When Wolfgang’s Restaurant closed its doors on New Year’s Eve 2024 after 30 years of serving fine dining to Highlands, longtime employees Jacque Taylor and D’Arcy Adams may have faced an uncertain future. Instead, they seized the chance to build something of their own.
Adams had spent 12 years at Wolfgang’s, rising from bus boy to waiter to sommelier leading the wine program, while Taylor, with 13 years there, had managed the restaurant for over a decade. When the news broke in early December that the restaurant would close within a month, the pair quickly resolved to open a place of their own – one that honored their shared Irish roots.
By February 2025, they had signed a lease for the former Wendy’s in Cashiers. Before diving into renovations, they took a whirlwind trip to Ireland, touring more than 30 pubs and restaurants across Dublin and Galway. They learned to pour the perfect pint at Guinness, toured the Jameson distillery and returned with notebooks of ideas and a renewed sense of purpose.
Jacque Taylor and D’Arcy Adams
Photographs from that trip now hang on the restaurant’s walls, adding authenticity to their vision.
Back home, the renovation became a family project. Adams’s brothers helped build the bar, while Brian Lasure, a former Wolfgang’s server, pitched in on every task—painting, building, and teaching himself the craft of professional cooking. Today, he serves as Celtic Table’s head chef, guiding the kitchen with the same dedication he showed during the transformation. By July, Celtic Table was ready.
The menu is rooted in Irish tradition with inventive twists. Fish and chips emerge golden and crisp, bangers and mash are rich with onion gravy, and shepherd’s pie carries the comfort of slow-cooked lamb under creamy potatoes. House-brined corned beef anchors both classic plates and imaginative creations like Reuben egg rolls. Playful spins are just as enticing. Reuben egg rolls crunch into gooey, savory richness, paired with a tangy dipping sauce.
The Boxty, a traditional Irish potato pancake, is layered with Swiss and chives, topped with sour cream. And a chicken curry, inspired by their Ireland trip, has already become a house favorite.
The American side of the kitchen shows the same care: beef Wellington wrapped in golden pastry, braised short ribs with glossy Guinness gravy, and a creamy trout dip paired with crostini. Desserts shine too. The sticky toffee pudding—a dense date cake drenched in warm toffee with vanilla ice cream—is already the signature finale.
The beverage list keeps things approachable: 45 to 50 wines spanning Bordeaux to California, alongside a growing collection of Irish whiskies and Scotch.
Perhaps most telling is the team itself. Seven colleagues from Wolfgang’s joined Taylor and Adams at Celtic Table, along with five new staff members who bring fresh energy to the dining room. That sense of continuity – blending long-standing camaraderie with new beginnings – infuses the restaurant with warmth and polish.
For Taylor, the stretch between closing and reopening felt endless. Now, with familiar faces gathered in a new space, it’s clear: what once seemed an ending has become a spirited new chapter, best enjoyed with fish and chips and a perfectly poured Guinness.
For more information or to place an order, go to cashiersceltictable.com, but to get the true Gaelic flavor of the place, plan a visit: 341 US 64 in Cashiers.
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