During my blissful day of unplanned meandering, I wandered over to The Common Market in South End for lunch:

How adorable is that little sandwich guy?  The Common Market is one of those places you’d probably just drive by if you hadn’t heard through the twitter grapevine that they had delicious sandwiches.  It looks, at least from the outside, like a standard convenience store, and it wasn’t until I walked along the side of the building that I realized they have this great secluded courtyard to sit in and enjoy your lunch!

Once inside the Market you can spot newbies <aka ME> who are unsure where to go to order… where to pay…  and frankly what the heck is going on inside this quirky store. There’s STUFF everywhere in the store.  Not just stuff to fill space, but stuff that is interesting and unique and fun to look at and drool over.

If your heart is set on getting a sandwich (as it should be), you can head straight to the back of the store where the deli counter is located.  You order your grub there and then pay at the register at the front of the store.

While waiting for my sandwich, I snooped around the store a bit and noted that you can even dine-in at one of the handful of tables perched right in the middle of the store.

You can crab a bottle of wine (or five) from their extensive wine selection to enjoy with your grub.  Or if beer is your thing, they’ve got quite the selection of high-end bottled beers as well.

The sandwiches don’t come with chips or drinks or any sides, but that is A-O-Kay because the market is chock full of yummies.  The shelves are packed with snacks and chips and TONS of homemade baked goods:

I somehow exercised superb self control and did not snag any of the baked goodies.  Though they had these brownie logs that looked to die for, and that I’ve been dreaming about since!

The Market also has a random hodgepodge of fun gadgets and gizmos and cards and signs for sale and some random gluten-free products on the shelves.  I’ll have to bring my friend Tracy here when she comes to visit!

$6.25 for a sandwich ain’t bad in Charlotte.  Especially when it comes with a compliment stamp:

I went with the Turkey Capri sandwich, which had sundried tomato spread, a slathering of goat cheese, a big handful of baby spinach, and red onion between two hearty slices of 9 grain bread:

The sandwich was FABULOUS.  I think i could eat one of these every day and not get tired of them.  Though they also had a pepperjack turkey panini on the menu that looked quite tasty…

The the funkyness of the market carried out to the courtyard area which was full of random odds and ends, crazy signs, and patrons enjoying the nice weather and even nicer food.

The South End location does wine tastings on Wednesday nights and beer tastings on Thursday nights.   They also have live music on the patio on the weekends.

Sadly, my sandwich came to an end.  Too soon.  But isn’t that always the case with a tasty lunch?

Ohhh!  Lest we not forget the scratch off giveaway winner!

Yay Nicole!  Email your mailing address to:  ferventfoodie@gmail.com.