Charleston, SC Dining
Charleston is known for its atmosphere when you visit with your Charleston car rental. Whether you are looking for freshly caught seafood, classic Southern cuisine, or barbeque, you will find it here in Charleston. You can enjoy a meal alfresco in the Historic District, near the Battery, or the City Market. There are choices here for everyone!
Places you can’t miss
Bowens Island Restaurant is known for its no-frills service, creek-side sunset views, walls where customers have signed their names, and the oyster room (where steaming mollusks were shovelled from the fire pit to wooden tables). This restaurant was names one of eight “American Classic Restaurants” in 2006 by the James Beard Foundation. Gullah Cuisine specializes in okra gumbo, Gullah rice, hoppin’ john, collards, cabbage, and succotash. They have been featured in Southern Living, Gourmet, The New York Times, and The Washington Post. Hominy Grill is a three-story Charleston shotgun dwelling that serves southern dishes like shrimp and grits and shrimp gumbo. They are known in town for their food and their good prices. Mercato is located in the City Market and features Italian-American dishes. Some of the house specialties include potato gnocchi with slow braised short rib, cipolin onions and oven dried sweet tomato, taleteller Bolognese with veal meat sauce, and pork Osso Bucco. Tuesday through Saturday, they have live jazz music when you visit. Poogan’s Porch is an 1886 home that might even have its own ghost! They feature southern cuisine like Carolina crab cakes, calabash seafood platters, and bread pudding in Boubon sauce. This restaurant has received rave reviews from the Travel Channel, the Food Network, Southern Living, and Martha Stewart. SeeWee was built in an old store which dates back to the 1920s. When the store closed in 1988, it was turned into a restaurant a few years later. They serve Lowcountry cuisine such as local seafood. Entrees are served with three sides such as collard greens, red rice, batter fried mushrooms, butter beans, sweet potato casserole fried okra, mac-n-cheese, or steamed squash.
Casual cuisine
JB’s Smokehouse has some of the best BBQ pork in the area, as judged by Best of the Best in America, by National BBQ News. The pork, brisket, and ribs are slow cooked over hickory wood, and the chicken is cooked slowly over apple wood and seasoned with a special rub.
Celebrate a special occasion
When you visit with your Charleston car rental, there are many elegant restaurants that you can visit to celebrate a special occasion. Al de La serve Northern Italian cuisine with fresh ingredients. Some of the favorites here include smoked beef carpaccio with olives and paive, gnocchi with shrimp, grape tomatoes and basil, and grilled quail and Italian sausage. Anson Restaurant is located in the Old City Market with your Charleston car rental. They specialize is locally caught seafood that is caught daily. Shrimp and creamy stone ground grits, Roasted Red Snapper with Lowcountry succotash and shrimp, Cashew Crusted Grouper with Champaign sauce, and Crispy Flounder with Apricot sauce are some of the unique creations here. Circe 1886 is a AAA Four-Diamond restaurant that specializes in Southern cuisine with a modern twist. Jasmine Porch is a casually elegant seaside restaurant with excellent alfresco dining. They feature a grand buffet breakfast, with made-to-order omelettes. Magnolias is one of the most popular restaurants in the city, located in the original Customs House. They have award-winning American cuisine with southern flavor.
When you visit with your Charleston car rental, you will find there are many choices in Charleston for you to choose from for your lunches and dinners.
