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Michelin began awarding its stars to US restaurants in 2005, but for years, it was limited to only a few US cities/locations with New York City, Chicago, and San Francisco being the only cities to continually receive visits from Michelin "inspectors" (how Michelin refers to its employees who try restaurants and decide which ones get the stars and how many; up to three) since they first started "inspecting" US restaurants. Michelin has expanded its covered geography over the years, and this year is the first that it has awarded stars to restaurants in the Carolinas. The Carolinas restaurants awarded a star this year (none were awarded two or three) are:
I was surprised to see Counter- get a Michelin star. I really like its chef/owner, Sam Hart, and his vision. I think he's a great guy who is very socially conscious and weaves that into the restaurant and also contributes a good portion of the restaurant's proceeds to charitable causes. That said, I don't think the restaurant has fully delivered on his overall vision (to be fair, I have not been there in over a year, so I don't know how it's changed).
Hart's vision was to have a restaurant that provides an immersive experience where a tasting menu and music are combined as part of a theme. The themes change seasonally and sometimes a theme is limited to a specific meal/seating. I have been to the restaurant twice. The first time was around the summer of 2021 when restaurants were still trying to navigate through he pandemic. Back then, there was a temperature check before entry, restaurant staff wore masks, and seating was arranged for social distancing (Counter- does two seatings per night where the guests at each seating are served at once). The restaurant first opened during the pandemic when NC restaurants were allowed to seat customers again. Due to the circumstances at the time, the restaurant clearly wasn't yet what Hart had envisioned, but I could see its potential and looked forward to trying it when things became more "normal" and his vision could become realized.
I went back early-2024. This time, it was in a new space. Part of it had taken over a sister restaurant/concept called Biblio that he had opened in a shared space that lasted only a few months. Biblio's concept was to have a table order a bottle (or bottles) of wine, and the chef would curate the meal based on the wine selection. The price of the meal was incorporated in the price of the bottle. Hence, what might normally be a $100 bottle would be a $250 bottle to include the price of the food. The concept may have been a bit of a sham however, as there were reports that people noticed the same dishes on other tables depite other tables having ordered different bottles of wine. The concept apparently wasn't working, and the restaurant pivoted away from it. I did try that restaurant once and was very disappointed. The food was very highly priced-- and I'm someone who is happy to pay for an expensive meal if it's really good-- but the quality of the food came nowhere near what I would expect for the price I paid for it.
Anyway, back to Counter-. On the second visit, we and the rest of the goup that is being seated at the time, start off the experience in an area near the bar. Most of us have to stand. We are offered a menu of wines by the glass. And they are expensive. The only glass under $90 (yes, glass) is their house champagne for $20. I am not a champagne guy. We are brought out a few bites as we hang out in this area. They are good. Then were are taken back to the main dining area, which is a counter that seats about 20 people and wraps around the kitchen so everyone can watch as things are being prepared, and so that Hart can do his presentation for everyone at once. As we sit, we are offered some truffle for $100 (no thanks). We are also offered a choice of wine pairings that range between very expensive to absolutely ludicrous (the meal itself costs $200+ per person, which you pay for when you book the reservation). The food is good, but not good enough to make you feel like you got your money's worth. Hart seems less interested in creating his own innovative dishes and more interested in paying homage to renowned chefs and certain types of cuisine. It really comes across as food prepared by a culinary student-- albeit a very good culinary student-- who is trying to emulate an accomplished chef. The service is excellent, and Hart's presentation-- where he discusses the inspiration for and preparation of each dish and plays music to accompany each dish-- comes across as endearing and unrehearsed. The music is pretty disjointed as songs are abruptly cut off before the end while Hart transitions from one dish to the other. The musical aspect of the experience feels sort of like hanging out with a friend in a college dorm room or apartment who is constantly putting on different records.
After the main part of the meal, we are led through the kitchen in small groups where we are given a couple small bites. We are then led back to the old Biblio space (which essentially serves as a bar) and are given a few sweet bites and handed a menu with after dinner drinks.
All in all, while I generally enjoyed the experience, I didn't think it was worth the several hundred dollars I spent on it. Funny enough, a few months later, my wife and I went to another Charlotte restaurant that offers a pricey tasting menu (L'Ostrica) and talked about how much better we thought the food was there than at Counter- and how, unlike Counter-, the meal was worth the price. Just after we discussed that, Sam Hart (Counter- owner/chef) walked in with his date and sat down for a meal at L'Ostrica.
- Counter- in Charlotte (more on this one later)
- Scoundrel in Greenville, S.C.
- Vern's in Charleston
- Wild Common in Charleston
- Malagón Mercado y Taperia in Charleston.
- Lang Van in Charlotte
- Leon's Oyster Shop in Charleston
- Lewis Barbecue in Charleston
- Little Chango in Asheville
- Luminosa in Asheville
- Mala Pata in Raleigh
- Mother in Asheville
- Prime Barbecue in Knightdale
- Rodney Scott's BBQ in Charleston
- Sam Jones BBQ in Raleigh
I was surprised to see Counter- get a Michelin star. I really like its chef/owner, Sam Hart, and his vision. I think he's a great guy who is very socially conscious and weaves that into the restaurant and also contributes a good portion of the restaurant's proceeds to charitable causes. That said, I don't think the restaurant has fully delivered on his overall vision (to be fair, I have not been there in over a year, so I don't know how it's changed).
Hart's vision was to have a restaurant that provides an immersive experience where a tasting menu and music are combined as part of a theme. The themes change seasonally and sometimes a theme is limited to a specific meal/seating. I have been to the restaurant twice. The first time was around the summer of 2021 when restaurants were still trying to navigate through he pandemic. Back then, there was a temperature check before entry, restaurant staff wore masks, and seating was arranged for social distancing (Counter- does two seatings per night where the guests at each seating are served at once). The restaurant first opened during the pandemic when NC restaurants were allowed to seat customers again. Due to the circumstances at the time, the restaurant clearly wasn't yet what Hart had envisioned, but I could see its potential and looked forward to trying it when things became more "normal" and his vision could become realized.
I went back early-2024. This time, it was in a new space. Part of it had taken over a sister restaurant/concept called Biblio that he had opened in a shared space that lasted only a few months. Biblio's concept was to have a table order a bottle (or bottles) of wine, and the chef would curate the meal based on the wine selection. The price of the meal was incorporated in the price of the bottle. Hence, what might normally be a $100 bottle would be a $250 bottle to include the price of the food. The concept may have been a bit of a sham however, as there were reports that people noticed the same dishes on other tables depite other tables having ordered different bottles of wine. The concept apparently wasn't working, and the restaurant pivoted away from it. I did try that restaurant once and was very disappointed. The food was very highly priced-- and I'm someone who is happy to pay for an expensive meal if it's really good-- but the quality of the food came nowhere near what I would expect for the price I paid for it.
Anyway, back to Counter-. On the second visit, we and the rest of the goup that is being seated at the time, start off the experience in an area near the bar. Most of us have to stand. We are offered a menu of wines by the glass. And they are expensive. The only glass under $90 (yes, glass) is their house champagne for $20. I am not a champagne guy. We are brought out a few bites as we hang out in this area. They are good. Then were are taken back to the main dining area, which is a counter that seats about 20 people and wraps around the kitchen so everyone can watch as things are being prepared, and so that Hart can do his presentation for everyone at once. As we sit, we are offered some truffle for $100 (no thanks). We are also offered a choice of wine pairings that range between very expensive to absolutely ludicrous (the meal itself costs $200+ per person, which you pay for when you book the reservation). The food is good, but not good enough to make you feel like you got your money's worth. Hart seems less interested in creating his own innovative dishes and more interested in paying homage to renowned chefs and certain types of cuisine. It really comes across as food prepared by a culinary student-- albeit a very good culinary student-- who is trying to emulate an accomplished chef. The service is excellent, and Hart's presentation-- where he discusses the inspiration for and preparation of each dish and plays music to accompany each dish-- comes across as endearing and unrehearsed. The music is pretty disjointed as songs are abruptly cut off before the end while Hart transitions from one dish to the other. The musical aspect of the experience feels sort of like hanging out with a friend in a college dorm room or apartment who is constantly putting on different records.
After the main part of the meal, we are led through the kitchen in small groups where we are given a couple small bites. We are then led back to the old Biblio space (which essentially serves as a bar) and are given a few sweet bites and handed a menu with after dinner drinks.
All in all, while I generally enjoyed the experience, I didn't think it was worth the several hundred dollars I spent on it. Funny enough, a few months later, my wife and I went to another Charlotte restaurant that offers a pricey tasting menu (L'Ostrica) and talked about how much better we thought the food was there than at Counter- and how, unlike Counter-, the meal was worth the price. Just after we discussed that, Sam Hart (Counter- owner/chef) walked in with his date and sat down for a meal at L'Ostrica.
