Dining Out in Charlotte - Luna's Living Kitchen

Rawco Taco Salad - Luna's Living Kitchen

I've been frequenting Charlotte for work recently and though I don't have much free time when I'm there, I always find time for a good vegan meal! After dining at Fern on my first visit down, I went to Luna's Living Kitchen for a solo lunch on my second trip this March. My Uber driver even asked how I found out about Luna's because he takes other out-of-towners there fairly often (must mean not everyone can handle BBQ for every meal!). It's located in Charlotte's South End District at the Atherton Mill and Market, which is a very cool industrial style shopping center with retailers, a farmer's market, and quite a bit of history to it (built in 1919). The restaurant itself is bright and airy with high ceilings and lots of seating. I liked what I saw on the menu and in the Yelp photos. It's a clean, wholesome, vegan menu with lots of raw and gluten-free options and a large juice and smoothie selection. Despite it being Charlotte, this place is not cheap; prices here were in line with NYC prices. 

My first visit was dining in and I ordered the Rawco Taco Salad. It was a huge bowl of healthy ingredients: All layered on a bed of lettuce and raw crackers was avocado, pico de gallo, walnut-almond crumbles, cashew sour cream and a delicious hot sauce, served with lime wedges. This was fresh, vibrant, colorful and had the right amount of kick to it. As I sometimes find with raw meals, the walnut-almond crumble was a little bit salty, but the creamy sauce, hot sauce, and lime balanced it out. I ordered the Grey Hulk Smoothie to go, hoping it would keep well enough for breakfast the next day. Of course I sipped it my whole ride back; it was filling and not-too-sweet, though a little bit chalky and actually grey-colored! It had berries, banana, hemp milk, spiraling  mama, and hemp protein. With the spirulina and added protein I felt I was doing my body good.

Chia Breakfast Bowl - Luna's Living Kitchen

My most recent visit was a quick one, I picked up take-out to have for breakfast and lunch. To get my energy kick I ordered the Chia Breakfast Bowl, which they just packaged in a parfait cup. This sweet tapioca-like dish had chia seeds soaked in a homemade cashew milk with vanilla bean and orange zest, topped with fresh fruit and maple syrup. It was outstanding! I loved the vanilla flavor and the creaminess of the pudding. The fruit was fresh and bursting with flavor to complement the chia seed mixture. I also requested a Matcha Latte but iced and they were able to accommodate. It was the expected matcha earthiness taste with a very creamy almond milk. I could have used a tiny bit more sweetness. 

Lunch menu items are not available until 11am so I ordered the Living Bagel to save for a later lunch. It was a raw, savory bagel made with almonds, flax, zucchini and rosemary with cashew sour cream and topped with tomato, onion, avocado, basil and sprouts, jalapeños on the side. I didn't know what to expect with a raw bagel but this was really filling. The bagel held together nicely. All the toppings made this a delicious, much better-for-you bagel sandwich I could easily eat a few days a week as a full meal. It was certainly high in fat content because of the nuts and avocado, but I felt satiated right away.

Living Bagel - Luna's Living Kitchen

Needless to say I will be returning to Luna's whenever I can make it back to Charlotte!

Luna's Living Kitchen

2000 Boulevard

Charlotte, NC 28203

Luna's Living Kitchen Website

Dining Out in Charlotte - Fern, Flavors from the Garden

Laughing Buddha Bowl - Fern, Flavors from the Garden

Inside Fern

I visited Charlotte, NC for the first time recently for a business trip. Per usual, I didn't have much free time to explore the local vegan dining scene, but I did quick research to see what was close to my hotel for a vegan lunch. Under 2 miles away was Fern (or Fern, Flavors from the Garden, its longer name), a vegetarian restaurant with many vegan options. I cabbed it over with two of my colleagues for what turned out to be a truly delicious, comforting meal. The interior of the restaurant was so pretty - a sophisticated, rustic look with mason jars, reclaimed wood, and live plants throughout. It was the middle of a weekday so we had the benefit of being only one of two parties dining in. 

Before starting our meal we were offered cucumber water and it was so refreshing! We then began our meal with two appetizers, the vegan Spicy Glazed Cauliflower (image below on left) and the non-vegan Fern Bruschetta (image below on right). My dining buddies were amazed at how great these first dishes were. Given my vegan history I had tried dishes very similar to the Spicy Glazed Cauliflower. It closely resembled the Gobi Manchurian at Red Lentil in Watertown, MA and the Frito Misto at Sublime in Fort Lauderdale, FL with its General Tso's look and taste. The dish is fried cauliflower florets coated in a sesame balsamic glaze and it's just fantastic. The Fern Bruschetta contained parmesan cheese (so I couldn't try it), and seasonal vegetable ragu on charred garlic bread,  the verdict on this was "sooo good!."

               

For entrees, I was really craving a salad, but to make sure I got a taste of the most popular dishes I went for the Om Burger, topped with smoked tomato, pickled cucumbers, pepper aioli served on a sesame bun and I added avocado to it. I also ordered Kale Chips for my side. Besides an extra bready bun that I trimmed down, the burger was full of flavor, not too mushy and filling. The Kale Chips were mildly seasoned, but could have been a bit more crispy. Both of my colleagues got the Laughing Buddha Bowl, described as a unique daily balance of the essentials: legumes, rice, greens and vegetables. This one wasn't labeled vegan on the menu, but I'm sure you could request it. 

Om Burger with Kale Chips - Fern, Flavors from the Garden

Matching Laughing Buddha Bowls!

At the end of the meal all of us said we would return! The restaurant was the OpenTable Diner's Choice winner in 2014 and I can see why.

Fern, Flavors from the Garden

1323 Central Avenue

Charlotte, NC 28205

Fern Website