Community Matters Cafe — Restaurant in Charlotte

We honestly had no idea what this establishment was until partway through our meal, and even without knowing that we still would have left a rave. We are not from the Charlotte area, so we randomly found a highly rated restaurant to bring our family of four, and were impressed from the start. The place looks very stylish from the outdoor patio and upon entering, it just got prettier as we enjoyed the Christmas decor in the lounge area where we spent a few minutes during our short wait for a table. The staff were sweet with our two young kids, and sat us promptly in the posh yet warm dining area. Several TVs were hung high and each had a different classic Christmas movie on. The menu looked impressive and we were excited to order from not only the unique dishes but also the variety of sides and small plates. Our server was SO friendly and, as former servers ourselves, my husband and I could tell this guy was experienced and competent. He accommodated our split-tab for work travel, he offered to split a hot cocoa for our little ones and even made sure it wasn’t too hot for them. At this point we still had no idea about any mission behind this restaurant, and once the food came it was all DELICIOUS so we were already starting to understand the many perfect reviews on google. The pulled pork Johnny cake had SO much flavor and just the right amount of ginger and spice. The New Orleans chicken sandwich was everything you’d want it to be and quite large. We also had the black garlic and Parmesan Brussels sprouts and, possibly my favorite, the honey hot sweet potatoes. Everything was notably tasty! Also, when our youngest spilled his hot cocoa another staff member took care of that mess and replacing it for us. She told us what the establishment was all about, and it was only then that we paid any attention to the name of the place😂😂 I suppose having a 4 and 6 year old, at the end of a vacation, will do that to you🤣 Another lady also explained about the Christmas at the Cafe event, gave us vouchers for two free coffees/cocoas in the future, and she had made several stops at our table to play with the kids. It was a very supportive staff because we hadn’t even noticed our server had taken a break until he came back until told us. He then explained much more about what they do for the community, and truly it’s such a gift to meet people apart of an organization that provides such a valuable service to people in need. And more than that, the business is thoroughly impressive, they don’t seem like a charity kitchen at all (which would be fine if they did)- the vibes were very up and up, very hip and on trend with flavors and atmosphere alike. Our experience would have been rave worthy even without their mission, but with that we felt especially compelled to follow through in writing that rave. But WHAT’S MORE… I left my car key in the restroom, and we drove back to the Raleigh area right away (using my husband’s car key)🤦🏻‍♀️ I didn’t realize until the next day, and they were ON IT, awaiting the call! The gentleman took down my mailing info right away and took care of the whole thing, mailing it to our home. We will DEFINITELY be coming back to Community Matters Cafe any time we are in the Charlotte area. Big thanks to these wonderful people and...

Wow! I did not have a good experience at this place. I am a remote worker, wanted to get some coffee and breakfast while checking some emails before taking some meetings at home later, and this place was highly recommended. As soon as we walked in, the environment was already a bit unwelcoming and the barista taking our order was short with us. Once we got the coffee we ordered, the extra hot drink didn't have a sleeve on it so we had to ask for one because it was too hot to hold. We decided (against our better judgement) to go ahead with our plan to order food so we were seated, and sat for a long while before being able to put an order in — seems like the waitress may have forgotten we were there or not have noticed. My partner had just travelled a couple hours really early in the morning and so went to the bathroom to change their shoes and pants, and a waitress followed them and checked on them, maybe thinking they were doing something suspicious? Once the food came, we were surprised to see the focaccia de jour had pork on it, and unfortunately my partner doesn't eat pork (our bad, we should have asked, but we also weren't told anything about what it came with, and the menu only said olive oil — which it didn't seem to have either). We waited ages for a server to come to our table so we could ask for something to replace it, like regular toast, and then another few ages for that to get to us. At the point that it did, it was nearing the time I needed to leave, and my partner was feeling extremely uncomfortable and anxious and so I went ahead to the host's stand to ask for to go boxes and to go ahead and close the check — it probably would have taken another 20 minutes to wait for someone to come to our table again. If you're visibly queer or dress alternatively, I don't recommend coming here. I don't usually have any issues with either of these things in Charlotte, but the entire time we felt so incredibly judged and got constant stares from not only all of the staff but also the other customers. Service was not great, slow, and not very attentive. Did not come to check on us except to give us the check. I do appreciate that they removed the focaccia from our bill since my partner was not able to eat it. My partner did enjoy the french toast I ordered, but I was overall disappointed by the food and did not really like it much. The one positive interaction I had was with the host, who was very attentive, helped me get the boxes, and greeted me with a kind smile and was polite. Everyone else in the entire cafe made us feel very uncomfortable and unwelcome. I do think the mission of the cafe is lovely and it seems like they have provided some great experiences for many customers, but unfortunately our visit was...

The concept, restaurant and the fact that the tables are indeed pretty well spread out are the good things about this place and hence, 2 starts. Tho I'm partial to small and local businesses, I have almost never had this kind of experience. My partner and I walk into this breakfast spot and we were pleasantly surprised at the space this has. I did read the reviews and wanted in on the food that was soo raved about. Anyways. We get there and barely 2 tables are occupied. We get promptly seated, get our bevs and that's about all we got for the 30/45 mins we sat awaiting food. Meanwhile, the restaurant starts to get busy and everyone who was after us get their meals. Even the last ones we saw sitting behind us. We had to flag down our server who was very casual about ' I'll go check in cuz things happen in the kitchen you know' and shrugs off never to be seen again! This was the 3rd time I flagged him down cuz the second was coffee refill. We left and wanted to pay for the bevs but the manager who when I was explaining what happened made me feel rushed to leave while looking around said our coffee and tea was on him. In the 10 mins of us waiting. Then leaving I never heard from the server or the manager not even when I waited outside for my partner to get the car. I'm sure you're short staff but then that makes me think how did everyone else get their meals after you got busy? I have never made to feel soo dismissed and rushed. I can't think of any other reason but the very casual attire I was in - sweats and a hoodie while I saw everyone else all dressed for the day. Some of have a day off, too and like to be casual. Rest assured, we'll not be ever visiting here after a humiliating experience. I guess I wasn't preppy looking enuf cuz I never found an actual dress code. Rr was clean and did smell good. I'm sorry at the whole meals being missed in your kitchen but it sure was not a pleasant experience for us by any...