Set to open this month, the restaurant will offer classic and nouveau bistro fare, and, of course, there will be oysters.
Written by Kathryn Drury Wagner
Photography by Kathryn Ann Waller
When The Douglas opened in the summer of 2025, the luxury boutique hotel garnered immediate acclaim. Charleston’s Obstinate Hospitality had bought the former Ballastone Inn at 14 E. Oglethorpe Ave. and given the 1853 mansion an impeccable and glamorous restoration. On the culinary side, there are guests-only experiences, including a private bar, breakfasts, and evening receptions with charcuterie and canapés. Now, in a second phase, the hotel is expanding and has a restaurant slated to open in May.
The restaurant, called Lester’s, can be found next door at 18 E. Oglethorpe Ave., where the hotel will also have additional guest rooms. Lester’s is helmed by two-time James Beard Award nominee Chef Jacques Larson, the culinary director of Obstinate Hospitality.
The group also operates Wild Olive, a rustic Italian-inspired restaurant on Johns Island, and The Obstinate Daughter, an eclectic Southern restaurant influenced by French, Italian, and Spanish cuisines on Sullivan’s Island — both are part of Charleston’s metro region. Larson, who has lived in Charleston for 30 years, has become known as a champion of inventive Lowcountry cuisine, blending European flavors and traditions with Southern bonhomie.
On Savannah’s booming food scene
“There are a lot of similarities between Charleston and Savannah, but in many ways, it is also vastly different,” says Larson. He tracks the town’s food renaissance to The Grey and the national attention it has received. “Mashama [Bailey] really helped forge the path, delivering higher-caliber food and service experiences,” he says.
He notes that the Starland District is further adding a sense of stimulation and innovation within the local culinary community. “Kyle [Jacovino] at Lucia, the folks from Brochu’s, Late Air, Reid [Henninger] at Uncle June’s — he’s a Charleston transplant, too; this place is really happening,” says Larson. “For me, the litmus test isn’t high-end but even just a solid, affordable meal. I have faves and also try to seek out new places whenever I am down in Savannah.” He took one of his chefs from The Obstinate Daughter out to Late Air and Lucia, he says, “and I was telling him, ‘This is probably not only the best pizza in the Southeast but some of the best pizza I’ve ever had in my life.’ It’s exciting. It really is.”
Inside the jewel-box space
“Most concepts are dictated by the space they are in,” Larson says, whether it’s in cramped spots in New York City or more spacious rooms in Charleston. The space for Lester’s, in the heart of Savannah’s Historic District, is small, with only 35 seats inside, and there is no exhaust hood, which creates limits on cooking. (It will have a Vector oven and a salamander oven for cooking purposes, however, and can make use of the bigger kitchen in the hotel’s main space next door).
Larson is envisioning a tightly edited, wine-focused menu and an oyster bar. “In Charleston, the number of oyster farmers has been skyrocketing; there are at least a dozen oyster farmers. I love working with the different oysters people are doing around the country, too,” he says.
The oyster bar portion of the restaurant will feature eight seats. But outside seating is more spacious, with another 60 to 65 seats, says Larson. He plans to start with daily dinner service then assess and potentially add lunch. Overall, the atmosphere will be personal and service oriented, he says.
What’s on the menu?
Larson was trained by a Parisian chef, and his great-grandmother came from Alsace. His resulting love for France means Lester’s will offer classic bistro fare and new interpretations thereof, with dishes such as salade niçoise, crêpes Suzette, and “a snail dish I’ve been obsessed with.” Then, of course, there will be the oysters, and “there are variations with a raw bar and what you can source,” he says. “I plan on running a lot of crudos, which could appear on a tower but also be an à la carte item.”
Larson promises a well-focused menu. “I’d rather do 10 things perfectly instead of 20 things well,” he says. “We will start more of a concise menu and build on it.” At press time, Larson was still refining which dishes to feature, in part because he was also in the final stages of selecting his executive chef for the property. Collaborating on a menu, he notes, is an important stage in building a culinary team.
Larson plans to be in Savannah frequently and is considering buying a home here to make it easier to go back and forth and integrate into the community. “It’s exciting to be a part of a food scene that is blossoming,” he says. “It’s an exciting time to be in Savannah.”
We couldn’t agree more.
