over there. It's going to be 15 minutes." We sat down at a dirty table with no menus. Ten minutes later someone brought menus. We had to ask someone to please wipe off our table...TWICE. The waitress finally came to get our orders. We ordered. 20 minutes later we still didn't have drinks. We only ordered WATER. We had to ask for that. Our food took FOREVER to come out and we only ordered salads. They brought our food, but no silverware. They returned with silverware but no napkins. We ordered the exact same salad but one of them was missing ingredients. When we inquired we were told, they ran out. We watched as other tables left and the tables sat unbussed. Other people came in and we watched the host (?) very rudely, bluntly address them as well. No greeting, no welcoming, almost ignoring the patrons. It was an extremely disappointing experience for a place we were so excited to go. Everyone seemed annoyed that we were there and we were the paying customers. read more

Too expensive for what it is. Pretentious for Laurel. It's popular with the tourists, which is good, I guess.

The Bird Dog Club was pretty good but I was disappointed in the lack of entrees offered. A few minutes after the waitress accidentally offered me roasted potatoes as a side, she came back and said that her boss yelled at her and the only sides that came with my sandwich were chips and macaroni salad. And by the way, they were out of macaroni salad. When I asked how much extra it would be to get the roasted potatoes, she said they did not come with the sandwich I ordered. Really???? After waiting for an hour to be seated and get our food, you would think they would be more accommodating. I guess after you've been on TV customer service is not a thing anymore. read more

Stopped in for dinner after a day of sightseeing in Laurel. Had a very delicious tomato Caesar salad and a phenomenal burger with bacon bourbon jam. Wish they would sell the jam!!!!Service was great. Warm and friendly atmosphere. read more

As a food and beverage manager for years, This hole in the wall is just that. The Bird Dog is about six steps below Waffle House, which isn't that bad. If this is run by trained Chefs they need to go back to school. Instead of being on Home Town they need to be on WORST COOKS IN AMERICA !!!!. Just go to Waffle Waffle. read more

Had breakfast....good, but overpriced for what you receive ($38 for 2 bfast croissants/potatoes/sodas, was only 2$ less than our two entrees/2sides each/teas at Blue Crab Grill the night before...where we were stuffed from the amount of food.). Very friendly staff! read more

This was by far our favorite spot in Laurel! We went for breakfast. The coffee drinks were really good, breakfast tacos were delicious, and the man working was very nice and friendly. read more

We were in Laurel on last Saturday. We had seen the Bird Dog Café on HGTV and decided to give it a try. At 3:30 in the afternoon, nobody was there, but we had to wait be seated. The menu was very limited, just salads, bakes, and wrap sandwiches. We ordered sandwiches. I got the Caesar chicken wrap, my son got the salmon wrap, and my husband ordered a salmon club. He was given a salmon wrap, instead. He decided to take it instead of sending it back. We were completely disappointed, Absolutely no favor or seasoning on the meats, no dressing on the wraps. They were dressed with just a very little lettuce and a thin sliver of tomato on each sandwich. They were good-sized sandwiches, but zero flavor. Frankly, Chick-Fil-A makes a better chicken wrap. The final blow was the ticket. We paid $52.00 for three sandwiches and a glass of tea. In Mississippi, this a beyond outrageous! The prices were not listed on the menu in a noticeable way, or at least we didn't see them. If we had seen the prices, we would have left before ordering. No wrap is worth 15 to 18 dollars. A very disappointing experience. We will not be back next time we're in Laurel. read more

My wife and I went for lunch. Best Marconi Salad either of us ever had! Jolie, our server, was super friendly and very attentive to our lunch needs. She recommended we come back for their dinner service which we did. My wife had that salmon and I had the burger. The burger was very good. The salmon was amazing! The collard greens as a side was one of the best side dishes either of us have ever had! Jolie was our server again and she stepped up her already perfect service game! Met the owner who was super friendly and very appreciative we would come to Laurel and The Bird Dog from Buffalo, NY. We will be back to Laurel, and you can bet your bottom we will be back to the Bird Dog! read more

As locals we were excited to try the new restaurant however it was very disappointing. No greeting or directions when you enter. Finally I saw the menu and ask if we ordered at the register or table. We grabbed a table to glance over the menu and evidently upset a worker coming to wipe the table so she just copped an attitude and left. Determined to enjoy our lunch, we ordered. The menu is uninspiring with the Cuban Sandwich the only interesting offering. I ordered it without the special dressing (i don't eat mayonnaise) and was informed that they could "scrape" it off since the sandwiches are made ahead and kept in the fridge!I ordered the ham & cheese (something you can get from a gas station). So long story short $12 sandwich not freshly made coupled with a $5 canned Coke! We think we will let the tourists have this one!! read more

A bit of a tough location as it is in a cul-de-sac type of area with a narrow old-town kind of street with very limited parking out front - - - plenty of parking in a lot about 50 yards away. This little place was featured in Hometown TV show (HGTV) when Ben & Erin Napier remodeled it for the entrepreneur who runs it now. The food was generous in amount and very tasty. The labor situation is as tough in Laurel as it is everywhere else - - - our server had been working alone for five hours that morning before more servers arrived. In no way am I a "foodie" and so would not consider myself as having a palate of some pedigree. Cost, to me, is not as much a consideration as I've seen in some of the reviews of this cafe. I am sure we'll be passing through Laurel in the future and we will happily have a meal at the Bird Dog Cafe again. read more

Chef Elliott and his staff catered a function for us at the Bird Dog Cafe. the food was outstanding and the service was superb. I like to bake but Elliott made the absolute best cookies I have ever eaten (And I've eaten a lot of cookies) Go in and see him, you will not be disappointed! Go Bird Dog! read more

While in Laurel, we had to eat here 3 times...just that good!! The drinks are great, service was superb, food outstanding and atmosphere warm and inviting! read more

My wife and I were in Laurel prospecting for a retirement home. Living in New Orleans for decades has spoiled me on hole-in-the-wall bistros, so I was delightfully surprised by the quality experience we enjoyed here, despite the distraction of everyone locking down for Hurricane Ida. I enjoyed some of the best mojitos in a very long time thanks to their bartender Ross, and my wife was overjoyed with the quality of their wine list, despite its short size. The chef had labored over a delicious smoked pork loin with house-made chutney as the evening's special and it more than met our expectations for flavor and presentation. Neither of us are big fans of brussels sprouts, but their casserole version was surprisingly tasty as well. The table service was quick and timely, even as the place began to fill with locals and tourists wanting to be sure to get one last good meal before the storm rolled through town the next day. We will return and enjoy another meal or two in better weather. They have a large deck in the rear and a small herd of local cats that they have taken upon themselves to care for and that offer endless entertainment. This is what 'local' and 'bistro' are all about and we wish them nothing but success. read more

Fun place! We had the salmon special and the veggie pizza. Awesome food and service! Highly recommend the Honeysuckle drink!

We spent a day and a half in Laurel and ate here 3 times. The salmon dinner was great. The peach cobbler was to die for. I had to fight my fiancee to get even half my salmon and cobbler. We may have to drive back again from Arizona. read more

Went yesterday to visit and have breakfast. The place was just as I remember it from the show. The waitress was great. The meal was definitely one of the worse I have ever had. I got the avocado toast. My kids both got the grit bowls and my mom also got one of the toast. My toast was never toasted it was a piece of small cold bread. The bacon was precooked and cold. My egg was suppose to be fried with a runny yoke and it was precooked. It had no runny yoke, and it was cold. My kids eggs in their bowls were the same thing. I'm from the south and cook grits all the time. The grits needed to be cooked for about 30 more min. My son did not eat his and this is favorite breakfast. My moms toast was also cold bread. All this cost 60 bucks. They had plenty of staff. Only one person was allowed to make coffee. So my moms coffee took 25 min and it was just plain coffee. I never complain. You can look at my record. I don't mind paying for go food but this was awful. read more

We were visiting on July 13, 2021 from Eastern Alabama and central Illinois because of our love for "Home Town" and were looking forward to lunch here. What a huge disappointment. We were seated on the back patio and our server promptly took our drink orders. While she told us she was new, we still hadn't received our drinks 20 minutes later (2 iced teas and a water). Fortunately, the young man filling water glasses was kind enough to bring some water and kept our glasses full. Another server kept asking us if we'd been helped, but didn't go beyond that. I understand that they each care for certain tables, but customer service is far more important and it would've been nice if the more experienced servers would've jumped in. After finally receiving our drinks, we placed our food orders. It took almost 45 minutes to get a chicken Caesar wrap, a chicken salad wrap, and a salad with chicken (was supposed to be a salad with chicken salad). The chicken was not cooked to order so it shouldn't have taken so long. The wraps had very little filling in them and were flavorless - they were mostly tortilla shells. The chicken salad made me ill. It was a good thing that my friend got the chicken with her salad rather than the chicken salad, or we both would've been sick. There is a large cooler outside where food is stored and food was constantly being carried into the restaurant. We questioned if the chicken salad was actually made in-house, or if it was bought pre-made, packaged, and stored in the cooler. July in Mississippi means temperatures in the 90's. Small coolers with ice should be used to transport food from the cooler to the kitchen rather than gloveless hands hoisting pre-made food in plastic bags onto sweaty shoulders. The food handling for new deliveries being stocked in the cooler was also questionable. I think the health department should make a visit. I wish we would've tried another place in town for our first meal in Laurel. read more

We walked for a ways to find Bird Dog Cafe, arriving at 2:15. The staff seemed indifferent to seating us, pointing to a table and walking off without a word. The waitress brought menus, three waters, but no silver or napkins. We ordered mushroom bruschetta, two chicken salad croissants, and a Bird Dog Club. They were out of macaroni salad and lettuce so our only side choice was potato chips. The menu listed Lemon Shaker Pie and I asked for that first..she never brought it. When the bruchetta arrived, we asked for plates, silver and napkins...and waited. I asked again about that lemon pie...and waited. She brought us two plates for the bruschetta and no silver. We asked for the silver and got three plastic forks. She came back and informed ua that there was no chicken salad. We asked about other items on the menu, and they were out of just about everything..but tuna salad...so tuna it was! We asked for knives...we got two. I asked about the lemon pie...and waited. The tuna salad croissants arrived...mine was very salty. I asked about that lemon pie and was told that the last piece was just sold...an hour after I asked for it the first time! We visited the bathroom...the pink one with the bathtub...and a hole where the light switch should have been. Probably would not make that 2.5 hour drive to visit Laurel MS and eat at the Bird Dog Cafe again. read more