Some voodoo magic has made its way through West Chester and transformed the High Street Caffe into the Vudu Cafe and Lounge. High Street Caffe has been a staple in West Chester’s restaurant scene for the past 15 years.
You step off of High Street and onto Bourbon Street when you enter 322 S. High Street. Mardi Gras beads are draped on the chandeliers, carnival masks line the bar, and a beautiful mural on the back wall makes you want to get up and start dancing to great jazz.
The new place has just installed a beautiful granite bar, It’s a perfect place for sipping a glass of Blood Orange Sangria, French Quarter Tea, a High Street Martini (Finlandia vodka, pomegranate liqueur and prickly pear puree) or a glass of wine. If you fancy a fresh beer, they offer six local beers on draft or 50 types of bottled beer. Soon, this swinging spot will have a large selection of international beers to take away and make your own six packs.
Doug Claney has been coming to High Street Caffe for six years, “My favorite things are the people,” he said. “I like the renovations, because it makes the restaurant more than just a place to go for a date night or a special occasion. You can come even if you don’t have a date and enjoy a meal at the bar, watch a game and meet people.”
Looking for live Cuban jazz, acoustic blues and piano players? Live music will be at the Vudu Café and Lounge from Wednesday to Sunday.
“I am a musician myself,” said owner Don Syracuse. “We want to promote a late-night menu with good food and live jazz — a place where people can have a glass of wine, enjoy a cheese plate and watch some jazz or blues.”
The High Street Cafe will be serving up a late-night menu with flatbread pizzas, cheese plates, coconut shrimp, mussels, pierogies, pulled pork sliders and more. They will also be offering BYOB nights with a $5 corkage fee Monday to Wednesday, a 10 percent discount for WCU students during lunch, and a three-course $30 prix-fixe menu Sundays through Thursday.
Betsy Weir has been a server at High Street Caffe since the beginning of the summer. “I know Donny’s been planning this for a long time and I think it’s great,” she said. “A lot of people were worried this would change the atmosphere of the restaurant, but I think it just helped the cause by adding a bar and still allowing BYOB. There is nothing like this place in West Chester.”
The menu changes nightly and has something for everyone: vegetarians, vegans, adventurous eaters, and even those who like the heat turned down.
“We were Cajun, Creole, and exotic cuisine for a lot of years,” Syracuse said, “and we felt the word ‘Cajun’ scares people. Only ten percent of the menu is spicy. We have a huge selection of pasta and seafood, and we are changing our food theme to Creole fusion. It doesn’t mean it’s spicy; it has a New Orleans influence. But if you want spice, we got the best.”
The menu includes traditional dishes like jambalaya, Voodoo Crawfish, po’boys and blackened alligator, and seasonal dishes like Johnny Apple salad, and pumpkin tarts with cinnamon mousse. Everything is made from scratch, including their homemade bread, garlic butter and creative desserts. Customers can buy a canister of Vudu spices, a special Cajun seasoning straight from High Street’s 20-year veteran chef, Jay Wenner.
As the regulars can attest, the menu is expansive and the staff members are both knowledgeable and incredibly friendly. Vudu Café and Lounge presented by High Street Caffe must have a gris gris (voodoo luck charm), because they took second place at the West Chester Chili Cook-off, were ranked Third in Chester County by Zagat Magazine, and Rachael Ray even paid a visit when she came to town. Visit www.highstreetcaffe.com to see the menu, pictures and the performance schedule.
