Charlotte Magazine September 2020

THE

Design ISSUE

PLUS

How To Enjoy the Arts—From a Distance The Crusading Black Journalist You’ve Never Heard Of In Memoriam: Dan Mauney, the ‘Queen of Charlotte’ SEPTEMBER 2020

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CONTENTS CHARLOTTE / SEPTEMBER 2020 / VOL. 25, NUMBER 9

Features 48

CHARLOTTE’S ART BUYING SENSIBILITY Why and how local folks buy art

BY LAUREN PIEMONT

54

MIXED, NOT MATCHED Designer Inna Kovalinskiy mixes periods and styles to bring elegant modernity to an outdated Fort Mill Home

BY TAYLOR BOWLER

60 FROM THE ASHES

Three months after renovating their Myers Park craftsman, an electrical fire forced a family to strip their home down to the studs and rebuild

BY TAYLOR BOWLER

Plus 66

THE PREACHER OF CHARLOTTE’S HIDDEN GOSPEL Historian Willie Griffin uncovers the legacy of crusading journalist Trezzvant Anderson

BY EMILY ETHRIDGE

ON THE COVER: A painting by local artist Andy Braitman hangs over a console in a foyer designed by Amanda Swaringen of Carolina Design Associates. Photograph by Dustin Peck.

ON THIS PAGE: After a fire destroyed their home, the redesign for Tina and Matt Trabucco included a larger bathroom for their master suite. Photograph by Joe Purvis.

SEPTEMBER 2020 // CHARLOTTE

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25

09 20 CONTENTS IN EVERY ISSUE 10 From the Editor 13

Connect

96

You Are Here

ADAM WHITLOW; COURTESY; PETER TAYLOR; RUSTY WILLIAMS

THE GUIDE 88 Restaurants The city’s savviest restaurant listings

44

15 THE BUZZ 15 Higher Ed A Q&A with UNCC professor Tracey Benson 18

LGBTQ In memory of LGBTQ advocate Dan Mauney

19

Voices Talk of the Crown

20

In Frame Scenes from the protests in Charlotte

THE GOOD LIFE 25 Shopping Face masks with personality 26

Style 704 Shop creates hometown masks

30

Real Estate Desirable locations with curb appeal

34

Fall Arts Preview 30 socially distanced activities for an uncertain season

FOOD + DRINK 41 Now Open RH Rooftop Restaurant woos design fanatics with fine dining 44

Local Flavor Charlotte’s first urban seltzery

45

Bite-Sized News Foodie news on a small plate

46

On the Line The What the Fries guys

SEPTEMBER 2020 // CHARLOTTE

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Volume 25, Number 9 F RO M T H E E D I TO R

CONVERSATION PIECES

SEPTEMBER 2020

morrismedianetwork.com

www.charlottemagazine.com

How one childhood trip led to a lifetime of formative discussions about art

I DIDN’T KNOW MUCH about Andy Warhol before I stepped inside the Pittsburgh museum named for the late pop art master. My 7th-grade art club, a merry band of mouth-breathers from a tiny Appalachian school, descended upon the The Andy Warhol Museum on a winter day in 1998. I knew only about his affinity for soup cans and our shared forename.

The download of information over the next few hours cracked open my 12-yearold cranium and left it ajar: Warhol’s transgressive appropriation of popular imagery; what it meant to be an out gay even before Andy Smith Stonewall; the mid-century bohemia of andrew.smith@charlottemagazine.com New York City. Before Wikipedia offered expressways to new knowledge, Warhol represented a hundred doors into new domains I could unlock with a library card, including tomes that surveyed the pop art movement, The Velvet Underground albums, and how-to guides on silk-screening.

I rented the film Basquiat because Warhol, beautifully portrayed by David Bowie, is a secondary character. The Jean-Michel Basquiat biopic opened entryways to conversations about street art, early hip-hop culture, Black life in America; the cultural environments that surround art movements can’t help but shape the art.

I’ve never left those endless passageways embedded inside visual art.

As I began to collect it, I realized that the art inside our homes offers insight into its inhabitants. Art buyers acquire abstract pieces that soothe our anxieties. We commission landscapes of places we visited in childhood to stir memories when family visits and reminisces with us.

Art can represent our political and social ideals, the diverse cultures that make up families, or just a love for a particular shade of red.

As we put together this month’s Design Issue, I was reminded of all of the memorable discussions that have begun with works that adorn my or friends’ walls. Those chats are why much of my career was spent covering visual art—and why, when I can, I return to it. (It’s also why, as I write this in late July, I sorely miss my family’s visits to this city’s museums and galleries.)

In this issue’s home features, you’ll see how entire dwellings echo the personalities and stories of the families that live there. It’s easy to relegate renovation and interior design to HGTV. But for many of us, every adornment and corner of our homes offers glimpses into our interior lives, in a seemingly endless season when we’re spending more time than ever inside them.

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CHARLOTTEMAGAZINE.COM // SEPTEMBER 2020

EXECUTIVE EDITOR Andy Smith SENIOR EDITOR Greg Lacour LIFESTYLE EDITOR Taylor Bowler ART DIRECTOR Jane Fields CONTRIBUTING Allison Braden EDITORS Jen Tota McGivney COPYEDITORS/ Allison Braden FACT-CHECKERS CONTRIBUTING Jonathan Cooper PHOTOGRAPHERS Logan Cyrus Chris Edwards Katherine Elena Photography Dustin Peck Joe Purvis Peter Taylor Adam Whitlow Rusty Williams CONTRIBUTING Shaw Nielsen ILLUSTRATORS Eleanor Shakespeare CONTRIBUTING Cristina Bolling WRITERS Virginia Brown Emily Ethridge Jen Tota McGivney Lauren Piemont Michael J. Solender Cristina Bolling

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CONTRIBUTORS

Email editor@charlottemagazine.com for writer’s guidelines. Unsolicited photographs, illustrations, or articles are submitted at the risk of the photographer/artist/author. Charlotte magazine assumes no liability for the return of unsolicited materials and may use them at its discretion.

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Connect

ONLINE EXTRAS, EVENTS, AND CONVERSATIONS

REACT

Responses to the July issue of Charlotte magazine

Great to know there are top-notch options for healthcare in Charlotte in these tough COVID-19 times.

Instagram comment from @dlvsc To: “Staying At Home in Plaza Shamrock,” p. 17 Ed: Contributing editor Allison Braden’s story highlighted musician Josh Daniel, who in spring began to play and livestream daily 5 p.m. shows from his front porch.

Stumbled upon Josh thru Facebook on April 6th, haven’t missed a day since. Long Island was hit hard with the virus. My photography studio has been closed since March 20th. Music also fuels my soul and listening to and being part of Josh’s music has been the highlight of my days.

God Bless Facebook comment by Maureen T Penney Margolis To: “Keep Calm and Gown Up,” p. 40 Hi, Taylor (Bowler)—really liked your article ... I really hope you publish more articles from the front lines accompanied by photos of patients fighting for their lives in the ICU and on ventilators in hopes of

To: “My Best Friend Died.,” p. 54 I am so sorry for the loss of your great friend. What a beautiful remembrance you wrote! Such a wonderful woman—I lost my nephew—he was 42—in NYC about 3 weeks ago. COVID is horrendous. I wish people didn’t have to find out how bad it is the way we did. You are a great friend.

Facebook comment by Susan Milo Maroulis Hello Jared, I just read your beautiful tribute to your friend Alison in Charlotte magazine.

I can’t imagine how awful and just wanted to say I’m sorry for your loss. She sounds like she was a wonderful person and the world will be poorer without her in it. Thank you for sharing your story with us. And sorry for

reaching the deniers who refuse to wear masks. The fact that doctors sometimes wear two masks proves how wrong the deniers are. We can flatten the curve if the deniers would just wear masks and social distance. Again, thank you.

Email from Kris Solow To: “Down To the Core,” p. 44 Shawn, thank you so much for sharing this.

My experience in pediatric neurosurgery has been difficult to describe and profoundly fulfilling; you distilled it into a few short sentences. “Petty matters dissolved. Ambiguity drifted away. Clarity filled the void, as if the clouds had parted to make way for sunlight.” Thank you so much for sharing your side. What an incredibly strong boy you have and an amazing family to support him. Prayers for his continued health.

Facebook comment by Rebecca DuFresne Bartholomew Thanks for sharing Shawn. Beautifully Really written & inspiring for us all! puts things in perspective.

Tweet from @LitsaPappas

a stranger tracking you down to send you a message, but your story moved me.

Facebook message from Ashley Duncan to writer Jared Misner Who chooses the best Covid-19 story? I do.

And I choose “My Best Friend Died.”

Why? Alison Your caring The pictures Your writing COVID-19 29 I could go on, but you have more excellent writing to do.

Email from Tom Murdock to Misner

ON THE WEB Want more to read? Check out these popular stories on charlottemagazine.com.

1.

Why’s It Taking So Long for Charlotteans to Get COVID-19 Results Back?

2.

Where To Buy Masks In and Near Charlotte 3.

Gallery: Community Responds to Early Monday Shooting on Beatties Ford Road

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SEPTEMBER 2020 // CHARLOTTE

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INSIDE: HIGHER ED / LGBTQ / VOICES / IN FRAME

BUZZ

THE

WHAT MATTERS NOW IN THE CITY

UNC Charlotte professor Tracey Benson co-authored a book last year on how educators might approach discussions about racism with their students.

HIGHER ED

RUSTY WILLIAMS

‘LET’S TALK ABOUT THAT’ A Q&A with UNCC education professor Tracey Benson about using the classroom to sow the seeds of anti-racism

BY GREG LACOUR

LATE LAST YEAR, Harvard Education Press published Unconscious Bias In Schools: A Developmental Approach to Exploring Race and Racism, co-authored

by Tracey Benson, an assistant professor of educational leadership at UNC Charlotte. The book received positive reviews and praise in educational circles, but the importance of working anti-racist discussions and lessons into classwork didn’t penetrate the popular consciousness.

SEPTEMBER 2020 // CHARLOTTE

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THE BUZZ

CHARLOTTE MAGAZINE: How have the killing of George Floyd and the demonstrations afterward affected your work?

TRACEY BENSON: Well, the reason we wrote the book and I studied structural racism is because it’s something that’s been an issue in education during my lifetime and even before, so this is an issue that’s always been present but which we’ve never really paid attention to. We recognize that there’s an achievement gap, we recognize the school-to-prison pipeline, we recognize that students of color have been relegated to underresourced schools with teachers who aren’t as experienced as in high-income schools. So these are all things that we recognize are present in education, but we’ve accepted them as is.

Educators, especially white educators, really want to know what they can do.

This point in time has woken up white America, to say that, you know, racism is a white problem. It affects Black and brown people, but it’s a problem that exists among white people who perpetu-

16

ate it, and now they need to come together and work to fight against it.

CM: You’ve spoken about this wall of defensiveness white people can put up any time you try to have some sort of discussion about race, and it can be a real task to try to break down that wall. Do you think that’s what’s been happening since the killing of George Floyd?

TB: I find that it’s really increased the consciousness about racism as a problem. I think that’s what educators are looking for right now: How can I be anti-racist in my circle of influence in my school, in my school community, as a teacher, as leaders within the school building? Because I think that it’s been so normalized in education that folks need to make the connection that the racism that killed George Floyd is the same racism that exists in schools.

One thing I’m encouraging educators to do is make a concerted effort to talk about racism in schools. Mica Pollock wrote a book called Colormute. Schools are very colormute places, meaning that we don’t talk about race and racism often and openly because adults are uncomfortable with it. Kids want to talk. Kids want to become more comfortable. Kids want to improve their ability to talk about racism with one another within schools. But because those are so uncomfortable, we don’t allow kids to develop the capacity to talk about race. So what happens when kids work their way from kindergarten all the way to 12th grade, because it’s a taboo subject in schools—they become racially illiterate as adults, and then we continue to have problems with talking about racism.

CM: Are you aiming for a specific kind of outcome in these discussions?

TB: We’re aiming for them to share. Like, what have you learned about race? What

CHARLOTTEMAGAZINE.COM // SEPTEMBER 2020

have you learned about, you know, folks with brown skin? Do you know any Latinos? What do you know about that?

What did you learn it from? Let’s talk about that. We all need to be accepting of one another. But at the same time, we need to acknowledge difference. And we need to acknowledge what racism is. It teaches us not to like each other based on our skin color, and that’s something that shouldn’t be. So we bring them back to the center of humanitarianism but also allow them to express how they feel and where they learn these things.

CM: I know it’s summer break, so since Memorial Day, when George Floyd was killed, what kinds of specific interactions have you had with other educators in the course of your work?

TB: Hoo boy, it’s been fast and furious.

The book came out in August (2019) and sold pretty well in the beginning. I had a few speaking engagements, folks bought the book, I did book studies, a few organizations adopted the book, and then COVID-19 hit. Then what got all the attention was distance learning, how to

COURTESY HARVARD EDUCATION PRESS

Then, on Memorial Day, a Minneapolis police officer killed George Floyd, and nationwide protests followed. Benson, who also runs his own educational consultancy and workshop series, was suddenly in high demand among teachers and administrators in K-12 schools and, surprisingly, leaders from other disciplines who wanted to learn about the chronic disease of structural racism and how they might begin to treat it. His answers are as varied and complex as the issue itself but boil down to: You have to talk about it, and you can’t do that until you’re willing to acknowledge it.

Benson, 42, is a Milwaukee native who earned a master’s degree in school administration from UNC Chapel Hill in 2006 and a doctorate in Educational Leadership from Harvard in 2016. He’s taught classes and conducted research at UNCC since that year; his wife is from Matthews, and their son graduated from Mooresville High School in May. Charlotte spoke to him in June, as the Floyd protests marched on in American cities, about his ongoing research and outreach, and how the fresh reframing of race in the United States has changed the trajectory of his work. His answers are edited for length and clarity.

keep the school year going, and making a big shift in how we deliver education.

So I started offering free, open community conversations on equity in virtual learning, because what virtual learning did is really exacerbate issues that were there already. We already knew that we had a huge technology gap in schools that were low-income and predominantly Black and brown. So when we went to virtual learning, a lot of these students didn’t have one-to-one technology or access to WiFi, and in majority-Black and brown and low-income schools, we have a lot of novice teachers and instructors, and that became exacerbated when these novice instructors then had to teach virtually. We had more disengaged students, more students who weren’t able to access the curriculum, and teachers who were really struggling with becoming technologically literate.

So I held the free community forums because people were struggling, and they really didn’t know what to do, and I’d already been working with school districts around equity prior to COVID. CM: Where do you take your work from here?

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TB: My research is going to hold steady, and I hope it becomes more relevant in terms of folks willing to read the research on racism in education and actually incorporate anti-racist frameworks into the way schools are run. That’s the hope, because there’s a greater attention now on understanding that anti-racism is important ... What I’ve said to educators who come to me for support is that we have to understand that these four police officers with George Floyd in that incident were, at some point, students in somebody’s classroom. What could have been different if those teachers chose to have conversations about racism and the impact of racism?

Coming in November 2020 For more information about Tracey Benson’s research, educational workshops, and more, see his website, traceyabenson.com.

THE PET ISSUE Promote your business in this issue by contacting advertising@charlottemagazine.com

GREG LACOUR is the senior editor for this magazine.

SEPTEMBER 2020 // CHARLOTTE

17

THE BUZZ LG BTQ

‘NOBODY COULD TIE HIM DOWN’

In memory of Dan Mauney, LGBTQ advocate, business owner, ‘Queen of Charlotte’

Dan Mauney represented Charlotte on the Human Rights Campaign’s national board. (Bottom left) Mauney owned a pair of side-by-side boutiques in South End: the shoe store SHU and the men’s underwear store Brief.

BY CRISTINA BOLLING

His friends and family remember Mauney, who died July 12 of meningitis and a stroke at 49, for his compassion and energy, which infused whatever he did. “Dan was so kind-hearted, and he was such an advocate for other people. He was all about equality and making people’s lives easier and accepted. He always thought of everyone else,” says Ann Davis, one of his two sisters. “He had the most beautiful smile. The most beautiful smile.”

Mauney volunteered for 20 years with the Human Rights Campaign and spent seven of them representing HRC Charlotte on the organization’s National Board of Governors. He twice co-chaired Charlotte’s annual HRC dinner, including the 2007 dinner which still holds a national record for attendance.

Mauney was also heavily involved in Regional AIDS Interfaith Network, or RAIN, and was a fixture at the organization’s Gay Bingo fundraising events, where he famously entertained the crowds as a “Bingo Verifying Diva,” or “BVD.” “Nobody could tie him down,” says Rodney Tucker, former director of Time Out Youth and one of Mauney’s closest friends.

“He was so kind … He had an energy that is unmatched by many people.”

CRISTINA BOLLING, a Charlotte writer, has reported on Charlotte’s immigration, arts, and popular culture scene since 2000.

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CHARLOTTEMAGAZINE.COM // SEPTEMBER 2020

COURTESY

PEOPLE THROUGHOUT CHARLOTTE knew Dan Mauney best as “Dan the Shoe Man,” a Gaston County native who turned his passion for selling beautiful women’s shoes into his livelihood.

It took him from Belk to the former Via Veneto shoe boutique in Phillips Place to the former Step by Sloan in Dilworth. In 2013, he opened side-by-side boutiques in South End—SHU shoe store and men’s underwear store Brief, then closed both about three years later.

But his business ventures were only part of Mauney’s life. He was one of Charlotte’s most fervent advocates for LGBTQ rights, a man who, as a child, prayed he wasn’t gay who went on to lead prominent LGBTQ organizations. Throughout, his fierce sense of humor, unrelenting work ethic, and passion for connecting people fueled his leadership in the city’s LGBTQ scene at a time when the fight for marriage equality and equal rights for gays and lesbians peaked.

“He knew everybody in Charlotte. I jokingly called him ‘Queen of Charlotte,’” said Louis Kemp, a member of the HRC National Board of Governors, who knew Mauney for 18 years. “You could tell deep down that his passion and his seriousness about the cause was there, but he always had this overlying joking nature. He would just prod at you about things, but he did it in the nicest way.”

VO I C E S

TALK OF THE CROWN

“The stakes are very high this election, but you know why I know we’re going to win? Because people remember how good their lives were back in February.”

‘You’re getting one of those ticked-off dogs, too’

“You feel like you’re carrying the plague, basically.

You know there is a lot of crying some days because you feel like you are completely isolated from others.

People don’t understand how bad that is.”

—Michelle Vail, 51, the athletic director and an eighth-grade teacher at Waddell Language Academy who contracted COVID-19 in late spring (WFAE, July 14)

“We have to talk about the elephant in the room. You know who you’re coming after? … Coach (Offensive Coordinator Josh) McDaniels, you’re able to call some stuff that you ain’t ever been able to call now.

You’re getting a dog. You’re getting one of these ticked-off dogs, too. And I’m looking at the schedule, and I’m like, ‘Who we’re playing? That team passed on me! OK, that team passed on me. They could’ve came and got me.’”

—U.S. Senator and Cornelius resident Thom Tillis during the N.C. Republican Party convention, held virtually on July 10

—Former Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton, discussing his signing with the New England Patriots during a roundtable July 13 with Odell Beckham Jr., Todd Gurley, and Victor Cruz on Beckham’s YouTube channel

“The way to really combat this virus is to wear a face covering, wash your hands and practice social distancing.

If we could get that right, we wouldn’t really need to be talking about the potential of another shutdown.”

—Mecklenburg County Manager Dena Diorio during a news conference July 13

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SEPTEMBER 2020 // CHARLOTTE 19 7/1/20 6:42 PM

THE BUZZ

The Protests Begin May 29 A police officer in Minneapolis killed George Floyd on May 25, Memorial Day. The Charlotte demonstrations began that Friday, May 29, with clashes between protesters and police on Beatties Ford Road. Charlotte and Mecklenburg County declared a state of emergency the next night, and protesters continued to fill the streets.

IN FRAME

SCENES FROM THE PROTESTS What the George Floyd demonstrations looked like in Charlotte

BY LOGAN CYRUS

Council on the Streets JUNE 5 On the fifth night of protests, June 2, Charlotte-Mecklenburg police blocked off East Fourth Street at both Tryon and College streets, which left a group of demonstrators with no apparent outlet as officers used tear gas and pepper balls against them. Three days later, Mayor Vi Lyles and City Council members met in closed session, then emerged in public to announce a State Bureau of Investigation probe and a series of public forums beginning that night. Thirty-five minutes into the first forum, chants came from the crowd of hundreds: “Walk with us.” Lyles did. She and council members, including Tariq Scott Bokhari and Larken Egleston, joined the crowd in taking a knee on Fourth Street and at the spot where Justin Carr was killed during the Keith Lamont Scott protests in 2016. The SBI would later determine that protesters could have escaped, and the agency took no action against CMPD.

20

Mayor Vi Lyles and City Council members Larken Egleston and Tariq Scott Bokhari join protesters in taking a knee at the site of the Fourth Street incident.

CHARLOTTEMAGAZINE.COM // SEPTEMBER 2020

Sheriff’s deputies carry away a Jail Support volunteer for arrest.

The Sheriff’s Office said members of the group refused to obey commands to clear East Fourth Street.

Deputies Disperse Jail Support June 18 The Mecklenburg County Sheriff’s Office arrested 43 people in front of the detention center on a Saturday afternoon in June. The volunteers and activists were providing food, water, face masks, and other supplies to detainees upon release through Jail Support, an effort that began with the start of summer. Activists claimed they were providing essential, nonviolent community services; Sheriff Garry McFadden said members were blocking traffic, harassing others, and leaving urine and feces in walkways.

(Above and left) Deputies restrained Jail Support volunteers who refused to move from their spot outside the county detention center. Sheriff Garry McFadden had asked them to relocate; when they refused, deputies began the arrests.

SEPTEMBER 2020 // CHARLOTTE

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THE BUZZ SCENES FROM THE PROTESTS CO NT I N U E D F RO M PAG E 2 1

Mario Black of Million Youth March of Charlotte & Salisbury (middle) and Mecklenburg County Sheriff Garry McFadden (right) marched side by side to honor the victims.

The Shooting on Beatties Ford Road JUNE 22 In the early morning hours of Monday, June 22, the third night of Juneteenth festivities, four people were killed and 10 injured in a flurry of shooting on Beatties Ford Road. Investigators later determined that 181 shots were fired; at press time, CMPD continued to investigate. “The tragedy last night does not deter us,” said Tiffany Fant of the nonprofit Sol Nation, which had organized Juneteenth events, “but further demonstrates why it’s important for us to continue to collaborate with the community, which includes the residents and businesses, to ensure we advance our community in a positive way ... We will lean in this moment to take a stand and define the future of our corridor.”

A witness to the shooting returned later to pay his respects.

Demonstrations took to Beatties Ford Road in the days after the shootings.

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CHARLOTTEMAGAZINE.COM // SEPTEMBER 2020

Pro-Police, Activist Groups Collide in Marshall Park JULY 25 Protesters and a pro-police group clashed in Marshall Park on a Saturday afternoon in July, when about 50 members of the activist group Charlotte Uprising confronted a Blue Lives Matter rally organized by Blexit North Carolina, the state branch of an organization that encourages Black people to break away from the Democratic Party. The Uprising group, which has recently provided food, water, and services to detainees in the Mecklenburg County Detention Center, approached roughly 120 attendees of the Blue Lives Matter rally; the two sides exchanged hostile words and gestures, and Antoine Thomas, one of the organizers, placed his hand on the throat of a woman with the Uprising group (left).

Charlotte-Mecklenburg police forced Uprising back with pepper spray (bottom), and the rally resumed. Police made no arrests.

SEPTEMBER 2020 // CHARLOTTE

23

Personal, simple shopping that gets better with every trip.

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GOOD LIFE

INSIDE: SHOPPING / STYLE / REAL ESTATE / ARTS

THE

MAKING THE MOST OUT OF LIVING HERE See more patterns, styles, and additional information at charlottemagazine.com/masks.

SHOPPING

ADAM WHITLOW

About Face MASKS ARE ESSENTIAL in a COVID-19 world. Charlotte makers and vendors prove that coverings also offer creativity and personality—and many use proceeds for further good. Learn more about those efforts: charlottemagazine.com/masks. —Andy Smith

(Row one) BLUE-BLACK SMALL PLAID, $25, Decor Print, Fort Mill, decor-print.com (Decor donates a portion of proceeds).

(Row two, left to right) AQUA PALMS, $25, Jill Seale, Jillseale.com or Instagram: @Jill-seale (a portion of proceeds goes to Loaves & Fishes); AFRICAN PRINT (fabrics will vary) with two elastic styles, $9-$12, empowerforhope.org (for every mask purchased, Empower For Hope donates a mask to front line workers).

(Row three, left to right) DENIM STRIPES, $14, KatyLoo Boutique, 803-686-3048; Marie Oliver BLACK AND WHITE SPECKLES, $20, Charlotte’s, 980-299-7162; EMBROIDERED ROSE, $30, Pura Vida, puravidaworldlyart.shop.

(Row four) MANUEL CANOVAS DESIGNER, $25, Abode, 704-332-3731.

(Row five) CHILD’S BLACK POLKA DOT, $12, KatyLoo Boutique.

Ed.: Rows are arranged from top left to bottom right SEPTEMBER 2020 // CHARLOTTE

25

THE GOOD LIFE

(Left to right) Scott Wooten, Jerri Shephard, and Chris Moxley founded 704 Shop in 2013.

ST YL E

704 Shop’s Big Crown In hard times for retail, apparel store covers faces, losses with hometown masks

BY VIRGINIA BROWN PHOTOGRAPHS BY LOGAN CYRUS

704 SHOP

1616 Camden Rd., Ste. 140 704shop.com

26

THE SOUTH END APPAREL STORE 704 SHOP, which a trio of UNC Charlotte alumni founded as an online venture five years ago, suffered through a hard April for retailers everywhere.

COVID-19 had disrupted the supply chain, shipping took longer, and customers were stressed—which meant that Scott Wooten and partners Chris Moxley and Jerri Shephard were, too.

CHARLOTTEMAGAZINE.COM // SEPTEMBER 2020

Since 2017, when 704 Shop moved into its physical space on Camden Road, the team had released a new Charlotte-themed product nearly every week—shoes, socks, shirts. In late March, they had designed and sold T-shirts that raised about $6,000 for COVID-19 relief efforts.

But as retail shopping came to a halt, the store Continued on page 28

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THE GOOD LIFE

(Top left) Charlotte-themed face masks with the “Queen City” crown logo have been a top seller during the pandemic.

(Above) The shop obtained a license to sell apparel with the city-owned logo.

(Left) As of early June, Wooten estimated the 704 Shop had sold 6,000 masks.

704 SHOP’S BIG CROWN CO NT I N U E D F RO M PAG E 26

added a new kind of staple to their lineup: Charlotte-themed face masks.

They’ve become an unexpected hit.

U.S. Representative Alma Adams of Charlotte wore the black mask with the white “Queen City” crown logo on the floor of Congress in late May. Mayor Vi Lyles wore the same model when she met with demonstrators outside the Government Center in June. The shop obtained a license to sell apparel with the city-owned logo and also sells masks in blue camouflage, gray, and green, and with its stylized “704” logo and “CLT” in Old English lettering. They come untouched with two filters for $18.

When Wooten and his team placed their first order for the masks in April, they ordered 500. They sold out online in 20 minutes. “We vastly undershot the demand,” he says. “We’ve been buried Continued on page 30

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CHARLOTTEMAGAZINE.COM // SEPTEMBER 2020

Customized Shea Plans on Your Homesite from $400K to over $2 million SheaCustom.com | 704.602.3333 Modern Design Studio provides thousands of on-trend options Home Warranty | Large plan portfolio | Fixed Pricing Contracts

Sales: Shea Group Services, LLC DBA Shea Realty (NC: C21630; SC: 10424). Construction by Shea Custom, LLC (NC: 68244; SC: G116078). This is not an offer of real estate for sale, or a solicitation of an offer to buy, to residents of any state or province in which registration and other legal requirements have not been fulfilled. Trademarks are property of their respective owners. Equal Housing Opportunity.

THE GOOD LIFE 704 SHOP’S BIG CROWN

Hot Listings In addition to desirable locations and curb appeal, these properties have open floor plans and flexible living spaces designed to host. —Taylor Bowler

2823 COLONY RD. $1,098,000 MYERS PARK This Cape Cod-style home sits on a one-acre lot in the Rockbrook neighborhood, across from The Myers Park school campus.

The five-bedroom house has a walk-out basement and spacious patio for entertaining. 5 BD, 4 BA, 4,759 sq. ft., Dickens Mitchener, dickensmitchener.com

2540 VAIL AVE. $669,000 ELIZABETH Natural light floods this three-story duplex with three sides of windows.

The gourmet kitchen has a gas range, farm sink, and beverage center, plus a large eatin island. 3 BD, 3.5 BA, 2,064 sq. ft., The McDevitt Agency, themcdevittagency.com 2827 FLORIDA AVE. $999,500 PLAZA MIDWOOD This new build brims with high-end finishes like an enormous kitchen island, a butler’s pantry with a wine fridge, and designer lighting from Restoration Hardware. 4 BD, 3.5 BA, 3,912 sq. ft., Savvy + Co., savvyandcompany.com 901 COLVILLE RD. $2,335,000 EASTOVER This recently updated custom build has a gourmet kitchen and flexible spaces to relax or entertain guests. The backyard has a pool, koi pond with waterfall, pergola, and outdoor kitchen and fireplace. 5 BD, 5.5 BA, 5,770 sq. ft., Cottingham Chalk, cottinghamchalk.com Homes available as of July 7, 2020.

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CHARLOTTEMAGAZINE.COM // SEPTEMBER 2020

CO NT I N U E D F RO M PAG E 28

by the overwhelming demand. We are trying to restock as fast as we can.”

As of early June, Wooten estimates that 704 Shop has sold about 6,000 masks.

“We want to do what we can with our platform to help the community,” he says. “That’s what’s built us.”

Wooten, 38, is a Charlotte native and Vance High School graduate who handles most of 704 Shop’s product design, social media, and website. He met Moxley and Shephard at UNCC— Moxley while apartment hunting, Shephard while refereeing intramural sports. The three had teamed up before on a business idea, a recording studio venture that was going nowhere.

Then, in 2006, Wooten landed a job in Pittsburgh as a DJ and club manager.

There, he noticed the city’s loyalty to local apparel brands. He wondered whether something like it might work in Charlotte. “I started to see what hometown pride was like [there],” he says. The trio launched the 704 Shop online in late 2013.

Business was slow for the first two years. Then local muralist Matt Moore wore a 704 hat in front of his mural on 5th Street. A few media outlets picked it up, and more customers found them.

As online sales grew, they rolled out a series of pop-up markets across the city, including Front Porch Sundays in South End and the Southern Christmas Show. Queen City, CLT, 704, and other Charlotte-themed T-shirts, hats, and socks were all so popular that they eventually outgrew the popup circuit.

In 2015, Wooten came home to run the business full-time.

The COVID-19 T-shirt sale wasn’t the first fundraiser for 704 Shop. Wooten and his team raised $50,000 to help cover medical costs for the victims of the UNCC shooting on April 30, 2019, which left students Riley Howell and Reid Parlier dead and four injured. “If we’re doing good,” Wooten says, “it’ll come back to us in the long run.”

VIRGINIA BROWN is a native Charlottean and full-time writer whose work appears in AAA Go magazine, Our State, BBC News Magazine, among others. Reach her at vbwrites.com.

COURTESY

R E AL E STAT E

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THE GOOD LIFE ART S

A (SOCIALLY DISTANCED) FALL ARTS PREVIEW

Even if we can’t do it together, Charlotteans don’t have to miss out on culture.

Here are 30 activities for an uncertain season

Nick Napoletano’s mural at Hawkins and Rampart streets in South End was commissioned

by Charlotte Regional Visitors Authority and Charlotte Center City Partners.

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CHARLOTTEMAGAZINE.COM // SEPTEMBER 2020

LOGAN CYRUS

BY ANDY SMITH

Summer Wheat’s Foragers, a gel installation in the Mint Museum Uptown’s atrium windows, is part of the museum’s In Vivid Color exhibition. The exhibit opens October 10 to mark the location’s 10th anniversary.

Museum-Sponsored Activities Charlotte art venues may not open their doors in the fall. But this summer, several venues introduced digital initiatives to reach the community. Read about a few of those efforts below—and how some institutions are working together.

WHAT TO DO THIS FALL

THE MINT MUSEUM (AND OTHERS)

The recently launched program “Interactive CLT” uses augmented reality to explore the collections and histories of The Mint, The Bechtler Museum of Modern Art, Levine Museum of the New South, and Harvey B. Gantt Center for African-American Arts + Culture. The Arts and Science Council and AVO Insights produced more than a dozen videos that explore the story behind the Bechtler’s beloved “Firebird” sculpture, the Mint’s Kehinde Wiley painting, and more.

Along with Summer Wheat’s participation in upcoming Mint Museum exhibitions, the celebrated artist is also crafting an installation on 96 windows of the uptown museum’s atrium. The work, titled Foragers, is made of layers of colored gels, mimicking the effect of stained glass. Her installation will debut on October 10 to mark the uptown building’s 10th birthday.

Also:

HARVEY B. GANTT CENTER FOR AFRICANAMERICAN ARTS + CULTURE

Public officials, nonprofit leaders, and historians discuss social issues in The Gantt Center’s digital “Unmasked” panel series. Recent topics include defunding the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department and the city’s food deserts.

McCOLL CENTER FOR ART + INNOVATION

The center recently introduced virtual “Connected Art Workshops” with Charlotte-based artists who share their processes and practical how-tos. Each workshop has a recommended list of supplies and asks visitors to share work created during the session.

A NEW PUBLIC ART HUNT

COURTESY

Several new murals were added to Charlotte walls (and roads) this year, like the above piece

by Nick Napoletano in South End that honors hospitality workers. Its title: “FROM THE STILLNESS A SEED OF HOPE IS PLANTED.”

HOW TO BUY ART RIGHT NOW

OTHERS:

» “BLACK LIVES MATTER,”

» “STRANGE FRUIT,”

» “BOOKER T. WASHINGTON,”

» “GET OUTSIDE,”

Alex DeLarge 1721 N. Davidson St.

Georgia Nakima / Booker Street and Beatties Ford Road

For galleries, virtual walkthroughs and chats are the primary avenues for potential buyers to meet artists and see work. One example is LaCa Projects’ Intimismos (through Sept. 5), which highlights the work of Franco Fasoli of Barcelona and Berlin-based

Dammit Wesley 2320 N. Davidson St.

» “DILWORTH

TASTING ROOM,” Darion Fleming 300 E. Tremont Ave.

Gina Elizabeth Franco 917 Romany Rd. (literally on the road)

artist Octavio Garabello. The Wesley Heights space has led hundreds through the show via social media.

Meanwhile, through Sept. 19, Jerald Melberg Gallery in Cotswold displays the realistic oil paintings and drawings of Christopher Clamp. The

artist explores “object portraiture” in the show, for which the gallery digitized its “Coffee & Conversation” series when the exhibit opened in early August.

Several Charlotte galleries also allow single parties by appointment.

SEPTEMBER 2020 // CHARLOTTE

35

THE GOOD LIFE

THEATRE/FILM Ron Law as Ebenezer Scrooge and Rick Taylor as Jacob Marley in the 2019 production of A Christmas Carol.

Theatre Charlotte Improvises

Drive-In Films THE DRIVE-IN MOVIE THEATER inspires nostalgia, and three dwell within an hour’s drive of Charlotte. Screenings usually begin at dark, as is the drive-in theater way. Each theater rents radios so moviegoers don’t have to drain their car batteries during the show. (If you do, take heart: They have jumper cables, too.) Read about the spots below:

HOUNDS DRIVE-IN THEATER IN KINGS MOUNTAIN DISTANCE FROM UPTOWN: 33 miles

BADIN ROAD DRIVE-IN IN ALBEMARLE DISTANCE FROM UPTOWN: 45 miles

SUNSET DRIVE-IN THEATRE IN SHELBY DISTANCE FROM UPTOWN: 50 miles

This cash-only spot shows new films on two screens, with double features Friday through Sunday. Outside food and drinks are banned, but Hounds has a robust, affordable menu with popcorn, soda, and candy and heartier offerings like hamburgers, pizza, and hot dogs. Gates open at 6 p.m. 114 Raven Cir., Kings Mountain.

Double features run Friday through Sunday, with two screens that show new films.

There is no stated policy on outside food and drinks. Also: Wi-Fi. Gates open at 6 p.m.

2411 Badin Rd., Albemarle.

Also cash-only, this spot is the cheapest of the bunch if your party includes at least two adults. Like Badin, they have concessions, but outside food is allowed. Shows run on Friday and Saturday. Gates open at 6:45 p.m. 3935 Sunset Blvd., Shelby.

As of press time, these shows were still scheduled for fall.

THE CROWN LIVE!, Blumenthal Performing Arts

GHOSTS OF BOGOTÁ, Actor’s Theatre of Charlotte

THE 39 STEPS, Davidson Community Players

NOV. 4-8

OCT. 8-31

SEPT. 24-OCT. 11

This touring show coming to Stage Door Theater is a send-up of the popular Netflix show about Queen Elizabeth II—and all of the royal dramas she faced before and during her reign.

This dark comedy, penned by Diana Burbano, won the group’s nuVoices 5 Festival. It follows three Latinx siblings who return to their parents’ home country to bury their grandfather.

This parody of a 1935 Alfred Hitchcock film centers on a man who befriends a spy that’s part of the mysterious program “The 39 Steps.”

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CHARLOTTEMAGAZINE.COM // SEPTEMBER 2020

COURTESY; CHRIS TIMMONS

STAGE PERFORMANCES

As COVID-19 cases swelled this summer, Theatre Charlotte reimagined its 2020-21 schedule. The theater canceled planned productions of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof and Dreamgirls during spring and summer and scheduled only nonmusical shows for fall. Why delay the musicals? Logistics are more complicated. Also, safety: Their large casts constantly touch while dancing and use headset microphones.

In September, the group stages the Lake Erie-set What I Did Last Summer by A.R. Gurney; October and November bring Tennessee Williams’ Suddenly Last Summer; and A Christmas Carol returns in December. Theatre Charlotte plans to adjust capacity to state health mandates, with distanced seating. As of press time, the troupe also plans to livestream certain performances (and hopefully won’t have to go fully virtual). It’s the most improvised season of the company’s 92 years.

WHAT TO DO THIS FALL

LIVE MUSIC

STREAM SOME SWING

THE PLAYLIST These songs from Charlotte artists were released in the Quarantine Era, and several reflect on social unrest and uncertainty:

1

LUTE “LIFE”

5

PULLOVER “WE REMEMBER”

2

THE AVETT BROTHERS “VICTORY”

6

RUEBEN VINCENT “ALBEMARLE ROAD”

3

MASON PARKER “STEREOTYPE”

7

EMILY SAGE “GUIDING LIGHT”

4

AUTUMN RAINWATER & SIMON SMTHNG “QUESTIONS”

8

DYLAN GILBERT “NEW PRAYER”

Middle C Jazz opened its patio for socially distanced seating options this summer. In July, they added another viewing option: a livestream of each concert on its Vimeo page.

With a “Pay What You Want” option, jazz fans can support the venue and enjoy the show at home.

Other streaming shows in Charlotte: Knocturnal, the underground hiphop series typically hosted at Snug Harbor, is currently hosted on Twitch.

CLT After Dark is a variety show hosted by local musician Noel Friedline, with music, comedy, dance, and more.

ASC Culture Blocks’ Unplugged & Live series features local musicians performing at The Cube NoDa.

THE MUSIC YARD BECOMES A DRIVE-IN THE MUSIC YARD AT SOUTHBOUND (2433 South Blvd.) couldn’t host its regular outdoor shows this summer, so the owners converted to a drive-in venue that could accommodate its seasonal series and allow more SHUTTERSTOCK

flexibility for the months to come. The space can host 34 cars and about 100 attendees, and neighboring restaurant SouthBound offers a full, car-side food and beverage menu. The Music Yard’s also hosted films under this arrangement. It wasn’t clear at press time whether its owners would stick with the format for fall, but either way, the shows will go on.

SEPTEMBER 2020 // CHARLOTTE

37

THE GOOD LIFE

FESTIVALS/ NIGHTLIFE

The Chinese Lantern Festival returns to Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden on October 15.

The Lantern Festival Returns

Originally scheduled to kick off in August, CHINESE LANTERN FESTIVAL lights up Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden (6500 S. New Hope Rd., Belmont), Oct. 15-Jan. 3. This year’s festival, which will observe COVID-19 capacity and distancing restrictions, will have hundreds of new lanterns “constructed by masters of the craft in Zigong, China, where the festival originated centuries ago,” organizers say.

HANART CULTURE

Hanart Culture, the production company behind the show, first brought the festival to the garden in 2017 and garnered more than 100,000 visitors. For this year’s event, guests pick specific entry times, and the garden imposes an attendance cap for the 15-acre site.

38

CHARLOTTEMAGAZINE.COM // SEPTEMBER 2020

WHAT TO DO THIS FALL

NoDa Brewing’s main location, on North Tryon Street. (Below) Gordgeous, NoDa’s premium pumpkin ale, which contains 50 pounds of pumpkin per batch.

Go on a Private Brewery Tour

If you’re not ready to go back inside these typically packed spaces, you can still conduct your own survey of the craft beer scene. Numerous Charlotte breweries continued drive-through service and beer to go, features that grew popular during COVID lockdown. Here are spots to visit and the seasonal brews to try:

DIVINE BARREL BREWING 3701 N. DAVIDSON ST.

THE OLDE MECKLENBURG BREWERY 4150 YANCEY RD.

WHAT TO GET: “What, no dark beers?”

Pick up a Roasted Butternut Squash & Maple Porter to satisfy the yearning for something heavier.

Just leave some room during dinner if you want to finish it.

WHAT TO GET: The amber lager Mecktoberfest is a staple on fall beer lists. It’s also decorated: It’s won the Gold European Beer Star and nabbed a silver medal at the Great American Beer Festival.

NODA BREWING 2921 N. TRYON ST. WHAT TO GET: Gordgeous, Charlotte’s premier pumpkin ale, uses 50 pounds of pumpkin and 42 pounds of brown sugar in every batch.

TAKE YOUR PICK OF APPLES

WINDY HILL ORCHARD & CIDER MILL (1860 Black Hwy., York, S.C.) reopened in August. Less than an hour from Charlotte, the farm is COURTESY

known for its pick-your-own apple program, hayrides, and a robust selection at its cider bar. Expect a more personal experience this time around, with social distancing and new cleaning stations.

SEPTEMBER 2020 // CHARLOTTE

39

Foragers by Summer Wheat On view September 17, 2020 | Mint Museum Uptown Covering 96 windows and four-stories, the ever-changing color, pattern and feeling of the Foragers installation casts a new light for a new season at The Mint Museum.

IMAGE: Summer Wheat. Foragers (rendering), 2020, colored Mylar film, clear polyester film, black block-out film. Digital visualization courtesy Summer Wheat Studio. Commissioned for The Mint Museum and generously presented by Wells Fargo Foundation Women Artists Fund.

FOOD DRINK

INSIDE:

NOW OPEN / LOCAL FLAVOR / BITE-SIZED NEWS / ON THE LINE

+

EXPLORE THE TASTES OF CHARLOTTE

The shaved vegetables salad, topped with pecans and cider vinaigrette.

N OW O P E N

A MEAL WITH A VIEW COURTESY

RH Rooftop Restaurant woos design fanatics with fine dining

BY TAYLOR BOWLER

WHEN RH CHARLOTTE, the furniture store formerly known as Restoration Hardware, opened in SouthPark in June, Charlotte joined New York, Chicago, West Palm Beach, Florida, and six other cities with a super-sized RH design gallery and rooftop restaurant. The company operates 68 galleries and 38 outlets in the U.S. and Canada, but the design gallery concept is bigger, grander, and more upscale than the other stores. It might seem hard to believe that you can eat Continued on next page â SEPTEMBER 2020 // CHARLOTTE

41

FOOD+DRINK

The rooftop dining room has retractable glass walls, crystal chandeliers, and banquette seating with marble tabletops.

The Gallery at Phillips Place 6903 Phillips Place Ct. 704-790-4970 restorationhardware.com

Monday-Saturday: 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Sunday: 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.

a great meal atop 50,000 square feet of home furnishings, but that’s exactly what this is. Dining at RH Rooftop Restaurant is people-watching for design junkies, with crystal chandeliers, manicured hedges, and elegant banquette seating to accompany your meal.

It’s best to arrive a few minutes prior to your reservation (which we recommend) so you have time to peruse two levels of designer sofas, accent chairs, and lighting before you ascend the grand double floating staircase to the rooftop restaurant.

The year-round, skylit garden is open for brunch and dinner—as of this writing, at 50-percent capacity in compliance with COVID-19 restrictions.

42

CHARLOTTEMAGAZINE.COM // SEPTEMBER 2020

three flavors of ice cream and one sorbet ($5) from Golden Cow Creamery and warm chocolate chip cookies ($9). And if you came just for an adult beverage and want something to nibble with your vino, order the artisanal prosciutto board ($21) with seasonal fruit and a warm baguette. Then sip slowly, take in your surroundings, and try to ignore the bill when it arrives. Remember, you came here to splurge.

When you’re done, head downstairs for another look at that $3,000 leather chaise you admired on the way in. You have to admit it pairs really well with a glass of wine.

Don’t leave without trying: The truffled fries ($16). Topped with black truffles, parmigiano-reggiano, and truffle aioli, they just taste extravagant.

TAYLOR BOWLER is lifestyle editor of this magazine.

COURTESY

RH ROOFTOP RESTAURANT

The dining room offers retractable glass walls, Japanese boxwood hedging, and a fountain in the center. But the menu isn’t overwhelming or full of words you can’t pronounce. Expect standard American fare, with starters like shrimp cocktail ($23) and crispy artichokes ($19).

This menu is sophisticated enough for a seasoned foodie but straightforward enough for a fifth-grader’s palate.

The lineup of entrées includes a lobster roll ($28), ribeye steak ($46), and broiled salmon ($30). Each entrée is served a la carte, so if you want a side of French fries with garlic aioli ($8) or simple green salad ($8), you have to order those separately. The RH burger ($18) is everything a burger should be when it’s served over a marble tabletop—two patties, sharp American cheese, pickles, onion, and Dijonnaise artfully arranged on a brioche bun. The $6 pork belly bacon upgrade makes it a $24 ($24!) burger, so you’ll want to savor it.

If you’re craving something with a little more pizzazz, try the shaved ribeye on charred garlic bread ($22) topped with Swiss cheese and cherry peppers. Think of it as a dressed-up cheesesteak with a silver gravy boat full of au jus. And because this is the kind of place where you come to splurge, order the truffled fries ($16) for the table. You won’t regret it.

RH Rooftop Restaurant doesn’t serve cocktails, but it’s a California-based company, so you can count on a long list of wines available by the glass or bottle.

There’s a limited dessert menu, too, with

FOOD+DRINK

(Left) Summit’s wild berry seltzer garnished with muddled berries.

(Below) A mimosa seltzer and a skinny seltzerita with lime seltzer, muddled jalapeño, and a splash of lowcalorie lemonade.

LO C AL F L AVO R

Carbonation Nation Kristin Cagney opens Charlotte’s first seltzery, one of the only taprooms of its kind in the U.S.

BY TAYLOR BOWLER PHOTOGRAPHS BY PETER TAYLOR

THREE YEARS AGO, Kristin Cagney sat poolside, sipping spiked seltzers with friends, when she joked that she wanted to open a seltzery. “But my friends were like, ‘Do it,’” the 29-year-old Illinois native says with a laugh. She did some research and learned about the huge market for bubbly beverages. “White Claw alone did billions last year. I don’t think it’s a trend drink. I think it’s here to stay.”

Cagney developed a taste for seltzers during the decade she spent in Colorado.

“I’d reach for it on the boat or when I went skiing,” she says. “On hikes or

SUMMIT SELTZERY

2215 Thrift Rd., Ste. B summitseltzer.com

44

ski trips, you don’t want a heavy beer.

But if you have a few seltzers, you can still get back to the slopes.” After three years working in wealth management at Fidelity Investment, she had what she calls her “quarter-life crisis” and quit her job to move back to Lake Norman, where her parents live. In 2016, she enrolled at UNC Charlotte to pursue her MBA and wrote the business plan for Summit Seltzery.

But she struggled to secure a loan when lenders didn’t understand what a seltzery was. As of July, only two hard seltzeries operated in the United States— one each in Colorado and Washington.

“We’re the only one to start as a seltzery from the ground up and buy all seltzer equipment,” she says. “The others all

CHARLOTTEMAGAZINE.COM // SEPTEMBER 2020

started as breweries.” Cagney ultimately decided to make it a family business—her mother is her CPA, and her father is an investor—and opened in Wesley Heights in August.

Summit brews in-house using a fermentation process. Guests can choose from 14 flavored hard seltzers of varying ABV on tap, as well as craft seltzer cocktails, nonalcoholic seltzer, wine, local beer, and bar snacks.

The 3,880-square-foot space has seating for 64 in the taproom and 32 on the patio, plus activities like shuffleboard, badminton, and foosball. Once gatherings can safely resume, look for an attached 750-square-foot event space for yoga and fitness classes, silent disco parties, and charity events. (COVID-19 restrictions

mean Cagney will have to scale back those plans.)

For the best seltzer, Cagney says, it’s all about how you ferment the yeast. “We focus on a really clean base because the littlest bit of yeast residue can throw off a seltzer,” she says. “Once you have that base, you make the flavors.”

With garnishes like rosemary, mint, and basil, a seltzer cocktail at Summit has more personality than a glass of club soda. You have the basics like citrus and berries, which Cagney likens to lagers and pilsners, and more unexpected flavors like juniper, fennel, and cucumber. “We’re pioneering this, so there’s nothing tried and true yet,” she says. “What’s the staple going to be? What small batches will we have? We’ll just ride the wave until we find what works.”

She had to remain flexible with her opening date due to COVID-19, but after months of home confinement, she knows people are ready for this. “It took awhile to get where I am now. There were hiccups with the loan, the permitting, and when we finally got to construction, the coronavirus hit,” she says. “But I can pivot.

I’ve been adapting this whole time.”

(Above) The 3,880-squarefoot space in Wesley Heights has seating in the taproom and on the patio, plus activities like shuffleboard, badminton, and foosball. Cagney (left) created the business plan for Summit Seltzery while she pursued her MBA at UNC Charlotte.

TAYLOR BOWLER is lifestyle editor of this magazine.

B I T E - S I Z E D STO R I E S

Foodie News on a Small Plate

TOUCAN LOUIE’S is now open in South End, in the space formerly occupied by Sunstead Brewing. Look for sandwiches, wings, and salads with a Caribbean flair, as well as Sunstead’s beers, which Sunstead’s owners will continue to brew in the building.

HARRIET’S HAMBURGERS’ new stall inside Optimist Hall opens Labor Day weekend. The burger joint is a collaboration between Papi Queso and The Plaid Penguin, a Charlotte-based communications, branding, and design agency.

The immersive fine dining restaurant COUNTER- is now open in Wesley Heights. Chef Sam Hart surprises guests with multi-course meals designed to appeal to diners’ senses of taste, sight, and smell.

COURTESY

SUMMIT COFFEE will expand with a new shop in NoDa this month. It’s the first of 10 planned locations for the Davidson-based brand.

VANA, a new restaurant from the team behind Bardo, is coming to South End. Look for family-style meals like ribeye and whole fish, plus a cocktail program headed up by mixologist Amanda Britton. —Taylor Bowler

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FOOD+DRINK

O N T H E LI N E W I T H

GREG WILLIAMS and JAMIE BARNES The What The Fries guys, who met as roommates 16 years ago at Johnson & Wales University, serve Charlotte’s best loaded fries from their food truck

Chefs Jamie Barnes (left) and Greg Williams have sold loaded fries from their What the Fries food truck for the past five years.

BY TAYLOR BOWLER

JAMIE

Age: 34 Family status: Single with a 2-year-old daughter, Gabby Hometown: Columbia, S.C. Currently lives: Fort Mill Favorite sports team: Dallas Cowboys Why are fries such a good foundation for a meal? You can do so much with them.

Everybody loves fries, so you can’t go wrong.

How long was What The Fries a dream, and why did you put your business on wheels? Six years ago, we started talking about it after we tried a Food Network show that didn’t work out. We did catering for a while.

It took a year to get the truck, so we’ve had the truck about five years now. We finally hit our stride over the last two years.

What’s been your biggest kitchen fail? The goat fritters we tried when we first started weren’t a big winner. People weren’t really ready for that (laughs). We tried banana ketchup, but we didn’t keep that one around either.

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What’s one ingredient you always have on hand in your kitchen? Shrimp, always, and Yum-Yum sauce (a secret sauce also available by the bottle). We make about four or five gallons a week.

What’s one dish you nail every single time? Hibachi fries or the steak-and-shrimp are just like clockwork now.

What shoes do you wear in the kitchen? Air Max. What’s your favorite restaurant in Charlotte?

Leah & Louise.

What’s your favorite adult beverage? Jack Daniel’s, straight.

What’s next for the What the Fries? We’re scouting locations for a brick-andmortar location right now, so we’re hoping to have a permanent spot soon. It’ll be called What The Fries, too, and we’ll still have the food truck.

It’ll be the same concept, but a little bit more, like milkshakes, maybe more seafood, and some local beers.

CHARLOTTEMAGAZINE.COM // SEPTEMBER 2020

Age: 39 Family status: Wife, Alicia; 9-year-old daughter, Lily; 6-year-old son, Levi Hometown: Newport News, Virginia Currently lives: Lake Wylie Favorite sports team: Kansas City Chiefs Why do food trucks remain so popular? A lot of food trucks have more leeway to be creative.

We can change our menus a lot, sometimes daily, and we have a lot of open space to do a lot of different things.

How do you come up with your food combinations?

We’re both fans of hibachi restaurants and Asian dishes. So we substitute out rice with fries and put our own twist on it with the Yum-Yum sauce.

What’s your most popular fry dish? The steak-and-shrimp hibachi fries, followed by lobster mac and cheese.

Any happy accidents that made it on the menu? The bread pudding tots. We had a lot of bread left over from an event,

so we made blueberry bread pudding, and it sold out, so we’ve been doing it ever since. Now we change it every week.

What’s your favorite thing to cook? Seafood. I love searing fish and scallops.

What shoes do you wear in the kitchen? Birkenstocks, my kitchen slip-ons.

What’s the hardest part about running a food truck versus a restaurant? It’s a lot, man.

Loading up the truck every day, traveling with the food, being on time, worrying about the maintenance of the truck. As summer rolls around, there’s the heat element in the truck, too, with the space confinements. At any time, there’s three or four of us in a 10-foot space.

What’s your favorite restaurant in Charlotte?

Uptown Yolk. It’s great every time.

What’s your favorite adult beverage? A whiskey sour.

What’s your guiltiest pleasure? Taco Bell.

PETER TAYLOR

GREG

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Untitled-25 1

2/4/20 9:18 AM

DUSTIN PECK

Interior designer Amanda Swaringen’s client commissioned two paintings by Curt Butler from Shain Gallery. The oil and encaustic canvas paintings, titled Charlotte Cityscape I and II, measure 48 by 48 inches and flank the client’s fireplace.

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CHARLOTTEMAGAZINE.COM // SEPTEMBER 2020

How Charlotte Collects Art A local fine art consultant talks with pros about what they’re seeing

BY LAUREN

PIEMONT

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CHRIS EDWARDS

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CHARLOTTEMAGAZINE.COM // SEPTEMBER 2020

LOGAN CYRUS

Ed.: Lauren Piemont spent several years in Charlotte galleries before becoming a freelance art consultant in 2019.

Below, she shares what she’s learned about the scene.

“WHAT KIND OF ART is Charlotte collecting?”

This question is just one window into the state of the cultural sector. I recently spoke to longtime gallerist Jerald Melberg, interior designer Amanda Swaringen, Charlotte-based artist Arthur Brouthers, and a local art preparator who will remain anonymous about what art patrons in this city buy and sell.

Charlotte’s art scene has grown with the city, particularly in recent history. Melberg points to the opening of the Mint Museum’s uptown location in 2010 as one major turning point “expanding the museum’s reach” and influence. An institution on Randolph Road in Eastover, a few miles from uptown, suddenly had a physical presence in the city center. Until the 2000s, the Mint was Charlotte’s only art museum. The development of the Levine Center for the Arts campus over the past decade—the Bechtler Museum of Modern Art and Harvey B. Gantt Center for African-American Arts + Culture opened in 2009, the Bechtler and the uptown Mint in 2010—drastically altered the landscape.

Melberg, who’s operated his own gallery since 1983, says he’s thankful the city is sophisticated and large enough to accommodate three art museums and support an art-buying market.

“Everyone has a place and a role,” he says. Otherwise, he says, he would not survive in a growing pool of fine art galleries. In the past decade alone, SOCO Gallery, LaCa Projects, and others have opened, but they don’t pose a threat to one another. Melberg represents titans of art history like Wolf Kahn, Robert Morthwell, and Romare Bearden; SOCO Gallery in Myers Park sells out many of its contemporary art shows, which highlight mid-career and rising stars. Museums don’t sell art

like galleries do, but each provides a point of entry for the other. The addition of residency programs, including uptown’s McColl Center and Goodyear Arts at Camp North End, offer more direct relationships for visiting and native creators.

Designers like Amanda Swaringen work with that network of local galleries. As founder of Carolina Design Associates, she helps her clients design their new homes, often from the ground up—and that includes the purchase of art. Swaringen frequently finds pieces at Anne Neilson Fine Art and Shain Gallery as well as SOCO and Sozo Gallery. As seen in the rooms that accompany this story, Swaringen’s intimate relationship with clients allows her to find work by local artists that suits their personalities. She says about 75 percent of the art used in her rooms is local.

“Some people will say, ‘Bring me art,’ and then we pick it based on that client’s personality and needs, and needing to mix the media in the home,” she says. “Some clients (Opposite) Untitled, a are way more involved, and 24-by-32-inch collage we sometimes actually send painted on canvas in 1990 by Esteban them to the galleries themVicente (1903- 2001), selves to see what they like for from Jerald Melberg options. When I first started in Gallery. (Below) Poppy

by Iruka Maria Toro, 2002, from what I was seeing, acrylic on paper (72.25 art was just more conservative by 65.25 inches), 2019, and traditional in Charlotte. It from LaCa Projects. has evolved into there being so

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(Above) Awake, 2019, a 36-by-72-inch, mixed media-on-wood Arthur Brouthers work that sold at a gallery in Sweden. (Right) Brouthers’ The Truth, 2020, 8-by-10-inch mixed media on paper, is available for sale.

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LYDIA BITTNER-BAIRD; COURTESY (2)

(Above) Maybe Tomorrow by Summer Wheat, acrylic paint on aluminum mesh (68 by 94 inches), 2019, from SOCO Gallery.

COURTESY

many more artists, and the industry exploding. Galleries You won’t find Charlotte(Above) Black have expanded, too, especially during the past 10 years. based Arthur Brouthers With No Way Out (1983) by Robert I’m sure social media is also a major part for people findon a local gallery’s roster Motherwell (1915ing new art and artists they like.” of represented artists. He’s 1991), lithograph (15 Still, Swaringen says, her team relies on the knowledge achieved international recby 37-3/4 inches) on white Tyler Graphics that exists inside of these venues: “We can’t be as knowlognition, having made handmade paper, edgeable as a gallery, and we have to rely on the gallerappearances at Art Basel from Jerald Melberg ies to give us options that are great for a home. We work Switzerland and Aqua Art Gallery. together to find the right fit.”

Miami during Miami Art Sources I spoke to for this essay describe Charlotte’s Week. But he got his start art market as conventional and conservative, but there with an exhibition at the Sozo Gallery in 2012. “I think are signs of change. The art preparator, who installs dozgallery representation is important,” he says, “because it ens of works in private homes every week, says tonal is a way to move up in the art world.” paintings—which focus on color harmony in a light, But he’s at his career midpoint, and he no longer neutral palette—are popuneeds to display his work in local gallerlar right now. Increasingly, ies. Brouthers represents himself in Charlotte buyers prefer abstraction and maintains representation at galleries in to representational work.

New York and Dallas. In Charlotte, he uses Swaringen says abstract his marketing background to attract collecwork, in particular, is poptors and place work in group shows, while ular here. Still, my sources his out-of-town galleries secure chances to say, buyers still shy away exhibit abroad. This means several local venfrom art with a political ues at a time can expose varying audiences to bent or socially challenghis work, and he can build relationships more ing subject matter. freely with collectors.

A “safe” market stunts Breaking the confines of a conservative marlocal artists’ growth and ket requires “hanging in there and doing what buyers’ incentive to acquire you want instead of worrying about what their work. “In general, not other people want to see,” he says. “If you stick just in Charlotte, people do with it, it turns into a trend.” not acquire art with their Our challenge as a city is to retrain our artiseyes,” Melberg says, shartic eye with a focus on honing personal taste. ing a favorite adage. “They How? Go out and look. Look at the greats acquire it with their ears.” of art history, contemporary artists of interA market that accepts only national acclaim, your local galleries’ offera narrow style has to look ings, and always note what local artists create. further to find it. To stay in The more art you see, the more you begin to business, galleries have to understand what you see, and the more readsell what buyers want. To ily you can identify quality—and most imporexpand, they have to guide tant, what speaks to you. Art is many things to buyers beyond their estabmany people, but the most thrilling thing it —JERALD MELBERG, GALLERIST lished preferences to new can be is a personal message. ones. It’s a tough balance.

“IN GENERAL, NOT JUST IN CHARLOTTE, PEOPLE DO NOT ACQUIRE ART WITH THEIR EYES. THEY ACQUIRE IT WITH THEIR EARS.”

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M IXE D, N OT M ATC H E D H O M E W E LOV E

Designer Inna Kovalinskiy mixes periods and styles to bring elegant modernity to an outdated Fort Mill home

BY TAYLOR

BOWLER

PHOTOGRAPHS BY KATHERINE

ELENA PHOTOGRAPHY

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(Below) In the entryway, Kovalinskiy added panel boxes above and below the chair rail and installed the wallpaper inside the boxes.

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The bookshelves display vintage and new treasures, like original letterpress prints by local artist Bethany Cochran.

F

rench-inspired and modern isn’t a typical style mash-up in the South.

But it’s the look Inna Kovalinskiy’s clients were after when they hired the designer to transform their one-story cedar home in Fort Mill. They’d seen the designer’s previous work and knew this wouldn’t be your grandmother’s take on French country. “When I think of French-inspired design, I don’t think of ceramic roosters or heavy toile curtains,” Kovalinskiy says. “I think of intricate moldings and ceiling medallions … gilded mirrors, marble, elaborate fireplaces, and elegance.” But all that opulence can overwhelm a room, so she offsets it with modern elements to give the space “a visual break” with clean, sharp lines.

When they began the renovation in early January, Kovalinskiy started with the drab, beige entry room, which would set the tone for the rest of the house. To compensate for the low ceilings, she added a base cap six inches from the crown molding along the perimeter of the ceiling to give the illusion of more height. She put in panel boxes above and below the chair rail and installed Great Wave Bloom wallpaper by Milton & King in the boxes. “It’s a Japanese Ukiyoe-inspired design,” she says. “If you look closely, you can see the flowers are actually waves with little boats inside.”

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(Top) Kovalinskiy installed charcoal cabinets, brass hardware, and quartz countertops for a modern aesthetic. (Right) The homeowners needed a practical space that worked as both laundry and pantry. (Below) An oversized bar with cabinets on both sides provides additional kitchen storage.

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(Left) The vintageinspired doorknob is from Emtek Hardware.

(Below) The dining room got a classic shaded fivelight and a circular table from Rove Concepts.

She integrated some French-inspired pieces like the Louis XV side tables with a modern six-light satin brass chandelier from Linea Lighting. Kovalinskiy’s most daring design choice, though, was to punch up the walls and built-in bookcases with a show-stopping Santorini Blue from Sherwin-Williams.

In the dining room, Kovalinskiy continued the molding and panel boxes, added a classic shaded five-light, and refreshed the walls with a coat of Snowbound by Sherwin-Williams. She replaced the old rectangular table with a circular table from Rove Concepts to allow enough clearance to the pantry and laundry room while still comfortably seating six.

The laundry room, which doubles as a pantry, got new cabinets, blue mosaic flooring, a chandelier, and open shelving.

To balance the busy blue floor pattern, Kovalinskiy chose black ceiling height cabinets to create the illusion of more height. For a touch of warmth against all the cool colors, she added pops of brass hardware.

One of the more dramatic changes to the home was the transformation of the dingy, dated living room fireplace. Kovalinskiy removed the old stone, built a wall extension, and installed slate tiles and a new wooden mantel. The ceiling medallion brings a vintage vibe to the space, and the gallery wall of photos taken by the homeowner adds a touch of whimsy.

To keep the palette cohesive with the entry and dining room, Kovalinskiy finished the room with dusty blue drapes.

She says the biggest challenge was the kitchen, where the crew took down a load-bearing wall between the kitchen and living room. Then her team built an oversized bar with cabinets on both sides for additional storage. In the kitchen, charcoal cabinets, brass hardware, and Cambria quartz countertops give it a modern edge.

With the three-month transformation complete, Kovalinskiy describes the home as both fresh and classic. “The contrast of styles works so well, respecting the classic influence while embracing what’s new,” she says. She also proves that Parisian and modern not only go together, they belong together.

TAYLOR BOWLER is lifestyle editor of this magazine.

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From the

ASHES 60

CHARLOTTEMAGAZINE.COM // SEPTEMBER 2020

Three months after renovating their Myers Park craftsman, an electrical fire forced a family to strip their home down to the studs and rebuild

BY TAYLOR BOWLER PHOTOGRAPHS BY JOE PURVIS

For the informal family room and dining area, designer Bridget Gasque incorporated accents like long nickel bowls from Global Views, a moss planter from NDI, and artwork from Paragon.

O

n January 5, 2019, Tina Trabucco and her husband, Matt, came home from their sons’ basketball games to find their house engulfed in flames. “When we tried to get in and rescue the dog, we couldn’t see past the smoke,” Tina recalls. “It had risen upstairs, got into the HVAC, the duct work, and it collapsed the kitchen where it all started.” Sadly, their 15-year-old dog Bailey didn’t make it out alive, and after a six-week investigation, they determined their dishwasher caused an electrical fire. The smoke damage was so extensive that they’d need to strip the home down to the studs and rebuild.

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The master bedroom is outfitted with furniture from Restoration Hardware and window treatments and pillows from Kashmir Fabrics.

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The master bathroom’s tub and plumbing fixtures came from Ferguson.

It was a particularly tough blow for the Trabuccos, who just three months earlier had completed a renovation to their 1950s craftsman. They’d upgraded the entire master suite and relocated a fourth bedroom to make the house more functional for their family, which includes sons Colin, 7, and Tyler, 9. The idea of starting all over was daunting, but abandoning this home was never an option.

On May 1, after they’d closed the investigation and settled up with the insurance company, the Trabuccos started construction on their house—again. They used the same team that had done their previous renovation, Chris Belcher of CasaForte Builders and Bridget Gasque of Loftus Design. “Having a team that already knew the quirks and eccentricities of my house was huge,” Tina says. And this time, she says, they could “take one big swing at the house” and make it what they’d wanted all along.

All of the carpets and floors and most of the drywall had to come out, and the house got new windows and doors. Gasque redesigned the floorplan to include new kitchen and bathroom layouts and expanded the master bedroom to create a suite with a larger bathroom and two walk-in closets. They also built a mudroom where there wasn’t one before and closed off an existing loft to create a bonus room for the kids. They relocated the laundry room to the second floor and turned the existing laundry room off the kitchen into a walk-in butler’s pantry with a wine fridge Tina had always wanted.

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(Left) Walker Woodworking installed custom cabinetry in the mudroom to hold backpacks, shoes, and sports gear. (Below) The upstairs bedrooms have a neutral palette of soft grays and tans.

(Bottom) Gasque accented the formal dining room with a Dash & Albert rug and a chandelier from Circa Lighting.

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(Above) Quartz countertops from AGM Imports and rope weave barstools from Orient Express Furniture are polished, yet durable enough for everyday use.

The main living areas got a complete overhaul, too. The previous owner had done an addition that left the first floor with different ceiling heights, so they raised the ceiling from 8 to 12 feet in the kitchen and added structural beams. The team at Walker Woodworking installed custom cabinetry in the kitchen and butler’s pantry, as well as lockers and drawers in the mudroom to hold the boys’ backpacks, shoes, and sports gear.

With the exception of some master bedroom furniture that survived the fire, everything in the house is new. Gasque, who describes the style as transitional, outfitted the home with new furniture, lighting, fixtures, window treatments, and artwork. “It gave us a blank canvas,” she says. “This time we gave it a refreshed, modern look.”

She used a neutral palette of soft grays and tans for a relaxing vibe. In the kitchen, she chose off-gray cabinetry and accented it with the walnut island and beams. The hardwood floors got a dark walnut finish, and the walls are Benjamin Moore’s Revere Pewter.

She opted for quartz countertops instead of marble for more durability, and rope weave barstools from Orient Express Furniture that could stand up to everyday use.

For furnishings, she incorporated stain-resistant Crypton fabrics and indoor and outdoor area rugs. The formal dining room, guest bedroom, and master suite got custom window treatments courtesy of Kasmir Fabrics, and Gasque accented the home with a mix of moss planters, glass bowls, and wall décor from Paragon and Soicher Marin Fine Art. In September 2019, nine months after the fire, the Trabuccos moved back into their new old house. They also welcomed a new puppy, Gunner, into the family. “It was so stressful; it took hours upon hours to sort out,” Tina says, “but we ended up on the right side of this.”

TAYLOR BOWLER is lifestyle editor for this magazine.

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By EMILY ETHRIDGE Illustration By ELEANOR SHAKESPEARE

Only a few in his hometown know the name: Trezzvant Anderson. He wasn’t was a crusading journalist in the South during Jim Crow, and his work exposed discrimination against Black people long before what we think of as the civil rights era. Eight decades later, another Black man is telling Anderson’s story, which recasts the legacy of someone we do remember.

In an age when we’re all reconsidering what we thought we knew, Willie Griffin is digging in a forgotten corner, and what he’s uncovered is news to us

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RAILWAY COURTESY OF THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER ARCHIVES, CHARLOTTE MECKLENBURG LIBRARY

much for self-promotion. But Anderson

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ILLIE GRIFFIN, A SOFT-SPOKEN, BESPECTACLED HISTORIAN, has talked nonstop for more than an hour and rarely glanced at his notecards. Behind him, in the back room at Dilworth Neighborhood Grille, a projector displays a series of old newspaper clippings, photos, a chart or two, all about an area of history—Black history in particular—that’s been largely overlooked. The subject of this evening’s presentation to a local history and philosophy club is the Double V campaign, an effort led by a Pittsburgh newspaper during World War II to honor Black servicemembers and call for the full integration of Black people into American society, including the military.

Griffin is the staff historian at the Levine Museum of the New South, a Charlotte native, and a civil rights scholar whose research focuses on the untold history of his hometown. His talk wouldn’t seem to promise a dynamic presentation—a former teacher, Griffin just clicks through dozens of slides, explains each, and sometimes wanders into tangents—but he keeps the attention of 21 people, mostly in their 60s and 70s.

I look around the room on this Thursday night in September 2019 and half-expect the crowd to be drifting off. But their eyes are fixed on Griffin, with his neatly trimmed beard and wooden bead bracelet. Several club members have pushed their dinner plates aside to make space on the long table to take notes. No one glances at a phone or starts a side conversation.

About five minutes in, after an overview of the roots of the civil rights movement in the 1930s and ’40s, Griffin clicks to a black-and-white photograph of a man who’s central to his presentation tonight, to Charlotte’s civil rights history, and to the research Griffin has done over the past decade. The man in the photo wears a pinstriped suit, tie, pocket square, and thin mustache. His name was Trezzvant Anderson.

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Anderson was born in Charlotte in 1906 and lived much of his life here. For most of his 56 years, Anderson worked as a journalist and, in the age of Jim Crow, uncovered example after example of discrimination against Black people at a time when few dared tell those kinds of stories. He went on to write and publish a book, Come Out Fighting: The Epic Tale of the 761st Tank Battalion, 1942-1945, about the first all-Black tank battalion in U.S. Army history. Griffin, who found out about Anderson by chance during his research, believes Anderson is one of the most important and unsung civil rights figures of the 20th century.

“He never pushed himself out there. He never wanted to be the person in front. It was always about other people’s stories,” Griffin tells me. “He wrote in-depth stories that history did not capture.”

Griffin, 45, wants to make sure history captures Anderson’s story. He’s writing a biography about Anderson, tentatively titled Come Out Fighting, an expanded and revised version of his doctoral thesis from UNC Chapel Hill; it’s scheduled for publication late next year by Vanderbilt University Press. As the Levine Museum’s historian since 2018, Griffin travels throughout the city and tells Anderson’s story as part of a larger inventory that the South, and Charlotte in particular, are conducting of its own complicated, oft-forgotten past.

“Here is somebody who is turning over new information that nobody has known about before,” says Robin Brabham, the founding head of the Special Collections Department at the UNC Charlotte library, who invited Griffin to speak to and join the history club. Brabham adds that even though he’s studied local history for decades, he’d never heard of Anderson either until Griffin told him. “It just seemed like an opportunity to sort of spread the gospel.”

Trezzvant Anderson’s hidden history—and that of the city and region where he lived and worked—illuminates a priceless reward of any historical research: the enrichment of our understanding of the present. History is about not only what happened but also the lessons we can draw from what happened, and what the people and events we choose to remember say about what we’ve become. One of the chief subjects of Anderson’s crusading journalism was a white man, Paul Younts, who unlike Anderson is remembered in Charlotte— but in a way that sanitizes the story of who he was and what he did. Griffin, a Black man who grew up off Beatties Ford Road, the traditional boulevard of Black Charlotte, has chosen to exhume the true histories of both men in an era when we’re all reexamining the interplay of race and history. What he’s uncovered has shaped our history, and his own.

At Dilworth Neighborhood Grille, Griffin uses Anderson’s story as a springboard to discuss the Double V campaign and how its promise, the idea that Black veterans had earned their respect as full citizens, went unfulfilled. Griffin wraps it up after an hour. Then members, in observance of club tradition, ask questions and share their takeaways from the presentation.

This takes another 45 minutes. Most members remark that the main thing they’ve learned is this: Trezzvant Anderson existed.

They’d never heard of him.

Trezzvant Anderson began his career in journalism and activism in the late 1920s, not long after he dropped out of Johnson C. Smith University and around the time he landed a job with the federal Railway Mail Service, which took an official photograph of Anderson in 1938 (right).

Anderson later served as a war correspondent in Europe and followed the first all-Black tank battalion in U.S. Army history. He published a book, Come Out Fighting, about the 761st Tank Battalion (bottom).

CIVIL SERVICE PERSONNEL RECORDS; COURTESY

EITHER HAD I, a Charlotte native who grew up in the Mallard Creek area. My father, who’s lived in Charlotte for nearly 50 years, met Griffin in spring 2019 and told me excitedly that I should meet and talk with him about his research into my hometown’s civil rights history. Over the next year, Griffin and I talked about Anderson and civil rights in Charlotte four times—three in

person, the last via Zoom after COVID-19 sent us all home.

Griffin resembles his research subject in at least one respect: He’d much rather tell the stories of others than his own. Even though Griffin speaks in public frequently—his job at the Levine Museum requires it—he’s not comfortable in anyone’s spotlight. Over the course of our discussions, Griffin repeatedly asked me to minimize his presence in the story you’re reading.

I told him I’d do my best. But, unavoidably, all the information about Anderson in this story comes from Griffin’s research.

Griffin’s story matters, too, and not just because of the work he does. Griffin grew up in Lincoln Heights, on Charlotte’s west side, part of an area defined by the three highways that fence it off from the rest of the city: Interstates 77 and 85 and the Brookshire Freeway. As a child, and later as a student at East Mecklenburg High School, Griffin lived alongside local civil rights leaders and didn’t know it. Neighbor Allegra Westbrooks was the first Black public library supervisor in North Carolina; Griffin mowed her lawn.

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Willie Griffin, the staff historian at the Levine Museum of the New South, grew up along the Beatties Ford Road corridor, the historic main avenue of Charlotte’s Black community and where Trezzvant Anderson grew up as well. The city plans a streetcar line to connect the corridor by rail to the city center. Griffin began researching Anderson in graduate school.

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office’s employment practices. Griffin began asking around: Who was that?

Griffin’s grandfather, a minister in Charlotte for 30 years, connected him to people he could interview for his master’s thesis at Morgan State University in Baltimore. Of the more than two dozen people Griffin interviewed, only two remembered Anderson: Reginald Hawkins, a firebrand local activist and the first Black person to run for North Carolina governor; and James F. “Jim” Richardson, a JCSU alumnus and postmaster who served for 10 years in the General Assembly in the 1980s and ’90s. (Richardson died in 2003, Hawkins in 2007.

After Richardson’s death, Congress renamed the post office on Beatties Ford Road after him.)

Hawkins told Griffin that the journalist was a Charlotte native named Trezzvant Anderson, who had recruited him to help organize the student march against the post office. Griffin began to drop the name with his other interview subjects.

When Griffin did that with Richardson, the older man’s face lit up. “Now, boy! That’s who you should be asking about,” Richardson replied. “Trezzvant Anderson was the civil rights movement.”

NDERSON ATTENDED JCSU but dropped out in 1927. He’d written for the student newspaper, and although he had gotten a good job in another field, he wanted to continue his work as a journalist. The Charlotte Post, the city’s established Black-owned newspaper, hired Anderson soon after he left school.

It was a time when newspapers relied heavily on correspondents, who would file dispatches that often took the shape of opinion pieces or outright calls to civic action; the professional standard of facts-only reporting took hold in American journal-

JONATHAN COOPER

founded Charlotte’s Head Start program, and served as the first chair of the Afro-American and African Studies Department at UNC Charlotte.

Griffin’s maternal grandfather, Fred Griffin, helped integrate Charlotte’s white-dominated trucking industry in the early 1960s when he insisted on working as a freight checker, a position inaccessible to Black men at the time. Griffin didn’t learn about the social significance of his own grandfather until graduate school. “Seeing him among those other important individuals really hit me—that I had a lot of work to do to understand my own place in history, and my own responsibilities and legacy that were left for me,” Griffin told this magazine in 2018. “So it was at that point when I really jumped headfirst into trying to understand as much about Charlotte’s local history as I could.”

Another of Griffin’s key grad school revelations came from a book: Timothy B. Tyson’s Radio Free Dixie: Robert F. Williams and the Roots of Black Power, published in 1999. Williams was an NAACP chapter president in Monroe who fled to Cuba and hosted a radio show on Black politics and music that could be heard as far away as Los Angeles. Griffin had grown up believing that Charlotte was a quiet oasis during the ’50s and ’60s, far removed from the marches and violence in cities like Birmingham, Memphis, even Greensboro. Now his eyes widened, and he thought, There was no way in hell that nothing was going on in Charlotte, and this guy was happening right here in Monroe!

The more he found, the more he looked. He started by looking for the moment when activism came to town, and to him, that meant one thing: “protest in the streets.” Historian and Charlotte native Davison M. Douglas, now the dean of William & Mary Law School, had written briefly about an unnamed Charlotte-based journalist for The Pittsburgh Courier, a Black weekly newspaper. In 1940, the journalist had led Johnson C. Smith University students in a march to protest the local post

ism only after World War II. The barrier-free approach to newspapering fit perfectly with a phenomenon that would grow in the decades to come—a string of Black-owned newspapers that concentrated on issues important to the Black community and unabashedly stumped for their concerns.

The late ’20s were the early years of the Great Migration, when hundreds of thousands of Black people left the farms and plantations of the Deep South for factory jobs in the large, industrial cities of the Northeast and Midwest. Black newspapers in cities like Chicago, Detroit, Pittsburgh, and St. Louis fed a market hungry for information about the places they’d left, cities that relatives had moved to, and issues central to Black people’s lives then and now: racial discrimination and just compensation for their labor.

Anderson had landed a job with the Railway Mail Service, a branch of the Postal Service that processed mail and shipped it throughout the country by train. The work provided him with a good monthly paycheck, $154, and required him to work only 10 to 12 days a month, which gave him the perfect pretext to work as the Post’s “roving reporter” throughout the Southeast.

Anderson’s route usually took him from Washington, D.C., to Atlanta to Knoxville, Tennessee, and all the cities and towns along the way.

Anderson, who was young and unmarried then, would deliver the mail, stop in a city or town for a few days, find a story of interest to Black readers, and send dispatches back to the Post. Within three years, his missives from the South appeared in prominent Black papers throughout the country, and he held staff positions at the Associated Negro Press, The Norfolk Journal and Guide, The Carolina Times, and The Afro-American, the renowned Baltimore-based paper founded in 1892.

He kept riding from place to place and reporting on discrimination against Black people, especially in their search for jobs and economic opportunity, as the Great Depression gripped the country. He reported on a lynching in Tarboro in 1930. In 1932 in New Orleans, he wrote about a protest of Mayor Thomas Semmes Walmsley’s efforts to prohibit anyone not registered to vote—which meant, overwhelmingly, Black people—from holding jobs as longshoremen, a vital occupation in the South’s leading port city. Several hundred Black residents attended the protest, and even white newspapers and political leaders spoke out against the measure. But the mayor enacted the ban, and nearly 2,000 Black longshoremen lost their jobs.

Anderson’s work was dangerous. White business interests of the day frequently targeted Black publications, and Anderson was concerned enough to sometimes write under pseudonyms.

“There would be efforts to intimidate me, or perhaps even lynch me,” he once told his editors, “should my name appear over the story.” Yet he kept at it throughout the 1930s, balancing his journalism with the RMS job, which provided money and mobility.

In 1939, Anderson convinced the publisher of The Carolina Times, the venerable Black-owned paper in Durham, to open an office in Charlotte and hire him to staff it. The Times did.

Anderson also continued to write for The Afro-American— which turned out to be the vehicle he used to report on the discriminatory practices of Charlotte’s postmaster, a prominent civic leader whose name still takes up public space in this city: Paul Younts.

RIFFIN ALREADY KNEW THAT ANDERSON had stirred up something that involved the Postal Service. Some of the interview subjects for his master’s thesis had mentioned it. Richardson had told him that Anderson wrote about discrimination in the Postal Service’s Charlotte office and organized the 1940 student protest in response.

Richardson and Griffin’s grandfather, the trucking pioneer Fred Griffin, were members of the Charlotte Black Shriners chapter, one of numerous and influential Black fraternal organizations that formed during segregation. During his research, Griffin learned that in the ’50s, Anderson had exposed the misdeeds of leaders in another of those organizations, the national Improved Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks of the World, and that the Elks likely would have “blackballed” anyone who crossed them. It was the first time Griffin had considered the possibility that it wasn’t just entrenched white interests that had buried Anderson’s legacy.

In 2008, while Griffin worked on his doctorate at UNC, he learned about a trove of Anderson’s personal papers at the Atlanta University Center Consortium’s Robert W. Woodruff Library. The consortium consists of four historically Black colleges and universities, including Morehouse College, where Griffin earned his bachelor’s degree in history with a concentration in African American studies in 1999. A fellow doctoral student, researching Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., had come across Anderson’s name and a reference to the papers.

Among the papers in Atlanta, Griffin discovered a 1941 letter from Kelly Alexander Sr.—then the Charlotte NAACP chapter president and later national NAACP chairman—that recommended Anderson for the presidency of the national postal workers’ union. The year before, Alexander wrote, armed local NAACP members had protected Anderson after midnight in his home on Beatties Ford Road against “car-loads of whites, probably Ku Kluxers,” who were responding to “the recent Post Office investigation.” The reference eventually led Griffin to write the Postal Service to request any records they’d kept on Anderson. He expected a few pages that detailed his employment history, maybe his mail routes.

What the Postal Service sent Griffin in 2010 was a 200page dossier that covered all 14 years of Anderson’s employment—and spelled out how Anderson learned of Younts’ discrimination against Black employees and job candidates, how Anderson’s reporting led to Younts’ conviction of a federal crime, and postal officials’ reactions to them. Griffin was ecstatic. As far as he knew, no one else had the records. No one else even knew to look for them.

“I mean, shit, I was blown away,” Griffin says now. “I already knew Anderson was pretty important, but when I got those papers—‘Whoa. Damn. This is it. This is what I really needed.

This is the gold mine. This is the jackpot.’”

Younts wasn’t just the postmaster in Charlotte. He was a popular and well-connected real estate broker and developer mentioned often as a potential political candidate. In the ’20s, Younts developed at least seven of the 12 homes on the 2000 block of Lyndhurst Avenue in Dilworth—single-story, Craftsman-style bungalows, six of which remain standing today. His real estate business took the lead in developing Park Road Shopping Center, which opened in 1956. He served as president of the SEPTEMBER 2020 // CHARLOTTE

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Charlotte Chamber of Commerce in 1957. The same decade, as a state highway commissioner, he shepherded the widening of Wilkinson Boulevard and directed state funds toward the expansion of I-77, one of the highways that divided Griffin’s neighborhood from the rest of Charlotte.

In 1961, Younts ran the North Carolina Trade Fair, and The Charlotte News named him Man of the Year. When he died 10 years later, The Charlotte Observer wrote: “Few big things got done in Charlotte over the past 40 years that Paul Younts didn’t have a hand in.”

Decades before, as postmaster, Younts had also refused to hire Black people as mail carriers or promote them to those positions because, he argued, white mail carriers wouldn’t work with Black ones.

Anderson had a head start on his own research. A longtime employee of the Railway Mail Service, Anderson knew all about racial discrimination in federal civil service jobs. Some of it was expressed through policies with thinly obscured racial motives, like a requirement that job applicants submit a photograph, which allowed managers to hire based on race.

Other times, the racism was more direct. In 1939, a Black man named John T. Richmond, who was applying for a mail carrier job in Charlotte, earned a high score on his civil service exam. Younts stuck him in a job as a postal custodian, someone who maintained and cleaned post offices—essentially a janitor. Anderson, who still maintained a residence in Charlotte, found out about the Richmond affair—and about Paul Younts—through his connections in the Postal Service.

Anderson decided to write about Richmond and Younts in his column, “News and Views of the Postal Service,” which ran in The Afro-American. He thought enough bad publicity might force Younts to change his ways. If not, the press might catch the attention of federal authorities.

Griffin found precious evidence of Anderson’s campaign in his Postal Service documents and in the archives of The Carolina Times and The Afro-American. In September 1939, Anderson wrote to Emmett J. Scott, the former chief aide to Booker T. Washington and a prominent figure in the Republican Party: “I am trying to bring pressure to bear upon the Postmaster to make him change his attitude, and give us this carrier to avoid trouble in 1940 … and if we get this one, we are going to yell for

CHARLOTTE TAKES TO THE STREETS Charlotte has a deeper history of activism during the civil rights movement than is generally acknowledged.

(Left to right) In spring 1960, students marched to protest segregation at movie theaters, lunch counters, and hotels (first two photos). A decade later, citizens took to the streets again (latter two photos) as a school desegregation case wound through the courts.

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more, later on.” Younts ignored the pressure, which compelled Anderson to turn it up.

In his columns, Anderson called on Black Charlotteans to take to the streets. He announced a mass meeting at Second Ward High School, where several hundred attendees committed to a get-out-the-vote effort “to vote against anything or anybody favored by Younts.” He also recruited prominent Black political leaders, including Thurgood Marshall, Claude Barnett, and Mary McCloud Bethune, to write to Younts about the Richmond case.

He submitted an open letter to the Observer to bring Richmond’s story to the attention of white residents. The letter ran on a Sunday, and Anderson wrote that every Black minister in the city “will pray a special prayer upon the conclusion of his sermon” for Younts to promote Richmond, the father of six children. “If pleas to God, Himself, from the pulpits of my people cannot cause us to receive this favor,” Anderson wrote, “then our hearts will be heavy tonight.”

OUNTS CONTINUED TO TRY to ignore the problem away. Griffin found a letter from Younts to U.S. Senator Robert Reynolds in which Younts explained that Richmond should be happy he got hired at all. “There is no one,” Younts wrote, “who feels more kindly toward the colored race than I.” In June 1940, after he’d ignored Anderson’s appeals for months, Younts traveled to Washington, D.C., to try to get Anderson fired from the Railway Mail Service. Two months later, the “car-loads of whites” began to roll past Anderson’s home.

Unintimidated, and with election season approaching, Anderson decided on a different angle of attack. He knew Younts had been using his employees to try to deliver the Black vote for his preferred candidates. Younts threatened to fire Black postal workers if they didn’t solicit votes, count and check ballots, and take certain voters to the polls. Younts also oversaw a local congressman’s campaign and toured the state with Postmaster General James Farley, who was challenging President Roosevelt for the Democratic presidential nomination. All of this activity violated the Hatch Act, which Congress

had passed the year before, a law A sign at the North that limited the political activities Carolina Welcome Center off Interstate 77 of federal employees and protected just north of the South them from political coercion in the Carolina line identifies workplace.

Paul Younts, a longtime Charlotte civic leader, as Working with Hosie Price, a a general, which he never Black lawyer from Winston-Salem, was. Trezzvant Anderson’s Anderson notified the Office of reporting helped lead to Younts’ 1941 conviction Postal Inspectors, the Civil Service for violating the federal Commission, and the FBI about Hatch Act, which protects Younts’ practices. In October, he federal employees from political coercion in the broke the news in The Carolina workplace.

Times that all three agencies were investigating Younts, and just before the November election, he published details of the case and a full list of the federal charges. Younts became one of the first people ever indicted under the Hatch Act. In 1941, he pleaded no contest and was fined, and the Postal Service fired him.

Younts was called up to active Army duty later that year.

The detested photograph requirement didn’t last, either.

On November 7, 1940, two days after his reelection and a week after Younts’ indictment, President Roosevelt revoked it by executive order. Anderson wrote in “News and Views” to thank Roosevelt “on behalf of the 20,000 colored postal workers.” Two weeks later, having accomplished his goal, Anderson discontinued the column. Anderson lost his RMS job in 1941, having caused too much trouble for the Postal Service. But he continued to write for The Carolina Times until 1943, when he enlisted in the Army and served as an overseas correspondent in Europe, where he embedded himself with the 761st Tank Battalion he later wrote about in his book.

COURTESY OF THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER ARCHIVES, CHARLOTTE MECKLENBURG LIBRARY

HIS SUMMER, inspired by the George Floyd demonstrations that swept the country, monuments fell like rain: three statues of Confederate soldiers on the N.C. Capitol grounds; a monument to former vice president, slave owner, and ardent racist John C. Calhoun in Charleston; the famous statues of Confederate generals on Monument Avenue in Richmond. Charlotte’s are less conspicuous, but they’re there. Some carry the name of Paul Younts.

Or, curiously, “General” Paul Younts. If you’re northbound on I-77, a large green N.C. Department of Transportation roadside sign less than a mile north of the South Carolina line identifies the stretch of interstate as “General Younts Freeway.” The DOT approved the name in 1965. Nearby, along the exit to the North Carolina Welcome Center, stands another sign, which appears to be a silver-and-black historical marker. It reads, “General Paul R. Younts Expressway. Honoring a distinguished business, civic and military leader. Member of North Carolina Highway Commission 1961-1965.”

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The sign isn’t official. The N.C. Historical Highway Marker Program, administered by the state government, places its silver-and-black signs at historic sites throughout the state. But when I contact its office, a spokeswoman tells me no one with the program knows who put the Younts sign up or when.

Paul Younts was never a general. He did serve in the Army, enlisting shortly after the outbreak of World War I, then served as state commander for the American Legion of North Carolina.

From 1944-46, he commanded an Army personnel depot in Greensboro. When the Korean War began in 1950, Younts’ name circulated as the prospective commander of a National Guard artillery base in North Carolina, according to the Greensboro History Museum, which keeps five boxes of his papers. That post was usually held by a brigadier general. But military authorities decided Younts would have to take advanced artillery courses at Fort Sill in Oklahoma to earn his star.

“Believing that a second appraisal of his record later would result in a more favorable outcome, Colonel Younts declined to act on the Board’s recommendation,” according to the museum’s website. “Nevertheless, he decided to serve as commanding officer of the IV Corps Artillery in North Carolina on an interim basis. When it became apparent that the Board would hold fast to its original decision, Younts requested that he be relieved of his command.” The museum calls its collection the “Col. Paul Younts Papers”—colonel, not general.

Nonetheless, Younts certainly allowed people to refer to him as a general. The Charlotte Observer began his 1971 obituary this way: “The General will be buried Wednesday.” Younts, a white man with cachet, celebrated a distinction he never earned. Trezzvant Anderson, a Black man whose reporting led to Younts’ dismissal as postmaster and a finding that he’d violated federal labor law, is hardly remembered at all.

N JANUARY, the day before Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Willie Griffin speaks to about a dozen people in a choir room at Friendship Missionary Baptist Church.

The 130-year-old church occupies a 9-acre campus on Beatties Ford Road, near where Trezzvant Anderson once lived.

Griffin says one of the questions people ask him most frequently is, “What would have happened if King had come to Charlotte?”

In fact, he tells the group, King visited Charlotte several times.

In 1963, 10 days after Johnson C. Smith students had marched in uptown to protest segregation, King spoke to the graduating seniors from six local Black high schools and urged them and civic leaders to keep pushing for integration.

As Griffin lists the high schools, a few people in the crowd add, “West Charlotte, West Charlotte, too!”

Griffin focuses on a man in the crowd who wears a blue suit with no tie. “You were there?” he asks.

“I was there,” the man confirms with a nod. Later, to me, the man declines to identify himself.

But men like him are the kinds of people Griffin says he’s working for. So much of the energy in discussions about monuments and symbols and flags boils down to a battle over history, whose stories are remembered or forgotten, distorted or embellished. The George Floyd protests can be seen as a largescale heart’s cry from people usually written out of our national narrative that they and their stories matter. Finally, after more than a half-century, and after one historian’s decade of dogged research, Trezzvant Anderson’s story has a chance to be told.

“The next movement will be a personal movement, a movement within ourselves. Us coming to our own reality and making up our own minds,” Griffin tells me. “Learning from history, and then deciding, and becoming better people.”

EMILY ETHRIDGE is a native Charlottean who moved back after nine years as a reporter in Washington, D.C., where she covered Congress for CQ Roll Call. You can get in touch at emilyve@gmail.com.

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COURTESY OF THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER ARCHIVES, CHARLOTTE MECKLENBURG LIBRARY

The Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. visited Charlotte several times.

On May 30, 1963, King spoke at the Charlotte Park Center (now the Grady Cole Center) to students from six Black high schools at convocation (left).

On September 21, 1966, he returned to Charlotte to speak to more than 3,000 people at JCSU (below, right) about moral action and his opposition to American involvement in the Vietnam War.

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6100 Fairview Road, Suite 1142 Charlotte, NC 28210 Phone: 704-371-8570 maria@mochoafinancial.com www.mochoafinancial.com Maria M. Ochoa Financial and Insurance Services

Maria M. Ochoa, CLU®, ChFC® is proud to once again receive the distinguished Five Star Professional Wealth Manager award. As a five-year winner, this award is a testament to her outstanding dedication and service to her clients in helping them to achieve their financial planning and asset protection goals. As a leading financial adviser, Maria is fully committed to the highest standards of ethics, professionalism and service and can be counted on for providing objective and personalized support. She takes the time to fully understand her clients’ goals and objectives before recommending a course of action and is proud to be a financial partner for the long term.

Securities and Advisory Services offered through Triad Advisors Member FINRA/SIPC. Dot Yandle Financial Services, LLC is not affiliated with Triad Advisors, LLC.

Maria M. Ochoa, CLU®, ChFC®, Registered Representative offering securities through NYLIFE Securities LLC Member FINRA/SIPC, A Licensed Insurance Agency 704-371-8500, 6100 Fairview Road, Suite 400, Charlotte, NC 28210. Maria M. Ochoa, CLU®, ChFC®, Financial Adviser offering investment advisory services through Eagle Strategies LLC, a Registered Investment Adviser Maria M. Ochoa Financial and Insurance Services is not owned or operated by NYLlFE Securities LLC or its affiliates.

Wealth Manager Award Winner

Wealth Manager Award Winner

Brice R. Oldham Chartered Financial Analyst®, CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™

Head and Shoulders photo 3.6” wide by 3.8” high at 300 dpi

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YEAR WINNER

∙ Family financial planning ∙ Retirement planning

4521 Sharon Road, Suite 400 Charlotte, NC 28211 Phone: 704-553-8006 boldham@carrollfinancial.com www.carrollfinancial.com The Best Interest of the Client Is the Only Interest That Matters ∙ Business succession ∙ Investment management

I have over 15 years of experience guiding families and businesses just like yours through comprehensive financial planning. My approach focuses on understanding the values, priorities and goals of every client. It is my mission to provide ongoing, thoughtful advice to all clients with the best possible service. I am a 2016 – 2020 Five Star Wealth Manager award winner.

Registered Representative of and securities offered through Cetera Advisor Networks, LLC, member FINRA/SIPC. Advisory services offered through Carroll Financial Associates, Inc., a Registered Investment Advisor. Carroll Financial and Cetera Advisor Networks are not affiliated.

Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards Inc. owns the certification marks CFP®, CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ and federally registered CFP (with flame design) in the U.S.

Wealth managers not only offer advice, but they also guide you through the process of managing your money and investing it for you.

Wealth Manager Award Winner

The Five Star Wealth Manager award, administered by Crescendo Business Services, LLC (dba Five Star Professional), is based on 10 objective criteria. Eligibility criteria – required: 1. Credentialed as a registered investment adviser or a registered investment adviser representative; 2. Actively licensed as a registered investment adviser or as a principal of a registered investment adviser firm for a minimum of 5 years; 3. Favorable regulatory and complaint history review (As defined by Five Star Professional, the wealth manager has not; A. Been subject to a regulatory action that resulted in a license being suspended or revoked, or payment of a fine; B. Had more than a total of three settled or pending complaints filed against them and/or a total of five settled, pending, dismissed or denied complaints with any regulatory authority or Five Star Professional’s consumer complaint process. Unfavorable feedback may have been discovered through a check of complaints registered with a regulatory authority or complaints registered through Five Star Professional’s consumer complaint process; feedback may not be representative of any one client’s experience; C. Individually contributed to a financial settlement of a customer complaint; D. Filed for personal bankruptcy within the past 11 years; E. Been terminated from a financial services firm within the past 11 years; F. Been convicted of a felony); 4. Fulfilled their firm review based on internal standards; 5. Accepting new clients. Evaluation criteria – considered: 6. One-year client retention rate; 7. Five-year client retention rate; 8. Non-institutional discretionary and/or non-discretionary client assets administered; 9. Number of client households served; 10. Education and professional designations. Wealth managers do not pay a fee to be considered or placed on the final list of Five Star Wealth Managers. Award does not evaluate quality of services provided to clients. Once awarded, wealth managers may purchase additional profile ad space or promotional products. The Five Star award is not indicative of the wealth manager’s future performance. Wealth managers may or may not use discretion in their practice and therefore may not manage their clients’ assets. The inclusion of a wealth manager on the Five Star Wealth Manager list should not be construed as an endorsement of the wealth manager by Five Star Professional or this publication. Working with a Five Star Wealth Manager or any wealth manager is no guarantee as to future investment success, nor is there any guarantee that the selected wealth managers will be awarded this accomplishment by Five Star Professional in the future. For more information on the Five Star award and the research/selection methodology, go to fivestarprofessional.com. 1,488 Charlotte area wealth managers were considered for the award; 134 (9% of candidates) were named 2020 Five Star Wealth Managers. 2019: 1,346 considered, 129 winners; 2018: 1,342 considered, 104 winners; 2017: 949 considered, 132 winners; 2016: 873 considered, 227 winners; 2015: 1,822 considered, 277 winners; 2014: 6,776 considered, 409 winners; 2013: 1,694 considered, 280 winners; 2012: 1,083 considered, 267 winners.

FS • 3

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BOOK NOW BY CALLING 704.372.1877

@grandbohemiancharlotte

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

SHUTTERSTOCK

Time to get away for a while! The destinations on the following pages will provide the perfect escape.

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

THE CRYSTAL COAST

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ighty-five miles of gleaming Atlantic Beaches only begin to tell the story of North Carolina’s Crystal Coast. Dangling like a strand of delicate pearls along the Southern Outer Banks, the authentic “coastal experience” features waters of crystalline purity bordering sandy, sparkling beaches.

From eccentric history steeped in legendary tales of swashbuckling pirate adventures and ghostly encounters, to a famed diamond lady lighthouse and exotic wild horses roaming freely, boundless exploration awaits.

To understand the real coastal experience is to feel the tranquil sea breeze, to stroll historical streets of a quaint maritime village and to dine on “fresh from the docks” seafood at a waterfront bistro.

Home to “The South’s Best Small Town” by Southern Living magazine and “The No. 1 National State Park Beach,” by USA Today, it is both a place and a state of mind representing a departure from the ordinary and arrival at the extraordinary.

Suiting every lifestyle and budget, vacationers to the coast will find an array of deluxe digs ranging from quaint seaside cottages and charming B&Bs, to no-frills bungalows and mammoth beach houses known locally as “sandcastles.”

THE CRYSTAL COAST Plan your trip at crystalcoastnc.org

VISIT NC’s THREE PEAKS

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ake a road trip to the center of the three most popular and exciting peaks in North Carolina.

Sitting between the oldest mountains of Grandfather Mountain, the tallest peak east of the Mississippi Mt. Mitchell and the largest naturally growing rhododendron garden in the world atop Roan Mountain, this area is full of hundreds of trails, and hikes to breathtaking views.

Explore from your basecamp in the mountain communities of Little Switzerland, Spruce Pine, and Bakersville, directly in the center of the Three Peaks. Just two hours from Charlotte, you will find the serene solitude and natural surroundings you are seeking in a mountain getaway but still close to home.

You can enjoy local experiences like gem mining, river tubing, horseback riding, fly fishing and one of the country’s best arts communities.

Make this the year you check the Three Peaks off of your bucket list! Make plans for a one-of-akind authentic mountain getaway with your family and friends.

VISIT NC’S THREE PEAKS Plan your trip at ThreePeaksNC.com or call 828-765-9483

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MONTAGE PALMETTO BLUFF

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ocated between Hilton Head, SC and Savannah, under a hour dri e fro harlotte you ll find Montage Palmetto Bluff. With 20,000 acres of pristine Lowcountry terrain, Palmetto Bluff encompasses walking trails, two vibrant villages, an array of shops and eight delectable restaurants. Upon arrival, most guests surrender their cars and leisurely make their way around the property on the main mode of transportation, bicycle.

This unparalleled coastal setting adorned with 100-yearold oak trees and 32 miles of waterfront has an abundance of space to relax and enjoy the great outdoors. Miles of serene fresh waterways allow for aya ing electric oats and fishing The surrounding tidal estuary of the May River provides ample roo for oating aya ing and fishing a ongst the resident population of Atlantic bottlenose dolphin. On land there are no shortage of activities, Jack Nicklaus Signature Golf, tennis, croquet, pickleball, 13-station sporting clays course, archery, air ri e and a world class a ontage are ust the eginning With this bounty of activity there are also a variety of accommodations to choose from, guest rooms to cottages to Village Homes allow for varying degrees of privacy and space. Wrapped in the warmth of southern hospitality, a getaway to Montage Palmetto Bluff will leave you with a lifetime of memories.

MONTAGE PALMETTO BLUFF Plan your trip at montagehotels.com/palmettobluff or call 855-264-8705

EXPLORE LOWCOUNTRY LUXURY ON KIAWAH ISLAND

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short drive from Charlotte, just beyond Charleston, South Carolina, is a destination like no other. Whether it’s a dream beach vacation along our 10 miles of pristine coastline or a golf getaway at our world-renowned courses, a road trip to the natural beauty of Kiawah Island awaits you.

Immerse yourself in endless relaxation and pleasurable pursuits as you explore the storied Lowcountry. The Resort’s exclusive shoreline is yours to discover—whether strolling with the surf lapping your toes, bicycling perfectly-packed sand or paddling along scenic saltwater marshes.

Golfers enjoy favorable seasonal temperatures and rates, and the opportunity to play the famed Ocean Course, home of the 2021 PGA Championship. From the moment you step onto the storied greens, you are nestled into awe-inspiring surroundings to play the rounds of your life.

When it’s time to unwind, experience pampering and amenities beyond compare with grand accommodations in The Sanctuary, a Forbes Five-Star, AAA Five-Diamond hotel offering

panoramic Atlantic Ocean views—or stay in a private Resort Villa or Home that provides serene seclusion in your home-away-from-home.

When you are ready for an escape, we will be pleased to welcome you to a travel experience you wish would never end.

KIAWAH ISLAND GOLF RESORT Plan your getaway at kiawahresort.com or call 866-469-4399

SPECIAL SPECIALADVERTISING ADVERTISINGSECTION SECTION

TO HOME RESOURCES

SHUTTERSTOCK

Planning to purchase a new home or renovate your current dwelling?

The professionals on the following pages can assist you in your search.

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We Know What You Want in Your New Home.

And, Your Community.

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DARE to COMPARE! INCLUDED HOME FEATURES Discover the Jones Homes USA difference at The Falls at Weddington, where homes of outstanding quality are loaded with luxury features that are considered upgrades from other builders.

QUALITY CONSTRUCTION Some of of these features include: • 8’ Solid Doors Throughout Home • Colonial Style 7 1/4” Baseboards • Full Kitchen Aid® Stainless Steel Gourmet Appliance Package

COMMUNITY AMENITIES

• Entire Yard Sodded with Irrigation System • Digital Living Smart Home Technology, Security and Home Automation ready • Floor to Ceiling Tile in All Bathroom Showers and So Much More!

Luxury Single-Family Homes from the mid $700s | 406 Turtleback Ridge, Weddington, NC 28104

Call 704-246-7034 | JonesHomesUSA.com

#RBC 80529

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

SOLVING CHARLOTTEANS’ HOME OFFICE & ORGANIZATION WOES ocally owned losets y esign offers free consultations for custo and other storage solutions for a functional stay-at-home lifestyle.

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he kitchen table isn’t cutting it anymore. aura ansic le o wner of losets y esign says her company has helped countless families with new home organi ation needs since co anies and schools ha e introduced remote working.

Tight quarters for the whole family means your space needs to work with you not against you a ing sure e eryone s ite s ha e a dedicated s ot ee s the lace tidy and frustrations low an ic le says hether you re aching for an ergono ically correct ho e office for re ote wor s aces a ho e gy or yoga roo or you si ly need s arter organi ation and etter storage losets y esign has a custom solution for your household. etting a custo solution for your s ace is si le too losets y Design offers free in-home consultations so a designer can conceptuali e the s ace and draft a lan for you an ic le assures that all health and safety recautions are eing ta en

ho e offices organi ation syste s

with in ho e a oint ents e ta e our res onsi ilities to ser ice the harlotte co unity ery seriously she says ur designers all wear as s during their isit to your ho e and ractice social distancing dditionally the installers wear as s and ooties on arri al and their ans are e ui ed with disinfectant and disinfectant wi es so e erything is thoroughly cleaned when o s are finished irtual a ointments are also offered for customers more comfortable with that option. an ic le and her usiness artner ric o ened losets y esign in harlotte years ago ery custo organi ation unit layroo storage syste and re ote wor s ace solution is roduced in losets y esign s s uare foot showroo in orth harlotte gi ing harlotteans a truly ho egrown sanity sa ing roduct

CLOSETS BY DESIGN

704-588-7272 Charlotte.ClosetsByDesign.com

LABOR DAY SALE September 4th- 7th

Solid Hardwood Custom Furniture Designs at Outlet Prices Make the easy drive to Hickory 2220 Hwy 70 SE | Hickory, NC 28602 Hickory Furniture Mart | Level 2 | 828-261-4776 amishoakandcherry.com

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

SHEA CUSTOM

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hea Custom offers customized Shea Homes’ plans on your homesite; we build throughout the Charlotte metro area.

Our goal is not to deliver just a custom home, but a custom experience. We offer everything from extensively modifying our plans to make them suit your needs, appointments with our skilled design team, to demolition and land preparation. Customers may utilize our regularly updated 3,900 square foot design studio, which showcases kitchens, baths, flooring, and numerous other

selections. We also have fixed pricing contracts. We put our national buying power behind us, which allows us to offer extremely competitive pricing for all of the high-end custom options you desire. Visit our website to learn more or contact us to make an in-person or virtual appointment.

SHEA CUSTOM

704-602-3333 | SheaCustom.com

JONES HOMES USA

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ow’s your chance to live in luxury, just minutes from the city! Jones Homes USA is proud to announce its newest community, Bent Creek, located in Indian Land, South Carolina. Here you can choose from one of se en exce tional oor lan designs ranging from more than 2,700 heated square feet to almost 4,500 heated square feet. These outstanding ho es feature standard inno ati e designs that are sure to o en your eyes to what a state-of-the-art home can be. he co unity also features the finest in conte orary li ing with a luxury clu house fitness center co unity ool ex ansi e wal ing trail and a newly o ened dog ar nterest in this co unity is uilding uic ly as homebuyers discover a nature lover’s paradise with all of the con eniences of a ig city close at hand. Homes here start in the $400,000s.

Jones Homes USA is part of the Emerson Group, a premier international real estate development company that has built many communities in the United States, the United

ingdo and ortugal since the co any s ince tion in hey are dedicated to creating outstanding co unities for today s fa ilies and offering ho es with inno ati e designs exce tional luxury a oint ents and the latest energy features and ho e technology

JONES HOMES USA

803-547-7132 | JonesHomesUSA.com

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION Continued from FS-1

Thomas Jason Austell MML Investors Services

Thomas J. Donahue The Pinnacle Financial Group

Megan Lynne Lokitis Alpha Financial Advisors

Geoffrey Neil Roberts Ameriprise Financial Services, LLC

Taylor Taylor Barden Morgan Stanley

Edward R. Doughty Epic Capital Wealth Management

Patrick Long Suntrust Investment Services

Scott Daniel Robinson Ameriprise Financial Services, LLC

Henry N. Barringer Alpha Financial Advisors

Scott Patrick Ellis Wells Fargo Advisors

David Manlove Wells Fargo Advisors

Alison Rowe Rowe Robert W. Baird & Co.

Richard Louis Bean Ameriprise Financial Services, LLC

Michael Eric Fayed Cambridge Investment Research

Philip Richard Manz Wells Fargo Advisors

John F. Ryan Jr. IC Advisory Services

Scott M. Bowman Wells Fargo Advisors

Jeremiah Connor Fitzpatrick Ameriprise Financial Services, LLC

Jenny Martella Modera Wealth Management

Christopher Mark Senvisky Wells Fargo Advisors

Jeremy D. Bryant Prosperity Capital Advisors

Eric Thomas Fritz Capital Investment Advisory Services

Jason Mayer Wells Fargo Advisors

Scott Daniel Serfass Ameriprise Financial Services, LLC

John Gordon Burns Wells Fargo Advisors

Arthur Frank Goins Suntrust Investment Services

Joshua Scott Mayor Byron Financial

Cheryl J. Sherrard Clearview Wealth Management

Stephen Edson Bush Capital Investment Advisory Services

Kelly Graves Carroll Financial Associates

William Travis McCollum Robert W. Baird & Co.

Mary Sherrill Ware Wells Fargo Advisors

Kristopher Wayne Carroll Cetera Advisor Networks

Elizabeth Gregg LPL Financial

Judith Irene Mohr Milestone Advice Group

Gavin Young Shuck BB&T Secirities

Russ Bennett Cearley SignatureFD

Ann Reilley Gugle Alpha Financial Advisors

R. Alexander Mones R. Alexander Mones Wealth Management

Kyle David Sikes Dempsey Lord Smith

Nathan Lowell Cherniss Wells Fargo Advisors

Timothy Bryant Hamilton The Pinnacle Financial Group

Richard Robert Norkum WealthPlan Financial Group

Harry Buchanan Smith Robert W. Baird & Co.

Stan Michael Ciotoli Merrill Lynch

Bud David Hedstrom Carroll Financial Associates

April Marie Oliver Ameriprise Financial Services, LLC

Shane P. Snively Abiding Wealth Advisors

Dwayne L. Clendaniel LPL Financial

David Anthony Henkel Wells Fargo Advisors

Allan S. Oxman Kestra Advisory Services

Daniel Todd Sperow Wells Fargo Advisors

Michael Wayne Climer Wells Fargo Advisors

William Louis Herford Exclusive Financial Resources

Mark C. Pfeffer Wells Fargo Advisors

Jennifer Kay Sperry Merrill Lynch

Terry Colen LPL Financial

Robert B. Higgins Fulcrum Capital Partners

Kevin Dean Phillips Robert W. Baird & Co.

Don Gus Stamas Defender Capital

Michael Preston Cox Lombard Advisers

Joshua E. Holby Wells Fargo Advisors

Michael Paul Phillips Ameriprise Financial Services, LLC

Kellen Scott Taylor Carroll Financial Associates

Gerald G. Craig Carolina Planning Consultants, LLP

Hseng Wei Hsiang TIAA

Heath I. Prior Prior Wealth Planning

William L. Trahan Carroll Financial Associates

Gray Keneston Daus Wells Fargo Advisors

Barbara Ann Huffman Wells Fargo Advisors

Anthony Bernard Prudhomme Morgan Stanley

Edwin Horace Wadsworth TLG Advisors

Christopher Wayne Davis Wells Fargo Advisors

Charles Robert Jones Wells Fargo Advisors

Joel William Queck Wells Fargo Advisors

Robert Kelly Weaver Weaver Wealth Management

Kenneth R. Davis Investment Advisors

Christopher Bernard Kemper Fulcrum Wealth Advisors

Jordan John Raniszeski Wells Fargo Advisors

Mary Weeks Fountain Sterling Capital Management

Michael Christopher Davis Wells Fargo Advisors

Walter Kennedy IV Suntrust Investment Services

James D. Rice Ameriprise Financial Services, LLC

Brandon Robert Whelan Morgan Stanley

Danny Joseph DeBorde Merrill Lynch

John Benjamin Lipe Robert W. Baird & Co.

Gwynne Stuart Richards Pfeifer Morgan Stanley

Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards Inc. owns the certification marks CFP®, CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ and federally registered CFP (with flame design) in the U.S., which it awards to individuals who successfully complete CFP Board’s initial and ongoing certification requirements. The Chartered Financial Consultant credential [ChFC®] is a financial planning designation awarded by The American College.

The Five Star Wealth Manager award, administered by Crescendo Business Services, LLC (dba Five Star Professional), is based on 10 objective criteria. Eligibility criteria – required: 1. Credentialed as a registered investment adviser or a registered investment adviser representative; 2. Actively licensed as a registered investment adviser or as a principal of a registered investment adviser firm for a minimum of 5 years; 3. Favorable regulatory and complaint history review (As defined by Five Star Professional, the wealth manager has not; A. Been subject to a regulatory action that resulted in a license being suspended or revoked, or payment of a fine; B. Had more than a total of three settled or pending complaints filed against them and/or a total of five settled, pending, dismissed or denied complaints with any regulatory authority or Five Star Professional’s consumer complaint process. Unfavorable feedback may have been discovered through a check of complaints registered with a regulatory authority or complaints registered through Five Star Professional’s consumer complaint process; feedback may not be representative of any one client’s experience; C. Individually contributed to a financial settlement of a customer complaint; D. Filed for personal bankruptcy within the past 11 years; E. Been terminated from a financial services firm within the past 11 years; F. Been convicted of a felony); 4. Fulfilled their firm review based on internal standards; 5. Accepting new clients. Evaluation criteria – considered: 6. One-year client retention rate; 7. Five-year client retention rate; 8. Non-institutional discretionary and/or non-discretionary client assets administered; 9. Number of client households served; 10. Education and professional designations. Wealth managers do not pay a fee to be considered or placed on the final list of Five Star Wealth Managers. Award does not evaluate quality of services provided to clients. Once awarded, wealth managers may purchase additional profile ad space or promotional products. The Five Star award is not indicative of the wealth manager’s future performance. Wealth managers may or may not use discretion in their practice and therefore may not manage their clients’ assets. The inclusion of a wealth manager on the Five Star Wealth Manager list should not be construed as an endorsement of the wealth manager by Five Star Professional or this publication. Working with a Five Star Wealth Manager or any wealth manager is no guarantee as to future investment success, nor is there any guarantee that the selected wealth managers will be awarded this accomplishment by Five Star Professional in the future. For more information on the Five Star award and the research/selection methodology, go to fivestarprofessional.com. 1,488 Charlotte area wealth managers were considered for the award; 134 (9% of candidates) were named 2020 Five Star Wealth Managers. 2019: 1,346 considered, 129 winners; 2018: 1,342 considered, 104 winners; 2017: 949 considered, 132 winners; 2016: 873 considered, 227 winners; 2015: 1,822 considered, 277 winners; 2014: 6,776 considered, 409 winners; 2013: 1,694 considered, 280 winners; 2012: 1,083 considered, 267 winners.

FS • 4

THE GUIDE

Restaurants YOUR GUIDE TO CHARLOTTE’S DINING SCENE KID CASHEW

Dilworth ❤ 300 EAST

$-$$

NEW AMERICAN The interior of this old house-turnedrestaurant is welcoming, as is the menu of familiar and surprising sandwiches, salads, and entrées. Save room for dessert by pastry chef Laney Jahkel-Parrish. 300 East Blvd. (704-332-6507) BR (Sun), L, D, BAR ✸☎

❤ BONTERRA

$$$$

NEW SOUTHERN Its setting may be a historic Southern church, but Bonterra serves up modern Southern flavors with top-notch service. Wine lovers will be impressed by the more than 200 wines by the glass. 1829 Cleveland Ave. (704-333-9463) D, BAR ✸☎

CAPISHE

$-$$

ITALIAN The pasta dishes and pizza prepared by Chef David Cavalier, previously of Kindred, are impressive for a fast-casual restaurant. Arrive early for lunch to beat the long lines. 500 E. Morehead St., Ste. 100. (980-8199494) L, D, BAR

❤ COPPER

$$$

INDIAN Ease into Indian cuisine with standard dishes like chicken tikka masala, or be more adventurous with the spicy seafood medley “anjeeri.” 311 East Blvd. (704333-0063) L, D, V, BAR ✸☎

DOLCE OSTERIA

THE MAYOBIRD

AMERICAN The daytime partner to The Summit Room focuses on specialty coffees, quiches, and pastries, and, of course, chicken salad sandwiches. 1531 East Blvd.

(980-237-2543) B, L, B/W ✸

ZEN FUSION

Elizabeth/Cherry CAJUN QUEEN

$$$

$$

$$-$$$

AMERICAN This upscale marketplace, with sandwiches, salads, and daily specials, is a welcome afternoon spot for a grab-and-go meal or a bite and people-watching.

1609 Elizabeth Ave. (704-333-2757) B, BR, L, D, V ✸

❤ CUSTOMSHOP

$$-$$$

EARL’S GROCERY

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❤ THE FIG TREE RESTAURANT

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NEW AMERICAN The No. 2 restaurant on our 2018 Best Restaurants list, the Fig Tree specializes in fresh and fla-

vorful cuisine with an emphasis on wine pairing in a 1913 bungalow. 1601 E. 7th St. (704-332-3322) D, BAR ✸☎

❤ PIZZERIA OMAGGIO

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PIZZA Among a sea of by-the-slice joints, owner Daniel Siragusa sticks by his Italian roots with personal pizzas.

Some think they can’t possibly eat the whole pie, but they do. And then they order dessert. 1055 Metropolitan Ave., Ste. 130. (704-370-0777) L, D, BAR ✸☎

❤ THE STANLEY

$$$

SUNFLOUR BAKING CO.

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NEW SOUTHERN Chef Paul Verica’s menu reflects a respect of seasonal produce, with playful dishes such as “Asparagus—as many ways as we could think of,” and a more robust cocktail program. 1961 E. 7th St. (980-2992741) D, BR (Sun), BAR ✸☎

BAKERY With locations in Dilworth, Harrisburg, and Ballantyne, Sunflour serves croissants, cinnamon buns, sandwiches, and soups. Regulars spend mornings here with a cup of coffee, letting them fade into afternoons.

2001 E. 7th St. (704-900-5268) B, L, D, V ✸

Huntersville/Lake Norman ALIÑO PIZZERIA

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❤ DRESSLER’S

$$$

PIZZA Enjoy your Neapolitan-style, wood-fired pizza at a community table with paper towels on hand to catch the drips from crust dipped in herbs and olive oil. A second location is at Concord Mills. 500 S. Main St., Ste. 401, Mooresville. (704-663-0010) L, D, B/W ✸

NEW AMERICAN Part steak house, part upscale American cuisine, dishes are delivered with consistency and a smile, both here and at the Metropolitan Avenue location. 8630-1A Lindholm Dr. (704-987-1779) D, BAR

✸☎

FLATIRON KITCHEN + TAPHOUSE

$$$

STEAK HOUSE High-quality steaks are a given here, but the seafood and vegetables are treated with the same respect. 215 S. Main St., Davidson. (704-237-3246) BR, L, D, BAR ✸☎

$$-$$$

$$-$$$

PIZZA Two words: pistachio pizza. Seriously, try it. Then grab a spot on the patio beneath the bistro lights and enjoy a bottle of wine with friends. There’s a second location in Providence Commons, too. 2230 Park Rd., (704-900-0929) L, D, BAR ✸

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FUSION Here, fusion means a sampling of dishes from the Far East and Spain. 1716 Kenilworth Ave. (704-3589688) L (weekdays), D, BAR ✸☎

AMERICAN This small Dilworth restaurant has soups, salads, and delicious, oversized sandwiches made with fresh, thick bread filled with innovative combinations.

2410 Park Rd. (704-372-2009) L, D, BAR ✸

INIZIO PIZZA NAPOLETANA

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NEW AMERICAN Owner and executive chef Trey Wilson uses top-notch, seasonal ingredients to create fresh takes on American cuisine in a hip, rustic atmosphere.

1601 Elizabeth Ave. (704-333-3396) D, BAR ✸☎

ITALIAN The open layout lends an air of conviviality to this slick eatery, which has house-made pastas, thincrust pizzas, note-perfect risotto, and daring meat entrées. 2418 Park Rd. (704-333-3062) L, D, BAR ✸☎

FRAN’S FILLING STATION

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VEGETARIAN Fern moved from Plaza Midwood to Dilworth in mid-2016. It still has ferns on the wall, and the menu is still full of flavorful vegetarian cuisine. 1419 East Blvd., Ste. A. (704-377-1825) L, BR, D, V, BAR ✸

FIAMMA RESTAURANT

LEBOWSKI’S NEIGHBORHOOD GRILL

AMERICAN Dishes at this neighborhood favorite include burgers, brats, and the popular “Beef on Weck.”

1524 East Blvd. (704-370-1177) L, D, BAR ✸

CAJUN Nightly live jazz complements New Orleans creole favorites like shrimp étouffée and crawfish Diane in this century-old house. 1800 E. 7th St. (704-377-9017) BR, D, BAR ✸☎

ITALIAN This classic, cozy, family-run neighborhood trattoria serves a mix of fresh, regional Italian cuisine and a tidy, all-Italian wine list. 1710 Kenilworth Ave. (704-332-7525) L (weekdays), D, B/W ✸☎

FERN, FLAVORS FROM THE GARDEN

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MEDITERRANEAN This bright and rustic restaurant from the owner of Georges Brasserie serves meat family-style from a wood-fired grill and a selection of small plates. 1608 East Blvd. (704-208-4148) L, D, BAR ✸

CHARLOTTEMAGAZINE.COM // SEPTEMBER 2020

$ $$ $$$ $$$$

❤

Most entrées under $10 Most entrées $10-$17 Most entrées $18-$25 Most entrées $26 & up Best Restaurants

B BR L D V

Breakfast Weekend brunch Lunch Dinner Vegetarian friendly

B/W Beer and wine only BAR Full-service bar ✸ Patio seating available Reservations suggested

☎

REVIEW POLICIES—The restaurants on these pages are recommendations of the editors of Charlotte magazine.

They are not related to advertising in any way. Restaurant visits are anonymous, and all expenses are paid by the magazine. Reviews are written by members of the editorial staff. We regularly update these listings. New additions are denoted by “new listing” and revised reviews are indicated by “update.”

❤ HELLO, SAILOR

$$-$$$

❤ KINDRED

$$-$$$

NEW SOUTHERN Davidson’s sweethearts, Joe and Katy Kindred, opened this lakefront spot. Expect Carolina classics like fried catfish and seafood platters, as well as tiki drinks. 20210 Henderson Rd., Cornelius. (704997-5365) BR, L, D, BAR ✸

NEW AMERICAN Chef Joe Kindred, a James Beard Award semifinalist, serves homemade pasta dishes and creative small plates in historic downtown Davidson. 131 N. Main St., Davidson. (980-231-5000) BR, L, D, BAR ✸☎

SABI ASIAN BISTRO

$$

ASIAN Find Asian-inspired dishes, from sushi to stir fry to sweet-and-sour chicken, in a sleek interior. 130 Harbor Place Dr., Davidson. (704-895-5707) L, D, BAR ✸

Matthews/Mint Hill KABAB-JE ROTISSERIE & GRILLE

$$

MIDDLE EASTERN With a second location in Stonecrest, this Mediterranean and Lebanese spot serves dishes like hummus shawarma and lamb kabobs. 2233 Matthews Township Pkwy., Ste. E. (704-845-0707) L, D ✸

LOYALIST MARKET

$-$$

AMERICAN This charming eatery is a sandwich shop by day and a cheese shop by night. Choose from over 60 artisan cheeses and cured meats from the U.S. and abroad, along with gourmet food products, wine, and local beer. 435 N. Trade St., Ste. 102. (704-814-9866) L, D, BAR ✸

NEW ZEALAND CAFÉ

$-$$

FUSION A wooden latticework ceiling and indoor trellis add charm to this neighborhood favorite, where sushi is fresh and affordable. 1717 Sardis Rd. N., Ste. 6A. (704708-9888) L, D, B/W ✸

SANTÉ

$$$ - $$$$

FRENCH The food is far from colloquial here, and the exposed brickwork and antiqued tin roof lend credence to the French name. 165 N. Trade St., Matthews. (704845-1899) D, BAR

❤ YUME BISTRO

$$

JAPANESE The flavorful ramen and other Japanese classics here defy the restaurant’s plain interior. They also opened a new location in Wilmore last year. 1369 Chestnut Ln., Matthews. (704-821-0676) L, D

Myers Park/Cotswold DEEJAI THAI

$$

THAI This family-owned eatery offers takeout, but with its modern dining room and bright patio, you’ll want to settle into a table. 613 Providence Rd. (704-333-7884) L, (weekdays), D, BAR ✸

FENWICK’S

$$

AMERICAN A Myers Park mainstay since the 1980s, Fenwick’s is a go-to for a comforting meal made with fresh ingredients, delivered with warm service. 511 Providence Rd. (704-333-2750) BR, L, D, BAR ✸

LEROY FOX

$$

SOUTHERN A casual eatery known for its fried chicken, Leroy Fox serves Southern classics and upscale pub grub, with an additional location in South End. 705 S. Sharon Amity Rd. (704-366-3232) BR, L, D, BAR ✸

MAMA RICOTTA’S

$$

ITALIAN Frank Scibelli’s (Midwood Smokehouse, Yafo, Paco’s) first restaurant does simple Italian dishes with stylish twists in a spot fit for couples, families, and everyone else. 601 S. Kings Dr. (704-343-0148) L, D, BAR ✸☎

PROVIDENCE ROAD SUNDRIES

$-$$

AMERICAN Classic bar food and friendly service have made this a neighborhood hangout for generations.

1522 Providence Rd. (704-366-4467) L, D, BAR

❤ STAGIONI

$$$

ITALIAN Meaning “seasons,” this concept from Bruce Moffett serves Italian standards. A must-visit for Chef Eric Ferguson’s delicious, handmade pastas, wood-fired pizzas, and slow-roasted meats. 715 Providence Rd. (704-372-8110) D, BAR ☎

VOLO RISTORANTE

$$$

ITALIAN Volo translates to “flight,” which is the Italian answer to a tasting menu. Let the chef choose a meat, vegetable, or seafood flight for you, or order off the dinner menu and enjoy a plate of gnocchi, risotto, or tortellini paired with a glass of chianti. 1039 Providence Rd. (704-919-1020) D, BAR ☎

NoDa/North Charlotte AMÉLIE’S FRENCH BAKERY

$

FRENCH Enjoy a flaky croissant on the outdoor patio or order from the café menu of soups and sandwiches any time of day—or night. Amélie’s now has two additional locations in uptown and Park Road Shopping Center.

2424 N. Davidson St. (704-376-1781) B, L, D

BAO + BROTH

$-$$

ASIAN Follow the smell of ramen and steamed pork belly buns to this food stall, the fifth restaurant from chef Bruce Moffett, and have a seat among the other diners in Optimist Hall. 1115 N. Brevard St. (704-6252269) L, D

BENNY PENNELLO’S

$

PIZZA A full Benny P’s pie is 28 inches, almost double the standard—but if you divide it into eight slices, one is the ideal-sized meal for one person. 2909 N. Davidson St., Ste. 100. (980-949-8398) L, D, B/W

CABO FISH TACO

$-$$

CRÊPE CELLAR KITCHEN & PUB

$-$$

THE DUMPLING LADY

$-$$

SEAFOOD This NoDa “Baja seagrill” serves up the title dish as well as quesadillas, burritos, and salads in a fun, surf-themed atmosphere. 3201 N. Davidson St. (704332-8868) L, D, BAR ✸

FRENCH The crêpes—both sweet and savory—are delicious, but the restaurant’s fare goes beyond its French roots with flavorful salads, entrées, and craft cocktails.

3116 N. Davidson St. (704-910-6543) BR, L, D, BAR

ASIAN One of Charlotte’s most popular food trucks has a brick-and-mortar space in Optimist Hall. Order Zhang Qian’s authentic Sichuan dumplings, noodles,

Best Bites Our favorite dish this month, chosen by Charlotte magazine staff

ANDY SMITH

HONEY & OATS COLD BREW SLUSHEE, $5.95 CUPLUX COFFEE DRIVE-THRU FOR THIS MONTH’S “BEST BITES,” I’m going with one of the “Best Sips” I’ve had in Charlotte this year. CupLux’s vanilla version of the Cold Brew Slushee is its flagship drink, but the newer, Honey & Oats version is a transcendent twist that tastes like breakfast in a cup. It blends oat milk, cinnamon, locally harvested raw honey, and cold brew, ideal for either a warm Charlotte morning or a midday pick-me-up during the weekend. The only danger is drinking it too quickly and summoning the frosty spectre known as “brain freeze.” —Andy Smith

SEPTEMBER 2020 // CHARLOTTE

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THE GUIDE and dim sum, and brace for spice. 1115 N. Brevard St. (980-595-6174) L, D, V

EL THRIFTY

$-$$

MEXICAN The Mexican cantina and gaming venue in Optimist Hall serves creative tacos and cocktails with a side of duckpin bowling. 1115 N. Brevard St. (980-9497837) L, D, BAR ✸

THE GOODYEAR HOUSE

$$-$$$

NEW AMERICAN Grab a table in the botanist room or the open patio on a warm night, and enjoy elevated comfort food like smoked cashew mac and cheese and guinea hen stew. 3032 N. Davidson St. (704-9100132) L, D, BAR ✸

❤ HABERDISH

$$-$$$

AMERICAN Southern appetizers, fried chicken, and apothecary cocktails from Colleen Hughes draw a hip crowd to this mill town southern kitchen. 3106 N. Davidson St. (704-817-1084) BR, L, D, BAR ✸ NEW LISTING

HARRIET’S HAMBURGERS

$

AMERICAN The burger joint with a pick-up window at Optimist Hall has a simple menu of hamburgers, cheeseburgers, and fries, but they get everything right.

1115 N. Brevard St., Ste. 6 L, D

HEIST BREWERY

$-$$

AMERICAN This is bar food to the extreme. Beer is incorporated into several dishes at this brewpub. The beer cheese is made with Heist’s own beer and served alongside pretzels made with leftover mash. 2909 N. Davidson St., Ste. 200. (704-375-8260) BR, L, D, BAR ✸

JACKBEAGLE’S

$

AMERICAN A mainstay for the locals, this place serves unconventional bar bites like mac-and-blue-cheese with bacon. 3213 N. Davidson St. (704-334-5140) BR, L, D, BAR ✸

LEAH & LOUISE

$$

SOUTHERN A James Beard-nominated chef and Soul Food Sessions co-founder Greg Collier serves the dishes he grew up on, like hot fried quail and dirty grits, in a space modeled after a Memphis-style juke joint. 301 Camp Rd., Ste. 101 (980-309-0690) D, BAR ✸ ☎

PAPI QUESO

$-$$

AMERICAN Expect all the staples from the popular food truck, along with new grilled cheeses, mac and

cheese, and melts from the brick-and-mortar location in Optimist Hall. 1115 N. Brevard St. (704-5791779) L, D, V

ROOM AND BOARD

Plaza Midwood/East Charlotte ACE NO. 3

CILANTRO NOODLE

❤ B BR L D V

90

Best Restaurants Breakfast Weekend brunch Lunch Dinner Vegetarian friendly

B/W Beer and wine only BAR Full-service bar ✸ Patio seating available Reservations suggested

☎

MOO & BREW

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❤ NC RED

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SAL’S PIZZA FACTORY

$$

❤ SOUL GASTROLOUNGE

$$

SNOOZE: AN A.M. EATERY

$$

THREE AMIGOS

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$-$$

SEAFOOD/SOUTHERN The fourth restaurant from Bruce Moffett serves a mix of Rhode Island shore food, like oysters and stuffed clams, and southern comforts, like fried chicken and mac and cheese. 1205 Thomas Ave. (704-321-4716) D, BAR ✸

$-$$

AMERICAN Rotisserie chicken with South Americaninspired sides makes for a healthy and fast lunch or dinner. 1518 Central Ave. (980-265-1290) BR, L, D, BAR ✸

COMMON MARKET

$$

AMERICAN A playful list of burgers, craft beers, and friendly servers make this spot an easy choice for a casual dinner out. The patio is packed on nice nights.

1300 Central Ave. (980-585-4148) L, D, BAR ✸

VIETNAMESE Even if you think cilantro tastes like soap, don’t let the name of this fast casual restaurant fool you—the herb add-on is optional. Structured like Chipotle, build-your-own meals include a base starch (banh mi, vermicelli noodles, white rice, fried rice), one protein, and five toppings. 2001 Commonwealth Ave. (704-345-9490) L, D, V, B/W ✸

COALTRANE’S

❤ MIDWOOD SMOKEHOUSE

BARBECUE With North Carolina pulled pork, beef brisket, smoked chicken, and dry or sauced ribs, there’s a ’cue for everyone—and traditional sides to pair. The restaurant has a number of Charlotte locations including Ballantyne and Park Road Shopping Center, but the Plaza Midwood spot is its flagship post. 1401 Central Ave. (704-295-4227) L, D, BAR ✸

$

AMERICAN The new counter-service burger joint from the team behind Sea Level and the Waterman offers a straightforward menu of burgers, fries, and shakes.

1001 Belmont Ave. (704-910-2200) L, D, ✸

$

DELI A neighborhood hangout with additional locations in South End and Oakwold, this market and deli serves quick and delicious sandwiches, local craft beers, snacks, sweets, and more. 2007 Commonwealth Ave. (704-334-6209) B, L, D, B/W ✸

DIAMOND RESTAURANT

$-$$

DISH

$-$$

AMERICAN This 1950s-style diner features retro teal booths, a jukebox, and classic dishes like burgers, fried pork chops, and fried chicken. 1901 Commonwealth Ave. (704-375-8959) L, D, BAR ✸

SOUTHERN A neighborhood joint with an eclectic clientele, good, down-home Southern food, and a funky wait staff. 1220 Thomas Ave. (704-344-0343) B, L, D, BAR ✸

❤ INTERMEZZO PIZZERIA & CAFÉ

$ Most entrées under $10 $$ Most entrées $10-$17 $$$ Most entrées $18-$25 $$$$ Most entrées $26 & up

$-$$

AMERICAN Inside a two-story Victorian home and former boarding house, have your choice of sandwiches, burgers, and wings, or come for Sunday brunch and get a “hangover pizza.” 3228 N. Davidson St. (980-4303136) BR (Sun) L, D, BAR

handmade burgers, four kinds of chili, meatloaf, and “chicken n dumplins.” 2718 Monroe Rd., (704-3741232) L, D, B/W

$-$$

FUSION Even the pickiest eater can find something to order here, with menu options ranging from burgers and pizzas to cabbage rolls and stuffed peppers. 1427 E. 10th St. (704-347-2626) L, D, V, BAR ✸

PIZZA The New York slices at this east Charlotte joint have thick cheese and generous toppings—the classic style of pizza that fuels nostalgia and harkens back to a time when you didn’t know what calories or gluten were. 3723 Monroe Rd. (980-219-7108) L, D, BAR

NEW AMERICAN Expect to wait a while at this no-reservations spot, known for small plates like pork belly tacos with compressed watermelon, and a rotating list of craft cocktails. 1500-B Central Ave. (704-348-1848) D, BAR ✸

AMERICAN The Denver-based breakfast spot has a huge menu, but you’re free to mix and match. Choose any two benedicts with the Benny Duo, or get the Pancake Flight with three different flavors. There’s also a morning cocktail menu with mimosas, mojitos, and a dirty drunken chai. 1331-A Central Ave. (704-2435070) B, BR, L, BAR ✸

MEXICAN Three Amigos remains a constant on Central Avenue, specializing in enchiladas and other Mexican staples like tinga de pollo and carne asada tacos.

It’s always fresh, too—they’ll never save rice, beans, or meat for use the next day. 2917A Central Ave., 704536-1851. L, D, BAR ✸

THE WORKMAN’S FRIEND

$$-$$$

LANG VAN

$

IRISH Enjoy Irish classics like fish and chips and shepherd’s pie in this rustic dining room, or grab a pint at the custom-built walnut bar. 1531 Central Ave. (980224-8234) BR, L (Fri-Sun), D, BAR ✸

LUPIE’S CAFE

$

JAPANESE Enjoy true, labor-intensive ramen, complete with add-ons like corn and pork belly, as well as traditional Japanese small plates and a sushi menu.

1324 Central Ave. (704-910-6387) D, V, BAR ✸

VIETNAMESE Regulars love this no-fuss spot for its authentic cuisine, with loads of flavor and fresh ingredients. 3019 Shamrock Dr. (704-531-9525) BR, L, D, V, B/W

AMERICAN The building, interior, and menu have barely changed since owner Lupie Duran opened in 1987. It’s an ideal spot for cold days, specializing in

CHARLOTTEMAGAZINE.COM // SEPTEMBER 2020

YAMA IZAKAYA

$$

Charlotte’s Top Spots Go Curbside Amid the coronavirus epidemic, many restaurants on our “50 Best” list started offering curbside options. As of late July, these spots were doing just that:

Uptown THE ASBURY

235 N. Tryon St. 704-342-1193 OPTIONS: Curbside pickup, 11 a.m.-8 p.m. To-go menu on its site.

Chef Mike Long’s inventive menu mixes countryside favorites like biscuits and deviled eggs with bold flavors and contemporary techniques.

STOKE

100 W. Trade St. 704-353-6005 OPTIONS: Curbside pickup, 11 a.m.-8 p.m. To-go menu on its site.

Hotel dining gets an upgrade with this wood-fired grill, family-style concept in Marriott City Center.

ANGELINE’S

303 S. Church St. 704-445-2540 OPTIONS: Curbside pickup, Sun-Thur, 11 a.m.-8 p.m., and Fri, 11 a.m.-9 p.m. (Currently, they’re offering 20% off on all of these orders.)

The Italian-inspired entreés at this uptown spot are all excellent, and the whipped ricotta with sourdough, lavender honey, and pistachio is the most imaginative appetizer on the menu.

South End/Dilworth BARDO

1508 S. Mint St. 980-585-2433 OPTIONS: Curbside pickup, Mon-Sat, 4:30 p.m.-7:30 p.m. (They’re also offering to-go cocktail kits for $8 that make two cocktails and include instructions.)

This foodie destination serves seasonal small plates and creative cocktails. The dining room looks into a big, open kitchen where diners can watch the chefs at work.

COPPER

311 East Blvd.

704-333-0063 OPTIONS: Take out and curbside pickup during regular hours. The restaurant also has free delivery with a minimum order of $40 within a 5-mile radius.

Ease into Indian cuisine with standard dishes like chicken tikka masala, or be more adventurous with the seafood medley “anjeeri” and dial up the spice.

300 EAST

300 East Blvd.

704-332-6507 OPTIONS: Curbside pickup, with regular menu options and new family-style options. Owners say hours vary based on demands, but typically, the business is open 11 a.m.-7:30 p.m. right now.

The interior of this old house-turned-restaurant is welcoming, as is the menu of familiar and surprising sandwiches, salads, and entrées. Save room for dessert by pastry chef Laney Jahkel-Parrish.

BONTERRA

1829 Cleveland Ave. 704-333-9463 OPTIONS: Takeout, curbside pick-up, and delivery (within 3 miles) are available. Hours are 4 p.m-8 p.m. right now.

Its setting may be a historic Southern church, but Bonterra serves up modern Southern flavors with top-notch service. Wine lovers will be impressed by the more than 200 wines by the glass.

FUTO BUTA

222 E. Bland St. 704-376-8400 OPTIONS: Takeout and curbside pick-up daily until 9 p.m.

This ramen house promises authenticity, irreverence, and delightful, salty bowls of the hot noodle soup.

NoDa/North of Charlotte HABERDISH

3106 N. Davidson St. 704-817-1084 OPTIONS: Order online and pick up to-go orders on the patio or curbside 4-8 p.m.

Southern appetizers, fried chicken, and apothecary cocktails from Colleen Hughes draw a hip crowd to this mill town southern kitchen.

KINDRED

Plaza Midwood/Elizabeth MIDWOOD SMOKEHOUSE

1401 Central Ave. 704-295-4227 OPTIONS: Curbside pick-up for online orders. (Service temporarily discontinued at Cross Hill and Birkdale locations) With North Carolina pulled pork, beef brisket, smoked chicken, and dry or sauced ribs, there’s a ’cue for everyone—and traditional sides to pair. The restaurant has a number of Charlotte locations including Ballantyne and Park Road Shopping Center, but the Plaza Midwood spot is its flagship post.

SOUL GASTROLOUNGE

1500 Central Ave. 704-348-1848 OPTIONS: Takeout or curbside pickup 5-10 p.m. daily, or limited delivery to 28202, 28203, 28204 and 28205 zip codes.

Expect to wait a while at this no-reservations spot, known for small plates like pork belly tacos with compressed watermelon, and a rotating list of craft cocktails.

SWEET LEW’S BBQ

923 Belmont Ave. 980-224-7584 OPTIONS: Limited menu items available for curbside pick-up at Dish, 11 a.m.-8 p.m.

Demand for Lewis Donald’s barbecue hasn’t wavered since the “shack” opened last year. Donald co-owns Dish in Plaza Midwood, and he’s currently selling his Sweet Lew’s to-go items there.

PIZZERIA OMAGGIO

131 N. Main St. 980-231-5000 OPTIONS: Curbside pick-up or delivery. (The $5 delivery fee and any gratuity goes to the hourly team whose income has been eliminated.)

Every meal at the Davidson restaurant starts the same way: with cloud-like milk bread, an appetizer with such a following, Kindred made T-shirts. The subsequent dishes are just as beautiful, and they’ve earned chef and co-owner Joe Kindred a James Beard nod for the past four years.

1055 Metropolitan Ave., Ste. 130 704-370-0777 OPTIONS: Takeout and curbside pick-up until 9 p.m.

Among a sea of by-the-slice joints, owner Daniel Siragusa sticks by his Italian roots with personal pizzas.

Some think they can’t possibly eat the whole pie, but they do. And then they order dessert.

HELLO, SAILOR

6601 Morrison Blvd.

704-366-8688 OPTIONS: Orders can be placed online from 11 a.m.-8 p.m. Guests can park in one of the designated Rooster’s To-Go parking spaces outside of the restaurant and pick up at the hostess stand.

Chef Jim Noble’s menu features gussied-up, Southern-tinged American and European peasant fare, like hand-tossed pizzas and roasted chicken. A second location is in uptown.

20210 Henderson Rd. 704-997-5365 OPTIONS: Hello, Sailor has closed and shifted to curbside pick-up and delivery services at Kindred restaurant.

Davidson’s sweethearts, Joe and Katy Kindred, opened this lakefront spot. Expect Carolina classics like fried catfish and seafood platters, as well as tiki drinks.

South Charlotte ROOSTER’S WOOD-FIRED KITCHEN

SEPTEMBER 2020 // CHARLOTTE

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THE GUIDE ZADA JANE’S CORNER CAFE

$-$$

SOUTHERN This funky neighborhood restaurant with shuffleboard courts, a large patio, and colorful walls serves breakfast and brunch all day. 1601 Central Ave. (704-332-3663) B, BR, L, BAR ✸

South End BARCELONA WINE BAR

$$$

NEW AMERICAN Nosh on Spanish and Mediterranean-inspired tapas or customize a charcuterie board with meats from different regions in Europe. Choose from more than 400 wines, and don’t miss the olive oil cake. 101 W. Worthington Ave., Ste. 110. (704-7410300) D, BAR ✸☎

❤ BARDO

$$$

NEW AMERICAN This foodie destination serves seasonal small plates and creative cocktails. The dining room looks into a big, open kitchen where diners can watch the chefs at work. 1508 S. Mint St., Ste. B. (980585-2433) D, BAR ☎

❤ BEEF ’N BOTTLE

$$$

STEAK HOUSE An old favorite, this steak house is just what you’d expect, serving up thick and juicy cuts in a dark interior. 4538 South Blvd. (704-5239977) D, BAR

BILL SPOON’S BARBECUE

$

BARBECUE Stop by for true eastern-style barbecue, mustard-based slaw, homemade banana pudding, and Mr. Spoon’s special sauce. 5524 South Blvd. (704-5258865) L (Mon-Sat)

BREWERS AT 4001 YANCEY

$$

ILIOS CRAFTED GREEK

$-$$

MEDITERRANEAN Get authentic Greek fare from the team behind Ilios Noche in a fast casual setting. Build a dish with your choice of roasted chicken, lamb, or pork, and chose from a rotation of sides like chickpea salad, Aegean slaw, and zucchini fritters. 1514 S. Church St., (980-237-1949) L, D, ✸

INDACO

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$-$$

$$$

AMERICAN This 24-hour classic diner has everything you’d expect, including an all-day breakfast, onion rings, milkshakes, burgers, and hand-cut fries, along with Southern fare. 115 E. Carson Blvd. (980-207-3641) B, L, D, B/W ✸

$

GREEK Despite the sounds of South Boulevard, the Greek pastries and coffees here can transport you to the Aegean Sea in just one taste. 4004 South Blvd., Ste. E. (980-207-0508) B, L, D, B/W ✸

AMERICAN Come here for breakfast, brunch, lunch, an afternoon snack, or an evening out. The made-fromscratch bakery has sandwiches, salads, and artisan

MIDNIGHT DINER

MOCCO BISTRO

$

RAI LAY THAI CUISINE

$$

SEOUL FOOD MEAT CO.

$$

$$$$

VEGETARIAN This vegan gem is known for its raw version of lasagna, made with zucchini noodles, sundried tomato sauce, mushrooms, and a cashew-basil cheese.

Its juice bar is also a popular draw. 2000 South Blvd., Ste. 300. (704-333-0008) B, L, D, B/W, V ✸

MAC’S SPEED SHOP

PRICE’S CHICKEN COOP

SOUTHERN Expect to eat your meal standing up—or sitting in your car—but rest assured it’s the best damn fried chicken in the country. 1614 Camden Rd. (704333-9866) L, D (until 6 p.m.), Cash only. No seating.

FUSION This hip spot fuses traditional American barbecue with Korean flavors all the way to the sides, which include ramen mac-and-cheese. 1400 S. Church St., Ste. A. (980-299-5143) L (weekends), D, BAR ✸

KOREAN BBQ Marinated meats at this all-you-caneat hangout come with Korean sides like steamed egg soufflé. 1400 S. Church St., Ste. B. (980-299-4389) L, D, (Mon-Fri) BAR

LUNA’S LIVING KITCHEN

$$-$$$

$$-$$$

ITALIAN Atherton Mill’s rustic Italian restaurant serves wood-fired pizzas and hand-crafted pastas, proving certain dishes are classics for a reason. 2046 South Blvd. (704-741-9004) L, D, BAR

LET’S MEAT KBBQ

O-KU

SUSHI This second location of the Charleston-based Indigo Road restaurant group’s Japanese spot has great service, a beautiful interior, and dishes full of flavor.

2000 South Blvd., Ste. 510. (704-594-1922) D, BAR ☎

THAI Upscale Thai food in a sleek interior with attentive service makes this a fitting spot for South End. 1520 South Blvd., Ste. 130. (980-207-0991) L (MonSat), D, BAR ☎

BARBECUE Solid barbecue and cold beer (150 choices) in a bike-themed space draw fun-loving crowds, with additional locations in Matthews and Lake Norman.

2511 South Blvd. (704-522-6227) L, D, BAR ✸

STEAK HOUSE The signature steak and bottomless fries dinner, which includes bread, a choice of soup or salad, and the option of three sauces, tastes more expensive than its $25 fixed price. 2322 Dunavant St., Ste. 200. (980-335-0125) BR, D, BAR ✸

EIGHT + SAND KITCHEN

❤ FUTO BUTA

JAPANESE This ramen house promises authenticity, irreverence, and delightful, salty bowls of the hot noodle soup. 222 E. Bland St. (704-376-8400) L, D, B/W ✸

$$

AMERICAN In addition to craft beers, this LoSo brewery has Southern-inspired bar food like fries topped with jalapeño gravy and bacon crumbles. 4001-A Yancey Rd. (704-452-4001) BR (Sun), L, D, BAR ✸☎

THE DUNAVANT

breads, and the café serves drinks all day. 135 New Bern St. B, BR, L, B/W

$

$

SOUTHBOUND

$-$$

BAJA The breezy vibes and bright flavors at this taco joint call for a Pacifico or a margarita. 2433 South Blvd.

(704-912-1889) BR, L, D, BAR ✸

SUPERICA

$$-$$$

THE WATERMAN FISH BAR

$$-$$$

❤ ZEPPELIN

$$-$$$

TEX-MEX Atlanta chef Ford Fry brings the newest location of his Tex-Mex concept, with tacos, fajitas, and enchiladas, to the Design Center. 101 W. Worthington Ave., Ste. 100 (980-321-9914) BR, L, D, BAR ✸

SEAFOOD This oyster bar has all the staples: lobster rolls, clam chowder, and oysters four ways. At sunset, head to the rooftop terrace for a cocktail and views of uptown. 2729 South Blvd., Ste. D. (704-275-5558) L, D, BAR ✸

NEW SOUTHERN A seasonal menu includes small plates like Korean-inspired calamari and barbecueroasted octopus. The cocktail program focuses on innovative interpretations of classic drinks. 235 W. Tremont Ave. (980-209-0008) BR (Sun), D (Tues-Sat), BAR ✸

South Charlotte (Arboretum, Ballantyne, Pineville, Fort Mill)

NIKKO

$$-$$$

$ Most entrées under $10 $$ Most entrées $10-$17 $$$ Most entrées $18-$25 $$$$ Most entrées $26 & up

JAPANESE Artistic sushi, a moody interior, and thumping sound system bring in dinner and late-night crowds, but quick service makes it a great lunch spot.

325 Arlington Ave., Ste. 108. (704-370-0100) L (weekdays), D, BAR ✸☎

AMERICAN This spot serves up hearty portions of diner staples, such as meatloaf and fresh-roasted turkey clubs, all made in-house. 16637 Lancaster Hwy. (704544-0313) B, L, D, BAR ✸

❤

NORTH ITALIA

$$-$$$

ITALIAN This eatery in StoneCrest at Piper Glen has Italian-American dishes like snapper picatta, penne alla Civetta, and scallops risotto. Save room for a lasagnasized slice of tiramisu for dessert. 7828-E Rea Rd. (980335-2758) BR (Sun), L, D, V, BAR ✸

B BR L D V

92

Best Restaurants Breakfast Weekend brunch Lunch Dinner Vegetarian friendly

B/W Beer and wine only BAR Full-service bar ✸ Patio seating available Reservations suggested

☎

ITALIAN Head to the ground floor of the RailYard for a dressed-up entree like squid ink mafaldine, or get the basic spaghetti and meatballs, which is good every time. 1414 S Tryon St., Ste. 140 (980-279-8900) BR, L, D, BAR ✸

CHARLOTTEMAGAZINE.COM // SEPTEMBER 2020

BIG VIEW DINER

$$

CIVETTA ITALIAN KITCHEN + BAR

$$-$$$

THE BLUE TAJ

$$-$$$

INDIAN The sister restaurant of Copper has contempo-

rary decor and a sharply dressed wait staff delivering Indian dishes to each table. 14815 Ballantyne Village Way., Ste. 170. (704-369-5777) L, D, V, BAR ✸

THE FLIPSIDE CAFÉ

$$-$$

NEW SOUTHERN Chefs Jon and Amy Fortes’ first restaurant makes you feel right at home, but the food lets you know it ain’t your mama in the kitchen. 3150 Hwy. 21 N., Fort Mill. (803-802-1711) B, BR, L, D, B/W, ☎

FLIPSIDE RESTAURANT

$$-$$$

NEW SOUTHERN This sister restaurant of Flipside Café has a more formal and spacious dining room, which fits with its elevated menu. 129 Caldwell St., Rock Hill. (803324-3547) BR, L, D, V, BAR ☎

GALLERY RESTAURANT

$$$-$$$$

NEW AMERICAN Inside the Ballantyne hotel, you’ll find Southern-inspired, white-tablecloth dining with dishes sourced from local farmers. 10000 Ballantyne Commons Pkwy. (704-248-4100) B, BR, L, D, BAR

THE PORTER’S HOUSE

$$$-$$$$

STEAK HOUSE The newest member of the Rare Roots Hospitality Group (Dressler’s, Dogwood) is known for thick-cut steaks, modern sides, and craft cocktails. 7417 Waverly Walk Ave. (704-930-7878) D, BAR ✸☎

RED ROCKS CAFÉ

$$-$$$

AMERICAN Consistently good pasta,rock seafood, and steak make this restaurant a mainstay in the Strawberry Hill shopping center. Additional locations are in Indian Land and Birkdale Village. 4223 Providence Rd., Ste. 8 (704-364-0402) BR (Sun), L, D, V, BAR ✸

SPICE ASIAN KITCHEN

$$-$$$

ASIAN The dumplings and Pad Thai are consistently good, but the bibimap, bossam, and curry dishes are great for adventurous palates. During patio season, enjoy a cocktail or dessert at the rooftop terrace bar. 251 Textile Way, Fort Mill. (803-548-6868) L, D, V, BAR ✸

WALDHORN

$$

GERMAN Family-friendly Waldhorn offers authentic German dishes in a Bavarian setting. 12101 Lancaster Hwy., Pineville. (704-540-7047) BR (Sun), L, D, BAR ✸

SouthPark/Park Road ❤ BAR MARCEL

$$-$$$

FUSION The menu features shareable plates of beef carpaccio or truffle and herb frittes—but order a flatbread pizza for yourself. 3920 Sharon Road, Ste. 160.

(980-237-1919) L, D, BAR ✸☎

BAKU

$$-$$$

JAPANESE Black and red decor, delicious sushi, techno beats, and a large pair of geisha eyes staring out at the crowd make for a dramatic setting in this shared plates restaurant. 4515 Sharon Rd. (704-817-7173) D, BAR ☎

❤ BARRINGTON’S

$$$-$$$$

NEW AMERICAN Bruce Moffett’s first restaurant is one of the best in town, with a classic menu and stellar service. 7822 Fairview Rd. (704-364-5755) D (MonSat), BAR ☎

CAFÉ MONTE

$$-$$$

FRENCH Monte Smith has done a bang-up job re-creating a classic French restaurant, and diners react enthusiastically at brunch, lunch, and dinner. 6700 Fairview Rd. (704-552-1116) B, L, D, BAR ✸☎

CANTINA 1511

$$

MEXICAN This easy, casual spot draws crowds for its fresh takes on Mexican cuisine and fine margarita list.

4271 Park Rd. (704-331-9222) L, D, V, BAR ✸☎

❤ CORKBUZZ

$$-$$$

NEW AMERICAN This place focuses on food that pairs well with wine—all 200-plus by the bottle and nearly 40 by the glass. 4905 Ashley Park Ln., Ste. J. (704-6251328) BR, L (weekdays), D, BAR ✸☎

❤ DOGWOOD SOUTHERN TABLE + BAR

$$$

NEW SOUTHERN Ingredients are fresh and cocktails are innovative at this spot, a sister to Dressler’s. 4905 Ashley Park Ln., Ste. D. (704-910-4919) BR (Sun), L, D, BAR ☎

❤ DOT DOT DOT

$$$

NEW AMERICAN Stefan Huebner’s creative cocktails may be the main attraction at this membersonly speakeasy, but chef Daniel Wheeler’s sweet potato gnocchi with bourbon glaze will convince you to stay for dinner. 4237 Park Rd., Ste. B. (704817-3710) D, BAR

❤ FLOUR SHOP

$$$

ITALIAN Watch your pasta get prepared in the open kitchen. Chef Trey Wilson’s shared plates are great for larger groups, but if you don’t want to share, get the lamb Bolognese. 530 Brandywine Rd. (980-299-3754) D, BAR ☎

❤ GOOD FOOD ON MONTFORD

$$-$$$

NEW AMERICAN Bruce Moffett’s small-plates bistro unites a variety of influences and flavors onto one menu, and each dish is worth ordering. 1701 Montford Dr. (704-525-0881) D, BAR ☎

HARPER’S RESTAURANT

$$

AMERICAN Jazzed-up American cuisine makes Harper’s a place to take out-of-town guests with varying palates. 6518 Fairview Rd. (704-366-6688) BR (Sun), L, D, BAR ✸

HIBISCUS

$-$$

ASIAN Roger and Robert Kongham, the sons of Thai Taste’s owners, serve creamy curries, Thai classics, and sushi in a more formal dining room. 1600 E. Woodlawn Rd., Ste. 150. (980-256-4380) L, D, BAR

LEGION BREWING

$$-$$$

AMERICAN Unlike its flagship location in Plaza Midwood, the SouthPark brewery serves more than typical bar snacks. Chef Gene Briggs cooks pork belly gyros, duck fat chicken wings, and a full Sunday brunch. 5610 Carnegie Blvd. (980-256-4167) BR, L, D, BAR ✸

LITTLE MAMA’S ITALIAN KITCHEN

$$-$$$

ITALIAN Think of this eatery as the prequel to Mama Ricotta’s, with family recipes and scratch made pastas and mozzarella. Settle into one of the dining rooms with a plate of pappardelle or cozy up at the “Mozz Bar”

and watch the chefs at work. 4521 Sharon Rd. (980209-0323) D, BAR

OAK STEAKHOUSE

$$$$

STEAK HOUSE Chef Tyler Honeycutt aces steakhouse classics like ribeye or filet, and be sure to save room for some lemon olive oil cake for dessert. 4477 Sharon Rd., Ste 125. (704-954-8900) D, BAR ☎

PACO’S TACOS & TEQUILA

$$

MEXICAN Although you’ll find plenty of options on the menu, there are 10 varieties of tacos and more than 60 kinds of tequila. 6401 Morrison Blvd., Ste. 8A. (704-7168226) L, D, V, BAR ✸

❤ PEPPERVINE

$$$$

FUSION Chef Bill Greene serves a rotation of artistic small plates with unexpected pairings like lamb belly with kimchi porridge, or smoked butternut squash with miso. 4620 Piedmont Row Dr., Ste. 170B. (980283-2333) D, V, BAR ✸☎

REID’S FINE FOODS

$$-$$$

NEW AMERICAN Stellar service and a reliable menu have earned this market and restaurant a loyal following. 4331 Barclay Downs Dr. (704-377-7686) BR, L, D, BAR ✸ NEW LISTING

RH ROOFTOP RESTAURANT

$$$-$$$$

AMERICAN The dining room has retractable glass walls, Japanese boxwood hedging, and a fountain in the center. The menu is standard (but upscale) American fare like lobster rolls, truffled grilled cheese, and ribeye steak. 6903 Phillips Place Ct. (704-790-4970) BR, L, D, V ☎

ROASTING COMPANY

$

AMERICAN Since adding a full bar, Roasting Company fits in more comfortably with the Montford Drive scene, but still sets the standard for rotisserie chicken.

1521 Montford Dr. (704-521-8188) L, D, BAR ✸

ROCKSALT

$$$-$$$$

SEAFOOD Head to RockSalt for the spacious patio and fresh seafood—from the raw bar, with several varieties of oysters on the half shell, or the daily catch.

512 Brandywine Rd. (704-503-9945) BR, L (weekends), D, BAR ✸☎

❤ ROOSTER’S WOOD-FIRED KITCHEN

$$-$$$

NEW SOUTHERN Chef Jim Noble’s menu features gussied-up, Southern-tinged American and European peasant fare, like hand-tossed pizzas and roasted chicken. A second location is in uptown. 6601 Morrison Blvd.

(704-366-8688) L, D, V, BAR ☎

SIR EDMOND HALLEY’S

$$

AMERICAN This pub, named for the astronomer and mathematician, serves its entire menu until closing at 2 a.m. 4151 Park Rd., Ste. A. (704-525-7775) L (weekdays), D, BAR ✸

TOSCANA

$$$

ITALIAN An authentic northern Italian menu is paired with an extensive wine list, while courtyard dining adds to the experience on a nice night. 6401 Morrison Blvd., Ste. 6B. (704-367-1808) L (weekdays), D, BAR ✸☎ SEPTEMBER 2020 // CHARLOTTE

93

YAFO KITCHEN

$$

MEDITERRANEAN With additional locations in Dilworth and Plaza Midwood, this fast-casual concept serves Middle-Eastern and Mediterranean-inspired fare in a wrap, salad, or grain bowl. 720 Governor Morrison St., Ste. 120. (704-365-7130) L, D, B/W ✸

YAMA ASIAN FUSION

$$

FUSION This upscale Japanese restaurant has sushi, hibachi, and Asian-inspired entrées. A second location opened in Waverly last year. 720 Governor Morrison St., Ste. 130. (70s4-295-0905) L (Mon-Sat), D,BAR ✸☎

University Area AMALFI PASTA ’N PIZZA

$$

ITALIAN The only other places where Italian food is this real, this good, and this cheap are called trattorias, and you have to take a plane to get to them. 8542 University City Blvd. (704-547-8651) L, D, B/W ✸

FIREWATER

$$-$$$

AMERICAN The food here is primarily American bistrostyle, but the owner’s family tuna business makes apps like the tuna tartare standouts. 8708 J. W. Clay Blvd.

(704-549-0050) L (weekends), D, BAR ✸

ZAPATA’S CANTINA

$$

MEXICAN Expect typical Mexican fare in a high-energy dining room, with an additional location in Ballantyne.

8927 J.M. Keynes Dr., in University Place shopping center. (704-503-1979) L, D, BAR

$$ -$$$

$ Most entrées under $10 $$ Most entrées $10-$17 $$$ Most entrées $18-$25 $$$$ Most entrées $26 & up

B BR L D V

94

Best Restaurants Breakfast Weekend brunch Lunch Dinner Vegetarian friendly

B/W Beer and wine only BAR Full-service bar ✸ Patio seating available Reservations suggested

☎

$$$

❤ THE ASBURY

$$$

NEW SOUTHERN Chef Mike Long’s inventive menu mixes countryside favorites like biscuits and deviled eggs with bold flavors and contemporary techniques.

235 N. Tryon St. (704-342-1193) B, BR, L, D, BAR ☎

BASIL THAI

COWBELL BURGER & BAR

DANDELION MARKET

$

$$

❤ HAYMAKER

$$$ - $$$$

THE KING’S KITCHEN

$$-$$$

❤ LA BELLE HELENE

$$$ - $$$$

SOUTHERN Chef Jim Noble’s restaurant, which serves traditional Southern fare, donates profits to faith-based feeding centers and employs troubled youth and people who have just come out of rehab or prison.

129 W. Trade St. (704-375-1990) L (weekdays) D, B/W, ✸☎

$$-$$$

ITALIAN Luce is a beautiful, intimate, luxurious restaurant with simple but innovative northern Italian cuisine. 214 N. Tryon St., Ste. J, in Hearst Plaza. (704-344-9222) L (weekdays), D, BAR ✸☎

$$$-$$$$

$$$-$$$$

NEW AMERICAN Located on the 21st floor of Skye Condos, chef Rocco Whalen’s restaurant is the place

CHARLOTTEMAGAZINE.COM // SEPTEMBER 2020

❤ HALCYON, FLAVORS FROM THE EARTH $$$-$$$$

$$-$$$

STEAK HOUSE In this modern space off the lobby of Le Méridien, the beautifully seared steaks and seafood crudos are among the must-try menu items. 555 S. McDowell St. (980-237-5354) B, L, D, BAR ☎

FAHRENHEIT

$$$

FRENCH The Parisian menu offers rotisserie chicken and a mix of pour commencer and plats, plus decadent desserts and specialty cocktails. 300 S. Tryon St., Ste. 100.

(704-969-2550) BR (Sun), L, D, BAR ☎

GLOBAL Middle Eastern and Mediterranean influences run through this menu. Order a few tapas and a bottle of wine, head out to the patio, and watch the activity at Trade and Tryon. 101 S. Tryon St., Ste. 14.

(980-406-3857) L, D, BAR ✸☎

EVOKE

❤ FIN & FINO

SEAFOOD Come for the raw bar, but stay for bartender Brittany Kellum’s drinks. Then splurge on a slice of cheesecake. 135 Levine Avenue of the Arts, Ste. 100. (704-8005680) L, D, BAR ✸☎

$$-$$$

NEW AMERICAN On weekends, this Irish pub turns into one of uptown’s hottest nightlife spots. But during the day, come for a cozy meal with flickering candles and shared plates. 118 W. 5th St. (704-333-7989) BR, L, D, BAR

ESSEX BAR & BISTRO

$$-$$$

NEW SOUTHERN Enjoy locally and seasonally inspired dishes from North Carolina chef William Dissen in this bright, stylish space next to Romare Bearden Park. 225 S. Poplar St. (704-626-6116) BR,D,BAR ✸☎

NEW AMERICAN The focus is on small plates, craft beer served in its proper glassware at proper temperature, and craft cocktails. 330 N. Tryon St. (980-3494078) D, BAR ☎

COCO + THE DIRECTOR

❤ FORCHETTA

ITALIAN Chef Luca Annunziata serves lasagna just like his mom made it and carbonara as it’s served in Rome. 230 North College St. (704-602-2750) B, L, D, BAR ☎

$$-$$$

THAI Thai lovers can sate their cravings with tasty pad Thai, while the more daring can try dishes like crispy red curry duck, a rich, deep-fried half duck in a spicy red curry sauce. 210 N. Church St. (704-332-7212) L (weekdays), D, V, BAR ☎

THE CELLAR AT DUCKWORTH’S

in Charlotte to eat a meal and see the city twinkle. 222 S. Caldwell St. (980-237-6718) BR, D, BAR ✸☎

NEW SOUTHERN With views from the Mint Museum Uptown, this restaurant’s local menu is popular for lunch and pretheater dinners. 500 S. Tryon St. (704-9100865) BR, L, D, V, BAR ✸☎

$-$$$

AMERICAN The blackened catfish is cooked just right, the Cajun pasta is piping hot, and chatter fills the no-

❤

❤ ARIA TUSCAN GRILL

ITALIAN This restaurant serves up an extensive Italian menu in an elegant, modern space. 100 N. Tryon St. (704-376-8880) L (weekdays), D, BAR ☎

AMERICAN This sister restaurant to Leroy Fox has a trendy, pop-culture vibe—and a roster of fancy burgers (including a foie gras-topped offering for $20). 201 N. Tryon St., Ste. 1010. (980-224-8674) L, D, BAR

NEW AMERICAN Top Chef alum Jamie Lynch’s innovative, seasonal menu includes morel mushroom flatbread and mint crusted lamb loin. 127 N. Tryon St., Ste. 8. (704-919-1322) BR, L, D, BAR ☎

❤ ALEXANDER MICHAEL’S

$$$

$$$

NEW SOUTHERN This uptown spot with modern Southern food is best for cocktails and conversation at the bar. 204 N. Tryon St. (704-333-3747) BR, L, D, BAR ☎

❤ 5CHURCH

❤ ANGELINE’S

ITALIAN The Italian-inspired entreés at this uptown spot are all excellent, and the whipped ricotta with sourdough, lavender honey, and pistachio is the most imaginative appetizer on the menu. 303 S. Church St. (704-445-2540) B, BR, L, D, V, BAR ✸☎

AMERICAN Marriott introduced this coffee and sandwich shop for locals and hotel guests alike to have a comfortable, casual dining option. 100 W. Trade St. (704-353-6003) B, L, D, B/W

Uptown 204 NORTH

reservations dining room. 401 W. 9th St. (704-3326789) L, D, BAR

LUCE

MALABAR SPANISH CUISINE

$$$

$$

SPANISH This sister restaurant to Luce serves authentic regional cuisine from Spain for lunch and dinner. 214 N. Tryon St. (704344-8878) L (weekdays), D, BAR ✸☎

❤ McNINCH HOUSE

$$$$

NEW SOUTHERN Guests order from a daily prix fixe menu (ranging from five courses to nine courses), choose their wine and entrées, and the staff takes care of the rest. 511 N. Church St. (704-3326159) D, BAR ☎

Charlotte magazine (ISSN 1083-1444) is published monthly by Morris Communications at 214 W. Tremont Ave., Suite 302, Charlotte NC 28203-5161. Entire contents Copyright © 2020 by Morris Communications. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reprinted or otherwise reproduced without written permission from the publisher. Periodicals postage paid in Charlotte, NC and additional offices. To subscribe, renew, or change address, go to www.charlottemagazine.com or write to: Charlotte magazine, 214 W. Tremont Ave., Suite 302, Charlotte NC 28203-5161. Subscription rate $19.95 for one year (twelve issues). For renewal or change of address, include the address label from your most recent issue. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Charlotte, P.O. Box 433237, Palm Coast, FL 32143-9616. Unsolicited photographs, illustrations, or articles are submitted at the risk of the photographer/artist/author. Charlotte magazine assumes no liability for the return of unsolicited materials and may use them at its discretion.

THE GUIDE

MERT’S HEART AND SOUL

$-$$

SOUTHERN James Bazzelle’s pride and joy serves down-home Southern cooking, with a dash of Lowcountry, in a downtown-feeling place. 214 N. College St. (704-342-4222) BR, L, D,B/W ✸

MIMOSA GRILL

$$$

NEW SOUTHERN This popular after-work spot has a seasonal menu, friendly service, tasty seafood dishes, and interesting grits. 327 S. Tryon St. (704-343-0700) BR, L (weekdays), D, BAR ✸☎

MURPHY’S KITCHEN & TAP

$$

IRISH Pies, tarts, meats, potatoes—everything you’d expect, you’ll find at this Irish pub with a large range of alcoholic beverage options. 445 W. Trade St. (704-3320557) BR, L, D, BAR ✸

❤ SEA LEVEL NC

$$-$$$

❤ NOBLE SMOKE

$-$$

BARBECUE Feast on Carolina-style pork and Texasstyle brisket, and grab a drink at the “Legends Counter” with custom plaques for Southern barbecue icons.

2216 Freedom Dr. (704-703-5252) L, D, BAR ✸☎

BOSSY BEULAH’S

$

AMERICAN Think of Bossy Beulah’s as the kid sister— or sidekick—to Noble Smoke. Order your fried chicken sammie bunless or add American cheese, and pair it with a sweet tea or Cheerwine. 2200 Freedom Dr. (980-737-1400) L, D, ✸

PINKY’S WESTSIDE GRILL

$

TOUCAN LOUIE’S

$

AMERICAN Housed in an old auto shop, this funky spot serves great burgers, hot dogs, sandwiches, and salads, as well as tasty sides like waffle fries. 1600 W. Morehead St. (704-332-0402) L, D, BAR ✸

CARIBBEAN With state-sourced meats smoked inhouse and strictly N.C. cheese, this new cafe’s commitment to local ingredients is notable, but it’s their food’s Caribbean flair that elevates their grab-and-go sandwiches. 2753 Rozzelles Ferry Rd. (980-209-9791) B, L, D, B/W ✸

CROSSWORD OF THE MONTH

By Andy Smith

ANSWERS can be found online at charlottemagazine.com/ crossword.

SEAFOOD Concrete beams and rustic brick give an industrial feel to this seafood restaurant, which serves up dishes that are accessible, inventive, and sustainably sourced. 129 E. 5th St. (704-412-2616) L, D, BAR ✸☎

SOHO BISTRO

$$

ASIAN Lightning-fast, friendly service complements hot, savory Chinese favorites such as Sha Cha Shrimp and Mongolian Chicken. 214 N. Tryon St., Ste. 110.

(704-333-5189) L, D, B/W

❤ STOKE

$$$

NEW AMERICAN Hotel dining gets an upgrade with this wood-fired grill, family-style concept in Marriott City Center. 100 W. Trade St. (704-353-6005) B, BR, L, D, BAR

SUKOSHI

$$

SUSHI Think high-quality sushi in a fast-casual setting.

Chef Michael Chanthavong brings favorites from his menu at O-Ku, like tuna wrap-it-up and salmon citrus rolls. 101 S. Tryon St., Ste. 120. (980-495-3800) L, D, V

THE YOLK

$-$$

AMERICAN Greg and Subrina Collier’s breakfast-focused concept in 7th Street Public Market is open for breakfast and lunch, but shrimp and grits topped with Gouda cheese, jerk seasoning, and scallion pesto is delicious any time of day. 224 E. 7th St. (704-230-4346) B, L

West/Northwest Charlotte COMMUNITY TABLE BISTRO

$

SOUTHERN At the Goodwill Opportunity Campus, a small, cafeteria-style restaurant sears, bakes, and fries comfort food on a daily rotation for an affordable price. 5301 Wilkinson Blvd. (980-636-1000) B, L (weekdays), V ✸

ESTIA’S KOUZINA

$$-$$$

❤ HEIRLOOM RESTAURANT

$$-$$$

GREEK This upscale Mediterranean restaurant offers healthy and delicious dishes like gyro pitas, lamb burgers, and hearty salads. 609 N. Main St., Belmont. (704825-7005) BR, L, D, V, BAR ✸☎

NEW AMERICAN Ingredients are sourced almost exclusively from North Carolina, and the tasting menu includes options like fried chicken and pork and beans.

8470 Bellhaven Rd. (704-595-7710) D, V, BAR ☎ SEPTEMBER 2020 // CHARLOTTE

95

YOU ARE HERE

Each month, we’ll throw a dart at a map and write about where it lands.

LOCATION: 4520 N. Tryon St.

Mall orner C n a i s A

Culture, After Shocks THE ACCESS ROAD to the Asian Corner Mall in northeast Charlotte is so pockmarked with potholes, you feel like you’re steering the Mars Rover as you search for a parking space. But your expedition over the rough terrain pays off because of what waits inside.

On a summer Saturday, the shopping center bustles with customers, most of them Asian, who’ve come for foods from their native countries.

At International Market, a large supermarket just to the right of the central pagoda, a large shrimp counter near the front door emits a distinctive briny smell that hits your nostrils as you walk in.

96

Inside, shelves brim with fresh noodles for ramen; packages of crispy, dried seaweed snacks; stacks of cellophane-wrapped jian dui, Chinese sesame balls; and an aisle piled high with dozens of types of tea. Down the long central corridor, you find Le’s Sandwiches and Café, home to one of Charlotte’s best Vietnamese bahn mi sandwiches, a baguette stuffed with fresh vegetables and savory meats.

When it opened in 1967, Asian Corner Mall was called Tryon Mall, but it transformed during the ’90s into a center for a growing population of immigrants from Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, China, and Thailand. The hallways speak of a

CHARLOTTEMAGAZINE.COM // SEPTEMBER 2020

time when the North Tryon corridor was in its heyday: Sunken fountains ringed by ornate metal gates are now dry.

The walls, painted a bright yellow, are smudged in spots.

On this afternoon, a mom hands her facemasked toddler a package of coconut candies to crinkle in his shopping cart seat as she navigates the grocery aisles.

An elderly couple gingerly loads a cart full of groceries—boxes of mangoes, bags overloaded with fresh produce and meats. A man rushes out of the mall with a sandwich in his hand, and your mouth waters in anticipation of the meal to come. —Cristina Bolling

SHAW NIELSEN; CRISTINA BOLLING

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