Work It Out -- Mecklenburg County Job Fair Sept. 9

​Whether unemployed or unhappy with the job you currently have, you (or someone you know) are probably looking for work. Well, put your suit in the cleaners, print copies of your resume, and get ready for this upcoming opportunity. Mecklenburg County is hosting a job fair on Tuesday, September 9, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Grady Cole Center (310 N. Kings Dr.).

The county is hiring for several positions, including library aide and assistant, IT programmers, vendor managers, social workers, nurses, maintenance and operations assistants, recreation specialists, and more. Click here for more details on the job fair, and you can find a list of current job openings here, which you can apply for online.

Credit: facebook.com/MecklenburgCounty

Mecklenburg County, which is comprised of Charlotte, Cornelius, Davidson, Huntersville, Matthews, Mint Hill, and Pineville, surpassed one million residents in population last year, with the Queen City accounting for about 80 percent of that.

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No Grease Barbershop Opening At Carolina Place Mall

No Grease Barbershop is expanding into south Charlotte/Pineville, as it prepares to open at Carolina Place mall on Thursday, July 3. This will be the Charlotte-based franchise's fourth location, which includes barbershops at Time Warner Cable Arena in Uptown, Mosaic Village near Johnson C. Smith University, and at Concord Mills mall. No Grease also operates a barber school.

The new No Grease location at Carolina Place. Photos credit: instagram.com/nogreasebarbershop

I told part of the No Grease story in a feature I wrote last summer for Creative Loafing, that took readers inside Charlotte's barbershop culture. Twin brothers Damian and Jermaine Johnson opened their first No Grease shop in June 1997, when they were in their early 20s. It's been impressive and inspiring to see how much their business has grown, along with their partner Charlie Petty, and how much of an asset they've become to Charlotte as a brand, as small business owners, and as philanthropists.

The No Grease guys celebrated their 17th anniversary with a cocktail gala last Friday. Check out the snazzy video recap below.

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H&M Grand Opening February 27 at Carolina Place

Charlotte's northside got its H&M when the retailer opened at Northlake Mall in November. Now it's the southside's turn, as H&M holds its grand opening this Thursday, February 27 at Carolina Place in Pineville.

Tomorrow's grand opening event begins at noon at the store, located on the mall's upper level. Guests can begin lining up at 7 a.m. at the upper level entrance. The event will offer free T-shirts and gift cards valued from $10 to $300 for the first 200 people in line (the chance to win the $300 gift cards is what usually spurs a large turnout). There will also be music by DJ LP, refreshments, and plenty of great deals on merchandise.

This location of H&M at Carolina Place, which is selling apparel in ladies, men, kids, and young, reportedly, is 17,000 square feet, which is about a third smaller than the 26,000-square-foot Northlake store. And the Charlotte area will go from having no H&Ms, having been long overdue to this market, to soon having three locations. A SouthPark Mall store is currently under construction.

Shoppers lined up before the H&M Northlake opening last November. Photo credit: @htrenda

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Sweet Tea's in Pineville Is a 'Restaurant Impossible', but the Food Is Good

Last week, I saw a headline on The Charlotte Observer's homepage about “Restaurant Impossible coming to Pineville." For some reason, I didn't click on the article's link at the time, and then it slipped my mind. Until this morning I saw a friend on Facebook write on her wall that she was going to the taping of Restaurant Impossible this evening.

If you aren't familiar with the TV show, it's a top-rated series on Food Network, in which Chef Robert Irvine tries to save struggling restaurants around the country. The chosen restaurant is usually on the verge of financial failure to the point that it would have to soon permanently close its doors. Irvine comes in with a crew, shuts down the restaurant for two days, and spends that time and $10,000 trying to revive the business, doing everything from remodeling the place, re-training the staff, updating the menu, helping management work on maintaining budgets, etc. And again, he does all of this in two days, with camera crews taping, so you get to see all of the chaos, drama, and then the final product.

Robert Irvine consults with an owner during a past episode of Restaurant Impossible.
Credit: facebook.com/RestaurantImpossible

So back to how it had slipped my mind to read that Observer article. I pulled it up this morning, read it, and found out that the Pineville restaurant is Sweet Tea's Restaurant and Catering. I actually attended a wedding last month that Sweet Tea catered. The wedding was at a beautiful, historic mansion, and was well-planned from start to finish, including the delicious food that was served at the reception--it was a Southern-style menu. The wedding reception also had an open bar, staffed by Sweet Tea's. That's how I learned of the restaurant, after I saw the name on the bartender's shirt. I thought Sweet Tea's was an interesting name, so I asked her about it and she told me a little about the restaurant in Pineville and that they cater throughout the Charlotte area.

Today is day two of Restaurant Impossible's work at Sweet Tea's, with the grand re-opening scheduled for this evening at 7 p.m. According to an associate producer for the show who talked to the Observer, this particular episode will air in late February or early March. The series airs Wednesdays at 9 p.m. on Food Network.

I hope the restaurant is able to make a successful recovery, and I hope to visit there soon. There have been a couple of people on Yelp who've said they ate at Sweet Tea's over the last few days simply because they learned it was going to be the focus of Restaurant Impossible, including one reviewer who said he and his wife "wanted to see what the place was all about before it got fixed."

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Next Charlotte Restaurant Week—January 20-29, 2012

The semi-annual Queen's Feast: Charlotte Restaurant Week returns for its Winter 2012 edition, taking place Friday, January 20 through Sunday, January 29. The CRW website, www.charlotterestaurantweek.com, went live today with the updated info and there are a record 101 restaurants participating.

Charlotte Restaurant Week began in 2008 and since then has been held each January (winter) and July (summer). I remember the first time I blogged about it here on Grown People Talking was in the summer of 2009, in which was its third installment--it featured a then-record high 71 restaurants and also marked the first time it spanned 10 days. Clearly, CRW has grown—the last one featured 92 restaurants—and it's now solidified as a culinary tradition in the city.

It's the same deal you love: participating restaurants offering a prix fixe, three-course dinner for $30 per person (not including tax and gratuity). Many restaurants will throw in a fourth course or glass of wine for the deal.

Fern, Flavors from the Garden is one of a dozen first-time participants in restaurant week.

Restaurant owners love the promotion because it draws in diners during what is typically slow periods, and brings them a lot of first-time customers whom they hope will become regulars. And we, patrons, love it because it's a chance to enjoy a great meal and evening out at a reduced cost. Hensley Fontana Public Relations & Marketing, which owns and executes Charlotte Restaurant Week, reports that the summer edition in July 2011 generated approximately 90,000 dinners and an estimated economic impact of more than $4 million in revenue.

While nearly two-thirds of the participating restaurants are located in the Uptown, Dilworth, SouthPark, and south Charlotte areas—understandably so because those areas have the most restaurants period—the list spans the entire Charlotte area. The Lake Norman/North Mecklenburg/Iredell County section of the list has grown the most, now featuring 17 restaurants.

There are also a dozen first-time participants, including Bernardin’s at Ratcliffe in Uptown; Campania Cafe in Davidson; Fern, Flavors from the Garden in Plaza Midwood; Waldhorn Restaurant in Pineville; Yama Asian Fusion in SouthPark; Jeffrey’s Restaurant in Mooresville; Osso Restaurant & Lounge at N.C. Music Factory (opened just last week); La Paz in the Metropolitan; and several others.

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Charlotte Restaurant Week Summer 2010

It comes around twice a year, when fellas can treat their ladies to a nice dinner without breaking the bank. The summer 2010 installment of Charlotte Restaurant Week takes place July 16-25. In what's becoming a local dining tradition, this 10-day celebration of some of the city's finest restaurants once again offers a prix fixe, three-course dinner for $30 per person (not including tax and gratuity) at nearly 90 participating restaurants in the Charlotte area. And several restaurants are known to sweeten the deal by either including a fourth course or throwing in a glass of wine.

Interior shots of some of the participating restaurants - from left to right - bottom row: Customshop, Aquavina, Aria; middle row: Global, Carpe Diem, Vivace; top row: M5, The Liberty, Blue (click image for larger view).

Participating restaurants include:

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Local Ties on Olympic Ice

Two young ladies with ties to the Charlotte area are competing today in the women's 500m race at the Winter Olympics in Vancouver. Heather Richardson, 20, and Lauren Cholewinski, 21, will be racing for their first Olympic medals in this individual sport.

Richardson is from High Point and as a kid her mother would bring her to the ice rink at Eastland Mall to train with a coach (those were the good old days of Eastland that we often hear about, before I, and probably most of you, moved to Charlotte). Cholewinski was born in Pineville and grew up in York and Rock Hill. She now lives in Utah, where she trains.

Heather Richardson, left, and Lauren Cholewinski.

The women's 500m race starts at 4 p.m. (1 p.m. Vancouver time) and will air at 8 p.m. on NBC. Richardson and Cholewinski are among the four Americans who make up the pool of 36 women competing in this event from around the world.

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Free Stuff for Veterans -- In Charlotte and Beyond

Charlotte (and the nation) is showing love to our military service men and women in honor of Veterans Day. Even though the holiday is this Wednesday, November 11, there are specials going on throughout the week. Here are a few that GPT has learned of, and I got the idea to put this list together after talking to an old friend.

One of my childhood friends from South Carolina visited Charlotte today and he paid me a visit while in town. We were chilling at the crib when he mentioned that after he left my house he was going to the Charlotte Bobcats box office because they're giving away two tickets to tomorrow's (Tuesday) home game against the Orlando Magic. I told Caleb, who served in the Army for a few years after high school, that I hadn't heard anything about the ticket giveaway. But sure enough, at about 5:30 p.m. he was calling me as he was leaving the box office at Time Warner Cable arena saying he'd picked up his two free tickets. And he said "they're pretty good seats."


If you're a veteran or active duty, you can pick up your tickets by showing proof of service (military ID card, DD214 form, military orders, etc.). The box office opens at 10 a.m. Tuesday and will be open through the start of the game, which begins at 7 p.m. Call the box office at 704-688-9000 if you have any questions. I didn't see any info about the giveaway on the Bobcats website, www.bobcats.com.

There are also some sweet food deals for veterans.

Applebee's nationwide is offering a free entree to all veterans and active duty military personnel on Wednesday. There are several ways you can show proof of eligibility to obtain your free meal: U.S. Uniform Services ID card, current leave and earnings statement (LES), veterans organization card (i.e., American Legion and VFW), photograph in uniform, wearing uniform, DD214, citation, or commendation.


There are 12 Applebee's locations in the Charlotte area, including Concord, Matthews, Pineville, Gastonia, and Rock Hill. Click here for more information on the Veterans Day special.

Also on Wednesday:

Wolfman Pizza, a Charlotte-based, California-Style pizza restaurant with four area locations, is offering 50 percent off your meal if you're a veteran or active duty. If you like 'em hot and sweet, Krispy Kreme is giving a free donut to our brave men and women (click here). Veterans and active duty personnel can get a free Bloomin’ Onion and a drink at Outback Steakhouse. Click here for more details.

The food love is even spilling into next week. On Monday, November 16, from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m., Golden Corral is holding its Military Appreciation Monday Dinner. Get your free meal, and visit www.goldencorral.com/military for more details.

The big-box stores are getting into the spirit as well.

Mooresville-based Lowe's Home Improvement is honoring Veterans Day at its more than 1,600 stores nationwide. Through Saturday, people from the active duty ranks, reservists, honorably discharged, and retired military men and women with valid identification or proof of service are eligible to receive a special 10 percent discount on in-store and special order purchases up to $5,000.

On Veterans Day only, Sam’s Club locations nationwide will be giving away 25,000 Hugo canes free of charge to military veterans in need of mobility assistance. Limited quantities per location and available only while supplies last. You don't have to be a Sam’s Club member, but proof of military service is required. Visit www.hugosalutes.com.

If you know of any special offer that I've missed, feel free to post it in the comments section. And if you go get one of these freebies, come back and post your experience in the comments as well.

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