Mert's Heart And Soul
Soul food restaurant · Uptown
214 N College St, Charlotte, NC 28202
Highlights
Southern soul food, Lowcountry dishes, soul rolls, salmon cakes
Southern soul food, Lowcountry dishes, soul rolls, salmon cakes
"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
"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
"Mert’s can single-handedly lift your mood during your lunch break, even on the worst, dumpster-fire of a Monday. It’s been serving excellent Lowcountry and Gullah-inspired dishes since 1998, with standouts like fried catfish, salmon cakes, mac and cheese, individual-sized loaves of cornbread, and the best thing in the building: the Soul Rolls. These fried egg roll wrappers come stuffed with black-eyed peas, seasoned rice, collards, and diced chicken breast, served with a side of spicy honey mustard (the way they pack in an absurd amount of flavor in a small package is on par with the invention of quantum computing). Don’t leave without a slice of pound cake, even if you’re so full you have to take it to go." - tess allen
"Mert’s can single-handedly lift your mood during your lunch break, even on the worst, dumpster-fire of a Monday. It’s been serving excellent Lowcountry and Gullah-inspired dishes since 1998, with standouts like fried catfish, salmon cakes, mac and cheese, individual-sized loaves of cornbread, and the best thing in the building: the Soul Rolls. These fried egg roll wrappers come stuffed with black-eyed peas, seasoned rice, collards, and diced chicken breast, served with a side of spicy honey mustard (the way they pack in an absurd amount of flavor in a small package is on par with the invention of quantum computing). Don’t leave without a slice of pound cake, even if you’re so full you have to take it to go. " - Tess Allen
"As seen on Food Network’s Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives, the traditional soul food and Gullah-inspired dishes fall in step with the bright, jazzy hand-painted decor. The soul roll egg rolls kick with black-eyed peas, rice, and collard greens. Don’t sleep on the little loaves of cornbread and the cakes." - Timothy DePeugh, Kathleen Purvis
