World's best ice cream, nachos voting and buzzy Charlotte openings
Hey Charlotte foodies. 👋 Between a Steele Creek shop earning a global ice cream crown, two restaurants requiring literal waivers before serving you dinner and a beloved listening bar closing its doors, it’s been a packed week in Queen City food news. Here’s your Saturday morning download of everything worth knowing from CharlotteFive this week. 🍴
🌮 Vote for Charlotte’s best nachos
Y’all nominated, and Heidi rounded up 30 Charlotte-area spots serving nachos worth arguing about. 🗳️ Voting is officially open, and you can refresh the page to vote as often as your appetite demands. Eligible restaurants have to be in the Charlotte area (places like Lake Norman, Gastonia, Matthews, Mint Hill and Fort Mill all count), have fewer than 20 locations nationwide and can’t have already won a previous Readers’ Choice contest.
📖 Check out the full ballot and start casting.
🥪 $25 at Katz Deli in Ballantyne
Eva took $25 to Katz Deli for the “On a Budget” series and got real-deal New York commentary in the process. 🗽 While she read the menu, one woman jumped in: “Well if you’re not sure, ask a New Yorker!” Eva ordered a turkey BLT, a baked knish, cucumber salad and a cream soda — landing exactly at $25 with tip.
The verdict? Sandwich was comically tall but manageable, the potato knish was a carb-lover’s dream and the cucumber salad had that quick-pickle vibe. She’s already planning a return trip. 📍 Find Katz Deli in Ballantyne.
🍔 Charlotte’s 1992 burger scene
Melissa dug into The Charlotte Observer archives and unearthed a gem from restaurant writer Helen Schwab, published May 8, 1992. Readers had voted for the city’s juiciest burgers, and the Rebel Room racked up seven votes (one faxed letter claimed to speak for five people on its own). Lupie’s and Spoon’s tied at five each.
The list is a full tour through ’90s Charlotte: South 21 on East Independence, the Lantana at the Bradley Motel, Zack’s on South Boulevard, Providence Road Sundries, What-A-Burger and dozens more. One reader still dreamed about the South 21 cheeseburger a decade after going vegetarian.
🎬 SCREENX debuts at Concord Mills
Théoden walked into AMC Concord Mills’s new SCREENX auditorium with his skeptic hat on. The format, which debuted in South Korea in 2012, projects scenes onto the side walls for a 270-degree panoramic effect. He tested it on “Toy Story 5,” the first Pixar film built specifically for the format.
His verdict? Genuinely surprised. The side walls engage your peripheral vision without hijacking your attention. 🍿 The premium ticket runs about $5 more than a standard showing, and Théoden says it’s worth it for movies made for the format.
🌶️ Spicy dishes that require a waiver
Evan is on a mission to find Charlotte’s hottest food, and two spots stand out because they make you literally sign a waiver. Dave’s Hot Chicken requires a signed waiver — and proof you’re 18+ — before serving anything at their “Reaper” level. Then there’s Painted Rooster inside Optimist Hall, where the “Stoopid Hot” tenders also require a waiver.
Other picks worth adding to your list: Bullet Chicken at Aroma Indian Grill, the chicken pad thai at Thai Taste on East Boulevard at “max heat” and Curry Gate for spicy chicken curry. 📍 Find Dave’s Hot Chicken on Google Maps and Painted Rooster on Google Maps.
🐟 The Belly of the Whale opens in Cotswold
Tanasia reports The Belly of the Whale opened July 16 in the former Pizza Peel + Tap Room space. Husband-and-wife team Raynold and Tatiana Mendizabal are behind it — Raynold, who spent two-plus decades diving and fishing the Outer Banks, runs the kitchen, and Tatiana handles front of house.
Think beau sels oysters, salted fish croquettes, roasted swordfish and pizzas topped with lobster, tomatoes and stracciatella. The menu can change daily. Monday nights are dedicated to Charlotte’s hospitality workers. 📍 Find The Belly of the Whale on Google Maps.
🥗 FARE lands in Charlotte — and is already expanding
Eva writes that Chicago’s seed-oil-free, refined-sugar-free fast-casual FARE debuts early fall at Queensbridge Collective, and founder Kasia Bednarz says they’re already eyeing Plaza Midwood. “We definitely didn’t come to Charlotte to open up just one location,” Bednarz said.
Expect scratch-made all-day breakfast plus seasonal bowls (best seller: maple harissa sweet potatoes 🍠). “Our whole mission is to prove that fast food can be real food,” Bednarz said. 📍 Find Queensbridge Collective and read the full story here.
🍦 Nat Geo’s No. 1 ice cream on the planet
Teen writer Tristan visited Handel’s Homemade Ice Cream in Steele Creek — the shop National Geographic crowned the “#1 ice cream on the planet.” Founded in 1945 in Youngstown, Ohio, Handel’s makes its ice cream fresh in every franchise store, with more than 100 flavors in rotation across four area locations.
Tristan tried a waffle cone stuffed with Buckeye (peanut butter base, chocolate swirls, mini peanut butter cups) plus a brownie sundae big enough to split. His verdict: “Fresh-made ice cream in every store, a flavor list deep enough to require patience and portions that don’t skimp.” 📍 Find Handel’s in Steele Creek and check out Tristan’s review.
🍺 Popular Plaza Midwood bar Lorem Ipsum closes
Tanasia reports Lorem Ipsum — the listening bar tucked inside The Refuge hotel on Central Avenue — closed after more than two years. Esquire named it one of the 15 best bars in America in 2025, so it’s a real loss. HVAC issues during the recent heat wave pushed up a closure that was already planned for late July.
Owner Justin Hazelton isn’t done: he’s planning a new concept at the Innovation Barn plus a radio venture with live music and DJ sets. “Because of all of you, Lorem grew into something far greater than a cocktail bar,” Hazelton wrote in his farewell post.
🍗 The last Midtown Sundries standing
In the ’90s and 2000s, Midtown Sundries seemed to be everywhere — Cornelius, University City, South Charlotte, Rock Hill, Indian Land, Kenilworth Avenue, Denver. Now? Just one is left, about 20 miles northwest of uptown. Evan revisited the Denver spot and found almost nothing has changed: same big square bar, same TVs, same pool tables and Golden Tee.
Manager Chuck Howard, who’s been there about 13 years, said consistency is the whole point. Regulars swear by the jumbo wings, especially the Barbalo — a housemade barbecue-buffalo blend. 📍 Find Midtown Sundries and read Evan’s full story.
🍤 New: EVO Kitchen & Co. and Ilios Crafted Greek
Two new-restaurant announcements dropped this week. EVO Kitchen & Co. opens Saturday, Aug. 1, in Steele Creek near the Charlotte Premium Outlets, serving elevated Southern cuisine with global influences. Founders Edmond “Roc Well” McMiller and Myra Wilson describe it as “refined yet approachable.” Chef Kendrick Hollis, a military veteran with 15+ years of experience, oversees the kitchen. 📍 Find EVO Kitchen and read Tanasia’s full story.
Meanwhile, Ilios Crafted Greek opens its fifth Charlotte-area location Monday, July 20, at Sadler Square in Davidson. The first 100 customers get a free bottle of Ilios’s proprietary extra virgin olive oil. The chain recently transitioned to cooking exclusively with olive oil and imports pita bread directly from Greece. 📍 Find Ilios in Davidson and get all the details from Tanasia.
📬 More news to use
- 🏖️ Figure Eight Island: Evan’s guide to the quiet luxury beach near Wilmington
- 🍕 Best brewery pizza in Charlotte: Melissa’s theory on NoDa Brewing, Salud and The Exchange
- 🏔️ 4 NC mountain resorts named among the South’s best by Travel + Leisure
- 🍣 Kura Sushi opens in Ballantyne — first location in North Carolina
- 🍺 Sierra Nevada Taproom in Mills River ranked No. 9 on Yelp’s best breweries list
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Have a great weekend, Charlotte. 👋
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.