Every year, the city awaits our annual BOB Awards issue, featuring the Best of the Best of Charlotte. Now approaching 20 years old, the awards have become among the most coveted prizes in the city for restaurants, shops, arts organizations, and many more. This year we have 306 winners, ranging from brand-new establishments to time-tested classics. You won’t want to miss it. Also this month, we take an in-depth look at the mysterious death of Ketie Memory Jones in Plaza Midwood, and a look at safety on the water as we approach pool and lake season.

GIMME SHELTER
On a limited budget, I tried to find a place to rent in Charlotte. What I found had sagging countertops, bedside stoves, and possible blood smudges on the wall

ALTERED STATES
Design trends to track in the post-pandemic age

PLUS
JUDY CARPENTER’S REGENERATION
She’s led a pioneer’s life— in business, philanthropy, trap shooting, economic development, and more. At 80, she’s found a new territory to explore

FOUR YEARS LATER ... Who We've Become
Local writers on the pandemic's lingering legacy

PLUS
HOME TOUGH
Fusing style and function in south Charlotte

THE LONG ROAD FROM STANLY TO STEPHEN
Louis Cato, a musical prodigy from Albemarle settles in at the helm of the Late Show band

LIFE, THERAPY, AND THE PURSUIT OF WELLNESS
12 Ways to Get Healthy in 2024

PLUS
THADDEUS JONES
The executive recruiter draws on a deep family history to push for diverse faces in high places

ACCESSORY TO FREEDOM
Farah Usmani sells scarves to help victims of domestic violence flee their abusers

WHAT IS CHARLOTTE CUISINE?
We asked five food-and-drink veterans how our palates have evolved from old guard to New Southern

50 BEST RESTAURANTS
Our annual list

DRY, NOT BORING
Eight mocktails for when you’re on a break from booze

SPILLING THE KOOL-AID 
A colorful group of stand-ups breaks the wall of Charlotte’s high-fructose comedy scene

CHARLOTTEANS OF THE YEAR
The people and institutions who make Charlotte better, in 2023 and beyond

NO COMPETITION
ESPN commentators Andraya Carter and Alyssa Lang celebrate every win

THE WINE ISSUE
With chef-inspired wine and appetizer pairings + Yadkin Valley vineyards

THE QUEEN'S WATERS
The natural waterways that quietly define our city 

THE LONG GREEN THREAD
The Little Sugar Creek Greenway is a streamside path that can take you from NoDa to Pineville and back again—and only on occasion reminds you of the booming city on either side

ROAD HOGS
It’s one of the city’s most coveted properties. But Neese’s Country Sausage has loaded delivery trucks from a little brick building here since the 1940s, and the family-run company intends to stay put

FALL TRAVEL: CARIBBEAN RESURGENCE
Eleuthera, Grand Cayman, and St. Barthélemy

SAVING OUR TREES
Charlotte still merits the title “City of Trees.” But as development downs more of them, city officials and conservationists work to plant seeds of new growth

The Art of Beer

THEIR CANVAS IS A CAN
Meet some of the designers who turn beer can labels into art.
BY GREG LACOUR

THE BABY MAKERS
Parents, surrogates, and professionals wade through the complexities of the booming surrogacy industry.
BY TESS ALLEN

‘IT DOESN’T GET MORE REAL THAN A HEARTBEAT.’
A growing therapy team at Atrium Health Levine Children’s Hospital thinks music matters in patient care—and sometimes goes places that doctors can’t reach.
BY GREG LACOUR

TACO TIME 
Eighteen tacos—some traditional, some not—to try ASAP, and margaritas to wash them down 
BY TESS ALLEN, TAYLOR BOWLER, AND GREG LACOUR

HUNGER PAINS 
Prices are high, and service is strapped. What does the strain on restaurant labor mean for Charlotte’s dining scene? 
BY TAYLOR BOWLERCLTCM

CATS ON THE GROUND
Our booming city needs reliable, affordable public transit more than ever. But our system has a shrinking fleet of poorly maintained buses, myriad operational issues, absent leadership—and no clear route to fix any of it.
BY TESS ALLEN

THE 2023 BOB AWARDS
Only the Best of the Best make our annual list
BY TESS ALLEN, TAYLOR BOWLER, ALLISON BRADEN, AMANDA PAGLIARINI HOWARD, AND GREG LACOUR

NOBODY’S LAND
For potential homebuyers, some good news: The market has started to calm down. Some bad news: It’s settling in an expensive place.
BY GREG LACOUR

FOUNDATION WORK
A pair of builders and frat brothers install charitable giving in their custom homes.
BY TAYLOR BOWLER

EXCUSE US, WE’RE SPEAKING
10 women and the hills we climb.
BY TESS ALLEN, TAYLOR BOWLER, ALLISON BRADEN, KATHLEEN PURVIS, AND CARROLL WALTON

HERE COMES THE SUN 
Three destinations with nonstop service for your next girls getaway.
BY TESS ALLEN, TAYLOR BOWLER, AND JENN RICE

CHARLOTTE HAS AN ARTS PROBLEM
A variety of factors keeps the city’s arts scene mired in a self-perpetuating cycle of mediocrity. What will it take to come unstuck? 
BY ALLISON BRADEN

WHO’S IN CHARGE HERE? Once, Charlotte was run by a group of civic-minded business leaders who transformed a small city into a national player. But they’ve stepped aside, and the city has become a Babel of atomized and often conflicting interests. This is how it happened.
BY JIM MORRILL

50 BEST RESTAURANTS
Plus trends from neighborhoods throughout the city.

50 BEST RESTAURANTS
Places throughout the city that reward your investment in Going Somewhere to Eat
BY TESS ALLEN, TAYLOR BOWLER, AND GREG LACOUR

CHARLOTTEANS OF THE YEAR
They saw new trails through 2022 
BY TESS ALLEN, TAYLOR BOWLER, ALLISON BRADEN, AND GREG LACOUR

CHRISTOPHER WARRENGREEN.

GUIDED GIVING
Seven local store owners share their favorite, bestselling, and giftworthiest goods..
BY TESS ALLEN

KEEP CALM AND EAT DOUGHNUTS
When food writer Kathleen Purvis moved to Charlotte in 1985, a fancy breakfast meant butter on grits. 
BY KATHLEEN PURVIS

CRY US A RIVER
Jokes aside, I-277 is one of the worst mistakes in Charlotte history. What would have to happen to make it disappear?

SLAP SHOTS & ELVIS & BAD GUYS & JESUS 
If ever the marquee of a performance venue could capture the contradictory, heat-struck culture of 1970s Charlotte, this was surely it. 
BY GAVIN EDWARDS

In Memoriam 
Longtime Observer reporter and rail enthusiast Jim Wrinn lived his dream on the tracks.

A FAMILY-FRIENDLY GUIDE TO FALL 
Concerts, Halloween events, fruits on trees, and other ways to welcome a less restricted autumn.
BY GREG LACOUR

SCENES FROM A RECLAMATION
A Concord couple restores “the ugliest” 1900s mill home and documents the hair-raising project on TikTok.
BY TAYLOR BOWLER

UNDER THE HOOD
Before you even take a swig, quality control pros drop science into what flows out of the tap.
BY GREG LACOUR

BEER BRACKET
Our beer competition returns for its third year. Here are the beers you picked as the city’s best.
BY ANDY SMITH

CARE IN CHAOS
Atrium’s Dr. David Callaway on helping Ukraine war refugees and the value of risk

THE BUZZ
Life Lessons
Dr. Ashley Dawson overcame childhood poverty and systemic obstacles to open her own dental practice with a focus on giving back

THE GOOD LIFE
Weekender
Untamed beaches and boatloads of fresh seafood in North Carolina’s

FOOD + DRINK
Now Open
Introducing Yunta, where the cuisine spans the Paci�c and surprises

DRINKS WELL WITH OTHERS
At The Cocktailery, Tamu Curtis lives every hour like it’s happy hour.
BY TAYLOR BOWLER

THEIR HEARTS OUT
Four of Charlotte’s leading mixologists on the cocktails that mean the most to them, and how they worked their personalities into the mix.
BY GREG LACOUR

THE RISE AND FALL OF THE EPICENTRE
Until a few years ago, Afshin Ghazi’s nightlife hub was the place to be in Charlotte. But the good times quickly faded with financial troubles, increasing violence, COVID, and today, foreclosure. What happened, and what’s next? 
BY ELY PORTILLO

THE 2022 BOB AWARDS
Our annual compendium of the Best of the Best in food, entertainment, shopping, and living.
BY TESS ALLEN, TAYLOR BOWLER, ALLISON BRADEN, GREG LACOUR, AND ANDY SMITH

CALL OF THE ’BURBS
People think of Charlotte’s urban core as the hot area for apartments, but developers increasingly head toward the I-485 loop—and beyond.
BY GREG LACOUR

THE QUEEN’S GAMBIT
In 2021, Charlotte appointed Priya Sircar as its first arts and culture officer and assembled a board to distribute funding and develop a long-range plan. Could the move help turn Charlotte into a cultural destination? 
BY ALLISON BRADEN

PARK CITY, UTAH
A ski resort town with afterparties for miles.
BY GREG LACOUR

PHOENIX, ARIZONA
Wilderness in the shadow of the nation’s fifth-largest city.
BY ALLISON BRADEN

RACING REIMAGINED
NASCAR’s culture, so central to Charlotte’s, roars into another new era
BY STEVE GOLDBERG

THE OTHER TRACKS
Big tracks like Charlotte Motor Speedway and Daytona International Speedway get most of the attention, but the heart and soul of auto racing lie in local tracks.
BY STEVE GOLDBERG

25 BEST NEW RESTAURANTS - This year, restaurateurs seemed to settle into a post-virus swing even as the overall scene continued to expand and diversify. It’s a lot to digest, but Charlotte continues to impress us with its culinary range and resilience.

OLD PLAYERS, NEW VENTURES - Restaurant veterans expand their Charlotte footprints with new cafés, bakeries, tasting rooms, and food stalls.

CHARLOTTEANS OF THE YEAR
The ones who made a difference in 2021
BY TAYLOR BOWLER, ALLISON BRADEN, GREG LACOUR, JEN TOTA McGIVNEY, AND CARROLL WALTON

THE STUFF WE CARRY
A holiday story about the gifts we salvage from years and lives past.

THE NEW FAMILY-STYLE
Large gatherings are off the table this year, again. But cheer up: Here’s a guide to help you redesign and resize your holiday menu.
BY TAYLOR BOWLER AND ANDY SMITH

THE REHEAT IS ON
A compilation of Charlotte’s best take-and-bake meals.
BY ANDY SMITH

THE TONIC
A program called NoteWorthy puts a mix of musicians on the same stage.
BY GREG LACOUR

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February 2023

January 2023

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Charlotte Magazine - May 2017

Charlotte Magazine - May 2017

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