11 Charlotte restaurants that should’ve made USA Today’s Restaurants of the Year

USA Today came out with the restaurants of the year. And, this year, not a single Charlotte restaurant made the cut.

But some very well should have.

As we’ve seen in the last month with three Charlotte food and beverage industry leaders receiving James Beard nominations, the local food scene and its ongoing “identity crisis” is shaping up to be a bit more compelling than the credit it’s been given.

Editor-in-chief of Food & Wine and North Carolina native Hunter Lewis told me at the FOOD & WINE Classic in Charleston last fall that, “Years ago … Charlotte was an afterthought … It was not an eating town.”

Now, that reality is changing.

Lewis said he sees Charlotte as a promising midsize culinary city, ripe with opportunity for chefs over the next 10 years.

“Charlotte is homegrown, and it’s got such a strong local population,” he said. Floods of newcomers from other industries are making it an international city, too.

This dynamic culinary shift can be attributed to a few things — an invigorated emphasis on Piedmont-area produce through local programs like Freshlist, increased diversity in both restaurants and consumers, and a more conscious, value-driven consumer base.

Lewis said that when running a restaurant or a business,“transparency is a competitive edge. [They] should be leading with [their] core values.”

USA Today’s criteria for best restaurant echoes with that sentiment. According to USA Today, this roundup “isn’t just another list of hot spots with months-long waits for reservations … it’s a celebration of local flavors and stories.”

A prime example is the list’s nod to all Western North Carolina restaurants, who showed up with free meals and community aid during the devastation of Hurricane Helene.

Here in Charlotte, we can see the impact that value-driven work, diversity and local produce can have on creating a kinetic dining scene with with these specific James Beard nominations — Restaurant Constance’s chef Sam Diminich, Community Matters Cafe’s chef Chayil Johnson and Supperland’s Colleen Hughes, beverage director for the Tonidandel-Brown restaurant group.

So, keeping this demand for diversity and quality of both food and dining experience top of mind, here are the 11 restaurants that should’ve been on USA Today’s Best Restaurants of the Year, Charlotte version.

Albertine

Location: 525 S Tryon St #125, Charlotte, NC 28202

Instagram: @albertinerestaurant

Anyone can walk into this space and already sense it deserves a spot on any best-of list. (I have a feeling that in 2025, it will be on many.) This luxe restaurant is a dining destination in the heart of uptown, featuring Katy Kindred’s eye for design — in this case, a softly regal, strikingly feminine feel — and chef Joe Kindred’s smart American South-meets-Mediterranean cuisine. Danny Ike’s wine list is exciting and fresh, complementing the bright meze platter or raw seafood and the rich flavors of a gamebird mixed grill draped in a mushroom jus.

Aqua e Vino

Location: 4219 Providence Rd #3993, Charlotte, NC 28211

Instagram: @aquaevino

The exemplary service at Aqua e Vino — somewhat traditional with white tablecloths and longtime, veteran staff — helps make this teensy, intimate Italian bistro so darling. But it’s not just that. It’s the tender artichoke and the pillowy gnocchi and that Italian wine list, hand selected by chef Gabriele Grigolon. The splurgy menu doesn’t miss a beat, and chef doesn’t miss a day (neither does his kitchen team). He’s there every dinner service, sourcing the highest quality Italian ingredients, making pasta by hand and coming out mid-meal to hug his regulars. Aqua e Vino is temporarily closed right now to make the teensy space a little less teensy.

Counter-

Location: 2001 W Morehead St D, Charlotte, NC 28208

Instagram: @counterclt

To call Counter- a meal wouldn’t quite suffice. Counter- is a high-end experience that twists and turns and makes diners raise an eyebrow, with music, art and movement. That’s always been the intention behind this tasting menu, which changes quarterly and explores predominantly culture and art themes. Owner Sam Hart guides diners through each dish center stage, which keeps the experience entertaining. But, if you look closely, you’ll witness some of Charlotte’s most talented up-and-coming chefs, servers and sommeliers working the kitchen and the floor with air-cutting precision.

Customshop

Location: 1601 Elizabeth Ave, Charlotte, NC 28204

Instagram: @customshopclt

Customshop in Elizabeth seems to be on most everyone’s favorite or want-to-go list. It’s dim and moody, but so pleasantly a neighborhood spot. Sit at the bar for some crudo and a cocktail, or grab a table and make the meal a whole to-do. Chef Andres Kaifer and new chef de cuisine Matt Moore plate up the best Rohan duck in the city. The brown butter blue crab ravioli is a tough act to follow, too.

DŌZO Japanese American Kitchen

Location: 2200 Thrift Rd Suite 1, Charlotte, NC 28208

Instagram: @dozoclt

This Japanese-American food counter is playful, refreshingly not so serious and a bit of a show with a small-but-mighty open kitchen in Wesley Heights. Its izakaya-esque dining style brings wallet-friendly dishes, like a heaping okonomiyaki or the wagyu beef wontons, to the bartop.

El Rinconcito Chilango Taqueria

Location: 1409 Eastway Dr, Charlotte, NC 28205

Sometimes, the best restaurant is the one that didn’t ever try to be so. El Rinconcito Chilango serves up Mexico City style street tacos in an off-shoot kitchen next to Rodriguez Supermarket on Eastway Drive. Minced onion and cilantro blanket the al pastor, trompo and asada (and more). The borrego consomme, the housemaid blue corn tortillas and the chilaquiles on the weekends are worth the wait. Just sit at the bar and drink a passionfruit agua fresca.

L’Ostrica

Location: 4701 Park Rd D, Charlotte, NC 28209

Instagram: @lostrica_clt

Cat Carter and chef Eric Ferguson’s tasting menus are more than meets the eye at L’Ostrica. Yes, the food is certainly pretty on the eyes — nature’s colors spooned, dolloped or dusted on stunning ceramics. But the dishes are a product of long hours in the kitchen and working relationships with producers and farmers. No singular cuisine dominates the 10-course tasting menus here — Italian, Korean, Japanese and French techniques and touches are found in one seating. A stunning Chawanmushi, a savory egg custard with dungeness crab, and the smoked trout atop an airy potato soup are two recent standouts. The ownership duo shakes things up with wine dinners, regular Sunday suppers and a walk-in bartop where I religiously order a Lolo Martini.

Omakase Experience by Prime Fish

Location: 2907 Providence Rd STE 101, Charlotte, NC 28211

Instagram:@omakasebyprimefish

This Edomae-style omakase restaurant in a somewhat unassuming shopping center has a cult following. At $300 a ticket, the wagyu nigiri, hokkaido scallop, uni, eel, caviar and everything will be top-notch. The plateware is a gleeful touch, with fresh sashimi served on a slab of black rock or rice in a dainty tea cup.

Original Chicken ‘n Ribs

Location: 1100 Beatties Ford Rd, Charlotte, NC 28216

Instagram: @chicknribz

You’ll still see Jermaine Blackmon, third generation owner of Original Chicken ‘n Ribs, frying chicken in the back of this iconic fried chicken joint. The chicken skin is seasoned with heart and crisped up with three generations worth of practice. It actually just won CharlotteFive’s Readers Choice award for best fried chicken. It’s takeout only, full of locals lining up and a bonafide neighborhood spot off of Beatties Ford Road.

Rada

Location: 2820 Selwyn Ave Ste 180, Charlotte, NC 28209

Instagram: @rada

Rada is chef-driven in a way Charlotte needed. Here, contemporary American food is the star. (It has to be in such an intimate, no-frills space on Selwyn Avenue.) Contemporary American really means a table full of dishes like eggplant escabeche, crispy sunchoke beef tartare, that sought-after striploin au poivre for two and maybe even a bottle of wine from an unfamiliar grape to share. Chef Callan Buckles — humbly, skillfully and ambitiously — brought technique honed at Momofuku and Claud in New York City to Charlotte, and the city is better for it.

Supperland

Location: 1212 The Plaza, Charlotte, NC 28205

Instagram: @supper.land

Supperland’s 2022 recognition as one of Esquire’s best new restaurants still very much holds true in the Queen City. It is still hard to get a reservation at Supperland (that’s a good sign), and that’s because owners Jeff Tonindanel and Jamie Brown don’t coast comfortably. The team consistently pushes boundaries in Charlotte with new restaurants in historic buildings and neighborhoods. But Supperland, with its majestic design and Southern steakhouse fare, is a timeless Charlotte staple, reflecting Charlotte’s growing charm and creativity.

Uniquely Charlotte: Uniquely Charlotte is an Observer subscriber collection of moments, landmarks and personalities that define the uniqueness (and pride) of why we live in the Charlotte region.

This story was originally published February 25, 2025 at 5:30 AM.