. . "1"^^ . . "Note: This was the first official opening night.\n\nI was very optimistic about Loft & Cellar. Great use of the space, close to a lot of things uptown, good concept. I brought my cousin and a friend who were in town. Overall, I thought it was a good experience but not a great experience...and honestly, something that may be a bit too much for Charlotte.\n\nFirst, we were there an hour after they opened. They asked if we had reservations. They literally opened for the first time ever an hour ago. No, we did not, but the place was empty so there was no problem getting a table. The menu is setup so you can experience \"a movie or a play.\" Exposition - Rising Action - Crescendo - Resolution. Ok, I'm cool with that concept. But it's difficult to tell what everything is on the menu, even if you're somewhat of a foodie. Second...the drink menu is literally a book and the food menu is one page.\n\nI had a pisco sour drink - which, admittedly, was delicious. They intend for that to be their signature drink and I believe it will be!\n\nOur group ordered the Reuben Tartare (yummy but bread heavy), the Lomi Lomi (good but tasted of mayonnaise), beets bravas (not too bad...but still beets), Duck Brunswick Gyoza (the best dish of the evening!), Souther Pad Thai (bland bland bland), and the Pickey Eater with chicken (sufficient but expensive).\n\nOverall, a good experience for their first night, but not a place I will return to for a lot of food options. If it is to be successful, it will be either more as a bar, or they will need to expand/broaden/simplify the food to make it more accessible to the non-foodies."^^ . "2017-07-14T00:00:00"^^ . "3"^^ . "2"^^ . "0"^^ .