Mailbag: Top 35 feedback letters on spiked seltzer, parent-shaming, tennis courts, iPad swivel tipping situation and more

In response to: Viva Chicken is indefinitely out of yuca

“Go to Compare Foods, there’s huge bins!” – C

In response to: How to drink, eat, shop, watch golf and watch Bieber at the 2017 PGA Championship at Quail Hollow

“You’ve never had a spiked seltzer?! Don’t throw shade until you try one. They’re amazing!” – C

In response to: There’s a Korean takeout counter inside an Uptown convenience store

“Now we have a Korean deli. All we need to ease my New York cravings now are a place that sells buttered rolls and a decent ramen.” – P

“I work at avenue Market at the take out counter. I just wanted to take some time and thank you for your posts and story online! It has helped us tremendously! I honestly did not know what Axios Charlotte was until yesterday and a few of my restaurant owner friends texting me saying there was something on the clt agenda about the market. Yesterday we had to close the kitchen down a little after lunch because we were so busy and was not expecting the amount of customers we had. We literally ran out of everything. It was a great feeling! Haha. Anyways, just wanted to Thank you. I know it’s just a little Korean take out with a very minimal menu but this is just the beginning. There will be more to come in time. I love that people love Korean food and I love making food and seeing people enjoy the food.” – T

In response to: Can we please make that giant hole by Quail Hollow a nature preserve?

“Another pop up park that should happen but won’t? East Blvd at Scott. City should treat it like N Tryon at 6th. A mini-park. If only we were trying to impress the DNC like 2012! ;-)” – S

In response to: Cash Confessional: A week of spending in Charlotte on a $90,000 salary

“I am so impressed with how frugal she is, and think it’s great that at such a young age she is already saving for the future.” – M

“LIFE HACK: If you order in for dinner every night, you can spend less money on groceries.” – A

“Where’d I go wrong? 90k at age 23. Face palm.” – L

In response to: New 56 tiny home neighborhood is underway in northwest Charlotte

“$89,000???? WTF.  You might as well buy a normal sized house with that.” – J

“Would be 1000 times more interested if it was in a walkable location.” – K

“At $89,995 for a lot and a one-bedroom, one-bathroom 493-square-foot home – I think it’s a stretch to call it ‘affordable.’ That’s a lot per square foot compared to other houses in Charlotte.” – M

In response to: 5 luxury apartments I’d rent if I was a rich millennial investment banker instead of a dad who sends newsletters

“*shrug* University City is fine for me. much more affordable.” – C

“LOL these places all suck. I’ll take my Noda bungalow over any of these.”- B

“I need to change jobs…” – S

In response to: Charlotte parents, your kids aren’t a burden to me.

“As a divorced mom of a freaking cute (but totally unpredictable and sometimes insane) 19-month old, I literally have nightmares about (heaven forbid) taking my son out in public by myself to do something fun over the weekend with him, for fear he may decide that’s the day for a level 10 meltdown that no pre-packed arsenal of Pirate’s Booty or favorite toys can abate. It’s sad that parents feel like they have to tiptoe around and cater to other people when out in public with young children, and that the thought of being judged by others would lead to them hunkering down at home instead of getting out and making memories.” – J

“The PARENTS are the ones who should be supervising their kids and not use a social place for babysitting. Throwing rocks is a HUGE no no. My kids would be reprimanded and given toys to play with in my vicinity or some coloring books, whatever. I am one of those adults that doesn’t accept kids gone wild.” – R

“I too do not have children, but I work in a Montessori School teaching children from 3-6 yrs old. I have learned to see children through a much different set of eyes and they truly are beautiful creatures. In the process, I have come to understand why they act the way they do and how to better handle it. They are learning, and all of us were once there too, so cut them some slack! And while I have seen some children in restaurants behaving badly and parents just “not dealing with it,” that’s the parent’s fault, not the children’s. Kick the parents out. And finally, while these 5th-yr frat boys may not want to see a toddler in THEIR brewery, I would have to say that I would like to not see THEM obnoxiously wasted, doing their pub-crawling every weekend Uptown.” – M

“My family moved from Atlanta last year, and we were pleasantly surprised that the brewery scene here was family friendly. (ATL is very behind CLT in that regard, mostly due to laws but also due to brewery culture.) My husband works for a west coast brewery, and beer is a huge part of our life. We also have a 2 year old. Discovering OMB made it clear we made the right decision to move here- we’ve had so many fun afternoons there. We usually take turns with kid duty, one enjoys beer while the other chases her around and makes sure she doesn’t disturb others. I’ll keep my kid in line so you can keep enjoying your beer, whether or not your future also includes a rug rat :)” – K

“My #1 suggestion to people who feel they are subjected to parent-shaming: get off social media.” – L

“As new transplants to South End after 20+ years raising our children in the burbs, my husband and I love going to breweries and festivals and seeing the toddlers and children having a blast, hanging out, outside with their parents. love this intergenerational community that we have in Charlotte. That is one of the things that makes this area special. So, just like I don’t want to be sent to Sun City, don’t banish the children to the playgrounds.” – S

“I also stand by the fact that the dozens of kids out at breweries after 10pm on a weekend is an issue. I get your “once in awhile” stance, and support that actually. But every week, dozens of kids? You give up a certain part of your life when you have kids, and unless you’re willing to hire a babysitter, maybe staying out so late with the munchkins is not the best idea every weekend.” – C

In response to: The Agenda Guide to Charlotte Ice Cream

“Where the hell is the ice cream/froyo in Uptown for those that live and work here. Not one place for me to stuff my face with some chocolate chip cookie dough on these warm summer nights (and no Crave doesn’t count). Someone please take one for the team and open up shop/.. I’m looking at you Two Scoops Creamery!” – R

“This (below) does not belong in this article about ICE CREAM. Everything else is cool.” – M

In response to: Tennis courts have been sidelined at Charlotte apartments (but the sport has never been stronger)

“Millennials are too busy wrecking the economy to play tennis, according to everyone over 40.” – A

“Instead of tennis courts, why don’t more apartment complexes have basketball courts? If pressed for space, half court is always an option. I would rather have a hoop for a relaxing shoot around than most other apartment amenities.” – B

“Sycamore at Tyvola, currently under construction and located at West Tyvola Road and South Tryon Street will have a tennis court as well as a putting green. I’ll admit, it is the first apartment tennis court we have built in some time but I wanted to let you know they aren’t completely dead.” – T

“I’m a fan of turning em into dog parks.” – J

In response to: The county just threw a huge wrench in the Major League Soccer deal

“No one cares about an MLS team in Charlotte.” – W

“Well done! No welfare for billionaires! Let the Smith family operate like all other businesses. They can find investors in the private market.” – D

In response to: 50 Charlotte date night ideas that clock in at $20 and under

“Three other ideas: (1) Serve thanksgiving at the charlotte rescue mission (Volunteers dress like waiters at Ruth’s Chris and make the folks attending feel like billionaires—for one meal. (2) Attend an AA open speaker meeting at providence united Methodist Friday night at 8. Its open, anyone can come and sit and listen. The stories can be riveting, humorous, and mind-blowing all at once. (3) Come to the thirsty beaver on 9.10 at 6 and rock out with Lipstick on a pig.” – B

In response to: Jasmine Grill’s $6.99 Chicken Kebab Lunch Special will blow your mind

“Damn, there went my secret.” – T

“Bro, this is my lunch at least 3 times a month. You get soup and hummus with pita in addition to the main course!” – A

In response to: It’s about time Charlotte gets mini golf

“While not in Charlotte, Mr. Putty’s Fun Park in Ft. Mill is the best putt putt in the area. Very well maintained, lots of carnival type attractions, fun hole gimmicks.” – N

“It isn’t that hard to find mini-golf in the Charlotte area. You could go to LKN Mini Golf in Cornelius and play on their course with it’s tunnels and waterfalls and such, but since that is SO far outside of Charlotte, I can see why there’s no way you would want to venture that far north. You could also go to Trails Dynasty in Indian Trail and play on their great course and then enjoy Hershey’s Ice Cream afterwards, but that’s not even in Mecklenburg County. The horror! That would also rule out High Seas Golf, which is set to open soon in Indian Land, and has the fun plastic animals, plus shipwrecks and pirates! If Adventure Landing was on the other side of 485, it would have a Charlotte address, but I guess your love of mini-golf can only go so far. There are, in fact, two mini-golf courses actually located in the city of Charlotte. Leatherman Golf has a mini-golf course located at their facility on Tyvola, and Paradise Valley has nine outdoor holes and nine indoor holes that follow a replica mine shaft at their location in University City.” – R

In response to: These new credit card tipping machines are giving me anxiety

“Very stressful. I think the software probably comes with the tipping option as standard, but it has created an issue where you feel like you have to tip everyone for everything. I feel like i jerk when I don’t. Someone has to come up with some social norms for this. I definitely tip 10% if I get take out because someone has cooked it and boxed it up nicely, but I don’t necessarily tip for a smoothie or a cappuccino. You wouldn’t tip at Starbucks, there has never been and expectation to do so, so I would rate those things as equivalent. The thing to keep in mind is that tipping in the restaurant industry is because the servers are paid $2 a hour, and they do a lot of work to earn those tips. What is the smoothie person earning per hour and how much work is he doing for it? I don’t know these answers but you bring up a very good issue and it would be great for you to write an article on it. But still, you feel like an a-hole when presented this screen and you don’t tip.” – S

“I too have starting running into the new touchscreen credit card machines a lot more recently. These are often ‘counter service’ food/beverage shops (smoothie/coffee/bakery/brewery) that I would not tip more than a dollar or two for. They really should change the option to tip by dollar amount, instead of percentage point. It’s easy enough for me by now to click “custom” > “1” > “.00″, but I can imagine it would be intimidating or confusing for people, even more-so for less tech-savvy people, at first.” – C

“Thank you for bringing attention to our country’s newest crisis – the iPad swivel tipping situation. I’ve asked numerous people what they do in this situation. I am a firm no-tipper for take out or any kind of order at the counter scenario usually (unless, say, they do something special for me like give me some extra sauce for free or something). I know the argument is ‘they helped ensure that your order was correct’, but isn’t that their job? I worked in retail for years in high school and college. The culture of that industry of course doesn’t include tipping your sales girl who helped you pick out clothes and find the skirt or jacket to match it, went in the back to look for extra sizes, called other locations to see if they had it, etc. I’d says as a sales girl at SouthPark mall, I did just as much if not more work than the girl who rings me up at Sabor or YAFO (bless them, they do a great job, but I’m not tipping you) AND I did it in heels! I did leave a dollar tip because I used a BOGO coupon for our meals so it was only $10 also, more importantly, the girl was standing RIGHT IN FRONT OF ME, watching me sign the receipt. It’s a high pressure situation. Nevertheless I went home feeling like a big baby.” – F