I must say I’m a sucker for food that photographs well, yes I know that sounds crazy! I am the type of person that scrolls through your Instagram before I want to try a new place or food item. Don’t tell me you’re not thinking the same thing, I know you are girl! I look for creativity, how it looks and what the restaurant decor is like. There’s just something about a place looking aesthetically pleasing that fuels my fire to go and try it out. So, naturally heading to Charleston, you know I was scrolling through insta looking for the best. Although, I do have to give it to my husband for finding most of the places we went to, thanks Steve! Here are a few must see spots when heading to South Carolina.
First place we went to was called Wiki Wiki Sandbar in Folly Beach. Now, if you know me, you would know that I LOVE poke anything, poke bowls, poke burritos, basically anything raw fish, I’m there to try. This restaurant had a really cool bar setting with windows that opened up like garage doors, again if its aesthetically pleasing and picture worthy, you’ll find me there. There was also this huge paper mâché octopus hanging from the ceiling, which I found interesting, because a few other places we went too also had octopus, so what's the connection?! We loved this place so much, we went back again before heading to the airport. I love when the bartenders interact and get to know you because it makes it that much better of an experience. I also love a bar setting, you get to find out about other people, where they are from, what they do and share drinks over conversations that you can relate too!
Anyways, I chose the Tuna Poke bowl which was delicious, filled with seaweed salad and avocado. The portion of tuna was more than enough so, definitely worth the money. My favorite drink was the Pineapple Incident, filled with pineapple dole whip, rum & whip cream, that's all I got! Overall good vibes and a memorable first impression. Decor was beautiful and the open air feel with the bar had you feeling like you were on a tropical island. This restaurant was located steps from the beach and other local bars to try out when you're feeling spontaneous!
Do you love finding hidden gems? Places you just stumble upon when taking the wrong turn? Because that's exactly what happened here with Queen Street Grocery! Steve and I were walking around the streets of Holy City and were just sort of going with the flow. We started down a street lined with beautiful old homes filled with all different colors, so we figured why not keep walking. I hear Girl Scouts selling cookies {SCORE! Am I right?!} so we head over and walk in to this cute corner spot with smoothies, crêpes filled with anything you want and awesome breakfast sandwiches. Crêpes are so good and back home I don't feel like they are easily found unless traveling into the city, so I was all over this place. They had outdoor seating right in front of the store which was perfect, I love people watching! Interesting to see this "not your avaerage corner store" just hanging out like it's been there forever. Turns out since 1922, from a grocery store to a secret gem selling crêpes, this was the perfect "pick me up!" Check out their website to see their full menu! queenstreetgrocerycafe.com
YOU GUYS! Wait until you see this flower wall at the end of this blog because it is so picture worthy, I was dying. The Skinny Dip has three locations, Charleston, Palm Beach & Nantucket. Charleston in particular has a wine & coffee bar, um hello perfect. First floor is filled with boutique style pieces & upstairs has a spot to unwind as well as an outdoor patio. From a macchiato to a Frosé with a Prosecco floater, there really isn't anything that you wouldn't want here. The space was light and airy with a beautiful mural of Rainbow Row on the white brick walls. The outside patio had a swinging seat and tables to enjoy your drinks with friends. It was the perfect spot to enjoy a drink before heading to our dinner plans later on in the evening. Im also a bit jealous because of the atmosphere here, you could totally hang out in the afternoon and catch up on some work, it may not have been your average coffee shop, but that's what made it so fun to be at! Again, with the octopus painting on the wall, I'm still trying to figure that out! They do look pretty cool though, I must say.
Just like picture worthy foods I'm a sucker for names that are interesting. When we got to this particular restaurant, everyone around us kept ordering Hush Puppies. Now, on the menu there was no description on what exactly this may be, all it showed was that it came with honey butter. So, yes I had to be that person to awkwardly ask what this popular food item was. The waitress explained it as a deep fried "dough" style except, it was more of a cornmeal batter and could be served with ultimately anything but in this case honey butter. I don't think I would have liked them by themselves because there was not much flavor but, I love trying new things so I enjoyed them! Along, with the Hush Puppies we enjoyed Oysters, Crispy Clam Wraps, Smoked Mahi dip with fried saltines {let me tell you, saltines fried are so much better than having them plain, there is a better smoothness to them and not dry at all}, Shrimp roll and the chicken sandwich. Not one bad meal here and to top it off they serve soft serve ice cream in a cone with rainbow sprinkles! YES, I am all in. Can we also talk about the Rosé on tap, yes ON TAP! Boston, get on that. I was so excited for that and another Frosé as well.
Leon's is a hidden gem slightly further down on King Street. The thing I loved about this restaurant is that it used to be an old body shop. The details they left is what makes this place so unique. The exposed ceilings, the tool chest they use as a table when greeting guests, the old payphone left in the entryway, and the bathrooms filled with vintage wallpaper, I loved all of the charm it had to offer. They had a great outdoor patio as well to sit while waiting to be seated. Another must see in Charleston.
Where we were staying was about 20 minutes from Downtown Charleston, so we were able to venture out a bit and came across this open air shopping destination in Kiawah Island. Our first night we went to La Tella Pizzeria. When getting there they were pretty busy so we were able to squeeze two seats at the bar. This bar was right in front of the open kitchen so it was neat to watch the chefs prepare and cook the food in front of us. This was a classic Italian and pizza, serve me all the bread you have type place. Food was delicious, I went with the linguine and mussels & Steve chose the classic lasagna. The portions were more than enough and their Winter White Sangria flowed smoothly. I loved this tin "watering can" they give you to pour out the oil for your bread. Cute, cozy & intimate for a casual dinner.
If you enjoy sushi, you would find that Fuji sushi bar & grill would meet all your needs! This was also located in Kiawah Island and had an endless menu of sushi possibilities. The coolest feature of this restaurant? The soy paper used to wrap the sushi is prepared into different shapes that correlates with the name. We chose the Sweetheart roll which came out in a heart shape! I thought that was pretty neat considering I have not seen something like that before. I also chose the ramen soup which was big enough for two. Again, the portions were more than enough.
That wraps up my Charleston Eats babes! Make sure to tag me in your #CharlestonEats on instagram @Fashionablyfitfran I can't wait to hear about your experiences!
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