RoCo’s Costa Rican rotisserie chicken remains a hit three decades later in Charlotte
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Several Peruivan rotisserie chicken restaurants have joined Charlotte’s culinary scene in recent years. Costa Rican rotisserie chicken, however, has been a staple in the Montford neighborhood for decades. The Roasting Company — more commonly known as RoCo — opened its doors at its original location in 1991 and hasn’t looked back since.
“A friend of mine was traveling to Costa Rica a lot and fell in love with its rotisserie chicken,” RoCo owner Doug Bell told CharlotteFive. “He wanted to bring it back to Charlotte, but he wasn’t in the restaurant business. I had the restaurant experience, so we teamed up and The Roasting Company was born.”
As it turns out, Bell — who grew up in Charlotte — had quite a lot of restaurant experience. “I worked in restaurants throughout high school and college. After college, I was managing a restaurant in Atlanta, but I wanted to come back to Charlotte and open my own place,” Bell said.
“Our space was small and people loved us off the bat, but it took a while to grow. The Observer’s food critic, Helen Schwab, gave us a good review, and that really helped,” Bell said. “Our original menu was simple: chicken, tacos and a few sides.” Schwab’s article from December 1991 agrees: “The Roasting Company focuses on the basics, not the frills, and in this case the basics are rotisseried chickens and fresh vegetables,” she wrote.
Growing the menu
More than three decades later, The Roasting Company still serves plenty of chicken and sides — but the menu has grown extensively. The Carolina Pork Bowl offers rice, pulled pork, baked beans, slaw, hot honey and chicharrones, while the Kale & Avocado Salad consists of kale, arugula, cotija cheese, avocado, grape tomatoes, toasted walnuts and cucumbers.
Some menu items, such as the Chicken & Black Bean Combo, were inspired by customers who ordered items a la carte and mixed them together. Bell’s favorite dish is the Monterey Wrap (pulled rotisserie chicken, rice, black beans, onions, pickled jalapeños and queso in a sundried tomato tortilla), however that’s not his biggest temptation. “I love anything with queso on it,” Bell said. “I developed that queso recipe when I was running a restaurant called the San Antonio Taco Company in Nashville.”
Bell is particularly proud of RoCo’s sauces, including jaco sauce, a barbecue-teriyaki sauce named after picturesque Jaco Beach in Costa Rica. There’s also tico sauce, which is akin to the Costa Rican Lizano sauce — tico is a nickname for a Costa Rican. “We developed these sauces back when they were hard to find — before Amazon was widespread,” Bell said.
A dozen years ago, RoCo expanded its drink menu, as well. “About the time Montford became a popular night spot, we added a full bar. But we wanted to remain a restaurant first with a bar,” Bell said. Now, RoCo offers more than a dozen beers on tap, as well as a fully stocked bar.
Gaining popularity
About 10 years ago, The Roasting Company started rebranding as both The Roasting Company and RoCo. “The Roasting Company was a mouthful, and I learned from my nieces and nephews that the younger generation was calling us RoCo,” Bell said. “It was entirely organic and customer driven.”
Turns out, RoCo has attracted the attention of some well-known Charlotteans, too. Author Kathy Reichs mentioned The Roasting Company in one of her books. Retired Panthers linebacker Luke Kuechly ate the Buffalo Chicken Wrap every week of the team’s storied 2015 season — and the one week he missed, the Panthers had their sole loss of the season. “We sent tico sauce to Denver so that the team could have a taste of RoCo before the Super Bowl,” Bell said.
In recent years, RoCo has opened locations in Plaza Midwood and Rock Hill. The Plaza Midwood location was forced to close in 2021 due to development in the area. Bell is interested in opening a new Plaza Midwood location, but isn’t in a rush. For now, he’s content marinating and rotissering locally raised, hormone-free chickens and serving fresh food to old fans and newcomers alike.
The Roasting Company
Location: 1521 Montford Dr, Charlotte, NC 28209
Neighborhood: Montford/Madison Park
Location: 122 S Oakland Ave, Rock Hill, SC 29730
Neighborhood: Rock Hill
Cuisine: Costa Rican rotisserie chicken, Southern, Tex Mex
Hours: Monday through Sunday, 11 a.m.-10 p.m.
To order: dine in or order online for takeout.
This story was originally published September 12, 2022 at 6:00 AM.
