Brunch at Haberdish

Background: 
We reviewed Haberdish ages ago ( back when we were apparently taking photos with a disposable underwater camera...sorry about that), but it has remained a major part of our lives. In fact, we currently agree that it ranks as our number one favorite restaurant in Charlotte. Haberdish is owned by Jeff & Jamie Tonidandel (more on their background here), and they recently introduced weekday brunch. We were invited out to check out the menu, and we were just as impressed with brunch as we are with their dinner, which is to say: we freaking loved it. Keep reading to check out what we ordered! 

Mecca

Eat This: 

Smoked Trout DEVILED Eggs

smoked whites, smoked trout, chives, paprika

Biscuit with Gravy

house-made sausage milk gravy

Close up on the "best biscuits & gravy" my 74 year-old father had ever tasted 

Waffles with Fruit

two waffles, fruit compote, whip

 brûléed Grapefruit 

with pink Himalayan salt

Dessert: 
Ain't nothin' like that brunch dessert, and you had better not skip this option at Haberdish! 

Cinnmon Roll

fresh baked, cinnamon, sugar, served with milk caramel (image courtesy of Haberdish) 

Waffle

pearl sugar waffle, house buttermilk ice cream, pecan caramel

Drink: 
Mimosas, various cocktails, or coffee in an adorable thermos! It's like camping, except way better, because: you're not camping! And who doesn't like not camping? Just us? Ah, gotcha. #notoutdoorsy

Classic Bloody Mary

Atmosphere: 
Haberdish is versatile, as there are many different vibes depending on the area of the restaurant. The bar is hip and lively, a back corner is intimate and cozy, and the front or side porch is bright and airy. You can have whatever you like (cue the T.I. music). 

Image courtesy of Haberdish website

Brunching Hospitality: 
The service is generally great at Haberdish. We have not had any bad experiences thus far. 

Frankie's Notes: 
Weekday brunch is for lovers and stay-at-home moms; We promise to stop using cameras enrobed in cardboard; The only thing better than brunch dessert is dessert dessert: think about that; Coffee in a thermos is as outdoorsy as we get; I've never seen T.I. while brunching at Haberdish, but I certainly would like to. 

Disclaimer: This meal was provided free of charge in exchange for an honest and unbiased review. All opinions are our own, and we were not compensated for this review.

 

Crepe Cellar

Background: 
Husband and wife co-owners Jamie Brown & Jeff Tonidandel opened Crepe Cellar in 2009 after quitting their jobs and traveling around the world for about a year. I know what you're thinking: these sound like the coolest people ever--and that couldn't be more factual. Brown & Tonidandel have transformed NoDa with Crepe Cellar, Growler's Pourhouse, Haberdish, and Reigning Donuts. They are the queen and king of NoDa (as proclaimed by Scallionpancake), and all of their restaurants provide consistently good food and service. 

After meeting Brown recently at an event for Charleston Wine & Food Festival, she invited us out to try some new menu items at Crepe Cellar. We hadn't visited Crepe Cellar in nearly three years, so we were excited to get back in and see what was new. We dined at Crepe Cellar on April 18th to celebrate the end of a grueling tax season for Jason, so this was a long overdue date night for us, and we loved every second. Read on to see what we tried! 

Eat This: 

Burrata

housemade burrata with olive oil, smoked salt, brûléed lemon, lemon zest & grilled bread (add proscuitto)

Scallops Pastis

ricard pastis beurre blanc, fennel pollen

Duck Fregola

cured confit duck leg, tomato-parmesan fregola sarda, sunny side egg, beet-stained pickled turnips

Pasta Carbonara

fresh pasta, egg yolk, pancetta, grilled asparagus, parmesan, black pepper

On a previous visit, we tried their a savory crepe, mussels, and their pesto brie fries, all of which we thoroughly enjoyed. 

HAM & GRUYÈRE

béchamel & maple dijon glaze

P.E.I. MUSSELS

bacon, caramelized onions, shallots, apples, cider cream

The pesto brie fries are perhaps the Crepe Cellar's most famous dish, and we have enjoyed them on our past visits. These are a must order if you are a first-timer! 

Pesto Brie Fries

hand-cut, twice-fried with pine nut basil pesto, melted brie, tomatoes

Dessert: 
We were blown away by the creativity of the dessert options--a house-made miso chocolate ice cream and a poblano porcini ice cream?! Toto, we're not in Charlotte anymore! We got the poblano porcini ice cream, and not only was the flavor perfect--earthy, slightly spicy, sweet yet savory--the texture was on point. It was smooth and creamy, and not at all icy like some homemade ice creams. 

Our server also generously sent out a strawberry cheesecake parfait, but we weren't wowed by that one in the same way. However, one thing I really appreciated about it was that it was not at all overly sweet like you would expect in a dessert of this style. 

Poblano Porcini Ice Cream

Strawberry Cheesecake Parfait

They are obviously known for their dessert crepes, but we didn't have room for one on this visit. However, in the past we have enjoyed several, particularly the classic Crepe Suzette and the Nutella and bananas. 

Crepe Suzette

Grand Marnier butter sauce & vanilla bean ice cream

Drink: 
Crepe Cellar has an awesome drink menu, as Colleen Hughes is in charge of the cocktail menu both here and at Haberdish. I enjoyed a perfectly dry glass of sparkling wine on our most recent trip, but I had some regret I didn't go for a cocktail! 

A picture of the bar in the absence of a picture of my bubbly

Atmosphere: 
Crepe Cellar is such a chill date night spot--it's classy and romantically lit without being fancy. We felt perfectly comfortable in jeans on a Wednesday night, but the mood lighting and cozy alcoves of the tables and booths made us feel like we were enjoying a special and intimate dining experience. 

A certain slant of light

French Pancake Hospitality: 
On all of our visits, we have received top notch service at Crepe Cellar. This is the type of restaurant where you want to linger over a glass of wine, and the servers are incredibly patient and allow you to enjoy your evening without feeling rushed. 

Frankie's Notes: 
There is no people watching like NoDa people watching; Why aren't more Charlotte restaurants incorporating mushrooms into their desserts?; Ms. Hughes is one of Charlotte's greatest treasures; Do you think that Jamie & Jeff will adopt us?; Tax season Jason only eats Chipotle, so this was a real treat for him; Tax season Jason looks at you like this from January-April 15th. 

Tax season Jason sees you, and he says no, you can't deduct that.

Disclaimer: [Some of these] meal[s] were provided free of charge in exchange for an honest and unbiased review. All opinions are our own, and we were not compensated for this review.

 

Haberdish

Background:
AHHHHHH Haberdish. That’s how this restaurant makes us feel right now.

I see the lights, I see the party lights 

Haberdish is owned by Jeff Tonidandel, who also owns Growler’s Pourhouse and The Crepe Cellar--sooo, he basically owns an entire block of NoDa. While Scallionpancake likes Growler’s, and is so-so on The Crepe Cellar, we were blown away by Haberdish. Haberdish was poppin’ on our first visit on a Friday night, right around two months after their opening in December. Like many others that night, we were drawn like moths to a flame to a Charlotte Agenda instagram picture floating about of a gorgeous pink cocktail adorned with one of their signature flower ice cubes. We saw the picture, we made plans to go--just like the rest of Charlotte on one fine Friday night (cue two and a half hour wait). Read on to see why this place is our new jam--we have been back once more since our first visit, and it’s one of our new go-to spots.

Rose gold silverware and flowers in my drink: is this heaven?

Our second visit was during the thick of tax season--it’s possible Jason and I bickered like everyone’s favorite married Jewish couple, and it’s also possible he fell asleep at the table. Yay, March! The best part? My dad was in town! Yeah, Wayne!

Wayney is here!

Eat This:

Brined Smoked Chicken
Tossed in Alabama white sauce

Is this chicken, what I have, or is this fish? 

Fried Chicken
Brined, battered, fried

You know I like my chicken fried

Sweet Potato Dumplings
Hand-spooned with brown butter, sage, parm

The dumplings are so good your camera hand shakes 

Mac & Cheese
with optional spicy crispy chicken skin--not included in this picture

Better than the blue box

Tater Tots
Housemade tater tots

Are those housemade tater tots, or are you just happy to see me? 

Hushpuppies
Fried cornmeal dough with sweet tea butter

Photographers were not quick enough for how fast this dish went

Biscuits & Bacon Jam
Snowflake flour, lard & butter/served with homemade bacon jam

My favorite 

Pickled Candied Striped Beets

Wayne's favorite 

Dessert:
We have yet to try dessert here, because PopBar is right across the street. Have you guys been to PopBar?! It’s the freaking best. We are hoping to get sponsored by them, considering we go two-three times a week.

#fulldip

Drink:
UGGGHHH the cocktails. Colleen Hughes is the mixologist with the mostest--she also is in charge of cocktails at Tonidandel’s other restaurants, but she has outdone herself here. The cocktail menu had changed from one visit to the next, but some amazing staples remained, like Daniela’s favorite, the house mint julep, aka “the adult slushie.” The drinks are fabulously strong and the flavors are inventive--no basic sweet concoctions to be found. Two and a half hour wait? No worries, we will be posted up at the bar!

Ransom Old Tom Gin Smash

Bartender's Best Friend 

Atmosphere:
With its tall ceilings, exposed brick, and steel beams Haberdish nods to NoDa’s history and aims to call to mind the textile mills of the 1800s. The lighting is soft and romantic, and it’s the kind of place you want to linger (much to the chagrin of others waiting hours for a table).

These two lovebirds certainly up the atmosphere quotient! 

Southern Hipster Hospitality:
The servers and bartenders are nice, but they certainly seem harried--which makes sense considering how slammed they have been lately. You do get the feeling they want to rush you out the door a bit, and on our first visit our server forgot a dish (and still charged us for it). She was super sweet and took it off right away, but it feels like they still need some time to adjust to just how popular this place is going to be on Friday and Saturday nights.

The beast emerges from his tax-season lair. Do not approach or look directly in the eye!

Apologies on behalf of my dad (The Wayner) who simply cannot understand the fast-talking youth of today, and asked our waitress if she was speaking Polish. We laughed; she didn’t.

Frankie’s Notes:
When Charlotte Agenda posts, the whole of Charlotte responds like lemmings; If Jason will wait more than once for two hours for a restaurant during tax season, you know it is legit; It’s way better to be in a faux-textile mill in 2017 eating fried chicken than working in a real mill in 1887, worried about losing a digit; I am sure Wayne would hate Gilmore Girls; Wayne lost his life alert; Wayne drank several glasses of fifteen-year-old bourbon; Are the last two things related?

Rating:  
4 out of 5