Last updated: December 10, 2023

In the weeds

No one can cook like your grandmother. My mom’s side of the family is Hungarian, and eastern European foods fill my memories of life as a kid. Stuffed cabbage, chicken paprikash, pork stews. My grandmother owned a small catering business, and some days, she’d cook for hours, dropping off stacks of Hungarian crepes or pork cutlets that my brothers and I would slowly work our way through.

So when I’m feeling nostalgic or, well, old, I seek out Intermezzo, a small, brick building on the corner of Central Avenue where it meets 10th Street. I order the Sarma (cabbage rolls) and a glass of wine, and I feel better. This is the closest to grandma’s cooking I can find without traveling to upstate New York. The cabbage rolls have the sweet and savory tomato broth I remember so fondly, the cabbage softened in a slow braise that also soaks the leaves with tomato flavor. The pizza is popular here, too, but I have a hard time ordering it when my eyes glance wiener schnitzel or lasagna passing by en route to a nearby table.

The dining room’s exposed brick and warm, honey-hued wood accents create the feeling you’re in a much older place, and perhaps that’s what makes Intermezzo so homey. There’s a sense of safety that comes with being somewhere that feels like it’s survived everything time has thrown at it. The booths are comfortable, and on a rainy day, there’s nowhere else I’d rather dine. On a spring night, though, I choose the patio. It’s the Charlotte version of a European sidewalk café.

The service, too, leans toward a Euro style — you won’t see servers doting on tables. You’ll get what you need, and the staff tries to ensure you have a good experience, but they leave you alone to enjoy your meal. This can be off-putting to some, but when you go to a place like Intermezzo, it’s not for the dining experience so much as the comfort of it.

That’s one of the problems with the way our city idolizes the new. Time and experience bring lessons learned, which cultivate a smooth dining experience on a consistent basis. But there’s an intangible, too, that places like Intermezzo have — an ability to make a restaurant feel like home.