The Cellar At Duckworth’s

This is how you go from 2 stars to 1, management sending out cowardly insults from a fake account. I will never set foot in a Duckworths again, be it upstairs, downstairs, or another location. Who’s a dumbass now?

The atmosphere, cocktails, tapas, dessert, and service were all excellent! My wife and I especially liked the tuna tartare and flat bread. Perfect seasoning and preparation and fresh ingredients. We look forward to returning on our next visit to Charlotte.

Swanky place– dimly lit, wood hewn atmosphere, steel bar stools, leather accents… The food options were creative and top quality.
We ordered truffle fries, salmon flatbread, black grouper, scallops, and almond s’mores. Everything was fantastic as was the service.

My husband and I were deciding between this and 131 Main for dinner. We chose this because we had never been before and heard great things.
From the second we walked in a knew we made the wrong choice. The score was 88. Not what I hope to see at nice restaurant. We got cocktails, a cheese and meat plate, the burger, the ribeye, and the Mac and cheese, and everything we had was barely okay.
The cocktails were okay, but overpriced and nothing special.
I was expecting a really great meal, and neither of us liked anything we had. I don’t have very high standards for food, I like almost everything, and I haven’t had a meal that bad in a long time. Really disappointed. We expected a lot more out of this place for the prices

Went here for my birthday last night and had the BEST service from Darren. We got a tour of the cellar, talked about beer and the restaurant, and really enjoyed his company.
Truffle fries are to die for. Charcuterie is heavenly — love the chocolate lab and the presentation. Anything we’ve gotten on the menu has been great — highly recommend!

It was good, but not sure it’s worth the money. We ordered several things, and I think most of it was just average for a place like that. My personal favorite were the truffle fries, maybe just because I love fries, but nothing else really stood out that much. I will say the waffle cones were different and interesting, but again, just ok for us.
Loved the ambiance. Ordered a few different cocktails, which were good, but for the price, should of either been bigger… or packed more of a punch.

The Cellar has an elegant speakeasy style and what a great find in downtown Charlotte. I believe they’ve only been open for less than a year so they may be still flying under the radar a bit. Food prices are very reasonable for the classy environment. The caramelized brussel sprouts and truffle fries were both under $ 10 and their 32 oz tomahawk bone in ribeye was big enough for two people and a solid price at $ 68. All the food was amazing and would have liked to try the house made waffle cones but the brussels paired better with the bone in ribeye. Everybody from the guys behind the bar to the restaurant manager were very warm and welcoming. I wasn’t dressed formally enough compared to the other patrons in the restaurant, but it didn’t feel uncomfortable at all. The burgers and black grouper entrée looked really good and gives me a reason to come back next time I’m in town.

Went with a friend while in town for a business meeting. We were seated in the last booth near the beer cellar.
The service was great and we were treated like rockstars. The choose your own cheese and charcuterie plate was delicious.
My friend got the brisket burger and I got the cheese grits with shrimp. Both were amazing!
Extra credit for the manager giving us a fantastic tour of the beer cellar. A beer lovers dream!

This place hands down has the best cheese sticks ever. Like I would literally come here just to order the cheese sticks and nothing else. Well maybe a drink, but only cheese sticks.
The Wednesday night pepperoni pizza special ($ 9) wasn’t that great — it was a little burnt on the crust and the top. We ordered the blue cheese chips and they weren’t that great either. I expect a chunkier blue cheese when the dish specifically calls out «blue cheese», not a runny sauce.
But nonetheless, the cheese sticks redeemed all the stars back. I don’t even know what it was about them, but I could not stop thinking about how delicious they were. Get you some!

still five stars obviously but i have been here multiple times since my original review and service is still 5 stars and the food is still 6 stars.
I have probably tried ¹⁄₃ of the menu at this point and have yet to find something i do not love. The actual beer cellar which i believe was complete a few months ago is amazing and they will take you in there and help you pick out something unique!
seems like their cocktail menu has grown as well

The Cellar definitely offers something that you don’t find in Charlotte. A restaurant/​bar located down a flight of stairs of the uptown Duckworth’s location. As others have mentioned it is dark with a speak easy feel. They offer craft cocktails, beer and wine with a full menu of appetizers, shared items, entrees and desserts. The craft cocktails are all unique and allow anyone sitting at the bar to get a view of the skills of some of the mixologists, for example the burning of orange peels to give orange smoke flavor to one of their signature drinks.
I have been to The Cellar three times now and have enjoyed every visit. The Manager is on point, walking the floor, checking in on customers and opening up about the story of The Cellar, the drinks, etc.
As for the food, OMG. I can say the tuna tartare, one of the cold appetizers, is probably some of the best tartare I have ever had. And, the oysters, char grilled, were spot on. The first time I had them they were so hot, straight off the grill, with melted butter and bread served to sop of the butter and oyster juice… amazing.
This most recent visit I went to celebrate and early birthday dinner. We had 6:30 reservations and received a seat along the wall so we were able to enjoy a view of the bar and the entire restaurant, which ever table was booked/​full by 7:30. Make reservations if you can. We ordered the tuna to start, amazing again, and decided to order the Tomahawk Steak (32 oz.) with Brussels Sprouts and their Truffle Mac and Cheese. The steak was unreal, a large rib eye on the bone, check out my picture. The sprouts were chargrilled with a balsamic glaze, so good and the mac & cheese was good. Just a little too much truffle flavor for me, but good.
Cocktails were great and although the service was a little hit or miss this night we enjoyed dinner very much. I will definitely be back!

My partner and I celebrated our birthdays (just a couple days apart) this year at The Cellar. This was our second visit to the restaurant and we look forward to going back again. We shared 5 items off the menu — while our 2 favorites were the saffron fettucine with grilled octopus and black grouper, everything was amazing. The ever-​popular waffle cones were quite tasty, but a little sweeter than I would have liked. We began with a charcuterie board that included wild boar sausage and lab cheddar — both were outstanding.
We also each had 2 craft cocktails — the blackberry mezcal mule was deliciously smoky (it was very fun to watch the bartender burning something and capturing the smoke in a pint glass at the bar) and the Cellar Crush was full of fresh, spicy ginger and crushed ice — a sweet and spicy treat!
While the costs prohibit this from being an everyday restaurant, it’s certainly one of my favorites for special occasions or splurge nights.
We did make reservations for a Saturday night. It appears that a couple could probably get a seat at the bar fairly easily until about 6:30 — after that, the room was packed!

Man, I like this place. I would have given it all five stars if one of them wasn’t good at math. Now, I’m not being a cynical math genius that all of us Asian naturally are. I mean we can like compete with computers, right?
Anyway, they had one of the best beers in the world. It’s subjective, and my favorite is still Highland Gaelic Ale, but Mikkeller Monk’s brew is seriously one of the best ever. Charlotte isn’t all that international yet but having this Danish beer just makes me feel so connected!
And that’s not all they have. They have the best charbroiled oysters, tuna tartar, and something that’s like macaroni and cheese but really good. Oh, you know it’s old school, and classy as heck, right? You’ll like it. Trust me.
This place is full of folks grabbing a drink and small plates after work, as well as couples out on dates. It’s good for both. I went with my wife the first time, and a bunch of guys the second time. Good for both occasions. Charlotte doesn’t have many places like this. So let’s take advantage of it.

Unbelievably slow service. Mediocre and way overpriced food. Choice is good but having so many beers on tap that you have to scroll through an iPad for an hour to find something you want is lame.
A friend of mine from out of town was staying in a hotel downtown for a work conference and I met him at the cellar for dinner. I was embarrassed that this was his only impression of Charlotte.
We showed up at 7:45. The hostess told us we’d have a table in about 30 minutes. After waiting over an hour, I had to remind the hostess we were still waiting for a table even though more than 5 tables were open. By the time we finally sat down, the waitress had to explained somewhere around 82 cocktail specials before saying she’d take our order in a minute and disappeared for at least 15. We finally ordered food after 9pm. At 10:30 we had to ask the hostess where the food was. She brought out one side dish. We didn’t get the rest of the meal until 11.
If it weren’t for the good company and a decent sense of humor it would’ve been a miserable experience.
Never going back to the cellar. Terrible.

My second time around and this time I brought a few friends and got to try more dishes. Hands down my favorite dish is the char grilled oysters. They’re very comparable to Dragos char grilled oysters in New Orleans. So delicious. One of my friends got the salmon flat bread and it was pretty good. The hummus was typical hummus but they served it with a fresh tomato, cucumber and feta cheese salad tossed in mustard seeds which was really delicious! Another friend got the waaffle cones and she siad they were delicious. My other friend who was oretty hangry when we arrived, ordered the burger and fries and she was a very happy lady.
The Cellar has become my new favorite place for small plates. It’s running neck and neck with Soul. But this is THE BEST place to get char grilled oysters in Charlotte!
I want to shout about this place from the rooftop but I also want to keep it our little secret. It’s definitely a hidden gem in the heart of crown town!!!

What a great experience! After a delayed trip on Amtrak, I arrived in Charlotte at 9pm tired, thirsty, and needing food right then. The Cellar at Duckworth’s sounded like a great place, but it was even better than I expected.
My partner and I shared a charcuterie plate, the tuna tartare, and a delicious chocolate torte for dessert – all were delicious and very filling. But, the best part of the evening was the beer. The cellar is a beer lover’s dream come true – I’ve said this about a lot of places, but really! This is the one! As we looked over the ipad for a drink (10+ beers on tap in a small room, and even more in bottles) our bartender offered us a tour of their beer cellar, a 55 degree room cooled perfectly to meet the needs of 200+ bottles, many of them rare and vintage.
Charles, their «beer collector», was knowledgeable and excited about our questions, and helped us pick out several bottles that we hadn’t tried before.
The cocktails looked fantastic, and I can’t wait to go back and try more things (but only during the week… we tried going again on Saturday and the wait was 2 hours).

After our great initial impression on Tuesday, we were back in last night for dinner this time. The food was very good, adding to my high opinion of this place all around.
We started with the three tacos — you get one pork belly, one braised chicken and one poached octopus. The waitress recommended to start light to dark, starting with the octopus and ending with the pork belly. The octopus was really good, a lighter/​white meat. And the pork belly was so flavorful. Those were a good choice.
For my meal, I went with the scallops, which come with currants, cauliflower, turmeric and chorizo. I really liked the chunks of chorizo thrown in, and there was both a cauliflower purée and mini cauliflower. There were 3 – 4 medium sized scallops and they weren’t too buttery or oily, which is usually my complaint. My husband got the cellar burger, which was another win. To differentiate a burger, you’ve gotta use a good cheese or throw on some great toppings; this was a little of both. The gruyère cheese was amazing, combined with the onion jam and japaleno bacon. Great combination of tastes. We also split the caramelized brussels. I wasn’t as crazy about this small plate because there was too much liquid oozing out. The smoked pancetta was a good addition but these were almost too heavy overall.

Update. Still amazing. Still 5 stars. Still in love with every food item on the menu. So let’s talk about the beer, baby…
I’m relatively new to the craft beer world, I hid out for a long time in the cider section. (Thank you, thank you, I’m happy to be here…) the Cellar has an INCREDIBLE selection of beers. Charles, the general manager, is super friendly, passionate about craft beer and happy to point you in the right direction. He even gave us a little tour of the Cellar — it wasn’t open yet when I was here for the soft opening. I was SO nerdy excited to go into the cellar, where beautiful, unique craft beers live and are kept at 55 degrees, ready to be enjoyed. The whole layout of this dining experience is beautiful. From the exposed brick to the wood and metal accents. I love the feel of this place.
My date and I started our meal with the 2013 Sierra Nevada Narwhal. We ordered the truffle mac and cheese right off the bat while we looked at the other beers and tried to decide on food — so freaking delicious. Towards the end of our meal, Charles told us about a Limited Edition Allagash beer that Duckworth’s was only allotted 30 bottles, 6 for each location. They had all 30 shipped to the Cellar. It’s called Farm to Face, it’s a peach sour — and it’s AMAZING. I highly suggest you hunt this beer down before it’s gone! Huge props to Charles for recommending it. I also highly suggest chatting up Charles, he’s an awesome guy.
Cheers to the Cellar! I’ll be seeing you soon!

A few friends and I stopped in here after hearing they have a great selection of limited release bottled beers.
Wow, this is not your normal Duckworth’s! It’s actually in the cellar of the Uptown Duckworth’s but the atmosphere is so different than upstairs. It’s like a speakeasy. They even have the door closed to make it seem all hush hush. Inside this part of the restaurant, it’s quite dark. It looks fancy but most of their customers were in shorts when I was here so don’t think you have to come here in a suit and tie.
Just like upstairs, the beer menu is on an Ipad which make it easier to read. They also have a cellar of the limited release bottles and you have to ask permission to go in as there needs to be a staff member with you. There are first release Wicked Weed beers, Allagash, Dragon’s Milk and so many more. The only problem is that many of these beers you have to drink onsite.
Food is quite different here than upstairs with a more upscale menu. I had the Tilefish which was delicious and also ordered a salmon flatbread which arrived cold. The manager explained this is how it is supposed to be served but it would have been nice to see that mentioned on the menu. If I had read that, it would not have been ordered.
The staff was great here. So much different than some of my experiences at another Duckworth’s.
Overall a very good experience. My only complaints were the lighting which was a little too dark and the menu item not listed as cold. But those aren’t enough to stop me from coming for the beer!

What a neat place The Cellar is. As you descend down the steps in Duckworth’s, you’re transported from a deliberately raucous sports bar to a 1920s speakeasy with dim lights, exposed brick walls, and servers donning bow ties and suspenders. The staff greeted me with warm smiles and the service continued to exceed expectations with our waiter, Taylor (?), providing us with recommendations, educating our party about ingredients, and making sure our every need was met.
We ordered drinks first. My drink was a pear/​peach (?) jalapeño number. It was small and underwhelming as it seemed they held back on the jalapeño. My friend ordered one with raisin vodka (?) because she likes raisins and while she thought the drink was fine, she was disappointed that she couldn’t taste any raisin reference in the cocktail.
I was with a group of four and we shared Carmelized Brussels and Grilled oysters for our starters. The basalmic reduction drowned any carmelized flavor of the Brussels. What was good were the onions and prosciutto on the Brussels plate. I couldn’t stop eating them.
The grilled oysters came out piping hot fresh off the grill. The starter came with 5 oysters, so you shouldn’t order this if you plan on sharing OR just order two servings. The pecorino cheese, which is hard and has a salty element to it was a nice compliment. What I enjoyed most was dipping the bread in the oyster broth, in which was nestled a robust smokey flavor.
My main course, the shrimp and grits, while edible were a let down. The stone ground grits were acceptable, but lacked any cheddar flavor. The shrimp, individually, were well smoked. However, they missed the mark with the étouffée. There was too little of it, rendering the grits dry and was was there had a shallow taste at best and was disappointing. What makes shrimp and grits are the ingredients that collaborate with the shrimp and the grits. Here, they didn’t work. After sampling my friend’s scallops, I was terribly regretful that I didn’t get those instead.
Post dinner, Charles — the manager, came out and greeted us personally, telling us about the concept development behind the restaurant and a bit of a history lesson regarding prohibition and Charlotte. That was nice.
The price points here are reasonable, Shrimp & grits $ 15. Scallops $ 19. Drinks $ 10. See pictures for full menu.
Ambiance 5 stars, Service — 5 stars, Food 3 stars. Not taking averages because I’m here for the food. I’ll give it another shot, but will be ordering either the scallops or trying a steak, as the waiter was enthusiastic about the state of the art broiler.