I'm not sure how this is still open. I appreciate what the owners are trying to do but I don't really like any of the food or drinks I've ordered here. Quality is inconsistent. read more

Amazing food, drinks and atmosphere! Piano player on weekends just perfect for date night or pleasant stop for lunch. Great sandwiches like a shrimp poboy or 3 meat sandwich. Also have amazing soups, salads and pasta. AND THE DESSERTS! Macaroons, cookies, cakes and more! read more

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Food is great, but do not ever allow him to work your weddings. Everything we had planned up until the event, was nothing like I pictured. It was so embarrassing to my friends and family that traveled both near and far... all the great things they were to expecting that I gushed about and the decor and service was absolute shit. Not to mention, once I went outside at the end of reception for our exit with sparklers, one of my bridesmaids came back in with cash stolen from her purse. Jake literally reassured me that I could trust his team and it was such a let down. During the wedding planning process, I looked at both the Charleston and the Lake Charles Civic Center as my wedding venue option. He had his husband give us a tour and it was the most awkward venue tour I've ever experienced, and honestly his venue was so dark and it was still trashed from the night before. It was then that I felt that it wasn't our place to be. Although I heard such great things about the food, I asked if he would at least cater, floral and decor at our new wedding venue because it he had such good "package" pricing. Little did I know that you get what you pay for, and even less than that on my wedding day. Planning a wedding from Houston was stressful enough as is, and Jake Stutes was far from professional to work with. Family and friends just reassured me that "he's just not good at being professional, however he will always do the job right". I can't tell you how many times I didn't get responses from him, or when I drove to Louisiana for a scheduled meeting with him and he literally sat there across from us trying to figure out why we were meeting in the first place. So awkward. With patience, I always led the meeting and then eventually he would lighten up from whatever "bad mood" of the day he was in. I could honestly keep going with more examples with how he has disappointed my husband and I. My family and I. And I pray that no bride will have to experience this in the future. Pictures included in overall photos read more

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If I could give less than one star, I would. I was in a wedding in March at the event center, "coordinated" by the owners of the Charleston. I had attended a meeting with the bride months before the wedding to solidify the details. This was the couple's second or third meeting with Jake, and with her being from out of town, it was difficult to get the details nailed down over the phone. At this meeting, all plans were supposed to be worked out. They weren't. As an outsider, it was like an initial meeting. Jake had nothing prepared, besides a few rough drafts and was less than accommodating. The bride, groom, MIL, and I sat there in silence while he was doing.....something, not sure what. He went over flowers, table arrangements, and the layout of the event center. They agreed on a gold backdrop for pictures, a cocktail hour, and drapery to cover the ugly walls. Now, I don't know what was in the contract, and what was agreed to be paid for. HOWEVER, this can be attributed to both the bride's naivety (duh, this isn't her JOB) and the horrible customer service on Jake's part. You shouldn't say you are going to do things that you aren't, and that you don't have the capability nor skillset to do (i.e., coordinating, decorating-----stick to making pastries). A formal contract should have been written, signed, and witnessed with EVERY detail. Fast forward to wedding day........ The owners had not coordinated the entrance of the parties into the ceremony, nor announcing us, so I had to quickly write down the orders and all of our names on a piece of paper to give to the announcer. When we got in the room, there were no drapes, not enough chair covers for all of the chairs, and a "kids area" that was essentially nothing. The ceremony ended, and we all exited the room to cocktail hour. Get this.....there was food at the cocktail hour, but NO COCKTAILS. I know for a fact Jake talked to them about this, without a doubt. So we get through that.....and into the reception. We're all thirsty....and now there is no cop there for the bartenders to be able to serve alcohol. They got him over there within an hour, and they had started to serve alcohol anyways----illegal, but I almost wish they would have gotten caught. Bar was only beer and wine, had to pay for liquor (understandable), but then also for sodas!? It was odd. Maybe part of the package they bought but it shouldn't be that way. The DJ was terrible too (I don't think she was affiliated, but it didn't help). At the end of the night, my money was taken out of my purse, and I don't know who took it, but some a-hole did. The staff acted so unconcerned, that was what was upsetting. I didn't see Jake the entire night. Unacceptable. Now him and his husband are Facebook messaging the bride, threatening her with slander and saying she'll regret posting anything else. No sir. Adults don't play like that. I will post whatever I want on a public forum, and I will let people know what an awful job they did as I please. I will post pictures of the messages they sent. Horrible, rude people, that should not be in the business of making people's dream day come true. read more

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Best food in Lake Charles for the price. Appetizers I'd choose either fried green beans or crab cakes. All entrees are great and for dessert they have the best cheesecake in Lake Charles. read more

This is a GREAT place to eat for lunch! The atmosphere is amazing and the food is delicious! Sandwiches and soups are great and the full meals are to die for! Don't miss the beef tips over mashed potatoes or the crab cakes! So good! read more

I'll start with the positive. The bloody mary looks great, is loaded with extras, and is spicy, all good things. The place looks nice, and smells great being there is a bakery inside. The food order time did not take long. That is about where the positive stops. Our bartender, if you wish to call him that, was by far the slowest and lackadaisical I have ever seen. After pulling up a seat in the restaurant, which was completely unattended for 5-10 minutes, we were greeted. He then took drink orders from us, however making each drink separately then moving to the next person. It should not take 15 minutes for a drink order when my group, 4 of us mind you, are the only people in the entire place. The bar top was disgusting, sticky drink rings everywhere, and when I asked for a wet towel to wipe it down myself, I was told that they are there permanently and that they wouldn't come up. My date used the bathroom at the place and the look on her face let me know all I needed to in reference to that. The menu looks nice, so I will not speak to the rest of the food, but the one appetizer that we ordered, seafood and spinach dip was not good. The crab claws in it and in the bloody mary had a "frozen a few times" look and taste to them. With so many other amazing restaurants in our developing downtown area, this will be our last visit to this one. read more

Excellent food with huge portions. Homestyle cooking..and half price Martinis on Mondays....the atmosphere is quiet so you can visit. We love it! read more

Phoned in order for chicken salad sandwich w/ waffle fries. It would be 20 minutes before its ready, but hey, it was the lunch hour after all. So I wait 20 minutes and take a WALK over which is another couple of minutes. And then the waiting begins! Stand and wait for another 20 minutes...so in total that's 45 minutes to slap some chicken salad on a warmed croissant bun and some fries. When I get back to work and open it, it is a HALF sandwich with like maybe 7 fries and it's COLD!!! To spite the long wait I gave a 2.50 tip for them to simply carry my lunch a few feet away from the kitchen to me. So in total, I paid 13.61 for a half a sandwich, that wasn't even that tasty, and 7 fries that were both cold! Total disappointment! Next time I'll make the trip across town to Chez Caffe' for a chicken salad sandwich! They NEVER fail to disappoint! Adios, Charleston! :-/ read more

I first came in at the end of the last summer looking for coffee and they informed me they served dessert only. I saw a few facebook posts lately that they had food and the pictures looked great so I did a little more research. So glad i did, because we came here to celebrate a dual birthday and couldn't be happier. The food was outstanding, the drinks were great, and our server was so nice! Even when she had to step upstairs she made sure that another server was keeping an eye in us. We ordered an appetizer, meal, AND dessert and all the food we received was phenomenal. The atmosphere was really cool, with jazz music playing, and later there was actually a piano player there while we ate, which was awesome for the atmosphere. And once again I will mention how great the food was. I am extremely picky about chicken and often find restaurants serving dry chicken but the chicken and crawfish dinner was out of this world. My fiance and I both ordered dessert and wow. Just amazing. So glad i gave this little place a chance! read more