Charleston, SC is a beautiful city brimming with rich history and stunning architecture. From Georgian homes to colorful pastel row homes that show the city's influence from Barbados, there is no shortage of beauty everywhere you look. In the last few years, Charleston has been making a name for itself as a top food destination for travelers looking to sample elevated Southern dishes. A weekend is only enough time to scratch the surface of discovering all the culinary wonders that lie within the Holy City, so some strategy has to be involved. Here are my 5 essential ways to experience Charleston - food lover style.
Culinary Tour:
We dove right in to the food scene as soon as we arrived through a food tour of Upper King Street presented by https://charlestonculinarytours.com/. I was pleasantly surprised by the historical and cultural knowledge of our tour guide and equally surprised by the portions at each place we visited. Definitely arrive on an empty stomach! We toured 4 places and had several small dishes at each restaurant. The stops included calamari and flatbread pizza at HoM http://www.homcharleston.com/ then we moved on to steamed mussels and frites with fried brussle sprouts at Rue De Jean http://www.holycityhospitality.com/39-rue-de-jean-charleston/ . We then made our way to Smoke BBQ http://smokebbq.kitchen/ for a tasting plate full of goodies like a smoked chicken wing, red-skinned potato salad, coleslaw and a Cuban sandwich. The final stop on the tour included a delicious scoop of ice cream from Jeni's Ice Cream (the Brown Butter Almond Brittle is to die for!) https://jenis.com/scoop-shops/jenis-king-street/
Shopping:
While Charleston has an abundance of antiques and fine art galleries, the food related shops got our attention. Up and down King Street, you'll find unique shops featuring local ingredients. Charleston Mix specializes in Bloody Mary mixes, Food for the Southern Soul sells grits and BBQ sauces, Low Country Olive Oil features delicious oils and vinegars, and The Spice and Tea Exchange (http://www.spiceandtea.com/) has a variety of spices for dips, rubs, oils and gifts. There's something for every food lover with the variety of shops downtown.
Rooftop Bars:
The city has it's share of rooftop bars with amazing views. Afternoon cocktails and appetizers are especially pleasant during the fall and spring. Our 2 favorites were the Market Pavillion (http://marketpavilion.com/) for it's gorgeous views of the harbor and it's magnificent infinity pool that gets turned into a dance floor at night with the help of plexiglass and The Rooftop at The Vendu (http://www.thevendue.com/dining/the-rooftop/) which is known as Charleston's Art Hotel. Everything is beautifully decorated and the views of the city at night are spectacular.
Brunch:
There are too many great brunch spots in Charleston, and too little time on a weekend to experience them all, so I'll post my favorite two. The first is Cafè Framboise (http://cafeframboise.com/) a French cafe with everything from quiche to sandwiches to sweet and savory crepes. Oh and their macarons are almost too pretty to eat. Our other must go to brunch spot is the Hominy Grill (http://hominygrill.com/). There are no reservations, but there is a place to grab a mimosa or bloody Mary while waiting on a table, so the wait goes by pretty fast. They're known for their shrimp and grits and they were great, but if you're into biscuits and fried chicken, do yourself a favor and order the Charleston Nasty Biscuit. It.is.amazing!!
Chef's Tasting at McCrady's:
There are some food experiences that will be permanently etched into your happy memories, and I can promise you this is one of them. James Beard award-winning chef Sean Brock creates not only a meal, but an experience in this 22 seat space in downtown Charleston restaurant McCrady's (http://mccradysrestaurant.com/). It's a 14 course tasting menu that begins as soon as you sit down with food hidden within the tabletop flower decor. The wine pairings enhance the experience. I loved the relaxed vibe mixed with the elaborate, creative bites. Our waiter was extremely knowledgeable not only about food, but with Charleston's history and current happenings. We were blown away with the entire experience top to bottom.
