Charleston
A little Southern Charm
“He's got money, he's in magazines. He's got more honeys, than any honeybee”
If you know, you know. I love me some trash reality TV on Bravo, and the theme song to Southern Charm was nonstop playing in my head this entire trip. From all the history this place has to offer, to all of the beautifully preserved homes, Charleston is such a charming and romantic city I’m still dreaming about. I’m obsessed with this place! Every step you take and every corner you turn, you have to look up, down, and all around and you’ll notice unique things you’ve never encountered in any other city. So much rich history here, and so many amazing places to eat. When I go on vacation, I like to go all in on the food. Why not let yourself have a few cheat day(s)? Don’t deprive yourself of food on a trip, its the best part of enjoying yourself in a new city and learning the culinary culture. Ben and I ate A LOT this trip, I swear we don’t eat like this all the time. Many of our friends were commenting on how our meals looked like a feast and we were eating like Kings and Queens. We normally eat really healthy at home, so a little splurge here and there doesn’t hurt, especially with all the amazing foods in the South!
Getting to Charleston wasn’t too bad of a flight from Seattle. We spent the day flying and arrived into Charleston around 9pm on a Saturday night and drove straight to our stay at the historic Francis Marion Hotel. The airport is about a 20 minute drive into downtown Charleston, and I highly recommend renting a car if you plan on driving out to the Plantations. It is also doable without a car, if you’re just looking to explore downtown; everything is within walking distance. By the time we arrived to our hotel, we were starving, and unfortunately, most restaurants were closed or their last call was at 10pm due to COVID. We settled on a random local pizza joint catered to drunk college students looking for a late night munchie. It was so mediocre, I won’t even recommend it here.
Our stay in Charleston was for 3 nights and 4 days (technically only 2 and a half days to explore) but I think it was the perfect amount of time to see Charleston.
Driving along the streets I remember asking Ben why the houses were all built right along the street with the door leading to the outside of the porch and then another door to enter into the house. Seemed kind of pointless to have a door basically to nothing and then another door to go through to get into the house, but during our carriage tour we learned why the style of homes are like this.
"Piazza” which comes from the Italian word meaning “open space” -
Charleston single houses were purposely built with the piazzas facing south or west to get the cooling, prevailing breezes from the sea.
Places to Stay
Francis Marion Hotel - A beautiful, elegant and historic hotel located right on King Street. This is where we stayed and it was in prime location within proximity to all the best restaurants and shops. There is a Starbucks coffee shop right below, and a a local juice spot around the corner where I got my celery juice every morning. This hotel was built in 1924, and is one of the tallest buildings in Charleston.
With every historic hotel, comes a ghost story. There’s a belief that a Yankee, named Ned Cohen remains a forever ghost at the hotel. Ned lived and worked in New York but was traveling to Charleston on business and to also see his “lady love”. She was a Southern Belle and knew that a romance between someone from the North and someone from the South wouldn’t work because of post-war difficulties. They had spent the weekend together, but on the last night, his lady left him in the middle of the night and left a letter. Ned was so blindsided and distraught, he decided to take his life, and jumped to his death out of his room window, room 1010. Many people to this day have seen a figure of Ned lurking in the hallways, some say that they can feel his presence. There’s no malicious intent, more sadness from his ghost. Many guests have said that they can feel someone watching them while sleeping, or light touching on the cheek or caressing, and windows rattling when there’s no wind outside.
Hotel Bennet - The luxury hotel I wished I stayed at. It’s right across the Francis Marion Hotel and right on King Street and is one of the grandest hotels in the area. It also has an amazing cocktail bar and rooftop pool
The Mills House Wyndham Grand Hotel - Known for its bright pink color, it’s a an astounding testament to the history of Charleston.
places to Eat
Brunch/Lunch
Poogan’s Porch ($$)- for the dog loving person like me, I absolutely adore this place. Not only is the brunch amazing here, but learning about how this restaurant started its name “Poogan” is the cutest story any dog lover would adore. The name came about when the previous owners had to sell their home and move away, leaving behind the neighborhood dog that they had grown accustomed to caring for over the years. Queen street was this dogs area, and he roamed about graciously in the neighborhood accepting scraps and back scratches from every family. His name was Poogan, and he became the guardian of this restaurant since it opened greeting its guests warmly. He lived a happy life and is no longer around but his name lives on with this cute little restaurant. This was my husbands favorite meal in Charleston; we started with the pimento cheese fritters, and ordered the Monte Cristo and chicken and waffles.
82 Queen ($$)- located on 82 Queen, hence the name. This restaurant is composed of three buildings clustered around a central courtyard; the historic buildings have been here since 1866, making it one of the oldest restaurants locations in the downtown area. We came here on a rainy afternoon, so we got to sit inside overlooking the courtyard. I highly recommend ordering the “She Crab Soup”, ohhh lord its amazing! You can’t go to Charleston and not try “She Crab Soup”. It has been a Southern Signature dish for decades and the soup consists of heavy cream, blue crab meat and crab roe. Their crab cakes are also pretty high up on my list of best crab cakes.
Callie’s Hot Biscuit ($)- one of my good friends was obsessed with this place! So, it was a must visit on my list and boyyyyy did it live up to the high expectations. I’m a sucker for biscuits, sweet or savory. Be prepared for some mouthwatering hot buttery biscuits! I recommend the sausage and pimento cheese biscuit, or the blackberry jam if you’re feeling more sweet. You’ll find a small little door with lights above labeling “HLB” for hot little biscuits.
Happy Hour
167 Raw ($$$) - a small chic seafood spot located near King Street, this place offers some of the best oysters and seafood in town! We came here for lunch and ordered a dozen oysters and delicious tacos and guacamole! Growing up in the Pacific Northwest, I rarely get to try oysters from the Atlantic so this place has a great selection of oysters. Also a must is their lobster rolls, its the tastiest in town!
Darling Oyster Bar ($$) - housed in a beautifully restored 115-year old storefront, you can easily recognize this chic and stylish spot on the corner of King Street. Peaking through their large windows, you’ll find the raw bar front with a large full service bar behind it with their pastel green booths. Come here during happy hour for some oysters, yummy drinks and their lobster roll is also to die for here (If you can’t tell by now, I love seafood. Sorry if you’re not a seafood lover).
Leon’s Oyster House ($$)- fried chicken and oysters, can’t get any more southern than this! This beautifully rustic chic indoor and outdoor restaurants is the perfect stop for happy hour or dinner.
Dinner
Husk ($$$) - this cute little restaurant breathes life in this historic 2-story building. Reservations are typically booked far in advance, so be sure to be on it! Husk transforms the essence of Southern food and features an ever-changing seasonal menu of locally sourced ingredients. Everything is to die for here! It was one of my favorite restaurants!
Halls Chophouse ($$$) - the famous steakhouse in Charleston, also a local spot where you may run into one of the cast members from Southern Charm. This family-owned operation offers amazing steak, sides, spirited cocktails and a friendly service night after night. It’s great for all occasions and a little on the $$$ side but its well worth it. This was one of my favorite meals in Charleston!
Magnolia ($$$) - A staple in Charleston for 25 years. It’s an upscale Southern cuisine using traditional ingredients and cooking techniques with a bit of modern flair.
Macintosh ($$) - A farm-to-table local restaurant known for it creative menu. This place can be booked out pretty far in advance so be sure to reserve a table early.
Late Night Drinks
Prohibition ($$) - Award-winning cocktail wizardry with lots of liquor, wine and beer offerings. All of the drinks here were really good, and there is a cute outdoor patio. I highly recommend the “Pimm’s Cup” for cocktail with Pimm’s No. 1, cucumber, lemon, mint and ginger ale
Republic Garden & Lounge ($$) - The “It” spot in Charleston, an upscale bar and restaurant located in the heart of downtown. Lots of live music and the spot to go out to at night
Dessert
Sugar Bakeshop ($)- the cutest little bakery in the neighborhood, be sure to try the red velvet cupcakes and the vanilla blueberry cupcake
Glazed Gourmet Doughnuts ($) - Charleston’s first gourmet doughnut shop. Ben LOVES doughnuts, I’m not as much of a fan but even I tried some of his and really liked it
Jeni’s Splendid Ice Cream ($) - it really is splendid. I love going to Jeni’s whenever I’m in the midwest or south.
What to do in Charleston:
Walk around King Street - the most picturesque street with a mix of small boutiques and luxury shopping, you’d be surprised how long this street is. From luxury shopping with Gucci and Louis Vuitton to small boutiques, there’s a store for everyone. One of my favorite stores I stumbled upon was called Shop SXC.
Boone Hall Plantation - One of America’s oldest working plantations, producing agricultural crops for over 320 years. This was also Allie Mcallister’s family summer vacation home in the movie “The Notebook”. The slave lifestyle of the plantation was very shocking and you can still walk through many of the chambers and learn about the history.
Magnolia Plantation - Charleston’s most visited Plantation. and is one of “America’s Most Beautiful Gardens”. It was founded in 1676 by the Drayton Family and is one of the oldest plantations in the South. The gardens here are magnificent, and you can easily spend half of your day walking around.
Take a walking tour or a carriage tour - I cannot tell you how much we loved our carriage tour. We booked an evening tour through Old South Carriage Company and learned so much! Our tour guide was a true historian who knew so much about Charleston inside and out and he had a true passion for Charleston.
Take a walk around South of Broad - South of broad is one of the most exclusive and affluent part of downtown neighborhoods, and also one of it’s oldest with residences dating back to 1721. Called South of broad because its the residential area to the south of Broad Street. It’s also well known for the Rainbow Row, with the pastel townhouses that are a popular picturesque street.
