Q: While very subjective, to me Charlotte has never experienced restaurant growth in the same way as Charleston and Asheville, and to some extent Greenville, SC. It is hard to compare our restaurant scene with NY, Chicago and San Francisco, but even Birmingham has a greater reputation as a foodie town. I first started visiting Charleston in the late ’60s, went to college in Durham, and have seen both markets thrive. There is a great episode of Charlotte Talks in the WFAE archives in which Helen Schwab is interviewed. Her conclusion was that Charlotte was not a tourist destination, and restaurants struggled to find a steady flow of diners open to new things. Yet Asheville attracts the Katie Buttons of the world, and Charleston attracts James Beard nominees and winners. Charlotte seems to have competent regional restaurants, but no (or few) nationally recognized ones. In your opinion, what is the greatest impediment? Perplexing to me, as there is a great economy here to support it.
UP: This is a question that folks in the restaurant industry grapple with frequently, too. In fact, it was the subject of a James Beard-hosted symposium at Haymaker last year. I see many driving forces behind this, and one of the greatest one is how we measure success. Unless the James Beard Awards’ impending changes are a complete overhaul, we’ll always struggle with national recognition. Part of that is what Helen mentions, and something I believe. A large percentage of visitors to Charlotte come here to visit family and friends. That’s fundamentally a different kind of visit than you would have on a trip to Charleston, when you’re likely dining out almost every night. If you’re visiting family, you may go out to a nice meal once or twice, but most meals would be at home. I believe part of it is an issue with media — one that we’re trying to remedy. Publications and influencers hype up new restaurants, creating an entire contingency of people who just shift from opening to opening. Restaurants get a false sense of safety from how well opening is going, until the next big thing opens and they’re left with a quiet dining room. There’s no money for the reliable when everyone’s seeking what is new.

Before Covid-19 hit, we were also facing a real estate issue. Charlotte is tearing down small spaces and building massive office and apartment buildings with spaces only established restaurateurs and chains can afford. That sends chefs like Paul Verica out to Waxhaw to open Heritage, or Greg Collier to open The Yolk in Rock Hill. In Charleston, I think we’re starting to see a change based on the cost of operating a restaurant there. This article in the New York Times was a great read. I also interviewed Indigo Road owner Steve Palmer about this, and he had some interesting insights on the demographic differences.

Lastly, in terms of comparing Asheville and Charlotte, I think the issue there is the tourism piece, specifically when it comes to awards. The James Beard Awards system requires voters to have dined at a restaurant for them to support a chef’s advancement beyond the semi-finalist round. Voters are more likely to have visited Asheville or Charleston on vacation than Charlotte. I’ve long believed that it will be a while before Charlotte has a James Beard Award winner, simply because we don’t have voters coming to town. That may change, however, with impending overhaul of the James Beard Awards in the next year.

I could go on and on about this, but I think that’s a good summary.

Q: I have seen your articles about both Counter- opening and the pop-up Anomaly from last fall. I had read that Chef Hart was supposed to open a restaurant of the same name in Dilworth this summer. Did Counter replace the restaurant that was supposed to be in Dilworth?
UP: It did! Chef Hart and his business partner with Anomaly, Erin Skaryak, parted ways, so Chef Hart had to come up with a new name and location for a concept. He went with Counter- as it has a similar meaning to the counter-intuitive, counter-culture experience he was looking to create. Counter- is in the front of The City Kitch’s new location in West Charlotte, on Thrift Road near Lucky Dog Bark & Brew. It’s still a tasting menu experience, and still paired with music.  You can read more about the change to Counter- here, and our thoughts on the new concept here.

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