NoDa coffeeshop closes, Scotland's World Cup menu, best Greek restaurants in Charlotte

Hungry for the latest Charlotte food and drink news? 🍽️ Today’s CharlotteFive newsletter has plenty to chew on, from Scotland’s World Cup kitchen secrets to a beloved NoDa coffee shop closing its doors. Here’s a quick taste of what’s happening around the Queen City.

⚽ Scotland’s World Cup fuel, served Charlotte-style

Forget plain protein shakes. 🥥 Evan spent time with Scotland’s World Cup staff at Charlotte FC’s training facility and discovered the team is fueling up on nonalcoholic piña coladas packed with electrolytes, frozen grapes dusted with nutrients and yes, imported baked beans from back home. Scotland has made Charlotte FC’s Atrium Health Performance Park its official base camp for the tournament, and the kitchen team behind the scenes is working overtime to keep elite players hydrated in our 90-degree Carolina heat.

Charlotte FC Executive Chef Chris Boyleston and Dining Manager John Major are teaming up with Scotland’s staff to build menus that change daily. 🍳 “Typically, there are always changes, so we just have to roll with the punches,” Boyleston told Evan. Tuesday’s lunch spread? Japanese breaded chicken bites with katsu sauce, sticky rice, spicy sausage rigatoni, sautéed prawns, Cajun potato wedges and a spread of veggies. And the players are eating up Southern flavors too.

📖 Read Evan’s full story for the deep dive on those electrolyte-dusted grapes (which apparently taste more like candy than sports nutrition).

☕ Provided Coffee says goodbye to NoDa

Tough news for NoDa caffeine seekers. 😔 Diamy reports that Provided Coffee will close its NoDa café on Sunday, June 21, just eight months after opening at 📍 3100 N. Davidson St. The brand cited “changes to our building” in its Instagram announcement. The NoDa shop was Provided’s first standalone location and opened in October 2025 as a “last second life boat” to serve Charlotte after the closure of its uptown flagship.

The good news? ✨ Provided isn’t disappearing. The team will keep running its Concord location inside Nothing New Vintage, which at 5,000 square feet is one of the largest coffee shops in the state, plus the original coffee cart for events and pop-ups. NoDa staff will rotate into the other ventures. There’s a DJ and specials lined up for the final day on June 21, so foodies can send the shop off properly.

📖 Get the full scoop from Diamy here.

🫒 Greek restaurant showdown: vote for your favorite

The CharlotteFive Readers’ Choice contest is down to the final two, Heidi reports. 🥙 After narrowing nominations from your favorite Greek spots in the Charlotte area to a Top 10, then a Top 5, two finalists remain standing in the battle for the best Greek restaurant in town. Whether your go-to order is a gyro loaded with tzatziki, a feta-topped salad or savory kebabs, this is your chance to make it official.

Voting closes at noon Friday, so don’t sleep on it. 🗳️ You can refresh the page and vote again, which means you can stack the deck for your favorite.

📖 Cast your vote here and crown a winner.

🥧 McDonald’s fried apple pie is back after 30+ years

Calling all nostalgia eaters. 🍎 McDonald’s is bringing back its original fried apple pie on Tuesday, June 23, at locations across North Carolina and nationwide. The dessert hasn’t been on regular menus in more than three decades, Tanasia reports. Before this return, you could only find it in Hawaii or at a single restaurant in Downey, California. It’s a limited-time deal, although McDonald’s hasn’t said exactly how long it’ll stick around.

A little history for you: the fried apple pie was McDonald’s very first dessert, joining menus in 1968. It was created by Tennessee franchisee Litton Cochran based on a family recipe his wife Jo perfected. 👨‍🍳 “Bringing the Fried Apple Pie back for fans this summer to celebrate America’s 250th just feels right,” Eric Cochran, Litton’s grandson and a longtime McDonald’s owner/operator, said in a release. The pie switched from deep-fried to baked in 1992, so this is the real, crispy, golden original.

📖 Read more about the comeback.

🌱 Happy food news: a Sweetgreen splurge

Melissa shared her recent indulgence in today’s newsletter: the Super Green Goddess salad from Sweetgreen, loaded with kale, spinach, roasted sweet potatoes, shredded cabbage, spicy broccoli, roasted almonds, chickpeas, raw carrots and green goddess ranch. 🥗 “I don’t often order Sweetgreen because I do have a mortgage to pay, but occasionally, it’s worth the splurge to get a healthy meal without having to cook,” she wrote.

Got food finds making your day better? 📧 Send a note to charlottefive@charlottefive.com — it might land in the next newsletter.

🍷 Half-off wine and weekly food specials worth knowing

Foodies on a budget, take note. 🍾 Napa Bistro & Wine Bar StoneCrest is now offering 50% off all bottles of wine under $100 every Thursday as part of its new weekly specials lineup. A few more deals to put on your calendar:

• Monday Uncorked (Napa on Providence and Napa Kingsley) — 50% off select shareables and all bottles of wine under $100
• Midweek Smash (all locations) — House Smash Burger or Classic Smash Burger for $15 every Wednesday
• Sunday Supper (all locations) — Bucatini & Meatballs or Bucatini Carbonara for $15, or $20 with a salad

🇺🇸 Plus: a July 4 cookout to bookmark

Goodyear House is hosting a Fourth of July barbecue, and reservations are open now. 🔥 If you want a holiday meal you don’t have to cook yourself, 📖 grab your spot through OpenTable here.

📬 Want this kind of food news daily?

CharlotteFive sends a fresh roundup of Charlotte’s food, drink and lifestyle news to inboxes every weekday. 🍴 If you’re hungry for hidden gems, restaurant openings, closings and reader voting contests like the Greek showdown, this is the easiest way to stay in the loop.

✨ Sign up for the free CharlotteFive newsletter here and start every morning a little more in the know.

This report was produced with the assistance of a proprietary tool powered by artificial intelligence and using our own originally reported, written and published content. It was reviewed and edited by our journalists. To learn more about how The Charlotte Observer is using AI in our newsroom, see our policy here.