If you’re looking for the top places to eat in Charleston SC then you’ve come to the right place!
Recently my wife and I got to spend a long weekend away in Charleston, SC for our 7 year anniversary. Growing up in Myrtle Beach, I was always just a short drive from Charleston, but my family never really spent any time there, so this was really Tali and I’s opportunity to explore the city a little and experience it as adults. Being in Charleston and seeing its beautiful architecture, smelling the salty marshes, and watching the sun drop down behind spanish-moss covered trees, it’s no wonder why people are drawn from all over to vacation here. But even while all those things are spectacular in their own right, Charleston’s food scene is truly second to none.
If you don’t know or have never been to ChuckTown, this city is going through a MASSIVE culinary revolution in the past decade. I mean almost every restaurant there has doubled down on sourcing local, in-season ingredients or working with chefs to restore how flavorful southern cuisine can be or elevating southern fare. We were also AMAZED at how a lot of restaurants are calling attention to the incredible cuisines that were brought to the South with West African influences during the slave trade while also shedding light on the evils of slavery. We were very surprised and refreshed at a southern city that is grappling with its past skeletons and trying to bring attention to their wrongs while propping up the amazing things that Africans and Caribbean men and women brought over in terms of culture, cuisine, and farming. If you’ve ever wanted a meal with a story, I don’t think there is a scene than Charleston.
So, enjoy these top five places to eat in Charleston, SC!
Vicious Biscuit – While Charleston has a million biscuit places, and I’m sure a lot of them are fantastic, for us, nothing came close to Vicious Biscuit. From the moment we walked in the door, the feeling of the restaurant was exciting and very upbeat. And I say restaurant, but it feels more like a quick-service restaurant, meaning you order from a counter once you walk in and then a team member brings it to your table, like how you might experience at Chick-fil-A. Once we got to the counter, the employee was so friendly and fun, he really set the tone for what was an overall amazing meal. Tali and I chose to go with the classic Vicious Biscuit and the Fat Boy (we both agreed this was the best one, even though the OG was good as well). Their biscuits are so delicious and oversized, making them perfect for chicken sandwiches loaded with toppings. If you just want a biscuit but not the whole sandwich, because it can be quite filling, you can just choose from one of their homemade biscuit flavors like plain or cheesy jalapeno and then head over to their butter bar – yes, you butter lovers read that correctly, a butter bar! A bar that had housemade butters ranging from Honey, Maple Bourbon & Cinnamon, to even sweet potato butter, it was a delight in itself to just grab a tapas style portion of each and try with our biscuit. All-in-all, we highly recommend this place and even went to it twice while we were down for our long weekend!
Husk – Next on the list is probably the place that holds probably the highest spot on our lists, which is Sean Brock’s Husk. I’ve never gotten to experience such a story-driven eatery such as Husk, and one with literally one of the most talented and passionate chefs around. To truly get into the Husk mindset, we watched the Chef’s Table episode that featured Sean. Getting to know his backstory and understand what he is trying to do in the South, which is to revitalize it’s culinary culture and show people how artful it can be while also trying to bring back old seeds into growing production (seriously, this guy is doing it all!), one can understand why he has garnered so much attention and notoriety. I scheduled our reservation a month in advance and could still only get a Sunday night resy at 8:30p at night, so seriously, if you plan on going, you absolutely need to plan weeks in advance! Situated in an old 19th century home with Queen Anne stylings, this two-story restaurant makes you feel as though are you transported back in time. As you walk into the foyer, on your left is a chalkboard wall which states all the items being served that night on the menu and what farms they all came from. Sean seriously believes in only sourcing local, southern ingredients for this restaurant so patrons can get the sense that southern food can be delicious and tasty. For dinner my wife and I had the lettuce cup appetizer (you could literally smell the freshness of the lettuce before the waiter even placed the food down), the Fried Cornbread Panzanella (we could have eaten two bowls of this!), and the Confit Duck Leg. For drinks we got their Dragoon Punch, which is a tea recipe that dates back to the 1700s! The coolest part about this restaurant is that their menu changes every week, its no wonder why this is the hottest restaurant right now in Charleston.
Chez Nous – This amazing french style restaurant was a true joy to find, and we mean that, we literally had to find this place. Tucked away in the alley of a side street, this small little eatery packs a punch with its southern France, Northern Italy, and Northern Spain-styled cuisine. We got the chance to eat outside in their courtyard under patio lights and surrounded by trees and vines, it was a really cool scene as we got to watch the chefs in the kitchen through their large patio-facing window. Chez Nous is a very special place as you really cannot plan ahead for what you want to eat. This is normally an issue for me because I always research menus and know exactly what i want before i even arrive at a restaurant, but for some reason i found myself enjoying the idea of just being surprised by the menu and just “going with it”. Each day, the chef hand-writes the menu and posts it to Instagram. So it is truly what the chef and team find at the markets, stores, or are inspired by and cook that for the day. Chez Nous is really a refreshing take on dining out and you can feel the passion in each dish as the serving staff explain each one and its inspiration for you. That night we had this awesome APPETIZER, this overnight marinated spanish pork loin, TALI meal, and DESSERTS. I loved my pork loin, so moist and flavorful, and even as a guy who does not enjoy seafood, the appetizer had me craving more.
Peace Pie – A little more low-key than the other places on this list, but one that equally stands out in my mind. In a world full of cookie/pastry shops or ice creameries, Peace Pie combines the love for both cookies and ice cream into one incredibly tasty dessert sandwich. These delightful little gourmet ice cream sandwiches are p[erfect for grabbing and just walking around King Street with. Tali got the strawberry shortcake and I got the Salted Caramel Apple (because I’m a sucker for apple pie) and they definitely hit the spot on a nice hot down in August. Another plus on my list for them is that their cookies are shortbread, which is my favorite type of cookie and I think it’s just really neat that they combine pie-filling toppings with each. If you want to break the mold of normal dessert shops while on vacation, i highly encourage you to check this place out!
Rodney Scotts BBQ – It’s one thing to have a city with one chef featured on Netflix’s award-winning Chef’s Table series, but two is just downright amazing. Rodney Scott was featured on season 1, Episode 2 of Chef’s Table: BBQ, and his story is just incredible. Coming from a the small town of Hemingway, SC, Rodney learned from his father’s BBQ shop how to do whole-hog style bbq, an art that many bbq places do not do. Eventually setting off on his own, Rodney found great success in opening his first store in Charleston and eventually branching out to Alabama and Georgia as well. We went on a rainy day and even then Rodney’s was packed (even with people eating outside IN THE RAIN! That tells you how truly good this stuff is). Rodney’s portions are super generous, which is a nice break from the other upscale restaurants you may find in town that are doing nuvelle style. We got the loaded potato with brisket, the whole hog plate, and the turkey breast sandwich. While everything we got was amazing, both Tali and i agreed that on that particular day, the turkey sandwich won out for both of us. It was probably the most tender, juicy turkey i’ve ever had in my life and if I died in that moment there probably would have been a smile on my face. Rodney’s atmosphere is very family-friendly and exciting with a touch of modern with dark wood floors, subway tile backsplashes, and modern light fixtures inside providing a nice warm light. While this place is only a short drive from the hustle and bustle of King’s street, it should be a must on your list if you’re a bbq fan!
Conclusion
And well there you have it, these were our top 5 places to eat in charleston. While we did go to many more amazing places too, these are definitely the ones that stick in our mind of places that are a must return when we go back. If you’re planning a trip to charleston and are interested in any of these, let me know and i’d love to provide any more details that i can! Or if you’ve been to any of these, let me know of your experience – im always up for a good chat about great food!
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