Charleston SC to Southport NC

[Curlz]

Hello, neighbors to the south!

I'm heading to SC and NC in a few weeks for the first time, and I'm wondering what food-related and other stops I absolutely must make...are there great markets, restaurants or tours you can recommend?

I'll have 2 days in Charleston, and would love to know someplace reasonably priced where I can take my hosts for lunch or dinner; I'm also interested in stops I should make as I head north to Southport NC (on my own) for a couple of days to meet up with some other friends.

Any/all help is greatly appreciated! The last time I posted on this board, I was headed to Atlanta for the first time, and the result was a dinner at The Food Studio that's still one of the best meals I've had this year--thanks to some of you!

Curlz

[Chad]

Here are a couple of suggestiosn for SC dining, from Charleston on up the coast.

Charleston Restaurant Suggestions

Low Country Oyster Festival

Those are but warmup to this pretty comprehensive view of Charleston dining. Best Restaurants in Charleston

If you are driving, about an hour north of Charleston you'll hit Pawley's/Litchfield and one of the best restaurants on the coast. Louis's at Pawleys'

That should get you started.

Chad

[Curlz]

Thanks, Chad! Keep 'em coming, everyone!

[Andrew Fenton]

Well, Calabash is famous for seafood, of course; but I've never been there.

I had one really memorable meal in Southport, at the Yacht Basin Provision Co. It's a little divey place at the harbor with great, super-fresh seafood and a funky vibe.

There are some good restaurants in Wilmington. You might think about heading up there as well. (And if you do, make sure you take a walking tour; it's definitely worthwhile).

[Curlz]

Thanks!

I read something about Fat Guy's travelogue to Charleston...can anyone provide the link?

Curlz

[Gifted Gourmet]

I read something about Fat Guy's travelogue to Charleston...can anyone provide the link?

Sho' nuff! da missing link is here ..

as per your request, Curlz, this is a well described look through Fat Guy's eyes with some great pictures ... goes way back to 2002, the entire thread ...

[Curlz]

Thanks SO much, GG! I wasn't even aware of FG and Ellen's world tour...great reading.

So I now have Peninsula Grill and Sticky Fingers on my 'must' list, but I'm still wondering if there are other restaurants and (in some ways, even more interesting to me) other food-related places--great markets, stores, etc. that any of you can recommend. And I'm still very open to other restaurant ideas! Thanks again.

[Gifted Gourmet]

Thanks SO much, GG! I wasn't even aware of FG and Ellen's world tour...great reading.

So I now have Peninsula Grill and Sticky Fingers on my 'must' list, but I'm still wondering if there are other restaurants and (in some ways, even more interesting to me) other food-related places--great markets, stores, etc. that any of you can recommend. And I'm still very open to other restaurant ideas! Thanks again.

My pleasure, Curlz, to be sure! I loved my trip to Charleston last year and adored the white shrimp and grits dishes, especially the ones I ate at Hyman's Seafood... touristy, sure, but great seafood, which is, after all, what drives the dining scene in Charleston.

[a61morris]

I have got to second the recommendation for Southport's Yacht Basin Provision Company. If you are going to be eating in/around Southport, you cannot do any better. It is very laid back, ok, like Andrew Fenton says...it's a dive. But the food is exceptionally fresh and simple in preparation. You sit right on the water, and everything I have ever had there has been excellent.

Also in Southport, there is a place called Mr. P's (I think) that is just up the street from the Provision Company, and I had two dinners there that were pleasant, with fresh seafood and good service. It was not AMAZING, but it was good both times I ate there.

If you are going to be in the area for a couple of days and are looking for some other interesting options, there is a small store in downtown Southport, I think it is called the Trolley Stop, that has a myriad of hot dog choices, and they are pretty good, there should be a dog there for everyone who will even eat dogs....

Also if you leave Southport and go toward Oak Island, there are two good dives on the right hand side of the road. One is a tiny, tiny, hamburger stand in and old shack with a window air conditioner taking up a lot of room on the front porch and the miniscule waiting area inside. More than three or four people waiting for an order is an uncomfortable crowd in the tiny space, but the hamburgers are pretty good.

The second dive on the right hand side of the road down there is a place called the Lucky Fisherman. It's in an old Western Steer building, or something like that. I did NOT want to go there, it looks like a typical seafood buffet place from anywhere in the Carolinas. But I wasn't paying, and the inlaws wanted to go there, so we went. Even after we got there, I was skeptical, with the cheap nasty looking interior and flimsy flatware. I generally do not enjoy seafood buffet places, but the quality and variety of preparations (not everything was fried) impressed and surprised me. Not great, but a lot better than it looks like it will be, and better than most places in that area.

Hope that helps.

[a61morris]

I forgot that I had other suggestions for the trip up.

If you are going to be coming through Litchfield (Hwy 17), I really like the Litchfield Fish House, look for the gas station looking restaurant with a big (fake) shark sticking out of the roof. It looks like a dive, and at first glance the menu seems pricey when compared to the decor, but the fresh grilled fish is amazing, and I had some shrimp dish there that made me want to weep. Highly recommended. Of course, there a lot of place on 17 near Murrell's Inlet which are supposed to be really good, but I have nevery eaten at any of those, but you could Google some help there I bet.

Across the line into NC is Calabash. They excel in lightly breaded fried seafood. I don't generally like fried seafood, but if everyone fried shrimp like that, I could change my mind quick-like. I think we usually eat at Captain Nance's, but any of the three or four restaurants that back up on Calabash Creek are OK, I think. We usually drive down from Oak Island (hour or so each way), just for our once a year fried shrimp fix from Calabash, so I recommend it highly, too.

I think that's it, this time.

[Curlz]

You guys ROCK!

Thanks for the Southport info, as I had more on Charleston. My friends who have been to Southport concur on the Yacht Basin Provision Company, so that's definitely a stop. Keep 'em coming...I have a few more weeks before I head down.

[wcmckinney]

As I am already spending too much time on EGullet this morning I will be brief. This list runs from Charleston up to Southport.

Take Sticky Fingers off of your must eat list. The atmosphere and ribs are nondescript and certainly nothing you couldn't get at a Damon's around the country.

While in Charleston I would try to get a meal at the Hominy Grill on Rutledge St. It's an outstanding restaurant that serves good local food in a neighborhood atmosphere but still makes the meal feel special. Their salmon cakes for breakfast are awesome.

If you are driving up on a weekend, I would think about eating at the McClellanville Diner on Highway 17 between Charleston and Georgetown...McClellanville is the shrimp capital of SC and you will NOT taste better fried shrimp.

Kudzu Bakery in Georgetown is a wonderful bakery on King St. King St. and the G-town waterfront is beautiful and does not get the attention it deserves. The Rice Paddy is also a good restaurant with a nice lunch service in Georgetown. Their Pimento Cheeseburger is one of the better specimens of this SC treat.

Litchfield Fish House on 17 is ok, but take up Chad on going to Louis's. The food will be much more memorable than the Fish House -- though Louis's does not have a cool shark jumping out of the roof of the building...sigh.

Calabash is ok, but you will be eating alot of fried seafood regardless. If you do go, then Calabash Sea Food Hut is the coolest of the spots.

Wilmington: eh....hit or miss. Elijah's is always popular, but I think there are some earlier posts about eating in Wilmington that will provide good rec's.

Southport: Second for the Provision Company, good food, good music, good hang out....

have a safe trip, and be sure to take the Myrtle Beach bypass

[Curlz]

As promised, I'm reporting back on my trip to SC and NC...thanks again for all of your suggestions! With only 4 days and spending ALL of it with friends and family, I wasn't able to get everywhere that I wanted to, but I think I did pretty well.

Dinner the first night was at King Fish on King St in Charleston. My friends who live there chose the place, as they have been there a few other times, and everything else was packed. I liked the vibe--very friendly, simple decor, and very FRESH food. Not spectacular, but certainly worth a try if you haven't been there. I had grilled tuna with a lemon/basil sauce, and it was cooked as requested. Nothing like fresh fish!! :-) My friends had wahoo and (grilled) eggplant parm, both of which looked great.

Headed up to Southport the next day, and sadly, didn't time my eating too well, but I stopped at a folk art place in Pawleys Island and saw Louis', so I knew where to stop on the trip back! I did see the place with the shark sticking out of the roof, as well as the McClellanville Diner--but I'm from NJ, so diners don't really call to me when I'm out of state.

First night in Southport, and a group of 26 of us went to Southport Provision Co...exactly what I want at the beach--a dive with great seafood! No pretention, order it yourself, paper plates, and cold beer. I had 1/2 lb of steamed shrimp and their house-made red skin potato salad. Many in the group had crab cakes, which looked just like hockey pucks, but without exception, I was told that they were fantastic. We all walked across the road to Flava's for ice cream.

Breakfast the next morning was at PJ's, which is on West Street, iirc...good basic breakfast, including menu items like egg and crab benedict, shrimp omelettes, and of course, grits and biscuits. I had an omelette that was fine--nothing to write home about--but the grits were yummy!

Heading south, I did stop at Louis', and decided that it was best to go to Louis' to Go so I didn't spend too long there. I'm betting that I was the only person on Rt. 17S that afternoon who was eating a turkey/brie/spinach/bacon panini! DELISH--thanks VERY much for that suggestion!!!

Returned to Charleston, and we had a wonderful dinner at The Mustard Seed. It's a small house, and on a Tuesday night at 7, it was PACKED. I can see why--interesting, fresh food for ridiculously low prices (at least to someone from northern NJ)!!! I split a wonderful (HUGE) salad with sauteed asparagus with one friend, and then had shrimp/lemon/basil cakes, which were served with a tasty (and al dente--just as I like them) vegetable combo and rich mashed potatoes. Also on the table: a fried green tomato/crabcake napoleon that my friend loved, a sesame-crusted chicken dish, and pork loin. All good, and all of the entrees were well under $15 each. Crazy! :-)

On my last night there, we had a typically un-Charleston, un-Southern dinner. And a WOW it was. Preface: it was 97 degrees with a heat index of 115, and when I say hot and humid, I can't exaggerate it enough. But as we were driving through the city, my friend said "Oh! There's the place I've been wanting to try since X told me about it!" So we went. For ITALIAN food! The restaurant is called Il Cortile Del Re, it's at 193-A King St., and it's billed as an Enoteca-Wine Bar-Trattoria. That it is! There are 2 dozen (or fewer) tables inside, and a handful outside in a patio/garden space that looked lovely, but there was no way we could have sat outside in that heat.

In heat like that, I tend to eat lightly. My friends ordered the pasta bolognese and one of the specials, spinach gnocchi. Call me nuts, but that's some HEAVY food. I went with 2 appetizers--carpaccio w/arugula and shaved parmagiano, and a baked portobello with (local) goat cheese. My friends were supposed to help, but they only tried the carpaccio. I held my own. And a glass of Barbera d'Alba, because I couldn't possibly have eaten that carpaccio without red wine! Needless to say, I ate and drank with no problem, thanks to the A.C. and they somehow finished their dishes. Both of my dishes were wonderful. I'd HIGHLY recommend this place--great spot to linger over wine for lunch or dinner!

I did SEE Peninsula Grill, but didn't get to go--maybe next time.

Thanks again to all of you who gave me so many great ideas! And special thanks re: the Myrtle Beach bypass--I'm convinced it saved me a lot of time.

[Varmint]

Thanks for the report. Our friends who live in Mt. Pleasant (just north of Charleston) always rave about the Mustard Seed, so I'll need to give it a try next time.

[Curlz]

My understanding is that they own two restaurants...this one is called Mustard Seed on M____. I can't remember the name of the street, but I'm pretty certain that it's the one in Mt. Pleasant. We went to Folly's Beach after dinner to watch the sunset off of the fishing pier--great way to end the day!

[greenoilcook]

The Mustard Seed actually has three locations: Downtown, James Island, and Mt. Pleasant. For the money, it is one of the best restaurants in Charleston, and it is always packed for dinner.