This year, Cotton Patch is celebrating its 35th anniversary. As part of the ongoing celebration, the company developed a new menu with lots of new recipes, spins on southern classics and they also brought back a few of the standard favorites.
Cotton Patch Cafe was born in Nacogdoches in 1989 with the idea of making southern recipes by hand and serving them with Texas hospitality.
Brandon Coleman III, CEO, said the company prided itself on two things: its homemade fair and service.
"Our focus is on taking care of people," said Coleman. "Our cafe leaders are best in class."
"My goal is to inspire more smiles, that's with our guests and with our team, anybody that is in this business, we do our best to make them smile" said Sarah Durnell, a manager at Palestine's Cotton Patch. "Who doesn't smile when they get a really good plate of food."
According to Durnell, everything at Cotton Patch is made from scratch. She said their chicken fried steaks are hand battered and fried upon order and their mac-and-cheese is made like your grandmother makes it on Sunday.
New dining options
Looking over the new menu, in the appetizer section alone, they have added bone-in West TX Wings with a tasty sweet and spicy marinade; Texas Caviar; Crispy Cajun Cheese Bites with a homemade dipping sauce; and the Big Bend Sampler, which features country fried pickles, Texas caviar, queso and chips.
Their menu now offers a soup and salad combo, which includes chili. They have brought back the ribeye steak, and you can add shrimp to your order. Their black eyed peas are back as a side option. They have made a little change-up on the Dr. Pepper BBQ Bacon Cheeseburger by taking the jalapenos off, they added mushrooms to the Patty Melt and they offer a center-cut pork chop.
New beverages on the menu include a Texas Old Fashioned with TX Straight Bourbon and a Hard Cherry Limeade with Tito's Vodka.
Daily specials include chicken fried steak, chicken fried chicken, meatloaf, chicken tenders, blackened tilapia, Big TX BLT and a vegetable platter.
"There is something for everyone at Cotton Patch," said Area Director Sammy Barber.
Cotton Patch offers home-cooked holiday catering
For the holidays, Cotton Patch now offers holiday meals prepared ahead of time and ready for you to take home, heat and serve.
Their holiday meal includes turkey or ham, dressing, sides and desserts.
You can order a meal for 4 to 6, 6 to 8 and larger.
"We literally can break down the holiday meals to accommodate whatever you would like," Barber said. "And you can even pretend like you made it. We don't even take the credit. We just want you to have a home-cooked meal."
"I think they are great, they take so much off your plate during the holidays," Durnell said.
They also offer hot, ready to eat options for office parties as well.
The restaurant is closed on Thanksgiving and Christmas, so you will need to order ahead and pick up the day prior to the holiday.
They also have plenty of seating and separate dining areas to accommodate large parties and get-togethers in-house.
Great place to work
Barber was working toward being a nurse when she said she found her calling at Cotton Patch. She is now an area director and serves as an area coach over seven locations.
Durnell was a stay-at-home mom when Barber approached her about working for Cotton Patch. The two had met while Durnell was dining at Palestine's Cotton Patch and Barber thought she would be a good fit for the Palestine team.
Durnell said she started as a server and kept moving up in ranks and is now a manager.
They both love the Cotton Patch culture and think it's a great place to work. Both Barber and Durnell said the company offers room for career growth and supports its employees in a variety of ways, including the Giving Kitchen, which provides emergency assistance to food service workers through financial support and community resources.
However, Durnell said "the people" are her favorite part of the job.
"We have our regulars and we miss them when we don't see them," she said. "I have built so many relationships just from being here. That is my favorite part about my job. I love the people. I love the community. I love the people that work here."
Community partner
Cotton Patch has always been a community partner and helps various organizations and veterans groups raise money through fundraiser meals. They also participate in the Palestine Police Department's annual Blue Santa Christmas Toy Drive.
Cotton Patch is open 10:45 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 10:45 a.m. to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday.
They are located at 2036 Crockett Road in Palestine.
For more information call 903-731-9220 or follow them on Facebook at www.facebook.com/TheCottonPatchCafe.