Restaurants in Charlotte
 

DH and I will be celebrating our wedding anniversary next weekend and want to find somewhere special to eat. We moved to Charlotte in October but are still unfamiliar with a lot of restaurants in the area so I'm hoping for a little advice from my trusty fodorites.

We want something at least a little romantic. Budget isn't really too much of a concern. We are both somewhat picky though. I don't eat any seafood so a seafood-only restaurant won't fly, and DH won't eat any Japanese food (hmmm...both of these should make our upcoming Japan trip fun!). Otherwise we are pretty open. We are also willing to drive up to maybe an hour and a half or so if needed.

Any advice?

Thanks!
Tracy

I would try Bentley's on 27. It is uptown in the Grant Thorton Building. At 4th and College Street. It is on the 27th Floor of the office building and has GREAT views and the food is super!! Also, wonderful Martinis.
http://www.bentleyson27.com/

That is exactly my choice for you too! Bentley's on 27 is awesome - excellent service, scrumptious cuisine, and you simply cannot beat the skyline view. Ask for a window table. Get out your wallet - but hey you deserve it. Enjoy~

Wow....Bentley's looks perfect! I never heard of it before, but as I mentioned I'm new to the area so I guess I shouldn't be surprised.

Thanks so much for the recommendation!

Tracy

if you want to go real top shelf, try the McNinch House in 4th Ward. An awesome dining experience. For something less pricey but more private/romantic, try the Fig on 7th St.

Luce is nice, softly lit and romantic. It is uptown, in a courtyard behind RiRa's.

Luce is a nice option & is Italian. Very good food & usually easy to get into. We had our annual XMas party there this past year. tc - didn't know you had moved to CLT, which part of town do you reside in ? You could always head over to the Grove Park in Asheville for a nice splurge.

Thank you all so much for your suggestions! We are still deciding, so it was nice to log on and see more suggestions to look into!

SAnParis, we are living in Matthews. My husband accepted a job offer with the Family Dollar headquarters in Matthews and they relocated us from St. Louis. Neither of us had been to Charlotte, and I hadn't even been to North Carolina, so its been a fun experience getting to know a new city and its surroundings. Coming from the midwest its nice having both the beach and the mountains within driving distance--and I'm loving the weather!

Tracy

Or if they wanted a real splurge, the Inn at Richmond Hill (is that right?) would fulfill that!!
We have eaten at Fig and been less than wowed. DS and DDIL went to celebrate an anniversary and were totally wowed.
To the OP--when you are looking for a wonderful dinner and don't mind the hubbub, try Lulu's on Central Ave. It is our new absolutely favorite--a real French bistro in Charlotte.

Tracy, after you get settled and finish celebrating that special anniversary, come on up to the Winston-Salem area and visit Old Salem. It is quite wonderful and we also have some first rate restaurants. Makes for a nice day trip. Welcome to North Carolina!

Tracy - we just moved to Matthews about 6 months ago from Elizabeth but we've been in the area for a little more than 12 years. Maybe I'll see you at the Farmers Market. We'll be easy to spot, chasing an (almost) 5 yr old girl & 2 yr old little boy most probably w/a muffin or scone stuck in their hands.

cmc, we are definitely planning a visit to Old Salem soon! We were in that vacinity one day a few months ago but didn't get to Old Salem. We are both history buffs so its a must on our list!

SA, small world! We love living in Matthews. Sure, the traffic can be a pain at times, but overall its a great place to live and we are very happy here. And we love visiting the Farmers Market! We don't have any kids yet, but if you see a tall guy sporting a St. Louis Cardinals hat that would be us!

Tracy

TC - One of us usually has some type of Ohio paraphenalia on...but we're usually there very early, so the old farts don't get all the good stuff. I'll keep an eye out.

Ohio what kind? Home town is Troy.

Gretchen -

I live right around the corner from LuLu on Central (in the Plaza Midwood area). I love their food, (especially the champagne salad), but the place is so small and they do not serve liquor... It is a small world!

Lulu has become our favorite restaurant--EXcellent food. Their wine list is also more than adequate to not serve liquor. They have done a great job with that restaurant. It is unfortunately very loud--talked to the owner last week.

I moved from Elizabeth right off of Hawthorne (from the multi-colored condos)which is still for sale, btw. I grew up in SE Ohio near Athens, went to school @ Wright St. in Dayton & had several friends from the Troy area.

Super. Our great niece went to Wright State.

TC - SO how was dinner ?

It was great but I'm almost embarrassed to say where we went, especially after we got so many great recommendations here! But we ended up at the Melting Pot. We went a few times in St. Louis and loved it but didn't realize that they had one here until DH drove by the one in Myers Park last week. We love fondue but The Melting Pot is too expensive for us to do it very often, so we only save it for special occassions.

We are planning on trying some of the restaurant recommendations though! We don't eat out too much, but have a plan to try a new restaurant each week. I printed this list off and I think we are going to try Luce Saturday night, as we are both big fans of Italian cuisine. It looks lovely and its very close to where I work (I work in the Transamerica Building) so parking will be easy!

Thanks for asking!!
Tracy

OH, PLEASE, go to Lulu's. You can afford to eat there whenever you want depending on what you order. Their Sunday brunch is TDF.
Do make a reservation, most especially on a week-end (from Thursday). It has the best overall food in Charlotte, I think. We didn't push it for "romantic", which it isn't. But it is GOOD--a true bistro right here in River City (as the Music Man would say).
Be sure to order their French fries--either with something or as an appy. We have not had a single bad "plate", and you can order small things or big things.

Since you work Uptown Arpa is another good inexpensive joint (it's a tapas place). W/good wine flights also.

Lulu's looks like a great place. We haven't really had a good Italian meal here in Charlotte yet, and are kind of spoiled because St. Louis has a large Italian immigrant population so the Italian food is really good, so we are looking foreward to trying it.

I haven't heard of Arpa but will look for it. I'm always looking for a great lunch or dinner place, especially if its inexpensive.

I have discovered Latorre's for lunch and love it! Have you guys been? They have this fantastic platter of fried plantains and yucca that is heavenly, albeit not very healthy.

Speaking of food in Charlotte, can anyone give me a recommendation for a place to get some really great ice cream that isn't a chain??

Tracy

Spoons has always been the local ice cream shop in town that is not a chain. They used to be located on Hawthorne (right near 7th street), but I am not sure if they are still there. I still love the chains though - Baskin Robbins, Ben & Jerry's, or good ole' Haagen-Daz from Harris Teeter.

Spoons is still there but has changed ownership & is now called Snoops (so no one had to pay for a new sign). Great dogs & burgers also. Brewsters is also pretty good (but a chain) as is the Water Ice Factory downtown in Matthews.

Good Italian--Villa Antonio on South Blvd.
And Mama Ricotta's on Kings is good.
Snoops is home made ice cream and a fun sandwich.

Wow- freaky- from Croatia to Charlotte...one Tracy to another :)
I'm sure by now you've found some goodies, but for German- try Waldorn behind Carolina Place. My hubby loves the immense beer selection! For Spanish- try Sole on East. For Italian- we love Mio Posto- it's a tiny dive little place on Pineville-Matthews but it is AWESOME. Real Italian food and great atmosphere. Yummy desserts. I LOVE Greek Isles on Bland Street- close to Uptown.
In NoDa, I like Cabo Fish Taco (good chicken tacos for non-seafooders- great queso, too).
So, yes, we eat out a lot!!!

LOL tastravel...small world! So, did you get the "why are you going to Croatia", complete with interesting looks to match, when you told people around here that you were going to Croatia? Because we certainly got our fair share...I guess they aren't fellow fodorites! ;)

We have been to Waldhorn, several times, and the food is delicious! We loved the food in Germany so it was one of the first places we tried when we moved here and were hooked. Their applestruedel is to die for! And I'm making note of the other places you recommend because we are always looking for great places to eat. Thank you! I'm learning that Charlotte is not all chain restaurants like I originally thought when I moved here, which is a very good thing!

Btw, for those that posted above, I did got to Luce several months ago and had a terrific gnocci dish!

Tracy

We went to Bentley's for OUR anniversary and had a lovely dinner.I hadn't been since it was the____Club.
Hey, all heads up.
go to www.restaurant.com and get discount coupons for restaurants here--and everywhere. Once you buy one they will send you a code every month for even more discount--like 50% off.
Lulu's coupons sell out very fast at the first of the month. There are lots of good restaurants on the list.
The discount for 60% of until tomorrow is "seasons".