A new restaurant with Turkish bowls, spicy chicken and gelato is open in South Charlotte

Nazo’s Mediterranean Bowls & Salads, a fast-casual spot for Mediterranean food with a Turkish spin, is now open in South Charlotte.

The restaurant that’s set up for takeout but also offers indoor and outdoor seating sits near the Walmart Neighborhood Market in the McMullen Creek Market shopping center. Its gregarious owner, Murat Veziroglu, also owns Nazo’s Wrapway in University City, and the new Pineville-area location offers a simplified version of the same menu — focusing on bowls and salads instead of wraps.

Look for choices such as Mediterranean Chicken, Spicy Chicken or Lamb Kofta to create your bowl or salad with a base of basmati, yellow or brown rice, or Romaine lettuce, spinach or spring mix. If you go with Turkish mix, that’s a little bit of everything from the protein selections.

Toppings include red cabbage salad, red onion, cucumber, tomatoes, dill pickles, roasted red pepper, quinoa and corn, along with feta and red feta. Sauce choices are garlic, lemon tahini, tzatziki, Greek vinaigrette or hot sauce. If you’re a fan of stuffed grape leaves, you’ll want to grab one on the side.

Vegan mixes are available, too, with chickpeas, lentils and hummus. There’s also a vegan vee kofta selection made from bulgar wheat. Veziroglu will happily give you a sample, served on a romaine lettuce leaf and drizzled with imported pomegranate molasses, and share the history of the Turkish street food with you.

In fact, he’ll give you a sample of any of the selections and work up a miniature bowl for you to try — just to make sure you’ll like what you’re purchasing. Toward the end of your meal, he’ll also bring you a glass of warm Turkish tea and a few sugar cubes.

“Turkish people are tea drinkers,” he said.

The new location also offers gelato to finish your meal off with a sweet treat that’s sourced from Gelarto in Wilmington — a favorite spot of Veziroglu’s children. The handful of flavor choices includes lemon and pistachio, which pair perfectly to cool off the spicy selections in your meal.

Nazo’s Mediterranean Bowls & Salads

Location: 8318 Pineville-Matthews Rd #710, Charlotte, NC 28210 (now open)

Location: 10221 University City Blvd, Charlotte, NC 28213

Menu

Cuisine: Mediterranean, Turkish

Instagram: @nazos_wrapway

This story was originally published March 12, 2025 at 5:30 AM.

Heidi Finley

The Charlotte Observer

Heidi Finley is a writer and editor for CharlotteFive and the Charlotte Observer. Outside of work, you will most likely find her in the suburbs driving kids around, volunteering and indulging in foodie pursuits. Support my work with a digital subscription