Restaurant Calla - Lake Charles (LA)

5 /5 Brittany McVicker: Sat at the bar with my girlfriends - Chase is masterful behind the bar. It’s not just dinner and drinks, but the craftsmanship behind the high top is incredible to watch. Thank you for a phenomenal evening!

5 /5 Trey Varnado: Sat at the bar with Brandon—truly a culinary experience from start to finish. My appetizer (BBQ shrimp), entree (Prime Short Ribs) & dessert (house made cheesecake) were all superb. Brandon is a master of his craft—his cocktails are truly exceptional. Cannot recommend enough!

1 /5 John H: My fiancé and I came for lunch, we had the BBQ shrimp to start, then we each had the lobster and shrimp pasta, the Mac and cheese as a side, then cheesecake as dessert. Combine that with 1 drink and after tip the total came to $200 for the two of us. The cheesecake was inedible due to the crust being extremely salty. The service was great and the rest of the food was pretty good. Worst part came right after we left the restaurant. We both got ill to our stomachs on the way home. Multiple bathroom stops and nausea. I want to give more than 1 star, and if we would not have gotten sick I believe we would’ve. Can’t say I’ll be going back. For that kind of money, there are just better places in Lake Charles.

1 /5 Anthony Gibson: We had a 7:00 PM reservation on a Friday night and arrived early at 5:56 PM, at which point we were promptly seated. Unfortunately, that was the highlight of the evening. It took approximately 18 minutes before our server came to the table. We ordered one Old Fashioned for me and a cocktail for my wife. Thirteen minutes later, the drinks arrived. My Old Fashioned was good (as it usually is), but my wife’s drink was essentially straight alcohol and undrinkable. After waiting another 11 minutes for our server to return, we requested a replacement for her drink and ordered another Old Fashioned for me. Thirteen minutes later, the replacement arrived — unfortunately, it was extremely tart and still not good. We had also ordered the charcuterie board, which never arrived. After 1 hour and 8 minutes total at the table, with no food and only drinks, we informed the server that we were finished and asked that a manager be summoned. The server returned and told us the manager was “busy” and that the drinks would be “on the house.” No apology from management, no visit to the table, and no explanation. We left and went to Embers, where we had an excellent experience — drinks, food, attentive service, and our meal served within 22 minutes. For a restaurant with Calla’s reputation and pricing, this experience was deeply disappointing. I have added photos of our empty table at Calla (with only drinks) and the exceptional food and service we received immediately afterward at Embers. I would genuinely like ownership or management to respond. I am more than willing to return for a drink and discuss this experience, but this visit fell far short of expectations.