Erica and I are in Charleston, SC for the weekend, indulging in Southern hospitality and celebrating the opening of the Penumbra show at the Halsey Gallery, in which we both have work.
We're staying in an amazing eighteenth-century house in historic downtown Charleston, and when I return home to my laptop Sunday afternoon, I'll share some photos of city living, Colonial style, but for now let me just provoke your jealousy by giving a rundown of the meals we've had here so far:
- shrimp and homemade sausage over yellow stone-ground grits at Slightly North of Broad
- fried pork chop with mashed potatoes and butterbeans at Boulevard Diner
- roast suckling pig, rapini, roasted beets, lamb shoulder, potato and goat cheese gratin, and fennel-blood orange salad at FIG
- fried green tomato BLT, fried cheese grits, hoppin john, cornbread, squash casserole, mac n cheese and lots of sweet tea at Hominy Grill
- biscuits and sausage gravy, naturally
I may never come home, and I'll never understand, given the bounty here, how these Charleston women remain so unaccountably thin...
Photo credit: hanneorla
Charleston is beautiful. Here's an interesting tale for you: when in graduate school, I did a weekend there - we spent a day at a historic plantation. during the tour, the idiot southern tour guide would only describe the furniture, architectural details of the plantation house, where the sofas were from, etc.. In fact if you were an alien from another planet and took the tour, you could do the whole thing start to finish and have no idea that human slavery took place there. all the people on the tour kept asking about slavery and she would skillfully ignore them and go on about where the marble fireplace was from. I told her afterwards that her tour was absolutely moronic and she asked me to leave the premises.
that said it's a ridiculously gorgeous little town
speaking about architecture - breath taking architecture that makes little towns charming and quaint, the credit always go the slaves.
The wonderful egyptian pyramids was built by jewish slaves ( Ref: the bible)
I grew up nearby and remember days spent in Charleston, this is taking me back home! Glad you posted.
Holly
Oh, Charleston! One of my favorite cities. I remember wandering around with my great uncle as a 14 year old, hearing all the stories of the houses, the history, looking at the old slave market buildings that had been preserved. Such a visually gorgeous history with such a chilling reality.
Enjoy your time, I'm envious, especially of the fabulous southern cooking!!
You really should try the She-crab soup while you're there. It is incredible, unforgettable, delicious, and unique.
I'm headed next weekend for my first visit to Chapel Hill. Anyone have a suggestions for food and activities?
Oops. I recognize that Charleston is in SC and Chapel Hill in NC, but I'm a Portlander and I have trouble differentiating.
Gotta recommend the Kickin' Chicken on King St. An institution when I was stationed down there. CLick name for link.
Hannah: not sure what your budget is, but you could do worse than driving over to Durham, one town over, and having dinner at NANA'S or, for a grand southern experience, the WASHINGTON DUKE INN which sits adjacent to the Duke Campus. have a whiskey, stroll the golf course and then come in for a molasses rubbed lamb rack that truly rocks.
in chapel hill, there is a wonderful and extremely odd little Sufi (Turkish) teahouse that was right on the main drag. The place is piled with carpets, pillows and books and every other night they have Sufi prayer sessions there.
...swoon...oh please, please, tell me you had dessert somewhere ?!!(peach dumplings maybe?)...I am aching to head down south for the food, especially Hominy Grill...I am beginning to suspect food associations may be why I insisted on a typically southern name for our daughter...
Hannah,
Go to Allen & Son Barbecue in Chapel Hill. It's yummy and bonus, it's not on Franklin Street.
Oh, yeah, if you would like coffee there's a place called Caffe Driade on East Franklin, which is past the main drag. It's by some woods so that's nice.
Allen's is the real deal for authentic NC pork barbecue and a mix of local types. Check out Weaver Street Market for local goodies like Celebrity Dairy goat Cheese. Pack a picnic and see some Piedmont landscapes with a hike in Duke Forest or the Eno State Park. If you want Southern Colonial history, go to charming Hillsborough about 20 minutes away, tour the beautifully restored Ayr Mont (You'll feel like you have the grounds to yourself)
and take a stroll on Poets Walk along the Eno River. Staying at the Carolina Inn and walking around Chapel Hill and Carrboro is a great way to spend a weekend. You can read the local paper online at indyweek. com (The Independent) for tips on things to do. Maple View Ice Cream is a favorite destination with rocking chairs to view the rolling green pastures while you eat your ice cream and the country roads are full of bicyclists. Durham has its pleasures, but is more sprawling and can be difficult to navigate. I recommend sticking to Orange County. Hope you have a wonderful time! Also, Mama Dips if you want southern country cooking and Crooks for more sophisticated fare. Flying Burrito for great seafood with a Mexican flare. Patio Loco If they have dancing that night.
OOPS, that should be Ayr Mount, You can see it on the website. It is fabulous on the Christmas tour.
Charleston is may favorite place to eat in the entire United States. Standouts in my head are 82 Queen (I think it was 82, it was some number on Queen Street) and Magnolia (which is somewhere near the silver market/walking distance of main drag.)
Been there a couple of times for business. Food was a freaking standout. I'm jealous. Wanna go back.
Did you venture over to the shrimp shack on the road to Folly Beach? Fabulous.
I was just outside of Charleston for only a day for work, and now I'm even more angry that I didn't eat somewhere other than a fast food chain. time put me at a major disadvantage meal-wise.
OMG I second 82 Queen - the crab bisque is to die for!!! The rest of the food is delicious also. I too am in love with downtown Charleston but Folley Beach has my heart
yum! all this talk of delicious food.... Magnolia to me is the BEST! the fried green tomatoes must be had and fyi if you have shrimp + sausage over grits the dish is 'shrimp n grits' my most favorite southern meal of all time! thanks for taking me back!