The Village Tavern, located across the street from SouthPark, has alway been a special place for us. The original location is located on the former estate of tobacco magnate, RJ Reynolds, just a short walk from Wake Forest University. It got its name from being located in a collection of shops and restaurants, on the former estate now known as Reynolda Village. The area is very popular with Wake Forest students, since there is a path leading from campus directly to the village. On a beautiful spring day in 1990, Village Tavern was where Beth and I, in the early stages of our relationship, decided that we were going to date each other exclusively.
The Charlotte location has been a place of many “firsts” for us. It was the first place that we drank a beer darker than a lager as we were getting ready to go to Europe for 5 weeks right after college. It was the first place that Beth’s parents met my parents. And it was the first place that the two of us went to dinner when we started Fagan Realty Group and had just hired our first employee.
Since those occasions, we still go periodically. The menu has something for everyone, and it has been consistently good over the years. Having been in operation in Charlotte for over 30 years, that is always a great sign for any restaurant in Charlotte given the stiff competition in the city.
Some of our favorite menu items include their take on a spring roll which is quite different from what you would get at a Chinese restaurant. The other appetizers that we like are the Freshly-fried Potato Chips with Homemade Ranch Dressing, Hot Crab Dip, and Pimento Cheese Deviled Eggs. The entrees that we like are the Beet Salad, Thai Chicken Salad, Hemingway Florentine, Southern Shrimp & Grits, and Sue, Beth's mother, absolute favorite, is the Maryland Crab Cakes.
In the warm months, they have a large section of tables on the patio. If you want to take advantage of that opportunity be sure to make a reservation to sit outside as well as for their ever popular Sunday brunch.
If you try Village Tavern, let us know what you think. And we are alway looking for recommendations of locally-owned places to write about. Send us your suggestions!
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