11 Oldest Charlotte Restaurants Worth Visiting | Eater Carolinas

"It’s a pleasant surprise to find a restaurant with rich character and history tucked between some of this banking city’s tallest skyscrapers. In Charlotte, that’s Mert’s Heart and Soul — a Gullah-style restaurant and an unbeatable workweek lunch spot. Inside, the space is brimming with color, personality, and a hodgepodge of wall hangings. Since 1998, chef James Bazzelle has honed in on Southern cooking — fried green tomatoes, a range of po’ boys, Creole shrimp, red beans, and rice bowls with turkey kielbasa. The salmon cakes and soul rolls, egg rolls stuffed with collard greens, black-eyed peas, and rice, are staff favorites. In a bit of a concrete jungle, Mert’s is a breath of fresh air." - Kayleigh Ruller