Charleston: Oysters, Frosé & Sweat

A while back we decided that we’d try to save up to go on a trip for our anniversary every year. No gifts, no “things,” (nothing against sweet presents though!), but experiences. We almost decided against it this year because we’re getting siding on the house, but ultimately decided we really needed to get away for at least a few days. So, we started researching and found pretty cheap flights to Charleston and got a great deal on a hotel. Once we booked it we talked our friends, Adam and Alex, into coming with us because they are the best travel buds.

We picked Charleston because we knew a lot of people who have gone there and they all loved it. Everyone kept talking about the food and the people and the beauty of the city. Broad is also a HUGE fan of the show Southern Charm. Beard came up with a VERY detailed itinerary for our trip. We wanted to hit as many food and booze spots as possible. We are very proud to say we hit over 40 places in the four days we were there. We’re going to give you a list of the best places we hit, although to be honest, every spot we went to was amazing.

Where to Stay
When traveling we always try to stay somewhere close to the action and cheap. We usually pick Airbnbs and we were looking for one for this trip. But, we happened to stumble upon the Days Inn located in the downtown Historic District. It was located centrally to almost every single thing we wanted to do and was very affordable. It was 20 minutes from the airport and the few times we had to take an Uber, the ride was SUPER cheap. We would definitely recommend staying here.

Coffee/Breakfasts

• Bitty & Beau’s Coffee: This place was the cutest! Not only do they serve tasty coffee but the shop is run by employees that have intellectual and developmental disabilities.
• Callie’s Hot Little Biscuit: EVERYONE we spoke to said to go here and we quickly found out why. We went to the location in the City Market and tried their biscuit sampler (pro tip: get a side of pimento cheese, we went with “fiery” and did not regret it).
• Toast: Toast was literally connected to our hotel and we heard a lot of good things. Plus, it was one of the few places that had early AM alcohol. This was after biscuits, so Broad and Beard split fried green tomatoes while Alex and Adam split an omelette.
• Miller’s All Day: We stopped here for pre-brunch Bloody Mary’s and we kind of wish we stayed to try the food! We tried the classic, golden and verde bloodies and they were all delicious.
• Poogan’s Porch: This place was just the cutest. It was like eating in your grandma’s fancy old house. The food was crazy good, the portions are large so maybe split with a friend. Order the shrimp & grits!
• Butcher & Bee: A ton of people recommended this restaurant as well. We went here for a late breakfast/brunch (they were serving the lunch menu). This was a great change of pace for a more healthy, light meal. The hummus bowl and the kebabs were out of this world. Pro tip: start with the house made pickle plate and falafel.

Breweries

• Baker & Brewer: We popped in here because they opened early at 11:00 a.m. They serve delicious Holy City Brewing beers and EVO Pizzeria pizza. It was a weekday, so we enjoyed the spacious (covered) patio all to ourselves.
• Revelry Brewing: This brewery has a pretty neat rooftop patio which we enjoyed before it got too hot. The beers were good but we really loved their sour project, the Hold.
• The Hold by Revelry: This is Reverly’s separate sour/wild barrel-aged beer facility, located one block from the brewery. We tried all the beers they had on tap and shared a bottle since we love sours so much.
• Edmund’s Oast: This was next door to Butcher & Bee and had a great outdoor bar area we enjoyed. We actually hit up The Exchange first which is their bottle shop and sampled a bunch of tasty beers.
• Palmetto Brewing: We took a little stroll to this one through some construction but it was worth it so we could cool down from the hot hot heat. We enjoyed Palmetto and Catawba beers there (Catawba recently purchased Palmetto Brewing).
• Westbrook Brewing: We’ve enjoyed Westbrook beers before while visiting Beard’s brother in Ithaca and were excited to visit this brewery. This one is located in Mount Pleasant, so it was an Uber from where we stayed. Definitely worth a visit for the delicious beers and friendly staff. Plus, it’s close to a few other good breweries.
• Two Blokes Brewing: Another Mount Pleasant brewery. This one was a favorite because we met a bunch of nice people and PUPS! Yes, the beer was also good.
• Ghost Monkey Brewing: We honestly came to this brewery because the beer names sounded fun. The only other people in the brewery were a couple with their pup named Randall who we quickly became friends with. This one is also located in Mount Pleasant.

Oysters & Seafood
We received a lot of good intel on all the best oyster places in Charleston. Beard also did quite the extensive deep dive. We ate more oysters than we ever have on any other trip. Beard even decided to map out a oyster happy hour for us where we tried to hit as many places for $1 oysters as possible. Ever wonder how many places can you hit for happy hour oysters in Charleston on a busy Friday? Four. The answer is four.

• 167 Raw: Everyone told us to go here and also be prepared to wait. We got there at an odd time in the afternoon hoping to avoid a wait, so we only had to chill (steam) outside for about 15 minutes while we enjoyed some beverages. We ordered oysters, ceviche and the crudo of the day. This was honestly the best food of the trip. It was so fresh and just so damn delicious. This was also Broad’s favorite spot of the trip because the men who work there just happen to be extremely handsome*, and also very friendly 🙂                              *disclaimer: Beard fully agrees on the subject of their handsomeness.
• NICO: We arranged to have our anniversary dinner at NICO after everything we heard about it. We had probably the best dining experience here. They greeted us with champagne and the service was out of this world. We were there for happy hour and ordered a magnum bottle of rosé, oysters (lots of them), escargot, baked oysters, the sea board and octopus. Oh and oyster shooters (with gin).
• Leon’s Oyster Shop: We were so excited to go to Leon’s and have two of our favorite things: oysters and fried chicken. Neither disappointed. Pro tip: order the black eyed pea salad, it’s the perfect side for oysters and chicken. Leon’s is an absolute must!
• Prohibition: We started our oyster happy hour here right when they opened. We ordered a dozen oysters and extremely delicious cocktails.
• Darling Oyster Bar: Darling is the CUTEST raw bar we ever did see. It was super crowded but we managed to snag a spot by the bar. We ordered a dozen oysters and a dozen clams. We quickly found out, none of us are raw clam people!
• The Ordinary: We got to sit right at the oyster bar and talk with the shucker while he was shucking our order, so this was a fun experience. We ordered a dozen oysters here.
• Coast Bar & Grill: Coast was a really fun surprise. We ordered the ceviche trio (ohmygod), raw oysters, fried oysters, and peel and eat shrimp. The food was so good. The vibe was super chill and fun.
• Amen Street: We just missed happy hour but still didn’t have our full of oysters after hitting four spots. We sat outside because it was towards the end of the day and the sun wasn’t blazing. We ordered more oysters, High Life’s and oyster shooters which were made with house made lemon pepper vodka and original Bloody Mary mix.
• Rappahannock: We actually didn’t eat oysters here. We ended up here late night (when we probably should have been home) and ordered some delicious ceviche.

Bars
Charleston has so many bars. You can find one on every corner and they are all so different! We had a different experience at each one we went to.

• Palace Hotel: Broad insisted we find this “dive” bar because it’s Shep’s bar from Southern Charm. This bar is tucked away on the East side in a neighborhood and you could honestly walk right by it. We were the only ones in there for a bit early in the afternoon and the bartender, Bud, was super awesome. It’s quirky, fun and relaxed with an excellent selection of beer. We had a great time and could have easily spent the whole day there.
• Bakehouse Bakery Cafe: We ended up just walking by this cafe and decided to pop in because we were so hot after walking to the Pineapple fountain. In addition to coffee and pastries, they have a great selection of booze including frosé which we indulged in to cool off.
• Minero: We decided to come in here for guac and a mid-afternoon mezcal tasting. You already know we love mezcal but we are trying to get our friends on board. They had an excellent selection of and our bartender took time to ask us what we were looking for and picked out four different ones for us to try.  Highly recommend for mezcal and Mexican food.
• Vendue Rooftop: A ton of people told us to pop into Vendue for a drink for the views of Charleston. It was our last stop day one so things may have been a bit “fuzzy,” but it’s a really great place. The drinks are great and the views are amazing. Pro tip: pop in for afternoon lunch and rosé.
• Gin Joint: This is your quintessential speakeasy type bar. The four of us each ordered the Bartender’s Choice where you pick two flavor profiles and they come up with a “surprise” drink. Definitely do this when you go!
• Blind Tiger: This seems to be a hot spot for locals and tourists alike. We got a spot at the bar and chatted with locals and out of towners. It got pretty crowded as it got later.
• Skinny Dip: Skinny Dip is a fashion boutique and it also has an adorable rooftop bar and coffee shop. We enjoyed frosé (it really is the best when its so hot), rosé and a matcha champagne cocktail.
• Kudu: Kudu is exactly our type of place: coffee and craft beer. We loaded up on both before hitting a late lunch reservation.
• Tommy Condon’s: We stumbled in here on our way back to our hotel. It’s “Charleston’s True Irish Pub”. We were treated to some fantastic live music and indulged in some Guinness.

Other Restaurants
We did eat a few things other than seafood while we were down there. Everything was excellent.

• Home Team BBQ: We had to have some barbecue while we were in the South. We picked Home Team because it’s featured on, you guessed it, Southern Charm. We heard the food was delicious and that they also had fun drinks. We ordered a plate of barbecue and Adam and Alex ordered a bunch of sides. The atmosphere was super fun and lively and the food was killer.
• Malagon: Beard (and Alex) found this tapas bar while doing extensive research for the trip, and you know we love a good tapas bar. You can experience an authentic Spanish meal and order tapas any time of the day. We recommend going all out and ordering a bunch of different dishes for the table. Also order a bottle of cava. Pro tip: book a reservation, even for the afternoon.
• Husk: EVERYONE said to go to Husk. We booked a reservation and then canceled it last minute because our schedule was packed. Well, we ended up stumbling into Bar at Husk next-door for some late night eats. Let us tell you, the burger was out of this world. Definitely go to Husk and if you can’t make a reservation, head to the bar.

There is so much to do and see in this amazing city. We opted to focus on food and drink since we were down there for a short time and the weather was so HOT. We did do some shopping on King St., which we recommend. You can visit a plantation, a Civil War sight, the beaches, etc. Charleston quickly has become one of our favorite cities and we will definitely be back.