Charlotte Magazine – July 2019

JUNE 2019 // CHARLOTTE 47

The nuts gave it crunch, and the pork belly’s smokiness complemented the
vegetables, but the fried egg on top didn’t add anything to the dish except
runny yolk.
Calamari isn’t something I typically order because it’s such a common
appetizer. But chef Mike Watson’s calamari ($9) comes with smoked pork
belly, a medley of colorful peppers, olives, and a side of feta aioli. My husband
and I disagreed on the olives—I said they added too much salt with the pork
belly, but he thought they were just right. So this one really depends on your
threshold for saltiness.
On nearby tables where diners opted for the large plates, we noted
“entrée-sized” salads big enough to feed a family of four. Other plates were
heaped with sloppy joes, meatloaf patty melts, and chicken pot pie. While
Watson is generous with his portions, he doesn’t get too heavy-handed with
ingredients like smoked pork belly, which could easily weigh down a meal.
Behind the bar is an Oktober can seamer, which seals 32-ounce cra’ cans—
or crowlers—straight from the tap, and a custom beer tower with 16 taps for
cra’ beer. The 30-foot-long, walnut-edge grain bar top is by Brun Millworks.
Shadow boxes with spools of yarn and thread decorate the walls, which my
husband recognized from the Cannon Mills Company that, coincidentally,
employed his grandfather –ve decades ago.
As we concluded our meal, I came back to the last of the three mini biscuits
to see if they were as good as I’d thought. And they were.

TAYLOR BOWLER is associate editor of this magazine.

44 MILLS KITCHEN + TAP is a draw for an area

where independent restaurants are sparse.

With half-priced wine bottles on Wednesdays,

live music on Saturday nights, and weekend

brunch specials, they’re working hard to reach

Concord’s twentysomething demographic. But

its spot in the back corner of the Afton Ridge

Shopping Center, populated with Buffalo Wild

Wings, Party City, and Dollar Tree, isn’t likely to

appeal to the uptown crowd. It’s a great lunch

option for Stewart Haas Racing fans or Concord

Mills shoppers in town for the day, but the food

isn’t memorable enough to drive 30 minutes

out of your way on a Saturday night. —Charlotte

magazine sta

CRITICS’ COLUMN

44 Mills

Kitchen + Tap

AMBIENCE: FOOD:

SERVICE: OVERALL RATING:

(Clockwise from

top) Street tacos

with barbecue

smoked pork

and farmer

slaw; Chef Mike

Watson’s menu

includes steamed

buns, charred

cauliflower and

Brussels sprouts,

and calamari

topped with

smoked pork belly

and peppers with

a side of feta aioli.