kiki bistro

i've been coming here for years now, it's a nice place with good vibe.

we ordered thediamondboy, brian's ct dog, winky-dinky dog and hushpuppies. the ct dog and the hushpuppies were awesome! she didn't like the winky-dinky dog though. i thought i was a good chili dog but i couldn't taste much of the pimento cheese. thediamondboy, a pork and bacon patty, was just average doubt i'll order it again.

we had a good meal like we normally do from diamond.

horrible service, rude manager, low quality food, and dirty. i've been several times and the food is not impressive. the customer service was very poor each time i've gone. if you have a party of 4 be prepared for horrible service from the manager and hostess. we went at 2pm on a sunday with a party of 7 ( 2 kids). we were told we'd have to wait (20 minutes) for the only big booth they had. we told the hostess we were ok with two booths close together if that came available first. after patiently waiting 30 minutes we asked if we could sit outside and pull two patio tables together since they were vacant(we are the only people waiting for a table). the hostess stared blankly and said "no it's not policy". we asked for the manager. the manager (wayne) was also rude and said that tables could not be pushed together. he then said he could do it this one time in a condensing voice. we left and got better food and service at bad daddy burgers. thediamondneeds to improve their customer service skills or they will meet the same fate as the penguin.

thediamondis one of the first restaurants i went to in charlotte, and i can’t stop going back. i’ve tried a ton of things on their menu, but a visit to thediamondis not complete without an order of their fried pickles. i don’t see how you can go wrong with two of my favorite things: pickles and deep frying. they are hot, crispy and have a tiny kick. served with a side of creamy ranch, they really can’t be beat. tons of people claim they are the best in charlotte!

bftb’s po’greek boy, which looked just like a normal hamburger from the outside, was equally tasty. unlike our recent burger-eating experience at cowbell, the seemingly-large amount of ingredients in the po’greek boy avoided being seasoned to death and when combined together into one burger, didn’t result in a nauseating conglomeration of battling flavors. in other words, the burger atdiamondwas more of a nice mix than a messy hodgepodge, and simply tasted better than anything we tried at cowbell. the feta was tangy and perfectly complimented the seasoned ground lamb. bftb also enjoyed the tzatziki sauce that came on his po’boy, but he wasn’t as passionate about it as i was (i probably would have bathed in the stuff had i been given the option). we both felt like the coleslaw was somewhat disappointing. compared to everything else, the little pile of thinly-shaved white cabbage swimming in vinegar seemed like an uninspired last minute addition.

best burger in charlotte (so far).... read a lot of reviews, some great, some not so great. so me and my buddy decide to go check it out for ourselves. we go on a saturday at 1:30pm, which i figured was a good time since it should be just after lunch. but not at thediamondas it was wall to wall crowded!

so we get seated in under 10 minutes, and we both decide to get the burgers since it was our first time here. i've been in charlotte 2 years now, and have had some pretty good burgers, but i wanted to see if this was "the mecca" for burgers.

a week before, i decided to check out the penguin and i admit that their burgers were damn good! so i thought, no way can the diamond's be any better. boy was i wrong! i got the double and my buddy went for the full hemi (3 patties for a full pound)! we both ordered it medium and they both came that way. always worry about that especially when a restaurant is super busy like the diamond.

so bottom line - the burgers were cooked to perfection! super juicy deliciousness (fatty beef content for flavor) and their fries were home cut and made quite well.

oh, we started the meal with the fried pickles as my buddy never had a good version of this dish. and man did we both love them! crispy with good seasoning (some cheyenne?) served with ranch! oh so yummy!

back to the burgers.....so after asking for many additional napkins (which is a great sign at a burger joint because you know it's super juicy), we both stated out loud that this is the best burger in charlotte! penguin was a close second, only edged out by thediamondbecause they cooked my burger to a perfect medium with a nice red/pink center.

so it's a 1 - 2 race, with thediamondin a close lead!

overall, a delicious lunch with a prompt and friendly staff, despite the crowd (another good sign when people literally line up out the door).

can't wait to come back! if you're craving a great burger, come here!

5 star rating is for their awesome burger and fries!

i got around to tryingdiamondtoday and there were some hits and misses on my trip. i didnt have to wait long at lunch for a table which i was excited about. i ordered a half order of fried pickles for my appetizer and a small block burger (southern style) with hushpuppies on the side.

i love thediamondjust one big gripe i have. i have been in here multiple times and love this joint! good food at the diamond. the wait staff are always friendly and the atmosphere is cool. reminds me of a classic dinner with a new modern edge, but without the midwood hyperdermic needles.

the food is reasonable comparably speaking to the price. you will not get the best burger you have every had in your life here, but it will be might tasty enough to come back again.

the fried pickles, sweet potato fries, and hush puppies are always good choices for sides. if you get a burger, i recommend getting it southern style if you like your burgers slopy with chili, slaw, and all the fixings.

my one main gripe is the hamburger bun!!! come one diamond... why do you use the cheapest hamburger buns you can find! the buns always fall apart. they are the same white bread buns you find in the grocery store for $1-2 for 8-12 buns. i know probably are looking to cut some corners in cost, but get better hamburger buns.

other than that everything is great!

a rocky start. note: thediamondre-opened under new ownership in february 2011, so older reviews might not apply.

i eagerly awaited the re-opening of the diamond, and was slightly disappointed when i finally went. of the four menu items i picked as entrees... they were out of all four! although i had taken pains to get there before 9pm (when their menu "shrinks"), i ended up ordering a burger, which was fine, but not what i really wanted. the fries were strange - they looked like standard frozen fries, but were brown, as if fresh cut.

we hung out afterwards, and had a good time. the beer selection was pretty good, and staff were still attentive, even though we were just ordering beers.

i have to admit though... i prefer the fried pickles from pinky's.

thediamondis very good. it is very old fastion and very southern!