Golden Owl Tavern — Restaurant in Charlotte

This restaurant is inside of the hotel we stayed at while we visited Charlotte. The hotel and restaurant are both brand new. I checked out their menu before we arrived, and I was excited to try them out. Their menu is unique with some interesting flavors going on. We came shortly after they opened for dinner and were sat by the window facing their patio area. I was nicely but firmly requested that we not be sat near any other occupied tables, and they had no issue with that. The hostess and server were both really nice and pleasant.

The restaurant was really nice looking. Dark woods, but still a really warm feeling. I’m sure at night it’s even cozier. I ended up ordering the Whiskey Crab Bisque with everything crackers, the Wood Roasted Cornish Hen on a bed of salad (radicchio, feta, crunchy greens, croutons, spiced pecans, pickled golden raisins). Hubby ordered a ribeye but they were out so he ended up with a NY strip, with a side of collard greens and I think mashed potatoes; he also got the oysters for an appetizer. As we were eating our apps when the server offered us a new mac and cheese the chef was trying out. Unfortunately, her description of the size of the shared dish was grossly underestimated. Instead of a dish for 2, it was easily a dish for 4! So we ended up taking most of it to-go and giving it to family we were visiting with that evening.

I thought my chicken was good but could have been a bit more tender. I thought as you got closer to the leg bones, it was slightly underdone. I ended up just mainly eating the breast portion and wing portions. I did get a decent smoke flavor in the chicken and while I enjoyed the salad, I thought the pickled raisins overtook a lot of the flavors. I would have liked more pecans and more of a mix of greens. The radicchio was the majority and it wasn’t as well balanced in flavors as I would have liked. I did like the dish, however, just not enough to want it again.

The crab bisque was surprisingly underwhelming. I think the other flavors in the soup just took over all of the crab flavors to where it was just barely there. I really expected something bolder. The same goes for the everything crackers. Everything bagels are my favorite so I really expected to get that flavor coming through. It did not. They are homemade and crispy, but lacking in the everything seasoning. It was just barely there. The cracker alone was pretty flavorless. This may be the goal, so it won’t overtake the soup.

The mac-and-cheese, I hope will improve. I had to ask for salt and pepper, which to me is the worst insult I can give to a chef. If it’s not on the table, I expect the food to be seasoned well. There was some kind of smoked meat in the dish, which I’m assuming is why the portion is so big, it’s meant to be an entree. I guess they figured that would add salt to the dish, but it was lacking in salt and pepper you want, to bring out everything. With all of that said, it didn’t taste bad, but I honestly didn’t even finish the portion I fixed for myself. It just was lacking to the point I didn’t want to keep eating it.

Hubby did enjoy his entree and oysters. The steak was cooked well and he enjoyed it. They were nice enough to allow me to try out their sauces. They brought them over in little cups. The only one I really enjoyed was one that tasted as if it had fresh tomato.

I did like they offer paperless menus by having you scan your phone to get the menu to pull up. But they should at least offer you a paper menu. The server didn’t so assumed they didn’t have any. But later when we were leaving, I saw a server bring back menus from a table. I think this should be offered b/c my husband’s phone wouldn’t scan the code and it delayed and annoyed him to have to use my phone to get the menu and me just having to pull up via the website on his browser. They offer individual machines to your table to pay your bill. I would still recommend this place b/c I think their menu may keep evolving and improving.It’s just different enough to offer something different but just needs...

This place is absolutely fantastic. Something the University and North Lake Area have been missing is a mid-tier restaurant and Golden Owl Tavern hits just that. Parking is a bit tricky since it is a hotel on a college campus, but valet is provided. There is a surface lot a small walk away as well as a parking garage across the street. If you enter from that side, you'll have to make your way down to the first floor. The ambiance, open kitchen, décor, and outdoor area are all wonderful.

For appetizers, my friends and I ordered the cornbread, pimento cheese and the deviled eggs. The cornbread was the all around table favorite, but the deviled eggs were a close second (seriously, get the cornbread). The Nashville hot chicken provided a good contrast and spice. For dinner, we had the 4 cheese pizza, the country fried short rib, and the specialty burger. All of these were fantastic as well and the pickled vegetables served with the country fried short rib was great. Everyone else enjoyed their dishes as well.

Dessert finished us off with the banana pudding and the pineapple upside down cake. The banana pudding was pretty good, but a bit different than most southerners may be used too. The pudding portion was a bit looser and seemed more like a slightly thick ice cream, but it tasted fantastic. The pineapple upside down cake was very delicious and moist, we'd definitely order it again.

Overall, I think this place is a game changer for University area restaurants. Service got a bit slow towards the middle and end of our time there however, we were there for a decent amount of time with us ordering 3 courses, and I feel like it can be chalked up to new restaurant growing pains. I hope everyone gives this...

I'm going to say it: This is the nicest restaurant in the university area. And even though that's not saying much, this is still a really nice place. I think "tavern" is a bit of a misnomer. This is more of an upscale hotel lounge / restaurant. Beautiful interior with a great open kitchen featuring wood burning pizza oven.

The location is inside the brand new Marriott hotel and conference center in the University area - on the UNCC campus and directly adjacent to the light rail stop. Parking could be problematic for those not already on campus or at the hotel/conference center. Valet parking is an option and so is parking at the light rail deck, which also isn't free.

The menu is interesting and we will be back to try other options. But this time we settled for the duck wings (I think they're actually the legs of the duck) which were really yummy in a sweet glaze. And we try the andouille pizza as the idea of collards on a pizza was too interesting to pass up. The crust reflected the wood burning oven well and was excellent. The collards really added zero and the red chili peppers were a little over the top in the spicy department. So I would get pizza but not the andouille.

We had beer and the draft menu was sufficient. Wine did seem expensive though, as the cheapest glass of Cabernet was $14. I imagine many folks drinking the wine won't care as they will be expensing it.

It will be interesting to see if this place ends up being a dining destination in the university area, which sorely lacks nicer restaurants, or if it ends up being strictly a hotel restaurant for out of town business folks and people using the new...