southern food – Fervent Foodie

Restaurant Review Roundup: Mert’s Heart and Soul, Eddie’s, Baja Soul {Charlotte, NC}

October 19, 2012 2 Comments

In honor of FRIDAY (hallelujah!), here are three flash reviews of restaurants I’ve dined at this month:

MERT’S HEART AND SOUL: Serving southern soul, low county, and Gullah-inspired dishes, Mert’s has been a common stop for visitors in Charlotte for over ten years. When I hear “Mert’s,” I instantly think of their amazing cornbread: sweet, cakey loaves that arrive at the table hot from the oven with a side of softened butter. Inside the restaurant, the quirky southern soul decor creates a fun environment, and it is a perfect reflection of the food. Some of my favorite dishes at Mert’s are the mac and cheese and the Carolina chopped barbecue pork sandwich, which comes on a hearty potato roll. The banana pudding is infamous, and believe me it lives up to the hype. Don’t forget to save room for cake!

Yogurt Biscuits & NASCAR

My dad is a huge NASCAR fan.

Don’t judge.

When I moved to Charlotte, I made my dad a promise: if he (hater of all things urban) made the trek down to the Queen City, I (the darling bribing daughter) would take him to the Charlotte Motor Speedway for the NASCAR racing experience. Honestly, the thought of my dear dad whipping around the racetrack at speeds of over 150 miles per hour was borderline gut-wrenching, but I figured if seeing his daughter wasn’t incentive enough to come to Charlotte, surely NASCAR would get him here.