Wednesday, July 6, 2011

One-Stop for Local: The new Reid's


Now that the newest incarnation of Reid's is up and running on Selwyn Avenue, I made a quick stop last week to take a look. A few notes:

- If you've been around Charlotte a while, you'll know the spot has food karma. It's the location of the old Fresh Market. When you pull into the parking lot, the old neon Reid's sign is there. One warning: Those have got to be the skinniest parking spaces in town.

-- Both the front and back entrances lead you into a nicely set up wine bar and eating area, with an extensive wine section. It's a nice spot for a leisurely lunch before you shop and a good stage for Heidi Bilotto's cooking classes, which continue.

-- The meat department is as good as the old Reid's. Yes, Bucky Frick and Mac McDonald are back behind the counter if you need special cuts and/or meat-cooking advice.

-- The food products section is small, but it's a nice showcase of locally made stuff. I spotted a long list of familiar names - Yah's Salsa's, Litl Taste of Heaven biscuits in a number of flavors, Beverly's Gourmet, Tizzerts cakes by the slice, Penny's pimento cheese, Polka Dot Bakery crackers. Our local-food scene is getting so lively, it's nice to have a one-stop place to find a bunch of different makers.

Two interesting things I hadn't seen: They have multicolored Chester Farms eggs raised by Edwina Willis-Fleming of Eastover (there's a chicken farmer in Eastover? Yes, but apparently her chickens actually live in Chester. Now there's an interesting commute.)

And, for pepperoni-roll fans and West Virginia transplants, we now have locally made pepperoni rolls. They're made by Heidi Ebert of LOL Kitchen on Laurel Avenue.

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

Address?

Kathleen Purvis said...

Details, detail. The old Fresh Market hint wasn't enough of a clue? Sorry, it's at 2823 Selwyn, just before Colony (or after, depending on which direction you're going). 704-377-1312, www.reids.com,

Anonymous said...

I hear that parking is pain there and you can forget finding a space on a busy day which in my opinion is reason not to go at all.

Anonymous said...

we really miss having their chocolate chip cookies. we stopped in one time and were told they were not making them like they used to at their old location.

Anonymous said...

The new Reids is a beautiful store, with a very friendly feel to it. The service is helpful and knowledgeable, particularly in the butcher shop. As mentioned in the article, there are a lot local products- its nice to see a place that is trying to market local stuff. The produce section is also loaded w/ local lettuces, microgreens etc. Parking remains the biggest issue. They do seem to have 6 or 8 spots which are dedicated to Reids customers so that helps some. All in all- a welcome addition to the neighborhood!

Anonymous said...

I've purchased about 10 of the pepperoni rolls at the Kilted Buffalo in Birkdale. If you have never had one they are truly a taste of heaven. The bread is fresh with a nice amount of pepperoni inside. I personally love the pepperjack cheese because it gives it a little bit of a kick. I also love supporting local businesses.

Dwarner said...

The Pepperoni Rolls are amazing! What an amazing treat. Grab them while you can.