9/4/2010 The Wren House, Charlotte NC

maybe i should've thought to call the wren house for a table earlier than noon this saturday, but they said they could seat us if we were there by 1:30. there were a couple tables upstairs in the back but yes, we could have lunch there. so wow, they must be busy but it is lunchtime on saturday and a holiday weekend, and they are not open on sun or monday.

the wren house was built in 1839. the wrens, a brother and sister, moved into the house in the early 1900s and only lived there for about 10 years. i guess the name stuck.


when we got there there was no one at the front door, so in we went. the place was empty. hhmmm we can put you upstairs in the back, yet there's not a soul around and the tables are all set up. can you say private party?


a server shows up and confirmed that there was indeed a party. a wedding was going to happen about 2:30/3:00 and they had booked the wren house for the reception.  but instead of sitting upstairs if we want to sit at 1 of the tables outside we could do that instead. we jumped at that. it was a really nice day. (the table we sat around is just below the edge of the photo).

here are pics of 2 of the rooms.

so this review gets both a thumbs up and a thumbs down. i might as well confess that now, upfront. the server was nice, but not as attentive as i think she'd have been normally. can you say distraction due to the party later?

the food was good once it arrived, but they messed up my order and i did have to wait what was really a bit too long for the repair. i think the kitchen was a bit slammed with food for the reception.

auntie had the grilled chicken salad - salad greens, grilled chicken, bell peppers, red onions, feta cheese, parmesan cheese, mandarin oranges, pineapple and lime, rice noodes.

well, they were out of the chicken, and the particular lettuce they use for that dish. they could substitute greens or a different lettuce. and auntie swapped the chicken for little shrimps.

she said it was good, and it was big enough.

matt and i both had the western cowboy burger - grilled burger, bacon, cheese, BBQ sauce, mustard, lettuce, tomato, and red onions.

however we both ordered our with no mustard.

he opted for fries

i decided to try the house-made chips.

mine came with mustard on it as well as the BBQ sauce which is why i sent it back.  all they had to do was swap the bun and lettuce but it took 10 minutes i think to bring it back out.


so thumbs up in general, we'd go back if we want to pay a little more than normal for a burger, but thumbs down to the owner/mgr for the decision to keep the restaurant open when they have a party of this size.

so yes, once we had our food and it was correct it was quite tasty. you pay a little more because you're at the wren house. none of us were in any hurry. we didn't have to be anywhere until 5pm for the wedding and it was a very nice day.

but i do question the decision to have opened a few tables for the general public when an event that large is in the works. when we got there 1 of the 3 outside tables was full. the 3rd filled up and a couple other families stopped by. 1 was told (i'm guessing) to check back in X amount of time for 1 of these 3 tables. but they waited too long as i overheard the wife telling the husband "they 1st said xx minutes until a table's free, but now they say we'd have to wait over an hour for service". i guess the kitchen decided it was too close to party time or came to their senses. seriously, when a server has to tell a patron they are out of something on the menu because of a private party..?!

so good and bad. if you go, and i suggest you do, make sure you call ahead and make sure there's a table - and if it's a summer or holiday weekend that there's no private party happening that could interfere with your meal.