by SouthPark Magazine staff
eat + drink
Plot Twist, an all-day coffee and cocktail bar housed in a former auto shop, will open in Plaza Midwood. Founded by local hospitality veteran Nikki Velazquez, Plot Twist will seat 50 inside and 30 outside on a dog-friendly patio.
Dozo, the Japanese comfort food restaurant from Perry Saito and John Gamble, has relocated to a larger location on East Boulevard in Dilworth.
Lew’s Libations, a neighborhood cocktail bar inside Sweet Lew’s BBQ, opened in the Belmont neighborhood. Sweet Lew’s full restaurant menu is served until 8 p.m., followed by a late-night snacks menu (boiled peanuts, brisket queso, smoked pimento cheese) until 11 p.m.
Emmy Lou’s wine bar opened in the former Mere’s spot in Dilworth.
Bulla Gastrobar closed at The Village at SouthPark.
Featured image: Rendering of Plot Twist by Chastaine & Company courtesy NiceDay
Matt Deering, North Carolina Restaurant and Lodging Association Chef of the Year 2024, is now executive chef at Lincoln Street Kitchen and Cocktails and Craft Tasting Room and Growler Shop in South End. Deering, a Charlotte native, previously worked at Dot Dot Dot and Peppervine.
Photograph courtesy of ARDR Hospitality
Prime Fish Cellar reopened in Cotswold as a sushi, sake and wine bar alongside a retail market, with seating for 20. The concept blurs the lines between chef-owner Robin Anthony’s more casual Prime Fish Ballantyne restaurant with the prix-fixe Omakase by Prime Fish, located next door. The menu ranges from build-your-own hand rolls to caviar service to the Jewel Box, with sashimi or wagyu and other delicacies served with sushi rice and avocado. Temari sushi — bite-sized, ball-shaped sushi popular in Japan — is served at lunch Mon.–Fri.
Anthony is also making headlines after being named as a James Beard Award semifinalist in the category of Best Chef: Southeast. Nominees will be announced in March and the winners will be celebrated at a ceremony in June. SP
Photographs courtesy Prime Fish Cellar
