Charleston 4/3/05-4/7/05

[BetsyinKY]

Just back from a 3 day trip to Charleston and thought I would post a quick report.

First of all, this trip was with my parents, which colors our food choices a bit, because Mom is on the slightly picky side of things, and Dad is king of all that is low fat. This meant that the restaurants we chose had to offer a variety of choices that included items for the less adventurous diner, as well as the health conscious.

Sunday night found us arriving in town around 9pm. Mom and Dad had never been to Charleston before and this was only my second trip. Dad wanted to immediately get out and explore almost as soon as we were checked into our suite at the Andrew Pinckney Inn. After a long walk around downtown, we wound up at Kaminsky's. I was amazed that my "fat-free" father wanted to break over for dessert (at 10:30pm, no less), but it was his suggestion. He had a slice of their Mountain of Chocolate cake and I had a slice of carrot cake. Both were very good.

Monday morning breakfast was at the Inn. The breakfast was the only problem that I had with the Andrew Pinckney. The room was nice, the service was good, but breakfast was pretty sad! Although it was called a "deluxe continental", it consisted of two choices of cereal, frozen waffles, croissants, and stale raisin bread. There were also some suspiciously pale little biscuits and a crock pot of crusty looking gravy. The first morning, we thought that it was just picked over because we didn't get there until 9am (although it was supposed to last until 10am). However, we discovered that it didn't matter if we got there at 8am or 9am, the selection was the same. Also, there was not enough seating and every day they were either out of milk, plates, utensils, coffee....something was missing that prevented us from being able to make the most out of the sad selections. I realize that it was a "free" breakfast, but I've stayed at far cheaper places that have had better breakfasts. Anyway, I digress.....

Monday lunch was at 39 Rue de Jean. Mom wanted a burger and she found a great one here. Dad absolutely loved the bouillabaisse that he had, while I enjoyed an omelette with fine herbs and frites. We sat out on the patio and enjoyed a gorgeous day and a delicious lunch. Service was excellent.

Dinner on Monday was at Blossom Cafe, which was Dad's choice. I had BBQ red snapper, which was very good. Mom liked her salmon very much, until she came upon a bone. Dad was not quite as happy with his herb roasted chicken because he said it didn't have much flavor. I also had a very good salad with mixed greens, warm golden raisins, almonds, and goat cheese. We didn't have dessert here, because Dad was thinking about cake from Kaminsky's again. The atmosphere in Blossom Cafe was very nice and service was good.

Dessert was at Kaminsky's again. Mom had a slice of Snicker's cake, which she said was good. Dad and I both had a slice of Raspberry Coconut Cream Cake, which was one of the best cakes I've had in a long time. It was a very light white layer cake, with raspberry filling and coconut dusted on the outside. Mmmmmm!

Tuesday-breakfast was the same tired looking choices at the Inn. We were hoping it would be better, if we were earlier getting there...no such luck!

Tuesday lunch was at Middleton Place in their garden cafe. Another meal that was not really worth writing about, as it was just sandwiches that were not particularly memorable.

Tuesday dinner was at Anson. The space is beautiful, but on the loud side. Service was good. The only problem was that Mom had chosen this restaurant based on the cashew encrusted grouper....only after she ordered it, the server returned to tell us that they were out! Not only that, but they were out of the entree Dad selected, too. Mom and I wound up having the whole crispy flounder with Apricot Shallot sauce, which was excellent. We picked the bones clean! I don't remember what Dad had, other than it was some sort of fish. He liked the fish very much, but did not like what it was served with.

Dessert was at Kaminsky's...again! Dad had something chocolate, Mom had a HUGE brownie sundae, and I had a huge slice of a delicious coconut cream pie. The slice of pie was almost as big as the plate it was on and it was easily one of the top 5 pieces of pie I've ever eaten.

Wednesday.....This was easily the best food day, overall. I was dying to go to the Hominy Grill again, so I told Mom and Dad that breakfast would be my treat. I just love this place. It is so relaxing and comfortable to hang out in, plus the food is wonderful. Mom had a traditional breakfast....scrambled eggs, bacon, grits, and toast. Dad and I had the omelette special of the morning, which was an omelette filled with grilled vegetables and parmasean cheese, served with homefries, which I substituted for grits. Everything was very good.

Wednesday lunch...We were on our way from the Yorktown to Fort Moultrie, so lunch was in Mt. Pleasant. We stopped in at the Boulevard Diner, which is housed in a converted Dairy Queen building, but this is a place, where you can't let the exterior fool you, because the food is great. Mom had a cheeseburger that was so large she could barely finish it. Dad had scallops that looked wonderful, flakey and tender. I had a spinach salad with carrots, cucumbers, and slices of apple, served with a warm buttermilk dressing that had shallots and bacon in it, and the whole thing was topped with five of the best fried oysters I've ever put in my mouth. I just about start drooling every time I think of this salad! The interior here was very pleasant and there was a decent crowd, even at 2:30 on a Wednesday afternoon. Service was friendly and efficient.

Wednesday dinner....We wound up at 39 Rue de Jean again. Mom and Dad both had a grilled pork chop with red cabbage. They said it was delicious and ate every bite on their plates. I had the NY Steak Frites, which was very good. I love this restaurant, but it was very loud on this particular night, and our server was very distracted, not only in his treatment of our table, but also with the table next to us.

Thursday was our last day, and since we wanted to get a fairly early start for home, we had one last ho-hum breakfast at the hotel.

I hope this report will help anyone traveling to Charleston soon. I can't wait to go back!

[iris]

Thanks, BetsyinKY! I am heading there in about 8 weeks, and this is helpful. It seems that Kaminsky's is a place not to be missed! If you had to choose one of those restaurants for dinner, which would you choose? And this may be a silly question, but I haven't been to Charleston before: do I need to ask you where these places are, or is this a small enough town that a good exploring walk will lead me to them?

-iris

[Gifted Gourmet]

I haven't been to Charleston before: do I need to ask you where these places are, or is this a small enough town that a good exploring walk will lead me to them?

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There are a number of informative threads on Charleston:

this is one such thread

yet another thread

and one on the Peninsula Grill

[chapeaulong]

there are lots of great places in charleston, but, you really have to know where to go. many places have gained a great reputation, based on mediocrity. my highest recommendation always goes to McCrady's where you can dine casually and brief at the bar if you like, or have a beautiful fine dining experience in the historic dining rooms. even McCrady's for dessert is a good idea. pastry chef Michele Rupe will satisfy your sweet tooth, guaranteed!!

[BetsyinKY]

Iris,

If I had to chose just one for dinner...hmmm! I think it would depend on what sort of meal I was in the mood for. I love 39 Rue de Jean and all three meals I've had there have been very well prepared. I have been dying to have dinner at the Hominy Grill, but that would be a more low-key down home type of meal. On my December trip, I had really good meals at S.N.O.B. and Poogan's Porch. All of the places that I've eaten have been in the historict district (with the exception of the Boulevard Diner, which is across the river in Mount Pleasant) and are within walking distance, except the Hominy Grill. I don't know that you would want to spend any of your precious time in Charleston wandering in search of restaurants, so I would look up the addresses of the ones that interest you beforehand. A great resource that I stumbled on is the website www.cuisineofcharleston.com. This site lists sample menus, hours, chef profiles, etc. for close to 30 Charleston restaurants. Also, Kaminsky's Most Excellent Cafe has wonderful desserts, but the greater appeal to us was the fact that it is open late, so we could walk around for a while after dinner and let our food digest before eating dessert. (However, if you see the raspberry coconut cake in their display case, please order a slice for me, too!)

Hope this helps! Have a great trip!

Betsy

[Gifted Gourmet]

clickable link for cuisine of Charleston mentioned above ... very cool site! Thanks, BetsyinKY!

[Holly Moore]

clickable link for cuisine of Charleston mentioned above ...  very cool site! Thanks, BetsyinKY!

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Hmmmm. No mention of Bowen's Island. Can't be all that complete.

I noticed that the site is branded by American Express. I wonder if the only places listed are those that accept AMEX cards? If you go to the home page for that site, you'll see similar sites for other cities.

[jm chen]

Can't stop recommending Anson (for the crispy flounder) and S.N.O.B. (for anything) but I'm heading back to Charleston and it sounds like I've got to make time for either McCready's or Peninsula Grill.

For a change we are staying at a Bed No Breakfast (that's actually the name of the place) so we'll have to find breakfast somewhere... but is Hominy Grill not within walking distance? We'll be on foot.

[Gifted Gourmet]

it sounds like I've got to make time for either McCready's or Peninsula Grill.

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I can tell you that Peninsula Grill is incredible!!