Cool Charlotte Restaurants for Newcomers
 

Hi All. My husband and I will be relocating to Charlotte from LA in a few weeks. I posted this on Chowhound, but it seems most Charlotte folks don't go there or don't answer...

We know this will be a bit of a culture shock for us. However, we are from Raleigh and Pennsylvania and wanted to settle down a bit.

We are in our mid-twenties and are looking for cool, unique or trendy restaurants to try out when we get to town.

We will be living short-term in a loft in NoDa, until we buy a house. We are looking at buying in Midwood, Dilworth, Meyers Park or those areas. We would to love to find some good places to try around those areas, but we're always willing to travel for a good experience.

We aren't big chain people, but rather like places with some charm or quirkiness. The only type of food we don't eat is Indian. Any price ranges.

To give you an idea of what we like:

Some of our favorite LA haunts are a garden patio breakfast spot, a hidden upscale restaurant in the woods where the table booths are next to a stream with all candlelgiht, and loungey tapa places.

Any help is much appreciated.

Cabo Fish Taco in NoDa will be near-by. Uptown I favor LeVecchia's (seafood), Cosmos (two for one tapas during the week & many drink specials) & Blue (trendy). Elizabeth area, try the Fig Tree on 7th (used to be Cibi's). If you have a special occasion (because it is way pricey) try the McNinch House in 4th Ward.

Cabo was the only place we had on our list so far, so I'm glad you mentioned that! My husband is a surfer so he is stoked that there is a cool place near us.

Thanks for the suggestions!

Well, you're starting out in one of the hippest neighborhoods in town (NoDa) - you'll just have to get used to the 18-wheelers flying down the street.

Be sure to consider the Elizabeth neighborhood too - we've got a great location right between Midwood and Myers Park with older houses/bungalos and big trees. It used to be an older persons neighborhood (we're near the hospitals), but that's quickly changing. And if you're using the net to search, www.carolinahome.com is much better than realtor.com.

In NoDa, Cabo Fish Taco is great - always packed. There are a few other places right there including a Mellow Mushroom in a HUGE old house they spent a couple years renovating. One place I really like is a wine bar called WineUp - it's super laid back, they have a small stage for live music and, somewhat oddly, high-end pool tables. Best thing is it's non-smoking and never too crowded.

There are lots of trendier options downtown. Blue seems to be still going strong and Cosmos Cafe mentioned above is hugely popular. Therapy is a good smoke-free cocktail bar. Arpa is a great tapas place in a new location - they may be doing larger plates in the new larger location. Not trendy, but a great neighborhood joint downtown is Alexander Michaels in 4th Ward. Lots of other restaurants/bars/clubs downtown to choose from.

In Plaza/Midwood, the Thomas Street Tavern is a great neighborhood bar with a killer outdoor area in the back. Across the street is the Penguin diner - I won't try to explain it - you just have to go. A new restaurant, called Creation, is just across the street from the grocery store and is getting good reviews.

Across the train tracks in Elizabeth, the Fig Tree, mentioned above, is a beautiful renovation and has a great, tiny little wine bar - with well chosen selections - but I can't yet recommend the food. Ethan's up the street is better for the buck in my book. In the area of Elizabeth which is currently undergoing major transformation is my favorite restaurant, Carpe Diem - great food and a cool bar.

In Myers Park we like Salute Wine Bar next the the Manor Theater (our only arthouse), though it was kind of dead last time we were in there. Down the street is a great all-around place - Providence Cafe. Great patio, great bar, friendly, professional service, good prices, good food. It'd be my favorite, if the food wowed me just a bit more.

In Dilworth, Bonterra's a great wine bar and while the food's great, it's pretty pricey (a lot of business diner's here). Patou, a good French restaurant, has just moved into much bigger digs on East Blvd - I've yet to stop by and see if they fit there. A new hot spot on East Blvd is Copper, but oops, that's Indian. Across the street is 300 East, which I understand is a Charlotte institution - I'm going tomorrow night.

There's lots more. I'll let someone else go now.

Wow, Brian. Thank you for all those thoughtful suggestions. I may have to force my husband to give Indian food a second try. (The first time was on his birthday and it took him several days to forget that meal.)

Elizabeth actually is on our list of neighborhoods to look, also. We have a realtor who is helping us and she has suggested we look there, too.

I second the vote for Bonterra. Had dinner there New Years Eve and it was very nice.

We also had dinner recently at Bonterra and thought it was wonderful!
It's an old church that was converted into a restaurant and the menu changes frequently, however they do have a couple of staples such as a fried lobster tail. Being a "Wino" I was also very impressed with their wine list.
It will definitely be on our list of places to go when we vist Charlotte again.