Where is the Best Fine Dining in Charlotte, North Carolina?
Me and my wife have been going to the Morton’s in uptown Charlotte for a number of years now. Whether it’s to celebrate a special occasion, or if we are just in the mood for a great steak, Morton’s is our go-to place. The food is always savory–my wife gets the Filet Oscar and I always start with the Shrimp Alexander followed by the Chicago-style ribeye. We have been waited on by many servers, Meghan, Amy, Kevin, all of which have mastered the art of being attentive, yet not annoying. We went in last Saturday to celebrate my wife’s job promotion, and I was excited to see that the place was jumping with people–glad we made a reservation! Our server was great as usual, very knowledgeable about the menu although less high-spirited than some of the other servers I’ve had. The only downside of the night, I have never dealt with at Morton’s before. There was a guy in plainclothes that was kind of making laps around all the tables and he looked like he was just ready to explode on s
Ryan and I were celebrating two years together so he made a reservation about two weeks before we went in last Friday (Aug. 4th). The directions they gave him over the phone were easy to follow, the valet promtly took our car, we were seated immediately, and greeted with fantastic service that continued throughout the duration of the meal. We had been planning to for sometime but hadn’t had the chance, however, I now know it was well worth the wait! We started with the extensive wine list, had magnolia salads (with warm goat cheese – delicious) moved onto duck with gnocchi and pork tenderloin with a grit cake and pancetta topped peach – both were tender and very well paired and prepared. Dessert is typically my favorite part of the meal yet here everything was so good it’s hard to say it was absolutely my favorite but we were again, impressed. One chocolate molten cake with homemade (slighty tangy – a nice surprise) cherry ice cream and the Barking Dog chocolate sampler we were in
I can’t say this is a bad restaurant, I have just had better. I sat on the patio and enjoyed the evening breeze, which added to the enjoyment of the evening. I had the BBQ shrimp and oyster salad, along with appetizers of the Artesian cheese tray and olives. All were just OK, nothing very special. On top of this, the waiter dropped and broke about 4 dishes in the time we were there. We also went without silverware, and the 5 people I was with were served their entrees a few minutes apart. Not very classy, if you ask me. This place isn’t bad, just not great. Try it for yourself I guess. I recommend sticking with the wine and patio and having dinner some place else. Pros + wine, patioCons – service, mediocre food
The Wine- 2004 Malbec was decanted and served, has good legs on the wine and a nice smooth taste.The Beer- Dogfish Head IPA, out of bottle, wonderful as usual. Samuel Smith’s Nut Brown Ale, out of bottle, wonderful. The Appetizers- Perfectly cooked shrimp, with two kinds of sauces, the crab cakes were the best I’ve ever had, the sauce made it.The Salad- Caesar salad was great, looked like lettuce chips with tasty parmesan cheese and the dressing was wonderful with just a hint of anchovies. Nice huge croutons!The Side Items- Asparagus and cheese potatoes were great, the asparagus was cooked well with a nice snap when bitten into. And the potatoes complimented the steak well.The Steak- 8 oz. Filet Mignon med/rare perfectly cooked and seasoned, a subtle taste of butter on the palate comes through nicely.The Dessert- free with our party since we were celebrating a birthday. They didn’t come out singing and embarrassing us which I liked. We had a chocolate cake with raspberry s
Citysearch only allows 150 words, so its hard to give all the reasons we were disappointed in McNinch House. Heres a few:Not allowed to choose how meat is prepared. I happen to prefer my beef rare, but was told that it would arrive a perfect pink or medium rare. For the price, youd think the diner might have some say in the matter.Wines not perfectly matched to each course. Each diner got the same wine regardless of whether they ordered rack of venison or Chilean sea bass.The soup was tepid, not hot.I wasnt able to drink wine; I had water. Id hoped to get regular refills, but ran out during soup course, and didnt get a refill until we flagged down someone after entrees arrived. Same problem w/coffee during dessert. I expected better service when gratuity is added to the bill before you even see it.Pros + Romantic dining, unique experience, some very good foodCons – lackadaisical service, poor value for cost
