#262: Low Country Cuisine (pg 707; Revised Edition pg 868)

June 8, 2019

The book describes Low country cuisine in this way..... "The coastal areas of South Carolina and Georgia are the home of low country cuisine, a harmonious belending of French, Spanish, African, and Caribbean influences, and Charleston is its culinary capital."

Magnolia's is one of restaurants it specifically mentions and recommends, so that's where we headed!

We made reservations online a few days ahead of time and got a table right next to the window. Perfect!

My son ordered the Charleston Crab Cake with sweet potato fries and I ordered the Southern Cuban made with "Carolina BBQ pulled pork" and a side of potato salad.

And they also served us hot bread fresh from the oven and seasoned, whipped butter.  So good!

Here is a copy of the lunch menu (which is served until 3:45).

And a copy of the kids menu (which we didn't end up ordering from, but just so you have an idea of what is offered and prices).

Stuffed to the brim!  Here we are on the opposite side of the window from our table.

Aren't those boxed flowers so pretty!

Verdict:  No.  The food was delicious (aside from the potato salad.  I took a bite and it was crunchy.  I discovered that the "crunch" was that there was egg shell in my potato salad.  I could have sent it back, but I didn't bother.  I just didn't eat the rest of it.  Honestly, the bite I had, even without the egg shell was a mediocre potato salad.  It wasn't anything to write home about).  But the rest of the food we had was very good.  The ambiance is very nice and it does make the cut in terms of places I would recommend for people to eat while visiting Charleston, but doesn't make the cut in terms of something you need to experience before you die.

Cost:  We went for lunch, which is obviously less expensive than dinner.  Entrees are ~$15-20 on average (see menu above).  And then obviously appetizers, desserts and drinks are extra.  I would expect to pay close to double for dinner.  

#261: Spoleto Festival USA (pg 708)

Spoleto Festival: June 7, 2019

I took my son Tanner to Charleston to experience (among other things) the Spoleto Festival.

In front of the Charleston Gaillard Center.

In our seats and ready to go!

The festival runs each year for ~ 2 weeks starting around the time of Memorial Day and running through the first week or so of June.  This year it ran from May 23 - June 9th.  There were all kinds of arts performances which were performed at 10 different venues throughout the city.

Taner and I saw One Thousand and One Nights.  We saw the first (of three) performances of this beautiful dance.

It was performed by the Caracalla Dance Theatre.  They have performed all over the world, but this was their first time performing in the United States. 

Beautiful costumes and beautiful dancing!

Verdict:  No, this is not a "must do before you die" experience.  And clearly Patricia Schultz and/or editors agree and revised their opinion on this because they took it out of the 2nd edition.  I love the idea of an arts festival and Charleston is such a quintessentially charming city to host this great event.  I love that the board makes it their mission to make this an international, multi-ethnic event. It's an impressive undertaking and if the show we went to is any indication, the shows are appreciated and very well attended.  But there are many performances such as these throughout the country/world, so I didn't necessarily find this a unique experience.  Although, we very much enjoyed our night out ;)

Cost:  Prices vary depending on what show you attend and where your seats within the theatre is located.  We were in the "Gallery" (upper balcony) and ticket prices were $35/ticket plus a $10 processing fee, so it was $80 for the two of us, which I thought was reasonable.  It appeared that most tickets to most shows were ~$30-$100.

#81: The Heart of Charleston (Page 706, 2nd Ed pg 867)

May 18, 2007: After spending a week in Hilton Head, we spent a couple days in Charleston on our drive back up to Maryland. What a charming city!
Enjoying the fountain in the center of town.

Charleston is "America's most intact colonial city" according to 1000 Places to See Before You Die. It was founded in 1670 and quickly became one of the ric hest cities in America. There are gorgeous colonial mansions throughout the city. Further, Charleston is known for Fort Sumter, where the first shots of the Civil War were fired. The country's oldest museum (founded in 1773) is also located in Charleston, named aptly, Charleston Museum.

Verdict: We loved it. Definitely a place worth visiting.

#80: Beaufort and the Low Country (Page 705, 2nd Ed pg 866)

May 2007: Dave, Lacey (when she was just 3 1/2 months old) and I took our first family vacation together to South Carolina. This was my first time to South Carolina. We spent the first part of our trip in Hilton Head (pictured here).
We also took a day and drove to Beaufort, known as the "gateway to the Sea Islands." It's a charming town and several movies (including The Big Chill, Prince of Tides and Forrest Gump) have all been filmed here. Many of the celebrities from these movies stayed here, the Rhett House Inn.

Relaxing in Beaufort

Hilton Head

Verdict: I had low expectations for this trip because 1) we had a baby with us and 2) it just seemed "simple." It was within driving distance of our house and so it just didn't feel very exotic or exciting. However, we absolutely LOVED it! What a great place to visit. Charming, relaxing and delightful!