Located at
118 West 5th Street in Charlotte, Dandelion Market is a full-service
bar with a small plates menu. There are occasional drink specials and a brunch
on weekends.
Named for
a Dublin landmark of the 1970s, Dandelion Market does little to evoke its
Celtic lineage, but it is nevertheless a comfortable spot to grab a bite to
eat. The dimly lit brick-walled interior, with its chalkboard specials and
dried goods sacks on the walls, is the definition of cozy and quaint. The small
plates dinner menu offers everything from appetizers to surf and turf to
veggies and sides with a variety of culinary influences, leaving you free to
cobble together a flavorful Frankenstein of a meal.
My wife
and I rolled the dice with a spinach and artichoke dip, a fried green tomato
caprese, a shrimp and grit cake, and a pork belly with a
brownie-and-caramel-topped-ice cream combo for dessert. Some dishes were
stronger than others, but the food was generally on-point. Dandelion Market does
sauces very well, as both the fig balsamic accompanying the tomato and the
peach-green tomato salsa accompanying the pork belly were excellent. The pork
belly had a melt-in-your-mouth quality that I appreciated though my wife found
it too fatty for her tastes. The bread that came with the dip was oven-fresh,
and the ice cream betwixt the brownies offered some welcome vanilla bean notes
that played well off of the salted caramel.
As with
any tapas place, pricing can be a bit slippery. Most plates run $7-$12. Count
on at least two per person, and it adds up. The skillful execution and artful
plating take away some of the sting, and the efficient kitchen and attentive
servers ensure you won’t have long to wait between plates.
With an
appealing menu, an inviting atmosphere, and a front-of-house and kitchen that
both seem to know what they are doing, Dandelion Market has all the components
needed to deliver a memorably good meal.
8.25/10
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