Demise of Legacy Blues Opens Doors for Table Mesa

Carl Garrett, owner of Table Mesa Bistro in Bentonville and Joplin, is expanding that brand into Fayetteville.

The new restaurant will be on the ground floor of the Legacy Building, 401 W. Watson St., in the 5,000-SF space previously occupied by the Legacy Blues Lounge. The restaurant and live music venue owned by musician and retired sales executive Jim “Jimmy the Biscuit” Lefler closed Jan. 19 after about 18 months in business.

A post on Legacy Blues’ Facebook page Jan. 18 said ownership of the restaurant had been transferred to Garrett, who planned to change its format. Garrett said Fayetteville’s Table Mesa Bistro will have much the same menu and ambience as the other locations, “but there might be an interesting twist,” he said.

The decision to open in Fayetteville stemmed from the number of customers who drive from there to eat at the Bentonville restaurant, he said.

“When you have 100 people tell you you should go to Fayetteville, you should probably pay attention,” he said.

As for when the restaurant might open, Garrett said he’ll have a better idea in a couple of weeks, but it’s mainly a matter of going through the administrative process with the city.

“I think physically we’re in pretty good shape because it has a good footprint for us,” he said. “There’ll just be some modifications.”

He expects to employ about 40 staff between the kitchen and the front of the house, and said the restaurant will seat about 110 to 120 diners.

Garrett formed Table Mesa of Fayetteville LLC on Jan. 10, according to Arkansas Secretary of State records.

Table Mesa Bistro, which serves a type of cuisine it touts as “modern Latin,” opened on the Bentonville square in 2008. The Joplin location opened in late October.

Garrett also owns Tavola Trattoria, an Italian eatery in downtown Bentonville that opened in 2011.