The Cotton Boll Grill, a long-time Shreveport favorite, is located at 1624 Fairfield Avenue.

Historic diner offers a filling lunch at a reasonable price

The 318 Forum’s always-hungry reporter often lunches at a local restaurant and tells you about the experience.

In August, I visited a restaurant suggested to me by a trusted friend. He had a satisfying first visit. I went with high hopes but unfortunately did not have the same experience.

I was a bit hesitant when the same person recommended I visit The Cotton Boll Grill (1624 Fairfield Avenue, Shreveport), but I’ve known this person for many years and decided to trust him at least once more. So, on a recent Tuesday, I invited him to meet me for lunch. I figured if he had skin in the game, his choice might be more solid.

The Cotton Boll has been around for a long, long time — according to a news article, the grill opened in the 1930s. When I was an altar boy, the church gave coupons for a free breakfast when I would serve at the 6 a.m. mass on school days. I don’t remember going back to The Cotton Boll since. In fact, The Cotton Boll was supposed to close earlier this year, before it was bought.

My friend and I arrived at 12:20, despite him warning me that by then, The Cotton Boll may have run out of their daily lunch specials. “People call ahead and pick up before lunch,” he said. “If you snooze, you lose.” There didn’t appear to be many cars out front, so I was hopeful there would still be food for us.

One thing The Cotton Boll isn’t is big. Its width and depth gave a cramped (some might say cozy) feeling. If you have sensitive information to share with your dining companion, this isn’t the place to do it. With five small booths on one side, four on the other, a couple of two-top tables in between, and counter seating, all in a compact space, you will likely overhear other people’s conversations. But the closeness added to the restaurant’s quaintness. There isn’t a pretentious bone in The Cotton Boll’s body.

History is a big part of the eatery. Its walls are filled with pictures and drawings of what Shreveport looked like back in the day. Music from the ’50s and ’60s played throughout our visit. From the décor to the atmosphere, going to The Cotton Boll is like going back in time.

Cotton Boll features include hamburger steak and a choice of vegetables and bread and their popular hand-breaded chicken fried steak sandwich.

Open until 2 p.m. Monday-Friday (breakfast is served starting at 6 a.m.), The Cotton Boll offers daily lunch specials, hot lunch plates, vegetable plates, Southern favorites, sandwiches and salads. Knowing my affinity for a good salad, my friend thought that was the direction I would take when ordering. However, I was there for some good ol’ fashioned home cooking, so my eyes focused on the menu’s daily specials and hot lunch plates.

A Tuesday meant the daily specials were meatloaf and Southern fried smothered pork chops. Both tempted my taste buds, but for some reason, I had been craving a hamburger steak. Lucky me! One of the three hot lunch plate choices was an 11-ounce, house-made smothered hamburger steak with onions and gravy, my choice of two sides and my choice of bread ($12.99).

My friend was hoping to get the Irish beef stew, but his prediction came true. The beef stew was gone before we arrived. He went to his back-up plan of chicken fried steak. Mindful of the calories that come with gravy (“The chicken fried steak requires gravy to be at its best”), he chose the chicken fried steak sandwich ($13.99). My friend had a Diet Coke ($2.49) to drink, while I had water.

It seemed to take a while for our food to arrive — so long that I almost asked our very nice server, Christie, what was taking so long. Then I noticed just one cook at the grill. I am trying to work on patience and understanding, so I decided to wait before speaking up.

That turned out to be a good decision, as our food arrived a few minutes later. My plate had a large, mostly flat, hamburger steak, with rice (I could have chosen mashed potatoes) and bowls of turnip greens and candied yams. The steak and rice were supposed to be served with gravy, but that didn’t happen. I also had a choice of hot water cornbread or regular cornbread. I will never pass up an opportunity to have hot water cornbread.

My food was fine.

Nothing extraordinary. Everything could have been a bit warmer, but overall, I did not have any complaints.

My friend’s sandwich came as advertised — a piece of chicken fried steak served with lettuce, tomato, onion and a pickle, all on a homemade bun. “It was everything I expected it to be,” he said after eating. “The bun was fresh, the chicken fried steak was tasty, and I would get that sandwich again and again. Same with the vegetables. They were exactly what you would expect when having lunch at a diner — hot and delicious. It was like eating your mom’s cooking, and that’s what you want.”

The Cotton Boll offers “a rotating selection of homemade pies, cobblers and desserts.” However, we were full and still had a half-day of work ahead of us.

The cost of our meal before taxes and tip was $29.47.

For me, The Cotton Boll Grill did was it was supposed to do — provide a filling lunch in a casual place for a reasonable price. I am neither singing its praises nor being critical. I give The Cotton Boll Three Forks. I would return but not go out of my way.

What I will do is take my friend’s next recommendation. He redeemed himself and has momentum on his side.