Copper & Salt Northwest Kitchen — Restaurant in Ruston

If you are coming here with a group and made reservations don’t bother! We came here for post wedding rehearsal drinks and had a reservation made weeks ago and the staff acted like it was a surprise. They told us on the phone when we made the reservation to go ahead and take a seat at the fireplace if it was available which we did and was greeted by a bus boy who very sarcastically told us HE had not seated us there so we couldn’t take that spot. When the bride-to-be went to go talk with the manager to confirm our reservation the bus boy purposely sat another couple in the spot we were at and audibly said in front us, “I’ll sit you here since this other group just thought they could waltz in”. The manager was not helpful in this situation at all. I first thought it was weird at such a beautiful sophisticated place the manager was wearing white sunglasses from 2009 (in the evening) but that’s besides the point. The manager proceeded to let us know he could not accommodate 20 people he could only do 15, which is weird because the restaurant was nearly empty and I’ve never heard of a restaurant not being able to get a table for 20 together ESPECIALLY when a reservation for 20 was made beforehand. The manager shockingly remembered they do have a private room in the back that will fit our group and he will get it ready (which probably should have already been done SINCE WE HAD A RESERVATION) and that took over an hour to do. We were left standing awkwardly around other customers and when we tried to sit inside at the bar and wait for our table to be ready the staff scrambled to get our group to not sit down. We finally got into the back room (which smelled musty and clearly is rarely used) only to be left there. I served waters myself since it has been 20 minutes of just being left there. When a server finally came in she took our drink orders meanwhile the white sunglasses manager came by to let the bride know he wouldn’t split checks, they are behind in the kitchen and bar and it would be a while before we could be served and was plain rude. When the bride to be was nearly in tears we told the manager we were leaving and it clearly would be easier if we just left since we weren’t welcome here in the first place. The sigh of relief from the white sunglasses manager (I just want to note the sun had been down for 2 hours at this point) was just plain rude. So we wasted nearly 2 hours to be treated like nuisance, made the bride feel awful for having her bridal party and family from out of town treated in such a way just to leave. We ended up going across the street to Farrellis pizza which was fantastic, accommodating, seated us in 10 minutes and split our checks like a normal restaurant in 2023, and was not rude in the slightest! Go there. Not this restaurant with a stuffy white sunglasses manager and...

Tourist trap.

For the price, I was genuinely expecting some fantastic, refined cuisine. Heck, I’d have settled for phenomenal flavor or just good portions—but we didn’t really get either. I haven’t taken a harsh stance or refused to tip at a restaurant in many years, but you have to draw the line somewhere.

To summarize: the drinks were good. The food had some interesting notes, but the seasoning was too sparse to stand out and overall reminded me of a banquet microwave meal or hospital food. Presentation was okay. Portions were abysmal. Service speed was fine.

Drinks: Pretty good. On par with any decent non-chain establishment. I'd be happy returning just for the drinks.

Appetizer: We got the raw wagyu. It was decent. It made me hopeful for the rest of the dinner.

Kids’ Grilled Cheese: Served on salted sourdough with a generous amount of what tasted like generic Velveeta. It looked nice when it arrived, but the cheese quickly coagulated into a rubbery glob. My child spit it out. I usually finish her food, but it didn’t taste good enough to bother.

My Entrée (Lamb): The only question I asked before ordering was whether the lamb was domestic (i.e., less gamey). The server wouldn’t give me a straight answer but vouched that it was “good.” I took the recommendation. What arrived: four ribs, three small carrots, and a thin sliver of compound potato laid on a puddle of dark gravy. The meat was pleasant enough, but the fat was completely unrendered, and the seasoning was nonexistent. I ended up drenching the dish in the gravy just to coax out any flavor.

Partner’s Entrée (Crab Ravioli): This had the most flavor of the evening. The sauce had an interesting mix of cheeses and a hint of citrus zest. The pasta itself lacked flavor but had a solid al dente texture—if that’s your preference. My partner felt it was underwhelming overall compared to ravioli dishes I make at home, but I found the sauce interesting, at least.

Desserts: Figuring the portions would remain small, we ordered two. The tiramisu was light and tasted like something from a supermarket. The gelato was better—two full scoops with a subtle, clean flavor—but not enough to redeem the meal.

Service: Service times were fine, but I didn’t feel like anyone was invested in whether we enjoyed the experience. Our server had trouble making eye contact and never returned to check on us after dropping off the food. I used a pleasant tone and never complained—not that I really had a chance to. He mostly hung back near the kitchen, occasionally chatting or checking his phone. Not bad service, but definitely not good.

We left hungry and disappointed. For a restaurant with this price point and location, I...

We came here for Mother’s Day brunch. We made a reservation about a month in advance, and were told at the time to get to the restaurant promptly at 9:30 for our reservation. We were there promptly at 9:30. We were not sat until 10:15. We asked several times why our table wasn’t ready, and when it would be ready, and each time we were only told, “We’re getting your table ready.” The manager told us that our drinks would be compensated, as we weren’t sat until 45 minutes past our reservation time. Out of our party of eight, only three people had cocktails (everyone else had water, drip coffee, or kids’ sodas). Two of those people had a second round of drinks, so the total number of cocktails ordered was five. When the bill came, they had only comped the first round of drinks, so we had to pay for the two drinks that had been ordered by those who had a second round. But if everyone in our party had been drinking, then presumably they would’ve comped six cocktails total (two were kids). I don’t know why we were told that our drinks would be covered, when they went ahead and put two drinks on the bill. I know it’s not that big of a deal, but it felt like a slight. Also, the waitress was rude to my father-in-law after it look them 30 minutes to bring his drink (everybody else had theirs already), telling him he’d “just have to wait.” The hostess was also unbelievably rude and inappropriate to my brother when he returned to our table from the restroom. She started shouting at him what he was doing and who he was meeting; we could hear her shouting at him from our table across the crowded restaurant. He just pointed at us and came back to the table. The biggest insult though was that as it was Mother’s Day, every woman at the restaurant was receiving a flower after their meal. My mother-in-law and I were the only ones in the restaurant who did not receive a flower. My children were there at brunch with us, so it was obvious we were mothers. It’s not like they ran out – while we were outside at the valet waiting for our cars, many other women came out of the restaurant holding their flowers. The whole experience felt...