Q: We’re looking to potentially rent out an entire restaurant for our wedding reception unless the location has a big private room. (75-100 people) Do you know what locations allow this in Charlotte that have great food/drinks and are pretty?
UP: Aw, congrats! Well, any restaurant is available for a full buyout, but on a weekend, that would be really pricey. You have to pay enough to make up for an entire night of business. For a buyout, I would consider Bonterra, which has valet parking; Haymaker, which has a beautiful interior and can fit up to 95 with a buyout, or Aria if the party size creeps up. Private dining rooms will definitely be more affordable, though, and some options there are Fin & Fino, which has a private dining room that can hold 75 seated or Rooster’s SouthPark (the private dining rooms there can be adjusted based on party size). I’m also going to throw in Olde Meck; after speaking to their new chef about changes in the kitchen there, I’m convinced that the food is about to get really good. They’ve got lots of private dining space, too. For more ideas, you can browse our running list of private dining rooms in town!

Q: I know Sweet Lew’s is only open until it sells out, but what time is that?
UP: The first things to go are the pork and brisket, but on opening day (Wednesday), everything was sold out at 3:30 p.m. He added some more meat to the smoker for today’s run, and as of publishing this (4 p.m. on Thursday) he still had food left. (UPDATE: It’s 4:30 p.m., and he’s now sold out!)

Q: I was at the Sweet Lew’s event and had a great time. Tell Lewis his brisket was great! … You mentioned Unpretentious Palate would be doing more events in the future but you didn’t say what they would be. Can you elaborate what we might see?
UP: Thanks for coming, and I sure can! We’ll be doing a dinner at Stoke in early January that I’m so, so excited about! I can’t tell you too much just yet, but it’s going to be a very playful dinner. It’s going to be a five-course, seated meal with five chefs. There will also likely be wine pairings. This dinner is something I hope we can do every year going forward, and has been in the works for a while! We’re also going to be hosting a baking class with Sweet Spot Studio, and that will focus on baking with craft beer. All of the ticket proceeds from the class will help fund Sugar Shock, an annual dessert event by local pastry chefs that raises money for Project 658. Stay tuned on those!