Fork!

Background: 
Fork!, located in Cornelius, NC (right next to Davidson) is a farm-to-table restaurant situated in a quaint old house with a sprawling porch. Tim and Melanie Groody have owned Fork! for about four years, and they recently opened up Ramen Soul in Mooresville. Jason and I ventured here for date night on an unseasonably warm evening in February. Check out what we tried below!

FORKKKKKK!!!1!!!!

Eat This: 

Spicy Chicken spring rolls

Wasabi, plum sauce

Our waiter told us that he recommended the hickory smoked pork dumpling appetizer, but then Jason ordered these. Why would he do that? I don't know. You'll have to ask him. I don't like spring rolls, so I passed, but Jason reported that they were good. I'll eat you one day, pork dumplings. A lot of the menu items had an Asian or island-y flare, which we found interesting for the venue and rest of the menu (mac and cheese, mashed potatoes, etc.). 

Smoked caesar romaine salad

Garlic croutons, shaved artisan cheese

Simple and flavorful greens. They were even nice enough to split this into two portions for us, without us asking. Hospitality plus! 

Grapevine smoked wahoo

Bagna cauda, yogurt, arugula, pickled cauliflower greens

Fresh and citrus-y. 

All natural beef bistro steak

House made worcestershire 

The only dish we didn't like. We both felt the steak was a tad overcooked and lacked seasoning. 

Pan Seared mahi

Sorrel charmoula & basil collard pesto

The mahi had a crispy sear and great flavor. I love that the meats came with the option of sauce on the side. Obviously I ordered two (un-pictured). Because sauce. 

We don't know exactly why, but we didn't order enough dinner. Maybe the above would be enough for mere mortals, but we are hobby eaters. The only thing we didn't like was the steak, but for some reason we didn't feel like ordering anything else. It's a bit of a mystery, even to us. However, we had devised a game plan...

Dessert: 

Whit's frozen custard

...From down the way

I mean, we were only about a mile from Whit's, so...

And Whit's is only a half a mile from Kindred....

Kindred Milkbread

Yeah, that happened 

What have we done?!

We were weird. We know it. We are sure that Fork! has lovely desserts, and we will be back to try them one day. But on this night, we needed custard and some bread. I would recommend that Fork! implements a bread basket. But that's just this blogger's opinion. 

Drink: 
Jason and I stuck with tea (iced for him, hot for me) but Fork! had an inventive cocktail menu we will also be back to try. 

Atmosphere: 
Fork! was adorable, and while we liked the food, the real standout to me was the ambiance. We happened to be here on a gorgeous evening at dusk, but I have a feeling that Fork! just has good and cozy vibes whenever you go. It felt at once relaxed and upscale. 

Heyyy Jason 

Davidson Hospitality: 
Our server was super nice, and we felt awful, because we seemed to spook him with our picture taking. It wasn't his fault that we didn't order enough food and had to go to two more restaurants. That was solely on us. We are strange and we freely admit it. 

Frankie's Notes: 
We made it weird at Fork! and we don't really know why; The siren call of Kindred's milkbread is like a magnetic force field; Getting island vibes in Cornelius is confusing and exciting; Wrap-around porches make everything better; Why does Fork! have an exclamation point in it? 

Rating: 

3 out of 5

 

Halcyon, Flavors from the Earth

Scallops & pork belly

Background: 
Halcyon, located in Uptown Charlotte, shares a building with the Mint Museum and overlooks downtown Charlotte from its second story venue. Halcyon sources local ingredients and makes all of their food to order daily. Chef James Stouffer does not even serve previously frozen items--the only food kept in the freezer is their homemade ice cream. 

Our good friend Stephanie from @lifebychipsahoyt invited a large group of bloggers out one Thursday in February to sample Halcyon's fresh and seasonally rotating menu. We had such a blast, and although Jason and I had been to Halcyon in the past, it had been a while, and it was so great to see all of the fresh offerings for spring 2018. 

Hi! We are cute

Eat This: 
We started the night with a smorgasbord of snacks, spreads, and shareables. Diners can customize these small bites in whatever combination they choose. 

House-made bread & pita

Whipped Butter. Lemon Oil. Paprika.

Ate about five pieces of that bread in the back. And allll of that monogrammed butter. 

House-Cured Duck

Assorted Cheeses. Pickles. Mustard.

Chicken liver pate, n'duja, smoked salmon spread

hamachi crudo

Jardiniere Vegetables, Castelvetrano olives, artichokes barigoule

Oysters

Horseradish. Mingonette.

Lyonnaise Salad

Frisee. Benton’s Bacon. Poached Egg. Mustard Vinaigrette.

Roasted Kale & Farro Salad

Farro. Kale. Cauliflower. Golden Raisins. Marcona Almonds. Tahini Dressing.

Brussels Sprout Salad

Sea Island Peas. Hominy. Peanuts. Tobago Aioli.

Scallops & Pork Belly

Local Maitake Mushrooms. Roasted Green Onions. Spicy Aioli.

Braised Bison

Trumpet Mushrooms. Roasted Shallots. Poached Egg. Grilled Baguette. Bacon.

I am usually not a chicken girl, but this was my second favorite dish of the night. The mole and the phyllo made this such an unexpected delight. 

Salmon Koulibiac

Carolina Grit Rice. Cabbage. Mushroom Duxelle. Spinach. En Croute. Swedish Mustard.

Chicken Pastilla

Stewed Chicken. Potatoes. Capers. Olives. Green Mole. Chipotle Glaze. Phyllo. Herbs.

My favorite dish of the evening. Sooo much dill. Dill forward, even. 

Bloggers hard at work!

Post-cut

Venison Saddle

Braised Red Cabbage. Parsnip Puree. Cocoa Nibs. Toasted Oats.

Dessert: 
I forgot to snap a photo, but we were served the most delicious hand-rolled dark chocolate truffle for dessert. Other dessert options include house-spun ice cream, warm apple cake, chocolate mousse, & chevre cheesecake. I can't wait to go back and try them all!

Drink: 
Halcyon has an epic wine selection, and we enjoyed a dry white on this particular evening. Seasonally rotating cocktails are also available. The first time Jason and I came here, it was for his birthday in October 2014, and we enjoyed an epic pumpkin cocktail. That was pre-blog days, so no photo, but I still think fondly of that drink. 

Atmosphere: 
Halcyon is stunning, and the decor parallels their natural approach to cuisine. Some of the tables are made from long slabs of petrified wood, the light fixtures look like bird's nests, and there is a vibe that is at once upscale and woodsy. The restaurant faces the west, so if you come at dusk you can catch a gorgeous sunset over the Queen City.

Earthyyyyy

You seriously do not want to go out to eat with any of us

Locavore Hospitality: 
Halcyon is owned by the Mother Earth restaurant group that also runs Fern, Flavors from the Garden and Something Classic Cafe and catering company. On this visit and on our previous visits, we received top-notch customer service and servers who are attentive and well-informed about the cuisine. 

Frankie's Notes: 
If you go out to eat with bloggers, you just need to accept that your food is gonna get cold before you can eat it; Bird's nest chic is the new black; The way we swooned over the salmon koulbiac you would have thought it was a Backstreet Boys concert circa 1998; Monogrammed butter is how we do fine dining in the south; What is petrified wood so petrified of, pray tell? 

Disclaimer: This meal was provided free of charge in exchange for an honest and unbiased review. All opinions are our own, and we were not compensated for this review.

 

Chima

Hey, that's not a meat!

Background: 
You might be surprised to find out that Charlotte's favorite (and only) Brazilian steakhouse actually originated in Brazil. If you've ever been to Chima, this shouldn't surprise you, because it feels authentic af. Ft. Lauderdale got the first US location in 2004, and now Chima has four US locations, and Charlotte is lucky enough to be included in that exclusive club. If you have ever been to a Brazilian steakhouse, you know how magical they are.  Close to twenty different varieties of meat brought to your table on skewers? It's every American's Brazilian dream come true! We have long been Chima fans, particularly during restaurant week, as you can get so much bang for your buck here--you can save $20 per person off of the typical rate during restaurant week! Jason's history with Chima is particularly storied, and you can hear more about his meaty history in detail on this episode of the podcast (preview: his muscles get bigger with every bite of meat he takes). We felt completely and totally honored when Chima invited Scallionpancake out a few weeks ago to formally review Charlotte's meat amusement park. They seriously treated us like royalty. Look! We even got a sign: 

OMG QUIT YO DAY JOB

Eat This: 
Okay, here is how Chima works, for the uninitiated: 

Wonderful servers bring food accessories to your table (meat-cessories!). This includes mashed potatoes, polenta, fried bananas, turkey pate, meat croquettes, and, the very best thing of all: cheese bread. You can try a little bit of everything else, but eat all of the cheese bread. If you have any of it left over, please DM us and we will send you our P.O. Box number where you can send us all of your uneaten bread.  

Then, you hit up the salad bar. There are differing opinions on this, but I like to be liberal at the salad bar. It's all fresh, tasty, and it counterbalances the meat situation that's about to hit you hard. Jason is dainty at the salad bar, as he thinks it is foolish to use valuable stomach space on anything that isn't meat on a stick. On our last visit, he broke his own rule and went all out and ate a heart of palm (yes, just the one), and a sliver of Parmesan. 

When you feel prepared, you should turn your attention to your "meat button." Don't overthink that term, thanks. Your meat button has two speeds: orange, which means: "Yes, please, I would like all the meats" and black, which indicates: "I am on the verge of a physical and mental breakdown and I need a brief meat hiatus."

When you flip that button to orange, it is GO TIME, BABY. The meat comes fast, and you've gotta be ready. Do you want top sirloin? YES. Lamb shank? YES. Filet? SIR, YES, SIR Parmesean pork? YUP. Hot dog? GTFO of here with that noise. No offense to the hot dog and the chicken, but that's not what you're here for. You are here for the best of the best, and you must plan wisely. 

What if you are here with...gasp...a vegetarian/vegan??! No worries. They don't have to starve. Plenty of options for them on the salad bar, plus these two skewers for them--vegetables and, the newest option at Chima, cinnamon roasted pineapple! Whhaaatt. I know. Pretty great--even if you're an omnivore. 

Jason and I love the sauces at Chima, and sampled them all on our most recent visit. Our favorites are the hot sauce and the horseradish. Put it all over everything! Even your date, if you want to get weird. 

If you only learn one thing from this blog post, we need it to be this: Chima is not over when you're full. Chima is over when you hate yourself. And that's the best lesson I can give you. Now is not the time to be conservative. Now is not the time to diet. You are gonna meat out, k? You need to be in a full-scale meat sweat by the time you leave. 

Think you're full? NO! Eat this bread, too! Eat it all! Get a plate full of butter because you are living

Dessert: 
Our most recent visit is the only time we have found valuable stomach space for dessert, and we are so glad we did. We tried the chocolate peanut butter lava cake and the Brazilian trio. The cake was good, but if you are only getting one dessert, we highly recommend the trio. It comes with a walnut cream, a beijinho, which is a mixture of coconut and condensed milk, and a brigadeiro, which is a chocolate and condensed milk concoction. The coconut was our favorite of the three, and we would like an entire vat of it. Well, two vats. One for each of us. Everyone knows I hate to share dessert. 

Post-fork 

The Scallion behind Scallionpancake 

Drink: 
If it's your first visit, you absolutely must try the Caipirinha, which is Brazil's national cocktail. A traditional Caipirinha is made with cachaca, sugar, and lime. How is it different from a Mojito? A mojito is made with rum, which is distilled from molasses, and cachaca is a liquor distilled from sugarcane. Chima also makes a mango and strawberry variety in addition to the traditional lime flavor. 

We also recommend a nice red wine to accompany all of that meat. 

Atmosphere:
Chima has great lighting and a hip vibe. Also, with everything going on, Chima is a great spot to go with friends or on a date--it's as much entertainment as it is a dinner. 

Brazilian Hospitality: 
The servers are so attentive at Chima. There is always someone asking you if you need anything. When your meat button is on "go" the food comes around so quickly, but the servers are very aware if you are on a meat break, and they won't bother you if your button is turned to black. 

Frankie's Notes: 
Jason's muscles really do get bigger when he eats meat, but only the muscles on the top half of his body, so he collapses like an accordion; Why aren't meat-musement parks a thing?; I wish every restaurant brought around items on skewers--right down to the check; We really do have a P.O. Box filled with Charlottean's unwanted bread; Or do we?; After eating at Chima, you need to lie down within 20 minutes before meat fatigue kicks in--you've been warned.

Disclaimer: This meal was provided free of charge in exchange for an honest and unbiased review. All opinions are our own, and we were not compensated for this review.

 

Zeppelin

Don't feed this to a Millenial gremlin after midnight

Background: 
Zeppelin opened in South End, Charlotte, in late 2017, and shares a building space with the soon-to-open new South End Common Market and the recently opened Bang Bang Bites. Head Chef Vince Giancarlo worked previously at Baku, Aquavina, and Cantina 1511. We found the overall Zeppelin experience similar to Soul Gastro--small plates in a hip and cozy atmosphere with a banging cocktail list. Zeppelin is tiny and super hot right now, so prepare yourself for a wait (and make use of the Nowait app--hear about the trials and tribulations we endured just to get a table on the podcast). 

Eat This: 
The menu is divided into "Smalls" and "Biggies," and below are our orders from two visits. 

Maine Lobster Avocado Toast

Butter poached, homemade brioche, herb aioli, bacon, preserved lemon

The thick and sweet brioche toast with that generous lobster claw? Avocado toast perfection, we say! 

Scratch Buns

Sweet miso Heritage pork belly, shaved cabbage, pickled chilis

Love, love, love. 

American Wagyu Tartare

Taro & sweet potato chips, black truffle yolk, egg custard, roasted tomato relish

The tartare was just okay--we felt this dish was concerned with presentation over flavor. 

Point Judith Calamari

Korean chile, yuzu, pickled bacon dashi gel, serranos, HRF shishitos

Our new favorite calamari in town--sorry to Luca. The dashi gel took it to another level. Slightly spicy, slightly sweet, and just lightly fried. 

Bacon Dashi

served with the calamari

Pacific Yellowtail Crudo

Coal-kissed, pickled & smoked red onion, sriracha tartare crispy rice, serranos, ponzu, truffles

Delicious--get everything below in one bite, and it's a thing of beauty. 

Maine Lobster Mac & Cheese

House-made fettuccine, uni bechamel, truffle froth, brioche crumbs, bacon-poached lobster tail

One of our favorites--we were licking the bowl. Can you blame us? 

Notorious P.I.G Puppies

Braised HRF pork cheek puppies, Eastern Carolina BBQ, whipped honey butter, house BBQ sauce

These cute little puppers were a table favorite! The savory barbecue flavor paired with the crispy fritter perfectly. 

Dry Aged Crispy Duck

Local wildflower honey, sansyo pepper, coriander, fleur de sel, arnaud olive oil, fresh herbs, compressed persimmon

Only I really liked this duck--other dining companions complained that the flavor was off.

Dessert: 
There are currently three options--a chocolate cake with Biscoff ice cream, a Krispy Kreme bread pudding with dulce de leche, vanilla-yuzu ice cream and candied rose petals, and a trio of ice creams (the biscoff, vanilla-yuzu, and a chocolate variety). We loved both of the options below, but if you have to pick just one, we recommend the chocolate cake. 

Chocolate Cake 

with Biscoff Ice cream

Krispy Kreme bread pudding

with dulce de leche, vanilla-yuzu ice cream and candied rose petals

Drink: 
Bartender Ryan Hart crafted a gorgeous and novel-esque cocktail menu with a mix of innovative cocktails ("Remixes") and old school 1900s "Classics" like gin fizzes and sazeracs. 

Gin Fizz
Gin, lemon, egg white, sparkling mineral water

This cocktail was rather poorly mixed--some pockets of egg white and lemon were suspended in a viscous trap of blech, but subsequent cocktails were all fabulous (no pictures due to: too lit. Whoops). 

Gin Fizz

Behind the magical bar

Atmosphere: 
Zeppelin calls to mind early 1900s vibes, and stays on theme with zeppelin drawings and a giant metal zeppelin hanging above the dining area. Random liquor bottles, knick knacks, and the odd bird cage (or three) complete the look, but we felt that the decor went a bit overboard in this respect and was somewhat cluttered (particularly on the empty bottle front). We did, however, love The Savage Way's giant preserved moss "Z," which is certainly the visual focal point of the restaurant. 

Wide shot of Zeppelin interior/image courtesy of Charlotte Business Journal

A divider down the center of the restaurant keeps the side farthest from the bar from being to noisy, and creates a private atmosphere for each table. 

World War I Hospitality: 
Shout out to server Tony, who we have had the pleasure of having on both of our visits. He provided attentive service, always checked in and thoroughly explained each dish to us. We love you, Tony!

Insert big-eye emoji here

Frankie's Notes: 
Has avocado toast jumped the shark?; Biggie Smalls is so hot on Charlotte restaurant menus right now; Apparently the Hindenburg was a rigid airship and a zeppelin is a semi-rigid airship; Scallionpancake drops facts like candied rose petals; The romanticization of the turn of the twentieth century needs to be replaced with a renaissance of the Mesozoic Era and dinosaur themed restaurants; Forget about activated charcoal--what about asteroid debris lattes?; No dinosaurs were harmed in the making of this post. 

Rating: 

5 out of 5