Do people in Charlotte hate healthy food? A foodie dilemma: More junk food, fewer salads
With hundreds of diverse restaurants (and even a handful of James Beard nominations), Charlotte has solidified itself as a foodie destination.
Charlotte’s ever-evolving culinary scene, alongside the rise of social media platforms like TikTok, has brought forth a wave of homegrown, food-focused content creators. Charlotte’s food influencers are now the forefront of what is new and trending in the restaurant scene.
However, what attracts Charlotte’s social media consumers is not always the healthiest of cuisine — something the city is certainly not lacking.
For local food content creator Cory Wilkins, aka Tha Daily Special, excessive or indulgent eating always seems to garner more views, likes and shares on his social media.
“Indulgent, crazy junk foods will always get a lot more engagement,” he explained.
Recently, Wilkins has found himself at quandary. In a post to Threads, he posed a question that kicked off an interesting conversation among food content creators in Charlotte.
Does posting unhealthy food get more views?
Wilkins wrote: “One interesting thing for me always as a Food Content Creator is that posting crazy soul food or junk food = viral but if posting healthier options my people rarely care to see them at all so it’s hard to appear balanced. I wonder if having primarily a Southern based community is the reasoning.”
Perhaps Charlotte social media audiences are more interested in fattening foods as opposed to healthier alternatives because of its Southern demographic. Or, maybe the South has nothing to do with it, and we as content consumers are heading towards hedonism as an escape.
Whatever the case may be, the numbers don’t lie.
Wilkins has been a food content creator in Charlotte for more than six years. In this time, he’s amassed a following of 156,000 followers on Instagram and 144,000 on TikTok.
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His videos include food and restaurant reviews, menu hacks, new cocktail bar openings and the occasional international grocery store snack. But his bread and butter has always been highlighting small businesses with a focus on global cuisine.
“I would say small mom-and-pop spots are my niche,” Wilkins told CharlotteFive. “A lot of Black-owned and minority-owned spots.”
Wilkins’ content is compelling. His Instagram feed offers up platters of brightly colored food and dramatic cheese pulls. You’ll find a diverse array of dishes from soul food plates to Tanzanian dishes and Caribbean cuisine. While he may not focus on salads or smoothies, one thing is certain: Wilkins is eating good.
While Charlotte does have its fair share of healthy restaurants, a few notable spots have closed in recent years. In January 2024, Living Kitchen, a plant-based restaurant in South End shut its doors after 12 years in business. Vegan eatery Fern, Flavors From The Garden also closed last year after serving the Charlotte community for 14 years.
Perhaps, as social media trends have shown, Charlotte eaters are not as interested in health-focused restaurants, leaning instead toward indulgence.
Food as entertainment
In the age of doomscrolling, social media has become a form of comfort for many. Whether audiences tune in to live vicariously through the influencer, or simply as a means of entertainment, one thing is certain: Charlotte viewers like what they see.
“I think a lot of it comes down to that entertainment factor,” Wilkins said. “Somebody eating junk food or looking at junk food is just gonna be what piques your attention more than somebody doing something healthy.”
While Wilkins may not be able to find a balance of healthy food posts on his page, he does so in his personal life. He told CharlotteFive that he only goes out to eat once or twice a week. Otherwise, he eats at home.
“I think a lot of people have this misconception that food content creators post everything that we eat,” Wilkins said. “95 percent of things that we eat, we never post.”
Influencer April Blanding of Miss Black Foodie also chimed in on Wilkins post. According to her, healthy food can’t stand alone on her page, which predominantly features buffets, food trucks and casual dining spots. Blanding said she turns down collaborations with healthy food establishments because that type of content doesn’t resonate with her audience.
“I do not want to accept a collaboration in which I cannot provide the desired reach,” she explained.”
Instead, Blanding opts to visit those healthy locales on her own for compilation videos, which she said seem to perform better.
For influencer Wynee Bermudez of Wynee’s World, over-the-top food also has a more powerful impact on her social media channels.
“I think people just love to indulge with big portions and decadent dishes,” she said. “Fun food just naturally attracts attention.”
Storytelling in content marketing
Bermudez has her own theory as to why healthy food doesn’t have the same virality as more indulgent dishes. She believes that for healthy food to be successful on social media, it needs to have some sort of compelling storyline.
“It needs to have some aspect of storytelling for people to sit there and watch it and honestly be tied to a goal,” she said. “So whether that’s: I’m trying to lose weight, I’m trying to gain muscle, this is what I’m eating, this is a low-calorie recipe, etc., I think healthy food in general just needs a little bit more depth than just looking good.”
Bermudez has been creating content since 2018. However, it wasn’t until 2020 that her social media channels began to gain traction. In those days, she was trying everything — new restaurants, food trucks, etc. You name it, she was there.
In 2021, Bermudez began a weight loss journey and shifted her focus on social media to more story-driven posts. Today, unhealthy or over indulgent food no longer resonates with her.
“I had this conversation with my trainer all the time about trying to strike the perfect balance,” she said. “At that time, I allowed myself to go out to eat once or twice a week so I could try new things, highlight new restaurants, and that’s kind of what I’ve been doing since then.”
Bermudez said she’s reached a comfortable point with her audience and no longer feels the need to chase the next big food trend.
“I think I’m at the point of my content where I’ve built my follower base,” she said. “So I’m really not trying to chase the hype that a lot of newer accounts could be doing.”
Now when she goes out to eat, she’s not worried about creating a viral moment.
“When I think about going out to dine, I want it to be an experience more so than anything else,” Bermudez said.
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This story was originally published December 3, 2024 at 5:00 AM.
