Calla

Outstanding, need I say more. The food was excellent and the service was superb. Can’t way to go back

Loved the décor and ambiance of this place. I tried the jerk quail, honey sriracha wings, crab beignets, and the cheese board (w/​3 different cheeses). The jerk quail was pretty salty but had a surprisingly very authentic jerk taste. The honey sriracha wings had way more honey than sriracha, like 75% honey and 25% sriracha. I personally would’ve like the exact opposite, more sriracha than honey, but they were good. The beignets and cheese board dish were delicious!!! Nice place, I will definitely return to try more dishes. :)

Got the blue crab beignets; those are a little salty, but if you pair it with honey, it’s fantastic. Also got the fried chicken with sweet potato salad. I like the concept, but it’s messy to eat. It tastes good when you have a bit of potato salad and chicken in one mouthful, but that’s tricky in execution. Chupacabra drink was fine and the Moscow mule was fine too.

Yes I can’t say enough about this place. Tonight is just the great burger and drinks before a show. It’s never the same and the folks here always try to make you feel at home.
Got here early and not a soul in the restaurant area. Take a seat on the couch and wait as I unwind from a hellish day at work. Came for the famous hamburger but while I wait enjoy a drink or two.
Yes you spend a little more here. It’s worth it. Quiet ambience great drinks and food. Oh and this place is one of the few to print the daily menu. My hats off to you Calla.

This place would not take our reservations… So we went up there one evening to chance it and try to get in promptly and wouldn’t ya know it, it’s 8 pm and they say there is a 2 hour wait! Well, so sorry to say that you can kiss my rear end! I’m not waiting for 2 hours anywhere for food. Since they don’t do reservations, evidently they don’t need my business or many others disgruntled with the same complaint from what I’m hearing… Which is fine… It’s the restaurants prerogative, but don’t expect us to cater to your needs when you cannot cater to ours.

Amazing food, drinks, service and environment! The waitresses suggestions for all were spot on! The blue crab beignets and Blueberry smash drink are absolutely delicious! The ribeye is by far the best steak I have ever had! A definite must try! Looking forward to the next visit!

Totally unexpected to find a restaurant with this caliber dining in Lake Charles. On par with top restaurants in D.C. and Miami.

Wonderful. We’ll balanced, exciting dishes. Great atmophere. My favorite place in Lake Charles.

Almost 5 stars, subtraction, the décor was sort of do it yourself post modern industrial, same stuff every single gastro pub on earth is doing. Anyhow, food is eclectic southern NOLA modern Americana. Dash of crab, local meats and seafood, you get the point. Very expensive for the south, surprisingly, considering almost if not more than San Diego prices. Anyhow, I’ve ate here twice, had the Country Charcuterie (they call it something else) pics attached. It was good, except it doesn’t work well together, lonely biscuit with no jam, pimento cheese, very good but what do you do with it, eat with the over sized cracker? Mustard and pickles, what do I do with this? No toast? And shaved prosciutto and spec… Hot mess, good ingredients but mismatched. I also had chili coated amberjack and plantain rice, VERY good. Their porterhouse pork chop, VERY good and huge but tad too salty. The pot o cream, take on s’mores, I think the caramel was burnt it tasted acrid, almost there good try, I ate it all, had a sweet tooth. Had the crab beignets, deconstructed carrot cake and pea ice cream. The beignets were ok, desperately need a sweet paring, maybe honey or some purée… The carrot cake was unusually addictive, not too sweet, should be shared though. Oh forgot to mention I had the Blackberry Smash cocktail, way way too cloyingly sweet and micro ice just pissed me off because you couldn’t drink it unless you had a straw. Drank 2 – 3 sips.

Finally got to try this restaurant. I had a few things on my list of items to try but ended up going with the crab beignets and the duck confit. The duck was cooked to perfection and the parm risotto with cherries was a surprising combination that fit so well together. The crab beignets were full of fresh crab and had an avocado sauce with roasted almonds. Ugh, it was so good. I could barely keep myself from liking the plate. There was a hint of mint in the crab beignets that I could have done without but it was only noticeable in a few bites. My 7 year old had the general chicken and the sweet potatoes chips. I wasn’t impressed with the chicken but she loved it. The sweet chips were light and airy. The chocolate cake was not my cup of tea but she cleaned the bowl. The presentation was amazing though. It came out on this adorable piece of china in a madon jar. Impeccable service as well. I’m looking forward to trying the pork belly and bone marrow dishes next!

By far the best dinning in the Lake Charles area!
My Wife and I ate there for dinner. Dinner is pricey, but more than worth it.
We had the cheese board with goat cheese with truffles that was in credible! We also had the pork belly bruschetta that was great. For entrees we had the filet that was beyond incredible, and the smoked fried chicken. The smoked fried chicken was great. It came with potato salad that was some of the best I’ve ever had. We also had dessert that was very good. We will definitely be back! Great dinning experience!

Ok. A restaurant has to be truly amazing for me to take the time to post a review and Calla was review worthy and so much more. Addison, our waiter, was one of those rare finds who knows exactly when to be there and when to allow space. The cocktails were perfection, the food impeccable and the desert, to die for. Be sure to try anything with the gnocchi, which truly melts in your mouth. My striped bass was cooked to perfection and our shishito peppers and sweet potatoes chips, were irresistible. Thank you Calla for an unforgettable evening and we look forward to our next visit!

Attentive friendly staff. Went for lunch but lunch menu is very basic. Dinner is apparently where it’s at. Had the crab beignets and it was good, Add honey! Much better. Had the burger and that was just ok. Nothing impressive in taste. Too much black pepper. Patties are thin like McDonald’s patties. The fries though, wow, perfectly done. Light and crispy. Would go back for dinner. Nice place for lc

Never expected to find a restaurant this good in LC. My taste buds were shocked with every bite! The smoked-​fried chicken was crazy good!!!

I brought some clients to lunch this week, and was pleasantly surprised. It was a unique atmosphere! They had antique looking incandescent bulbs hanging, providing low lighting. It was plenty bright; however, because they had large windows allowing natural light to flood in. The food was par excellent. I had the Calla Burger topped with a fried egg and bacon. The egg was cooked over easy, which allowed the yolk to break when I hold of it. That in turn created an almost hollandaise like sauce over the meat. The bacon was crispy, and the party was cooked perfectly. It also came with a generous helping of fries. It is a bit expensive, but worth it for the food and ambiance. $ 15 for my burger. I will definitely go back.

The service was excellent and the food was great, the staff was very accommodating to my friends food allergies.

Calla is a serious restaurant in SWLA and I wanted to eat here in the case it ever moved/​shut down (don’t mean this in a negative way)
Excellent — The ambience/​vibe/​environment & Drinks
Good — Food overall rated very good. More to follow. This is the closest to NOLA cuisine that you will get in SWLA. Portions were appropriately sized. Kudos to keeping the menu to a nice size. Love restaurants that switch it up based on local ingredients. Some may consider it pricey, but I don’t based on the type of restaurant it is establishing itself at.
Food Rated
Cheese Board — Excellent– Great variety and flavors were there
Sweet potato chips/​fries — Quite Excellent. Great flavor and fried to perfection
Spinach Salad — Very Good — Dressing was great and ingredients were of high quality
Grouper Large Plate — Very Good — Multiple Quality ingredients and flavors (fish was fresh and spiced very nicely and not overly seasoned)
Burger — Good (Burger had quality ingredients, but really was nothing special (only reason i ordered it was that the grouper was the main item that caught our eye and i never order the same item as my SO. Made the claim it tasted like a Sonic Burger– sorry Chef i know this is an insult, but i rather be honest; i know im being tough and should have stuck to the small plates, but Calla is on the level that it will get rated way tougher/​harsher than I have! You have set the bar high with this type of cusine)
Bone Marrow — Fair; The sopping buttery bread is what threw this plate off. When you bit the bread butter jumped out of it as it was soaked. When eating bone marrow, which is naturally fatty it did not need a piece of bread that was soaked to excess in butter. I would only order this small plate with 5 – 6 people as it is a large serving and way to rich/​greasy with the bread given. Some type of soup with the bone marrow would be a much better choice. Butter bread turned this from a good to fair.
Waitress could of been a bit more knowledgeable on a few questions we had, but she stated some things were new and she was not quite sure. She stated a wrong type of cheese, which is not a big deal to me, but other people may have had an issue with it. Waitress did not offer to let my wife try the wine and just fixed her a glass, which I found to be quite surprising; again not a big deal to me, but others may have an issue with it at this level. Overall Service was very good to the excellent range.
Overall Calla was a worthy place to dine. Could improve in a few areas, but overall very positive. Keep it up!

Great Expectations Realized!
From the reviews and the magazine article in a local publication, I was salivating over the idea of this place for weeks. I live in Baton Rouge so it was a big deal to drive out to Lake Charles just for dinner… To say expectations were high is an understatement!
Good: 1. The Blue Crab Beignets. that and a glass of savignon blanc and I could have gone to bed a happy girl. I had the same at R’evolution in New Orleans a week earlier and they were what and what. My date even said the person frying them must have been touched by God.
2. The close tables made the dining experience intimate– which was nice considering we saw some friends two (2) tables over and joined them for coffee and dessert when their neighbors left.
3. Milk Cake– Holy mother of pearl. this thing melts in your mouth! the sorbet it came with was to die for.
4. The changing menu– the night we were there offered fried chicken, pork chops, grouper or– I forgot what else. My grouper was divine.
Less Good: 1. pork chops were dry. Like sahara desert dry. We did not get them because the table next to us advised us not to. 2. The fried chicken sold out — but I can honestly say I’ve had much better.
Could Go Either Way:
Wedge Salad– huge… vehicle for blue cheese and bacon. But real bacon.
Ambiance:
If it is cool enough– the outside patio is nice and more spacious than inside– you almost feel like you are sitting in someone’s lap of a not quite finished loft that your friends are throwing an early housewarming in. Not terrible, but not great for what you’re pay for this meal. The place is located in a nouveau riche development that is also not fully developed yet. The inside smells of paint, the outside hasn’t been fully landscaped.
That said– the bar is great, the wine wall interesting and the wait staff look adorable in their aprons.
I love the chef’s sincerity in his food and the varied and interesting menu. I read somewhere he initially worked for free to learn from a very good chef– I would do that here. Work a day job– or anything else for money and give every other waking second in pursuit of learning how to appreciate food as he does.

Great food, great atmosphere, seemed somewhat short staffed. I came for lunch, there was one server who also acted as bartender. The TV by the bar was showing ignorant Fox News, which is hard to dismiss. Hot dude in shorts bussing food at the bar. Heyy
We shared an order of Pimiento Cheese Croquette, thought they were fabulous. Very nice flavor. I had the Oyster Poboy. Thought it was a tasty fresh sandwich, but the sweet potato chips were terribly salty. My mom got the Wedge Salad and enjoyed the twist with diced tomatoes on top. My dad got the Calla Burger and enjoyed the bread and butter pickles.
Overall happy experience. I cannot get over the beautiful atmosphere. You go Lake Charles

This place is fantastic! Small and a little difficult to find, but well worth the effort. Went today for lunch with a work group. The menu is short, but there is a great variety. The blue crab beignets were to die for. I’m not a fan of crab typically, but this is a must-​do.
Next, tried the pimento cheese croquettes. Also wonderful. Served on a bed of charred salad which was also really, really good. Perfectly crispy and just enough cheese, served over a sauce that tasted like a tomato basil soup. GREAT!
Last, but not least — the burger. I think probably 10 out of the dozen of our group ordered the burger and we were all very, very pleased!
What a fantastic addition to Lake Charles!