friek's Profile
The Penguin--Charlotte, NC
People go to the Penguin because of the atmosphere/people and because it's written about so much. Worth the experience if you've never been there, but the food is actually pretty sub par.
Mofongo in Charlotte?
Is there anywhere to get this in Charlotte? I saw it on Food Network a couple of times and was intrigued. Last night Mrs. friek and I made guinataang puso ng saging, which was excellent, but after eating it Mofongo was all I could think of as another food to try I've never had.
Suggestions for Charlotte, NC - new places to try
Cuban Pete's recently opened and has awesome ropa vieja. They're on The Plaza/Central where the Graduate used to be. I had their ceviche also, which was so so, but varies daily. The tres leches was amazing.
72 Hours in Charlotte: I Need Neighborhood Recs!!
Is your time frame really just the weekend? Price's chicken coop is a can't miss place, but closed on weekends.
The Liberty-Charlotte NC
After reading Sam's review I could not wait to try this place - so I did! The decor is absolutely amazing, so much so that I asked the staff if it would be OK if I came back as soon as they opened for dinner some day so I could take pictures with my real camera (all I had with me was the camera on my cell). The golden hues really are quite warm and the decor in general is a lot of fun, I'd call it kid friendly if for no reason other than the decor.
On to the food - we wanted to try almost everything on the menu so we settled for tapas style so we could get some variety. I will most definitely go back to try the bison meatloaf with a veal jus one of these days. To start we tried the french onion soup. French onion soup is one of those things that I think of as a good barometer, unfortunately this was not very awesome. Whatever cheese they used was bland, the bread wasn't crusted enough and so became very soggy and the soup itself was very much under salted. Presentation was beautiful, but I regretted ordering it. This start, however, proved my barometer rule very wrong.
For our next course we got the house cut potato chips with blue cheese fondue, calamari with curry slaw and red peppers and garlicky green beans. The garlicky green beans were perfectly cooked, a pretty vibrant green, warm but still with a nice snap to them when you bit into them. The garlic wasn't overdone and it wasn't too little - this was an excellent side. The calamari Mrs. friek and I disagreed on. I thought it was wonderfully light, the batter was light and crisp, not too greasy, the calamari itself was tender and not chewy and the slaw was with no mayo which made the curry flavor stand out. The combination of the curry slaw and slivers of fresh red pepper I thought was awesome, the wife thought it was under spiced and again - under salted. The potato chips in blue cheese - oh my lawd! This was one of the best things I've ever consumed. Mrs. friek even said at one point "I could eat this every day of my life and never be unhappy". You have to try them!
An oddity for us was I had room left over for desert so we opted for the apple/walnut cobbler topped with butterscotch ice cream. I about lost my head over this. In an effort of full disclosure, I'm allergic to fresh walnuts and fresh apples so I rarely get to have those flavors. The dessert was so good I might well be spotted sneaking in while the wife is away just to order it again.
Beer selection was good, some of it over priced, some of them under priced ($4 Left Hand Sawtooth pints!). If anything I think the menu pricing was fair, if not below what I would have expected for the quality. The wait staff was good, not phenomenal, but I kind of expected I'd be dealing with the scrubs since we went on a Monday night.
I'll probably blog about this experience later today and will post some of the pics I took with my crappy camera. I also took pics of the entire menu so it won't take me half an hour to figure out what to order next time.
Updated menu at Revolution in Charlotte
I went to trivia at Revolution last night and they have an updated menu (and they deliver in NoDa now!). I was flying solo, so all I can speak firsthand to right now is what I had - the calamari. It was great, very tender, not rubbery at all and the breading was exactly as it should be - slightly salted/spiced and very light. It came served with peppadew pepper and lemon zest slivers with a soffritto sauce. The portion was kind of small but would make a decent appetizer for a party of two (or a good main for my party of one).
Some of the other menu items that caught my eye: Braised grateful growers pork belly and collards with a potato/truffle puree and candied shallots (I MUST try this!), a house ground lamb burger with tsasiki and arugula, house ground italian sausage as a pizza topping option, two pastas - mushroom fettucini and a shrimp and basil spaghetti, wedge salad with house made blue cheese dressing, and two grilled pizzas - a margharitta pie and a sweet and savory pie (date marmalade, gorgonzola dolce, onion, arugula topped with a viniagrette). I'm sure there are other menu items I missed, I just scribbled them down as fast as I could.
At this point I'm pretty sure I'm going to have to make Revolution a line item on my budget.
Banh Mi in Charlotte?
From the link bbqdawg posted, I really like the place in the New Century market off Tryon just north of Sugar Creek. You do have to actually go in the mall to find it but they're fantastic and cheap. Last time I was there I got 2 traditional banh mis for $7.
Looking for opinions on a good upper-end seafood restaurant in Charlotte
What about Aquavina?
Charlotte - Uptown Restaurant Week
Good lawd Ember Grille sounds awesome! I'm going to have to try that place out!
Arena Area Dining Charlotte NC
If you're thinking italian, Luce is also right there in Hearst tower.
Arena Area Dining Charlotte NC
You could also give Lavecchia's a shot, easy walking distance and they give a 10% discount if you have an event ticket. A bit more of a hike would get you to Aquafina, which I much more prefer. I appear to be in a seafood mood.
I haven't been to Basil in Charlotte but I have been to the one in Charleston and found it to be overpriced and underwhelming.
Pizza Peel & Tap Room (Charlotte, NC)
Seconded and furthermore they brought in a new chef recently and the food just keeps getting better. I had a medium there with Mrs. friek last week and it was the size of what they used to call a large. We got it with feta, mixed mushrooms and truffle oil and it was delicious and perfectly cooked. The soggy middle problem they used to have seems to have been fixed for good.
Salvadoran restaurant in Charlotte?
I've been to Restaurant El Salvador on N. Tryon and it was at best mediocre. The food is typical mexican food (not Salvadoran) and was a slight notch above taco bell, mainly because they serve beer. I speak some Spanish, so the fact that no one there speaks English wasn't a big deal for me but it might be for others who don't.
Weekday Brunch/Breakfast Charlotte
Is the one in Cotswold still called Eddie's Place and Danny's Too? I used to love that place on weekends when we lived over there. Great draft beer selection, good food, full bar.
Good fish mongers/sources in Charlotte, Concord and north
I've bought fish at the oriental market - I believe it's called New Century. They have a great selection, all very fresh and very reasonably priced.
Tasty Yo in Charlotte
I forgot to mention that they also make every effort to only play music from local bands. If you know someone, they encourage people to drop off CDs and will add them to the rotation.
Tasty Yo in Charlotte
This place just opened a week ago in NoDa, right next to Crepe Cellar. I tried it Friday during the gallery crawl and it was awesome. I've had Activia before so I am not a stranger to active culture yogurt (or as they call it, tart yogurt) but Activia and the like have nothing on the real deal... it was fantastic! I had it with mango, fruity pebbles and granola. Next time I will leave off the granola, I think the sweetness of the mango balanced the tartness of the yogurt awesomely. I would also leave off the fruity pebbles, but Mrs. friek loves it.
Prices are quite reasonable ($3 for a small, $4 medium, $5 large) and include up to 3 toppings. We shared a medium and it was plenty for 2. The decor is very welcoming and comfy, they welcome dogs and have a small bench out front for when the weather isn't unbearably hot. They are also one of the greenest places I've ever been to, to include spoons made of 100% corn, fully biodegradable. Of the 20 available toppings, wherever possible they are locally sourced. The green link on their website has more details on this.
http://www.tasty-yo.com
Mirai corn in Charlotte?
Anyone know if it can be found, perhaps at a farmer's market?
Good NC BBQ in Charlotte, NC
It is no accident that the vast majority of opinions on here support bbqdawg's first sentence - There is no outstanding bbq in Charlotte. That said, I'd opt for Olde Hickory House as well, also not far from where you're staying.
Sunday night in Charlotte - looking for suggestions
Price's is also closed Monday, and Thursday-Sat they close up shop at 6pm. Not exactly a dinner joint.
Sunday night in Charlotte - looking for suggestions
I agree with staying uptown. If you do decide to drive or cab it, Lulu's would be a great destination. If you're dead set against driving, Mert's Heart and Soul is right uptown, is locally owned and sourced (sorta) and is classic southern food. Bonus that there are bars half a block away in either direction.
Righteous Indigestion
Since you're going through Texas and apparently like 'q quite a bit, you might want to also try The Salt Lick in Driftwood, TX (http://www.saltlickbbq.com/). It was recently voted by 2 people on food networks "best thing I've ever ate - bbq" episode. The beef ribs looked bigger than my head! That said, the beef ribs are not always on the menu and they're know for having a wait of up to an hour.
Righteous Indigestion
I'd say Varsity is a must hit if you've never been there. Really good dogs, but it's really the atmosphere that will make it so memorable.
Crawfish in the Charlotte area
The tails in HT are craptastic. I haven't been able to find a good local source so I fly a few bags in once a year, have a big boil and freeze whatever is left over myself. Usually enough to get me through the rest of the year. Cajun Queen is not a bad restaurant idea. Stay away from Beadreaux's, everything they make is horrible.
Soul Gastrolounge in Charlotte
I agree about the jellyfish, it was really the texture that shocked me rather than the flavor. Much more pleasant than getting stung by them.
Soul Gastrolounge in Charlotte
I love tripe, was surprised I liked jellyfish, also had the chicken feet and ate the brain from the last snapper I cooked. Count me in!
Moving to Charlotte. Afraid of the food
Glad you liked it! The typical southern all the way order is indeed with slaw. For some reason Brook's all the way order is mustard, onions and chili.
Loose tea in Charlotte?
Believe it or not I would recommend New Century Market at Asian Corners strip mall on Tryon and Sugar Creek. They have an entire aisle of loose tea at a very good price. Oolong, jasmine, white, green, black and even dragon phoenix pearl and the like.
Make sure you're in 4WD to deal with the parking lot.
