At Foskoskies, a delightful neighborhood restaurant practically hidden on Shamrock Drive, the diners emerged from the bus, entered and sat at tables covered with white paper, the better to doodle with the provided crayons. The food came. The exclamations of praise commenced. “This is really good. Wow.” “The chicken is delicious.” “So’s the broccoli... read more

“Well,” said David Ashley, settling heavily into his seat on the bus, “I’m still hungry.” This was a joke. No one was hungry. We had just pulled away from Saigon Bistro, the third and final stop if you didn’t count coffee and dessert back at The VanLandingham Estate, where we were going now. Now, at 8:30 p.m., three hours into Taste of the World, eyelids... read more

PHOTOS BY JAMES WILLAMOR The Crossroads Correspondents will be previewing restaurants for the Oct. 7 Taste of the World. For more info and to make a reservation, click here. Lang Van, the venerable Vietnamese restaurant at Eastway and Shamrock drives, doesn’t look like much from the outside. It’s in a humble, boxy, single-story building that practically hides from the... read more

PHOTOS BY JAMES WILLAMOR The Crossroads Correspondents will be previewing restaurants for the Oct. 7 Taste of the World. For more info and to make a reservation, click here. El Rincon Latino (“The Latin Corner”), it turns out, is a description as well as a name. It’s on a corner, occupying a wedge-shaped section of a building that also houses a tax office and... read more

PHOTOS BY JAMES WILLAMOR The Crossroads Correspondents will be previewing restaurants for the Oct. 7 Taste of the World. For more info and to make a reservation, click here. You might like Mexican food, but if you haven't tasted the real thing--authenic Mexican fare like the food you'll find at Three Amigos, you're missing out. While the restaurant has been open for three years, until... read more

PHOTOS BY JAMES WILLAMOR The Crossroads Correspondents will be previewing restaurants for the Oct. 7 Taste of the World. For more info and to make a reservation, click here. Juan Sanchez Gonzalez picked the right state. North Carolina loves its pork – shredded, chopped, pulled, with tomato or vinegar-based sauce. Gonzalez, who owns Carnitas Guanajuato, has his own long history of... read more

PHOTOS BY JAMES WILLAMOR  The Crossroads Correspondents will be previewing restaurants for the Oct. 7 Taste of the World. For more info and to make a reservation, click here. Try the lamb. Cocina Latina serves it only on weekends, and you might want to get there early before it runs out. Brothers Emmanuel and Antonio Ceron and their mother, Fausta Salvatierra, cook the lamb... read more

PHOTOS BY JAMES WILLAMOR  The Crossroads Correspondents will be previewing restaurants for the Oct. 7 Taste of the World. For more info and to make a reservation, click here. John Dang got into the restaurant business at an absurdly young age – 19. Born in Bien Hoa, a suburb of Saigon, Dang and his family emigrated to the United States in 1995 and settled in Charlotte. He... read more

PHOTOS BY JAMES WILLAMOR The Crossroads Correspondents will be previewing restaurants for the Oct. 7 Taste of the World. For more info and to make a reservation, click here. Soul food, comfort food, down-home cooking; however you describe it, Sadie’s Soulful Southern Experience is one of the best. And we’re not just talking about the restaurant’s position in Charlotte;... read more

PHOTOS BY JAMES WILLAMOR The Crossroads Correspondents will be previewing restaurants for the Oct. 7 Taste of the World. For more info and to make a reservation, click here. In case you’re wondering, “El Pulgarcito de América” means, literally, “the little finger of America.” It’s a sobriquet for the nation of El Salvador, the smallest in... read more

PHOTOS BY JAMES WILLAMOR The Crossroads Correspondents will be previewing restaurants for the Oct. 7 Taste of the World. For more info and to make a reservation, click here. As a big Southern city, Charlotte has a large African-American population. But many aren’t very in touch with the culture and traditions of “the motherland.” That is unless they’re familiar... read more

PHOTOS BY JAMES WILLAMOR The Crossroads Correspondents will be previewing restaurants for the Oct. 7 Taste of the World. For more info and to make a reservation, click here. Guillermo “Lalo” Villanueva spent a decade in Passaic, N.J., owning and running his own restaurant, but decided in 2001 that he wanted to move somewhere with less competition and nicer... read more

PHOTOS BY JAMES WILLAMOR The Crossroads Correspondents will be previewing restaurants for the Oct. 7 Taste of the World. For more info and to make a reservation, click here. Berna Ozbay landed in Charlotte, where she runs Carolina Kebap, through a chance encounter in, of all places, Dubai. Dubai. As in the United Arab Emirates. Ozbay and her husband were working in the shipping... read more

PHOTOS BY JAMES WILLAMOR The Crossroads Correspondents will be previewing restaurants for the Oct. 7 Taste of the World. For more info and to make a reservation, click here. As Americans strive to eat healthier, we can learn a lot from natives of the East. At Woodlands Pure Vegetarian Indian Cuisine, where South Indian culture has inspired the menu, you’ll do quite well without... read more

The Crossroads Correspondents will be previewing restaurants for the Oct. 7 Taste of the World. For more info and to make a reservation, click here. The tabloid-sized, one-sheet menu at Jamile’s International Cuisine sort of resembles a board game. With each of the 31 dishes photographed and laid out in squares, it evokes the feeling of playing tic-tac-toe or Connect Four. You... read more

Breaking bread. Sharing a meal. Raising a glass. Is there a more satisfying way to gain understanding and build trust between different cultures? We can't think of one. Crossroads Charlotte returns as the presenting  sponsor of Taste of the World, an annual tour of the diverse ethnic restaurants on Charlotte's East side. The highly anticipated event is Thursday, Oct. 7, and features... read more

Crossroads Charlotte is proud to have been Presenting Sponsor for Taste of the World, which was organized by E.A.S.T. (Eastland Area Strategies Team). Taste of the World annually gives participants the chance to savor the miles of flavor in East Charlotte’s culturally diverse district. During the event, nine buses escorted diners to an assortment of 15 restaurants in the East Charlotte... read more

The Crossroads Correspondents will be previewing restaurants for the Oct. 8 Taste of the World. For more info and to make a reservation, click here. A few tickets are still available.   Brazas Brazillian Grill Namaste India Bar and Restaurant 4508 E Independence Blvd. Mital Naick, Owner FOR MORE PHOTOS, please click HERE Thousands of miles, a continent and an ocean separate... read more

Report by Mike McCray The Crossroads Correspondents will be previewing restaurants for the Oct. 8 Taste of the World. For more info and to make a reservation, click here Fu Lin Asian Cuisine 5301 E Independence Blvd. Francis Lin, owner For more photos by Ayofemi Kirby, please click here Francis Lin, owner of Fu Lin Asian Cuisine, helps his customers carry boxes of food to their... read more

The Crossroads Correspondents will be previewing restaurants for the Oct. 8 Taste of the World. For more info and to make a reservation, click here Landmark Restaurant and Diner 4429 Central Ave. John Kaltsounis, Co-Owner; Milton Polemicle, Head Chef For more photos, please click here John Kaltsounis and his wife Sofia arrived in New York City from Karpensi, Greece, more than 40... read more

The Crossroads Correspondents will be previewing restaurants for the Oct. 8 Taste of the World. For more info and to make a reservation, click here Dim Sum 2920 Central Ave. Yee Kam, Owner Click here for more photos Walking through the doors of Dim Sum Chinese Restaurant on Central Avenue, feelings of warmth immediately change the mood. Golden poppy toned walls decorated with... read more

The Crossroads Correspondents will be previewing restaurants for the Oct. 8 Taste of the World. For more info and to make a reservation, click here Woodlands Vegetarian Indian Cuisine 7128-A Albemarle Rd. Joe Estibeiro, co-owner Six months after Joe Estibeiro arrived in Charlotte to work at Woodlands Vegetarian Indian Cuisine, then owned by family friends, his brother died in an... read more

The Crossroads Correspondents will be previewing restaurants for the Oct. 8 Taste of the World. For more info and to make a reservation, click here Portofino's Italian Restaurant and Pizzeria 3124 Eastway Drive Mauro Scotto, manager A native of Naples, Italy, Mauro Scotto was "born and raised" with the owners, Gino Villano and Josh Coppola, of the five-restaurant chain known to most in... read more

The Crossroads Correspondents will be previewing restaurants for the Oct. 8 Taste of the World. For more info and to make a reservation, click here Mama's Caribbean Grill 1504 Central Ave. Vinroy Reid, owner Born and raised in Jamaica, Vinroy Reid now splits his time between Brooklyn, NY, and Charlotte. "I came down for a visit and fell in love with the country life," he says. "I used to... read more

The Crossroads Correspondents will be previewing restaurants for the Oct. 8 Taste of the World. For more info and to make a reservation, click here Ben Thanh 4900 Central Ave. Phung Nguyen and Mai Duong, husband and wife family-owned restaurant The dining area and stainless-steel kitchen of the Ben Than Vietnamese restaurant is brought to life by a variety of fruit and vegetables... read more

The Crossroads Correspondents will be previewing restaurants for the Oct. 8 Taste of the World. For more info and to make a reservation, click here Pollos Mario 6023 Albemarle Road Manager: Fernando Correa Pollos Mario isn't new, nor is it unique to Charlotte. The restaurant is a staple in Colombia, South America, where it has fed locals for more than 50 years. It made it's North... read more

The Crossroads Correspondents will be previewing restaurants for the Oct. 8 Taste of the World. For more info and to make a reservation, click here Jerusalem 3145 N. Sharon Amity Road Owner: Yahia Baghdadi Chef: Abu Khaled At merely 50 square miles wide, and found near the southernmost region of the Judean mountains, Jerusalem is the spiritual center to more than 15 billion people within... read more

The Crossroads Correspondents will be previewing restaurants for the Oct. 8 Taste of the World. For more info and to make a reservation, click here TAQUERIA LINARES 4918 Central Ave. Owner: Hector Trevino Born in Chicago, Ill., Hector Trevino, grew up in a small town in northern Mexico called Linares. It's about 90 minutes from Monterrey and just about as close to Texas. In the... read more