PHOTOS: The Cheesecake Factory to open, SouthPark spots closing
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True Food Kitchen: South End, Source: True Food Kitchen The Phoenix-based wellness-driven restaurant company will occupy 6,000 square feet on the ground level at Linea, a 24-story tower at 2161 Hawkins St. It will dish up a chef-crafted menu, with dishes and drinks that look to defy expectations of what healthy food tastes like — and how good those foods can make a diner feel. True Food has gained momentum since being founded by Dr. Andrew Weil in 2008. Weil, an integrative medicine specialist, created the anti-inflammatory food pyramid and anti-inflammatory diet, which is proven to help prevent cancer and other diseases. Signature items include the Ancient Grains Bowl and Tuscan Kale Salad, but the menu has evolved to include burgers, pizzas, desserts and cocktails. True Food expects to open in late spring 2025.
Haymaker: Uptown, Source: Melissa Key Chef William Dissen has sold his upscale, farm-to-table restaurant at 225 S. Poplar St. to Chris Coleman and Built on Hospitality. Coleman, also a chef, is behind The Goodyear House in NoDa and Olde Town Kitchen & Cocktails in Rock Hill. Expect few changes to the Haymaker brand. Coleman told CBJ he sees opportunities to expand the bar program with beverage director Bob Peters at the helm and to add some new menu items. The goal is to eventually roll out lunch service, take advantage of event space and boost existing offerings by serving diners headed to the theater or a sporting event. Happy-hour specials are also planned.
The People's Market: Lower South End, Source: The People's Market Founder Cory Duran has signed a deal to expand his local all-day market to The Station at LoSo where it will occupy 5,000 square feet at Station 4. The People’s Market is the first tenant revealed for Station 4, part of a mixed-use development by Beacon Partners that features two five-story, mixed-use office/retail buildings, each measuring 100,000 square feet. The location will offer a full menu. It is still in the works, but scratch-made fare is planned with breakfast, artisan sandwiches and wraps, pizza, salads, smash burgers, pastries and vegan options. The full bar will feature craft beer on tap, custom cocktails and wine by the glass. The coffee program will offer batch brew, nitro and espresso drinks, customizable with house-made flavors and milk choice. Brewed teas, smoothies, and refreshers will also be available. It is slated to open in spring 2024.
Crazy Mason Milkshake Bar: Concord, Source: Crazy Mason Milkshake Bar Franchisees Aaron and Monika Leach expect to open a 3,700-square-foot location at 5965 Thunder Road, near Concord Mills, in October. It will dish up 32 flavors of milkshakes made with Blue Bell Ice Cream. Other options include Crazy Bomb ice cream sandwiches and elaborate sundaes built on sugar pearl waffles, as well as desserts such as cobblers, strawberry shortcake, New York-style cheesecake, a six-layer chocolate cake and cotton candy burrito. The couple aims to make The Crazy Mason a dessert destination.
Cheesecake Factory: Huntersville, Source: MELISSA KEY/CBJ The Cheesecake Factory is opening its Huntersville restaurant at Birkdale Village on Aug. 15 — its second location in the Charlotte market. It will occupy about 9,500 square feet, with indoor and outdoor seating, at 8701 Townley Road in a space that was formerly home to Gap. The Cheesecake Factory is known for its extensive menu, with more than 250 dishes freshly prepared and made from scratch daily. The dessert menu features 30-plus cheesecake options with flavors such as salted caramel, red velvet cake or white chocolate raspberry. There’s also carrot cake, tiramisu and a Chocolate Tower Truffle Cake.
Phat Burrito: Lower South End, Source: Michael Cox Charlotte native Michael Cox is looking to revive Phat Burrito in a 2,600-square-foot location in LoSo Village in lower South End. It will be located at 3542 Dewitt Lane. The popular burrito concept shuttered its doors in South End in February 2017. Cox bought Phat Burrito’s trademark and recipes, and wants to capture the vibe of the original restaurant. A la carte burritos and tacos will again take center stage. The goal is to open in mid- to late August.
Portofino’s Ristorante Italiano e Pizzeria: Uptown, Source: Melissa Key/CBJ The restaurant will open an express version in a 2,500-square-foot-space on the ground floor of One Independence Center, at 101 N. Tryon St. Portofino’s will serve its signature, authentic Italian recipes, including pizza, pastas and an expanded selection of sandwiches on homemade bread. Expect a casual atmosphere suited for dining in or grab-and-go offerings. It is targeting a spring 2024 opening and will be neighbors with Monarch Market, an 18,000-square-foot food hall that's under construction in the building.
Bossy Beulah’s Chicken Shack: Fort Mill, Source: Plaid Penguin The 2,300-square-foot restaurant opened at 314 N. White St. — formerly home to Coleman’s Garage — in late July, marking the fourth location for Charlotte chef Jim Noble's chicken sandwich brand. Bossy Beulah’s is known for its signature fried chicken sandwich, called the “Beaut" — a fried Joyce Farms chicken breast with Duke’s mayonnaise and house-made pickles on a Copain bun. The concept dishes up a limited menu. There’s Bossy Bites; the Hot Thigh Sandwich; the Bossy Salad; and sides such as fries, a simple salad and Iredell slaw. There’s also soft-serve ice cream and desserts made by Copain Bakery.
Slim Chickens: Indian Trail, Source: CBJ/Mark Jackson Franchisees Rob Bryan and Jonathan Crumpler have opened the third Slim Chickens location in the Charlotte market at 5118 Old Charlotte Highway. That 3,200-square-foot location, which includes a covered 500-square-foot covered patio, opened in late July. The menu is built around fresh chicken tenders — both grilled and fried — and wings cooked to order, with 17 house-made dipping sauces to choose from. There are also sandwiches, chicken and waffles, and salads as well as sides such as mac and cheese, coleslaw and potato salad. Another site is under construction in Concord, with a September opening targeted. Up to 15 locations are planned across the Charlotte region.
Capital Tacos: Mallard Creek area, Source: Capital Tacos The Tampa Bay, Florida-based taco shop opened its first North Carolina location at 1823 E. Arbors Drive in July. Capital Tacos dishes up a chef-inspired menu that is scratch made, grilled to order and made fresh daily. Its menu has 13 core flavor profiles — available as a taco, burrito or bowl. Each has up to eight ingredients — with a variety of proteins, from chicken and fish to shrimp and fried cauliflower — and toppings. Capital Tacos is also known for its starters and sides, which include flash-fried tortilla chips and queso, Mexican street corn and queso bites — a Tex-Mex version of mozzarella sticks. A second location is set to open soon at 282 S. Sharon Amity Road in the Cotswold Village shopping center.
BW Sweets Bakery: Charlotte, Source: Melissa Key/CBJ The local dessert shop known for its custom cakes and a grab-and-go selection of sweets announced in July it had closed its retail locations with plans to launch an e-commerce operation. It said customers will soon be able to order BW Sweets desserts to be delivered to their home or place of business. Plans include expanding its reach by way of restaurants and grocery stores, too. BW Sweets has opened several retail locations over the years, including its most recent flagship shop at East Town Market, off East W.T. Harris Boulevard. It added a smaller, "express" location in South End in late 2020 and, at one point, had plans for a third store in west Charlotte.
The Fox & Falcon by David Burke: SouthPark, Source: DBHM Celebrity chef David Burke has purchased the lease and assets to Dogwood Southern Table & Bar at 4905 Ashley Park Lane. Longtime Charlotte restaurateur Jon Dressler opened Dogwood in the 4,100-square-foot space in November 2014. It will close in mid- to late August. Burke expects a modern American restaurant concept there. The menu has some signature dishes, with the restaurant open for happy hour as well. He is working on the concept with local restaurateur Robert Maynard, behind the Famous Toastery brand.
Burke currently operates Red Salt by David Burke and Cloud Bar inside Le Méridian in uptown, as well as Port City Club by David Burke in Cornelius. A fourth venture, G.O.A.T. Pizza, is under construction in Cornelius and will open later this year.
Free Will Craft & Vine: NoDa, Source: Jim Charchidi/OBJ The 60-tap, self-pour beer and wine establishment closed at 3701 N. Davidson St. in late July after a five-year run. The 4,500-square-foot space was focused on entertainment, with couches for lounging, board games, trivia nights and shuffleboard, as well as flat screen TVs for watching sports. There's also a 14-foot multi-sport virtual simulator for golf, hockey and football, and a corner stage for bands. It offered food such as wings and build-your-own pizzas. The closing appeared unexpected, as Free Will had a number of events listed on its website through Labor Day.
Bonterra: SouthPark, Source: Melissa Key/CBJ The restaurant’s last day at Phillips Place in SouthPark was on July 29. It opened in September after moving from its longtime Dilworth home, which is set to become Leluia Hall. Bonterra had been open for 24 years. The roughly 3,600-square-foot space will become Phillips Place Bistro and Sports Bar, with TVs being brought in and the menu being tweaked. An early September opening is being targeted.
Royal Bliss Brewing: Cornelius, Source: Melissa Key/CBJ Brewery owner Larry Griffin plans to submit a conditional rezoning application to the town of Cornelius in August for an 11,400-square-foot brewery and restaurant. It would be located on a 2.9-acre parcel off Harbor View Drive. If approved, Royal Bliss could be looking at an early 2025 opening there. Griffin and wife Ginger launched the Royal Bliss brand in Denver in March 2020. The brewery was Denver’s first, sitting just across the Lincoln County line. Expect Cornelius to be very different than the original site. It will be a full-fledged restaurant serving beer and spirits.
Resident Culture Brewing: Uptown, Source: PETER TAYLOR PHOTOGRAPHY The local brewery has snagged space at The Market at 7th Street. It will have a 300-square-foot bar with 12 beers on tap as well as cans-to-go when it opens in August. Resident Culture plans to move into a 1,200-square-foot space, including a patio, in late 2024. The market is at 224 E. 7th St. This marks the third location for the brewery, which got its start in Plaza Midwood in 2017 and opened a South End location in 2022. It has built a following for its IPAs, lagers and stouts. Its coolship, an open vessel used in the fermentation process, allows it to collect yeast from the air and develop funky and experimental offerings.
Puerta: Elizabeth, Source: Curtis Groll The restaurant at 1961 E. 7th St. is set to debut on Aug. 11 with a dinner and late-night menu. Dishes will honor Mexican culture and be prepared with traditional techniques. Tacos include different fillings including barbacoa, al pastor, lengua, seafood, carne asada and a vegetarian option with crispy potatoes in a chipotle mole sauce. There will also be soups and salads, little bites including dips and salsas, handhelds and entrees. The bar program at Puerta will focus on Mexican-made spirits, beer and wine. Cocktails will be regionally inspired classics made with fresh juice and poured over clear ice into frozen glassware. Five margaritas are on the opening menu, along with six signature cocktails featuring tequila and mezcal. Puerta marks the fourth dining concept in Elizabeth from 1957 Hospitality Group, which also owns and operates The Crunkleton, Rosemont Market & Wine Bar and Cheat’s Cheesesteak Parlor.
