Little Rock Deli

One thing that we have always enjoyed doing together is finding great places to eat that are unique. Scot did a little research before out day-trip to Charlotte and found a deli with a user rating of four out of five stars (check it out here). From the description given, he thought it would qualify as unique, so we stopped there for lunch on the way to the Whitewater Center.

We found out later that the neighborhood was not the safest in Charlotte, but hey, it was 1 in the afternoon. Scot had the name and address and, after driving by a Hardees and a Bojangles, soon announced that we'd found the place. He pulled into the parking lot of what was obviously a converted convenience store. My first reaction was to ask, "This is where you're taking me to lunch?" I hesitated for just a second, and then my sense of adventure kicked in. I knew if nothing else, it would make for a good story. (Anything for a good blog post, right?) And Scot was quick to remind me that "it got four stars!"

The menu had more options than I had been expecting after my initial appraisal: hot and cold sandwiches, pizza, gyros, and "Carolina Dogs". We settled on a couple of sandwiches, and because those were so inexpensive, we also sprung for some strawberry shortcake. The whole lunch with drinks totalled $10 and change. Let's just say that the food that was served to us was not what we had envisioned. The cold Italian sub was pretty ordinary, except that the "oil and vinegar" was really Italian salad dressing. It made me wonder what they'd do if you asked for one but not the other. Scot's hot chicken Parmesan sandwich was melted provolone wrapped with a few slices of processed chicken lunch meat, and slathered in marinara. My favorite part of the meal was definitely the dessert, which was served in an oversized pudding cup, compliments of Sara Lee.

We left wondering what the rest of the eating establishments in Charlotte must be like if this one qualified for four stars. It wasn't bad, but we could have made the exact same thing in our own kitchen, store-bought hoagie buns and all. Well, all except dessert...after all, nobody does it like Sara Lee.

Our meal was finished, but the fun wasn't over. We left the "deli" to find a turquoise Chevy Beretta parked next to our car. Attached to the bumper was a giant cage with two live birds wandering around in it. Scot informed me they were turkeys. But regardless, who straps a cage to their car, puts live animals in it, and then drives over to pick up a couple of hot dogs? Man, I love North Carolina!