Best Contemporary American Restaurants in Columbia City

The steak was perfect, the octopus had an amazing char, the donuts are a must get, and the staff made it a special experience.

Service was slow (dinner took 3 hours), but the waitstaff was pleasant and helpful. We were not in a hurry, so the leisurely pace was ok. We sat right in front of the hostess stand, and she seemed angry, and we felt like she was glaring at us all night. It may be that she was angry about the slow service, but we felt her wrath. The food and wine was very good, and the waitstaff was friendly and capable. We had a wonderful time and enjoyed our dinner very much except for the disapproving hostess.

The salmon and masala chicken on Chef’s special Christmas menu are delicious! The date and molasses cake dessert is heavenly divine!

Our waiter, David made this experience for us. We had a wonderful time. The food was plentiful but honestly could have been fresher. Also some things didn’t work…consider sticking to the classics like a cucumber sandwich without modifications. It’s a staple of every high tea for a reason.

My group of 4 were seated outside for dinner. It was rainy and somewhat cold, and our server offered us blankets to stay warm. There was also an overhead heater that kept us cozy. The restaurant was out of lemonade and sweet tea, but our server offered a "dealer's choice" non-alcoholic drink which was refreshing and delicious. It was a pink drink that had a sprig of rosemary in it (rosemary happens to be my favorite herb). Everything we ordered for food was delicious and cooked well. The hoe cakes (3 in an order) were moist and buttery. The mussels and clams dish was so good, and the sauce they came in was very flavorful with a slight spicy kick. We also got the mojo chicken over garlic rice and the unc's fried chicken which were very tender. The grilled okra with onions as well as the collard greens were really good sides. For dessert, we had the salted caramel ice cream and bread pudding which were just the right amount of sweet. They serve family style here, and all the dishes were ordered were enough to satisfy a table of 4 people (our server recommended we order 5-6 dishes total). The only thing we thought was weird was the last dish to come out was the collard greens which was just weird timing to finish our meal with a side. Your whole order is put in, so things come out as they are ready to serve. Besides that, the atmosphere was lovely, and the whole experience was great. The staff here are very friendly and knowledgeable about the menu and helped us make choices for what to order. I am definitely coming back and hope to get seated at a table inside because the music they play in the restaurant is some soulful rhythm and blues.