September 8, 2022
Q&A: Tasting menus, high tea, and kouign-amann
Each week, we answer reader questions about food and drink in Charlotte
Q: Do any Charlotte bakeries consistently make and sell a kouign-amann? If there’s more than one do you have a favorite? It is such a perfect pastry! And very hard to find.
Kristen: Renaissance Patisserie in SouthPark bakes them, and they’re fantastic! Chef Amanda Freitag raved about chef Sylvain Rivet’s pastries when she was here for the Charlotte StrEATs Festival.
Renaissance Pâtisserie sells kouign-amann (bottom right), a delicate French pastry. Kristen Wile/UP
Q: After reading the newsletter article from the New York Times about tasting menus, I was wondering whether or not any of this is taking place in the city of Charlotte or in the Charlotte metro area restaurants.
Kristen: Yes! Bardo Restaurant has a five-course tasting menu for $75, which is the most affordable in town. Fin & Fino’s The Treatment is a fantastic chef’s tasting menu experience, and $5 from each $65 seating goes to charity. Sister concept Dogwood does chef’s menus Tuesday through Thursday at the counter at 6 and 8 p.m. Counter- and Omakase Experience by Prime Fish are two tasting menus with a higher price point.
Q: Where can you find afternoon High Tea (with finger cakes and things like that)?
Kristen: The only place I know of that’s doing them is The Ballantyne Hotel. The McNinch House and Ritz both used to, but I haven’t seen either host them lately. Readers, any suggestions?
The Ballantyne Hotel definitely still does one on the weekends and Thursday through Sunday during the holiday season.
It is a short easy drive from CLT, but I highly recommend Laura’s Tea Room in Ridgeway, SC for a traditional tea experience. You get hot and iced tea, soup course, and a full sandwich/dessert tower. You also get to pick a fun hat to wear during your experience, and you select your favorite cup & saucer from a large assortment! I highly recommend this as a little half-day trip.