Last updated: January 8, 2020

In the Weeds

After a long day at work, or maybe even just a day spent laying around the house, people are often in need of reviving and a chance to wash away the woes of the day. Of course, for some folks, not just any old watering hole will do. Looking for more than knocking back PBRs and dusty peanuts at your corner bar? I’ve got a place just for you: Sophia’s Lounge. 

Located below The Ivey’s Hotel and situated next to sister concept 5Church, Sophia’s Lounge is an inviting setting peppered with comfortable seating areas for both intimate couples and large groups of friends. In the far right corner is a well-equipped bar lined with blue-backed bar stools. On my first visit to Sophia’s, I headed to that bar. Firmly ensconced in the plush expanse of a barstool, I was handed a menu by the barkeep, who seemed either annoyed or distracted by my presence and wasn’t keen to chat. As I considered the menu, I scanned the room to find a picture of the Queen our city — and the restaurant — takes her name from. I couldn’t find a portrait of Sophia Charlotte, but I did notice that the walls and seating areas are nicely decorated with a mix of antique bric-a-brac and mid-century French advertising. 

The menu features around a dozen cocktails, weekly cocktail and food specials, and a handful of small dishes. Unlike 5Church, but also helmed by now-celebrity chef Jamie Lynch, Sophia’s Lounge focuses on and specializes in cocktails. In addition to mixed drinks, there’s your standard offering of wines by the glass, local and European beers, and bottles of champagne for special occasions or showing off. 

Higher Education, an impressively complex cocktail, is made with bourbon, amaretto, egg white, a splash of lemon, and black walnut bitters in a delicate coupe glass. Perhaps better enjoyed at the end of the evening, it offers a powerful punch of flavor, and a distinct sense that its ingredients were well thought-out before being placed on the menu. That’s a trait that runs throughout the cocktail menu — even in fruity drinks like the rum-based Pineapple Express. I could actually taste the pineapple and dark rums dancing down my palate as I slurped away at the drink. Not overly sweet or diluted, this is a rum drink that wants you to know exactly what you’re drinking. Other standouts include the Jaliscan Coffee, with the smoky pungency of blue agave combining with fruity notes of coconut and the bitter bite of amaro — not to mention the rush of caffeine from cold brew coffee — to create a drink that simultaneously lifts you up and mellows you out. Cool as a Cucumber, a light and airy drink, is Jaliscan coffee’s opposite but equally pleasurable for the aromatic florality of gin mingling well with the herbal menagerie of basil, lavender, and ginger, and the crisp contrast of the cucumber. Refreshing while still retaining a strong boozy bite, Cool as a Cucumber is a lazy summer afternoon in a glass. Though it may sound like the world’s most boring criminal conspiracy, Swiss Cartel is another must-order tequila drink that runs counter to what many have come to expect of Mexican spirits. Tequila, mezcal, sweet vermouth, and Italian aperitif, this drink blends the entire flavor range of spirits. 

Of course, one can’t enjoy this many cocktails on an empty stomach. 

The grilled kimchi pimento cheese is the high-end spot’s take on a must-have Charlotte dish. Generous slabs of adobo-marinated pork belly seated on top of challah bread made up for the deficient amount of both kimchi and pimento cheese. That small issue aside, the dish was both flavorful and unique. 

Similarly, the yellowfin tuna poke stack shows how dedicated a cocktail lounge can be to its elevated bar food. I figure if you take the time to source good quality tuna, you’re probably doing most things on the menu right. Sure enough, the dish appeared and my eyes were greeted with a riot of color as generous amounts of fresh tuna mingled with chunks of pineapple, pickled red onions, jalapeños, and avocado over a carefully-sculpted mound of sushi rice. Served alongside it were crispy, and frankly irresistible, lotus root chips. With less oil and starch, think of them as an earthier take on the potato chip. I consider this dish a must-order for everyone except those unfortunate people who don’t have a taste for raw fish. The bulgogi meatballs, the barley miso chicken sliders, and the jerk octopus lettuce wraps will more than satisfy your stomach. 

Aside from merely perfunctory service at both the bar and lounging in the seating areas, a trip to Sophia’s Lounge is an evening of refined drinks and bar food succeeding in its attempt to compete with the cities many cocktail-slinging establishments. The young moneyed class of the city filter in for a drink or three, and a snack or two, before finding their way to that evening’s main attraction. Older couples stop in for a nightcap before taking the elevator back up to their rooms, Uber back to their homes, or eschewing my ageist expectations,  going to dance the night away. Each visit to the lounge is an indulgent escape from life’s stresses, but each visit left me asking the same questions.

What exactly is Sophia’s Lounge? Is it just another cocktail bar with small plates? Is it really just an elevated hotel lobby? Or is it something else entirely? I was determined to find out, but have yet to find a satisfying answer. With expensive prices and a setting meant to wow you, this is a place custom-built for the Instagrammable young who are flocking to the city everyday. Think of it as a Cheers where everyone might not know your name, but they’ll certainly like your posts on social media. The lack of identity, however, leaves me wondering whether Sophia’s Lounge has become merely to be a stopping-off point on the way to more substantial libations and bites — or if that’s all it’s meant to be. —Travis Mullis