CLT Eats – A Charlotte Restaurant Review

Main Dining Area

While looking for a different yet good place to eat in Rock Hill I ended up at a cool little place called Citizen Corners. It’s nestled in the classy old downtown area and occupies a spot vacated by a bank. It’s a bit of an odd space but a compelling one. I think they could’ve done a better job on the interior but it’s not bad. They use the old vault as a pantry and it’s somewhat noticeable when you walk in but that’s one of the features that needs to be given a little more prominence in my opinion, not hidden back in the work area. Another cool feature, at least at night is the under-lit glass block floor entry just outside the door. Way cool trick.

When we sat down and I got a look at the menu I was impressed. It’s not a broad menu but it’s reasonably big enough and there are plenty of things that I was interested in, some even a bit on the somewhat unique side. Service was a little sluggish. I actually considered leaving just prior to a very friendly waitress showing up. After the initial delay things did seem to go at a more reasonable pace fortunately.

I struggled a bit to decide what I wanted to go with. I ultimately ended up going with Sparky’s Stuffed Flounder. Not a bold move but I wasn’t feeling frisky at the time. We did however check out the Low Country Egg Rolls. I was a little skeptical but they turned out to be quite good. One of the things that drew me to the Stuffed Flounder was that it came with Grits. I had visions of the fluffy, rich grits that I’ve had at New South Kitchen or 131 Main. My expectations were high after the Egg Rolls. My hopes were dashed when my meal arrived. It was presented well and looked okay but the grits were not of the light and fluffy variety. They actually were some of the worst that I’ve gotten at a restaurant. They looked instant and tasted very bland. The stuffed flounder was similarly unspectacular but wasn’t as unsatisfying. I may be completely off base (I frequently am) but it was as if everything in the meal was made from food that came off a Sysco Foodservice truck. If it was they did a very commendable job of putting together a nice meal with prepackaged foods. If they did use fresh ingredients they sure did manage to drop the ball on this particular meal. I wanted to like my meal but I didn’t. I like the place and suspect they could pull off some killer food – the Egg Rolls sure were – but as far as the main course is concerned it didn’t happen tonight.

This is a very cool place with a lot of potential but it doesn’t seem to me that the potential has been appropriately tapped yet. I struggle to decide recommended or not recommended on this one. For the money it’s definitely not a bargain. It wasn’t terrible and there are likely some better meals than what I ordered on the menu though. The Egg Rolls stole the show tonight. In the future for me, if I’m in Rock Hill and looking for a good place to dine I’ll head over to Michael’s first but if I’m looking for a fall-back plan this may work if I keep my expectations low and have a couple extra dollars burning a hole in my pocket.

Pros

• Good Atmosphere
• Compelling Menu

Cons

• Food fell short of where it could have and should have been
• Service started off shaky but ended up being fair

Rating: Recommended