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| - THE MANDRAKE has certainly upped the ante with the welcoming of Chef Donnie Simmons to its kitchen crew. Dubbed the city's Best Chef of 2015 by Creative Loafing Charlotte, Don is expectedly presenting dynamic takes on both tried-and-true and entirely new tapas. The casually classy Uptown restaurant not only benefits from a now revived and entirely overhauled menu, but a refreshed dining atmosphere with a reawakened food audience. Located conveniently between Center City's culinary Third Ward and residential Fourth Ward -- i.e. a couple blocks from BB&T Ballpark and The VUE apartments from either side -- Mandrake also has the benefit of relatively more accessible parking (e.g. surface lots directly across the street), not to mention a significantly larger ratio of local repeats to once-in-a-while passersby and QC visitors.
Food. Without a doubt, the total and utter freshness of each of the five items brought to my table was what validated an automatic 4 stars from me. The Buffalo Chicken Dip was one of the most SATISFYING [and filling] appetizers I've ever had. (Perfectly house-made thick-cut pita chips.) Their golden beet & praline salad over orange sherry vinaigrette was also notable. I then opted for the night's special, per Don's recommendation -- a delicate, extremely succulent offering featuring their catch-of-the-day. Execution was decent, albeit too minimal in overall dish complexity for my taste. This was followed strongly by my favorite plate(s) of the evening... custom-crafted sushi that were nicely augmented variants on their 'Mandrake,' 'Clear Water' and '333' specialty rolls. (I'd return over and again if but only for Mandrake's sushi.) Lastly, Don's dessert truffles. Served poptruffle/trufflepop style, the chilled confections were as velvety and dense as they come. (Again, I'd return even just to grab a to-go truffle order.)
Drinks. Mixologist interaction was fantastic, and though any of Mandrake's cocktails will win you over, all are simply revitalized [and well-planned] twists on established recipes. Personal favorites... 'Smoking the Green' (tequila, cilantro, lime, agave nectar, burnt lava salt) and 'Wall Flower' (gin, lemon, lavender syrup, Chartreuse, Angostura, optional egg white), well as the offered handshaken default of the season, e.g. rum + muddied ingredients. The restaurant also boasts a rather exhaustive -- yet admittedly costly -- selection of red, white, blended, sparkling and dessert wines. While $8 will grant you a glass of dark-spirited Argentinian Malbec, a bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon can set you back $110.
Value. In all honesty, the only potential limitation for a patron here is price. By and large, the menu's price points are on par with any of the other establishments' on CLT's restaurant row; however, let not Mandrake's "small plates + wine" sub-moniker deter you from giving them your business. Customers spoke, they listened, and dish sizes have been made more substantial with absolutely no compromise in taste nor quality. $10-20 will fix any and all hunger pangs, the higher end of said range providing you Mandrake's classics like their Cheese & Charcuterie Board ($15), seared duck w/ salted caramel sauce ($17), and oversized scallops atop pecan butter broth & creamed corn ($18). I cannot emphasize enough the freshness of their food -- this alone justifies multiple visits a week for those who live nearby.
Rating specifics (i.e. 1-5, low-high)...
- Overall recommendation = 4.5
- Food taste and quality = 4.25
- Portion size = 4.5
- Price = 4.75
- Atmosphere = 5 (EXCELLENT vibes... everyone, whether staff or patron, seemed to thoroughly enjoy themselves... abundant outdoor dining too...)
- General service = 5+ (my fifth star... chatting w/ exec. chef Don, the mixologist, the itamae, plus Mandrake's owner at different points throughout the meal provided great insight into their respective passions...)
- Waitstaff = 4.25
- Location = 4
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