Uptown workers always need a good business lunch spot in their pocket (especially if the tab is coming from the boss’s pocket). Fin & Fino, Jon Dressler’s creative seafood palace, has added lunch hours, a sure sign of a returning uptown office culture. The Treatment, the $65 multi-course dinner tasting menu, isn’t available, but you can go with appetizers, salads, sandwiches (including a worthy fried fish on brioche for $15), and entrees like poke bowls. Or go with a three-course menu for $25.

Chef Hector Gonzalez-Mora has been picking up a following ever since he showed up at the short-lived Comida in Plaza-Midwood, followed by his breakfast taco pop-up Chilito. Now he’s taken up residence in the new South End location of brewery Resident Culture. His menu covers tortillas, tacos, and “dilla” tacos (a sort of quesadilla hybrid). Breakfast tacos are back, from 7 a.m to 11 a.m. daily, when the menu shifts over to tacos, etc., until 10:30 p.m. most nights (it closes at 4 p.m. on Mondays).

From a decorative bathtub to graffiti to mismatched furniture, the grungy neighborhood hangout can now be found at three locations: Oakwold, South End, and Plaza Midwood. For lunch, the deli counter churns out fresh sandwiches (get creative and build one), soups and salads (try the two-scoop salad with hummus and tabbouleh on a bed of greens). Ample vegetarian and vegan options are available. Oh, and grab a cup of Sexy Power coffee to power through the afternoon.

There’s no parlor — you’ll either get it to-go or sit at a picnic table — and the lines are already legendary. But Cheat’s gets the bread right (traditional Liscio’s Bakery rolls), and it slices the top-round steak in-house. Toppings include “wit whiz” (Cheez Whiz), white American, or Provolone. The tight menu includes chicken and vegetarian “steaks,” Italian hoagies, and a couple of breakfast sammies, including one with Taylor’s pork roll. Prices are a little higher than you’d pay at Philly’s Gino’s or Pat’s (a cheesesteak, fries, and soda runs $25 after taxes), but you do get free refills on the soda while you wait. And it’s cheaper than a trip to Philly. 

Always crowded, always worth the wait. This snug ramen shop overlooking the Charlotte Rail Trail in South End features deep bowls of steaming ramen ranging from vegan to pork belly. Start with the shishito peppers and the crispy fried Brussels sprouts with light bonito flakes, and end with the soft serve ice cream of the day — miso ginger is the latest.

Is there anything more satisfying than picking up a dense, build-your-own-salad-bowl to-go on a work day for under $15? Work through the line at Yafo Kitchen, a fast-casual Mediterranean concept that shines as the local version of Washington, D.C.-based Cava. There are three locations — in Dilworth, in SouthPark, in Plaza Midwood — and the offerings consistently range from spreads (like babaganoush), to complementary toppings (like sumac onions), to add-ons (like roasted cauliflower), to rotisserie chicken and beyond. Build a grain bowl, build a salad bowl, or check out the signature items. Served with warm, fluffy laffah.

Relaxed and cheerful, JJ’s is ideal for a lighthearted lunch outing with the kids or coworkers. The fun variety of signature hot dogs, made with Sahlen’s smokehouse hot dogs and sausages and served on soft potato rolls, ranges from the Char Heel (with house-made chili, slaw, diced onions, and yellow mustard) to the Southern Girl (with pimento cheese, slaw, bacon, and Hot Blonde mustard). For veggie lovers, there’s a vegetarian substitute available.

Frank Scibelli knows what customers want, and he’s proven it with restaurants all over Charlotte, from barbecue to tacos. His newest, in SouthPark, is as comforting as his original Mama Ricotta’s, with the addition of housemade pastas and a mozzarella bar. Nice touches for lunch: Diners can get small or large orders of pasta. Or skip the carbs and go with salads, including a warm, fluffy version of quinoa salad as a side.

Fast-casual and family-friendly, this Neopolitan pizzeria now has two locations — one in Dilworth and one in South Charlotte. Expect handcrafted pies, fresh ingredients and dough made from “00” flour. Pizzas are cooked in wood-fired ovens for 90 seconds and served hot and crisp (just look for the leoparding on the crust). The pistacchio pizza is easily the most-talked-about, with its jade-tinted pistachio pesto sauce and clouds of ricotta and buffalo mozzarella. Cool down with a scoop of gelato before lunch is over.