Clista and Mike McCain were born within months of each other on farms that were less than a mile apart. Their parents were good friends, and Mike and Clista rode the same school bus from the first grade through their senior year at Cleveland High School in Cleveland, Mississippi. They have known each other all of their lives. I met them both in the fifth grade when I moved to Cleveland in 1950. The three of us go back a long way.

Mike married Jean after he graduated from Mississippi State and finished his Army hitch as a second lieutenant in Germany. Jean is from Columbus, Georgia, and attended Auburn University. She and Mike met when he was working for IBM as a computer geek in Montgomery. When they retired they decided to move near her parents, just outside of Pine Mountain, Georgia. They live on a beautiful lake that was developed by the Calloway family, the very successful cotton mill owners from LaGrange and founders of Calloway Gardens.

Mike and Jean have been telling us about the charms of LaGrange since we moved to Opelika, and we finally had a chance to meet them for dinner at C’sons, which they highly recommended. We were pleasantly surprised to find this quality of a restaurant in a small Southern town. C’sons is located on the main street in downtown LaGrange. The small establishment is tastefully decorated and very inviting. The menu changes at least weekly and offers a wide variety of carefully prepared and professionally served goodies.

 Clista and I shared the foie gras appetizer while Mike tried the cream of asparagus soup and Jean ordered the crab cakes. The fresh foie gras was sautéed to perfection and melted on our tongues. You won’t find fresh foie gras on many menus outside major cities. Mike and Jean were very pleased with their choices.

 For our entrées Clista chose the baked grouper which proved to be a very generous portion and expertly prepared. My rib eye was perfectly grilled and of a very high quality. Mike ordered the grouper along with Clista, and Jean had her normal serving of wild-caught salmon. Our dishes were accompanied by freshly sautéed vegetables and very flavorful garlic mashed potatoes. We ended the evening with a selection of delicious desserts and coffee. C’sons is a little gem and would be a hit in any city, no matter the size or locale.