The tinted windows and all-around black exterior of SpeakEasy's facade on Louisiana Street give me the insatiable urge to open the door and have a peek inside.

A few weeks ago, when a menu was posted outside the door, I could barely contain myself.

Last week, when we arrived for lunch, I found the door already opened to other members of the curious public. During our hour-long stay, I felt vindicated when plenty of other potential patrons peeked inside the door to have a look. They were unable to commit, though, and the restaurant remained mostly empty throughout the lunch rush.

For those who haven't yet had a look inside, the black-painted exterior continues inside from the walls up to the exposed ceiling. The far wall has a raised platform dining area and a mirrored wall. In the corner of that wall sits a corner with red plush seating. A stage sits at the front of the restaurant. A black U-shaped bar takes up most of the middle floor space. Where the U touches the wall is decorated with jazz album covers and records.

The place still has a strong smoky smell from its previous bar/restaurant incarnations, but it's not so strong that it lingers on your clothes when you leave.

We were asked to seat ourselves, so, we looked around at the round black cloth-covered tables placed in a haphazard fashion throughout the large dining room and were a bit overwhelmed.

We must have looked it, too, so the host stepped in to help out. He led us to a table near the second, smaller piano seemingly built into one end of the bar.

Our waiter arrived in a black apron and handlebar mustache, which we believe was a personal affectation and not part of the dress code for the restaurant's 1920s-inspired theme.

Though the menu is a bit on the sparse side, we still had trouble deciding what to order. Consisting of salads, appetizers and sandwiches, nearly all of it sounded delicious. One exception would be a salad called The Bloody Mary, "pickled green beans, carrots, cauliflower, pepperchini and green olive over a spring mix tossed with a special chunky Bloody Mary dressing." Eh, to each his own.

Though the appetizers were tempting, my two dining companions and I stayed in sandwich territory.

(The soup of the day was cold cucumber, which didn't sound tempting enough on that breezy, overcast day.)

I ordered the chicken salad sandwich with pecans, dried cherries, lettuce and tomato on wheat, $7.

My dining companions fought over the Roast Beef Po-boy with horseradish au jus, $8. One of them won. The loser went for the Ultimate Cheese Sandwich with mozzarella, gruyere, cheddar and fresh basil on Texas toast, $7.50.

The sandwiches were accompanied by house-made, seasoned chips.

Overall, the food was a little pricey for lunch, but not disappointing. There were no missteps in service, and I'd say the place has potential.

So, if you're walking by on Louisiana Street, go ahead and commit to lunch in the door. It's worth a try. Just make sure you have a little extra dough in your pocket.

Our reviews:

Chicken salad sandwich, $7.50: In my book, chicken is like a blank canvas, and I say layer it on. The mixing of onions, celery, bell pepper, pecans and cherries in with the mayo-based chicken salad is all right in my book. The menu said the dish would have dried cherries, but they turned out to be the maraschino variety. Either way, it was tasty.

Roast Beef Po-boy, $8: The roast beef was juicy, which made the sandwich messy. Because of this, there wasn't really any need for the au jus. While I was impressed with the sandwich at first, after a few bites the flavor was just too overpowering. On the other hand, the best part of my lunch was the homemade chips. They were crispy and seasoned just right. I wonder if I could just get the chips? Also, maybe I'm a cheapskate, but $8 seemed awfully high for a so-so sandwich and chips. I've had better elsewhere for less.

Ultimate Cheese Sandwich, $7.50: The sandwich tastes as good as it sounds: two big pieces of Texas toast unable to fully contain a mass of melted cheddar, mozzarella and GruyÃre topped with tomato and fresh basil. The uncommon GruyÃre adds a wonderful flavor to the mix, but the real treat is the basil, so good in this setting I might start growing my own and toss it into what I make at home. But therein lies the rub: this is fancier and tastier than what comes out of many kitchens and includes some delicious homemade chips, but it's still a grilled cheese sandwich. For $7.50.

Info to go:

412 Louisiana St., Little Rock

(501) 374-2008

Hours: 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday - Saturday. In the near future, Sunday brunch from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.