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Charleston Restaurant News Events

Kentucky Derby Round Up

May 3, 2016

Grab your big floppy hats and Lilly Pulitzer dresses: it’s the Kentucky Derby! Here’s where to catch all the action in the Holy City.

[We’ll be updating this list as more events are added]

Kentucky Derby

Downtown

The Alley

May 7, 5 – 9 pm

Race fans can enjoy a bourbon tasting for featuring Bulleit Bourbon, and a special Derby inspired menu for hungry viewers while listening to live music by The Bluestone Ramblers Bluegrass Band. Live music starts at 5:30pm.

There will even be a FREE Sports Book /horse contest. Guests can enter their name and email and select a horse they believe will win. Everyone who picked the winning horse will be in a raffle to win a custom Affordabike.

Admission is free for this event and guests are strongly encouraged to get in the derby spirit by wearing traditional adornments like big derby hats, seersucker and bow ties.

Special Kentucky Derby inspired food menu:

  • Hot Brown Sandwich
  • Triple Crown Burger
  • Fried Catfish Deviled Eggs
  • Country Ham Biscuit Sliders
  • Country Fried Chicken

Bay Street Biergarten

May 7, 5 – 8 pm

Bay St Biergarten will be turning their popular biergarten into a giant Infield for their Kentucky Derby Tailgate Party on Saturday May 7th from 5pm – 8pm complete with Woodford Mint Juleps and New Belgium bier specials.

Since the infield at Churchill Downs take life a lot less seriously, ladies and gentlemen are encouraged to dust off their old big hats for a Most Creative Hat Contest: Decorate a big floppy hat from the inspiration of their favorite drink/bier name (example: Holy City Washout Wheat maybe a hat with waves and wheat attached to it). The most creative hat will win Bier Bucks.

Guests should also ride their bikes to the party and enter the New Belgium Brewery Slow Ride competition. At 5pm be the LAST person to cross the finish line without letting their feet touch the ground and win a custom New Belgium bike.

The Rooftop at Vendue

May 7, 3 – 7 pm

Join The Rooftop at Vendue for Derby Day, for live music from The Lowhills, and a “Best Dressed” & “Best Hat” Contest

Derby Cocktail Specials: $9 Mint Juleps

Mount Pleasant

Tavern & Table

May 7, 5 – 8 pm

Guests can enjoy live music from The Moonshiners while sipping on mint juleps, and enjoy a hot brown from Chef Katie and all while experiencing the best two minutes in sports.

Guests that think they know which horse will win can enter the free horse picking contest. If their horse wins, they could walk away with $100 house cash.

The party is free to attend, but guests are encouraged to sport their best Derby attire.

Charleston Restaurant News Events

Cinco de Mayo Round Up

May 2, 2016

Everyone’s favorite excuse to drink margaritas and eat guacamole is finally here! We’ve got the scoop on where to go this May 5th.

[This list will be updated as more events are added]

Cinco-de-mayo

Downtown Charleston

Bar Mash

May 5, 4 pm – until

Featuring live music, games, and more!

Drink specials: tequila specials will be available

Bay St. Biergarten

May 5, 11 am – 11 pm

Bay St Biergarten will be serving up nacho specials, a special tequila cocktail, and even a taco eating challenge.

Whoever can eat 10 soft tacos the fastest will be heading home with a Bay Street Biergarten Gift Basket (worth up to $150 value). $10 to enter, and it all goes down at 8pm.

Charleston Cinco de Mayo Festival

Charleston Visitor Center Bus Shed, May 7, 7 – 11 pm

Featuring live music, a Zumba exhibition, tequila tasting, and more!

Tickets are $10

Grand Bohemian Rooftop

May 7, 6 pm – until

Relax with ritas on the rooftop. They’ll also be offering taco specials the whole night to keep you in the festive spirit! 

Drink specials: margaritas are $7 per glass or $30 to share by the bowl.

Taco Boy

May 5, 11 am – 11 pm

The Green Thieves will pumping out the musica downtown from 5PM-8PM, and Taco Boy will be handing out plenty of sombreros and mustaches for everyone!

They’ll also have a photo booth with C.Tan Photography for you to get a little loco, and special margaritas featuring Casa Noble Tequila!

James Island

SIP Tap Room

May 5, 5 pm – until

Listen to live music and sip on $2 Mexican beers. Enjoy the outdoor patio and bring your dogs if you’d like.

Drink specials: $2 Corona, Corona Light, Tecate, Dos Equis; $12 Margartia Pitchers; $20 All you can drink Margaritas

Mount Pleasant

FILL Restaurant & Piano Bar

May 5, 4 pm – 10 pm

Fill Restaurant & Piano Bar invites guests to join them this Thursday night for a Cinco de Mayo celebration. Guests will enjoy Mexican food specials, margarita specials, cervezas and a dueling piano show.

Thursday night’s dueling piano show will start at 8pm with pianists Dave D and Johnny K. To make your reservation and to learn more about Cinco de Mayo Fill Restaurant & Piano Bar, please visit FillBar.com or find them on Facebook at Fill Restaurant & Piano Bar.

SIP Tap Room

May 5, 5 pm – until

Listen to live music and sip on $2 Mexican beers. Enjoy the outdoor patio and bring your dogs if you’d like.

Drink specials: $2 Corona, Corona Light, Tecate, Dos Equis; $12 Margartia Pitchers; $20 All you can drink Margaritas

North Charleston

Básico

May 5, 5 – 10 pm

Featuring live bossa nova and choro music from local Brazilian band Porto Seguro, a mechanical bull, and the full menu will be available for purchase.

Drink specials: $3 margaritas

Summerville

Charleston Sports Pub

May 5, 4 pm – until

Featuring live music and party favors galore.

Drink specials: $3 Espolón, house margaritas, coronas, tacos.

West Ashley

Charleston Sports Pub

May 5, 4 pm – until

Featuring live music and party favors galore.

Drink specials: $3 Espolón, house margaritas, coronas, tacos.

Mex 1 Coastal Cantina

May 5,  5 – until

Featuring live music from The Dubplates, Big Hair Productions, and more, the event will also feature Samba Dancing Girls, Fire Hula Hoopers, a Photo Booth, Modelo Girls and Milagro Ladies,  a taco eating contest, giveaways, and more!

Drink specials: $3 Modelo Especial Cans, Drafts: Corona Lt, Dos Equis, Negra Modelo, Pacifico, $5 Milagro Blanco Shots, $6 Milagro Cocktail

 

Events

Cowboy Charcoal’s 1st Annual “Fire & Ice Women’s Championship”

April 28, 2016

Cowboy Charcoal, maker of top selling, all-natural hardwood lump charcoal, wood chips and chunks, recently announced the first ever Cowboy Charcoal Fire and Ice Women’s Championship Barbeque Series to celebrate female barbeque competitors across the United States.

fire-and-ice-championship

Cowboy Charcoal, in partnership with the Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS), kicks off the 2016 barbeque season with the new competition series, looking for the best female pitmasters to be judged on taste, appearance and texture in the following categories: chicken, ribs, pork and brisket.

“We are excited to announce our first women’s competition series with KCBS,” said Chris Caron, Vice President, General Manager for Duraflame, Inc. “We’re inspired by women in the BBQ industry who are making a mark on the scene. We wanted to create a platform to celebrate the trend-setting women in the industry and recognize these talented pitmasters among their peers.”

cowboy-charcoal

To qualify for the series, teams must be pre-registered with KCBS and have a designated female pitmaster. Teams accrue points at KCBS-sanctioned events from January 2016 through The American Royal competition later in the calendar year. The top ten women’s teams will win a spot to compete at the World Barbecue Championship in Orange Beach, Ala. November 9-13, 2016, where they will vie for $15,000 in diamond jewelry in the Fire & Ice Finals Competition.

“We are so thrilled to have a focused and fun program this year — thanks to Cowboy Charcoal — that celebrates the female pitmaster,” commented Carolyn Wells, Executive Director of KCBS. “Our community of passionate BBQ enthusiasts is anchored by both men and women, so I applaud Cowboy’s efforts to shine a well-deserving light on the females who are excelling in professional barbeque.”

home-ribs

For more information about the competition and how to register, please visit www.CowboyFireAndIce.com. For competitors not registered with KCBS, please visit http://www.kcbs.us/join.php.

Events

Mixson Farmers Market Opens April 9th

March 30, 2016

Mixson Farmers Market in partnership with GrowFood Carolina kicks off its season with a grand opening celebration on Saturday, April 9 from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. with live music from the V-Tones, kids activities, chef demos, and a Sweet & Savory local pie contest to celebrate Eat Local Month.

Mixon Farmers Market00055

April’s harvest will bring an abundance of fresh produce from GrowFood’s network of S.C. farmers, and Slow Food’s Tiny Tastemakers initiative will offer a children’s lesson in strawberry pie waffle cones. A healthy dessert bar will feature freshly made yogurt with fruit and toppings with recipes, instructions on making your own yogurt at home, and info on local farms. The activity costs $5.

For the Sweet & Savory Local Pie Contest, the Cake Farmer Amy Robinette will serve as guest judge and will have pies for sale at the market. Folks can enter by bringing a fresh pie at noon. Must be made with local produce and can be either sweet or savory. Prizes will be awarded to the top pies.

Each month throughout the growing season, Mixson Farmers Market partners with GrowFood Carolina to highlight seasonal ingredients and provide a one-stop shop for fresh produce grown by S.C. farmers. In addition to seasonal fruit and vegetables, the Farmers Market also stocks local cheeses, fresh breads, artisanal grains, honey, jams, jellies, and other goodies. The Farmers Market runs the second Saturdays of each month from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. April through July.

May 14: Honey Do, a day to celebrate local honey with beekeeping demos & much more
June 11: Blueberry Bonanza, an event dedicated to fresh blueberries with live music & chef demos
July 9: Tomayto Tomahto, a celebration of sweet summer tomatoes with tomato pie contest

Events

Taste of Hutson Alley Street Fair, April 7, 2016

March 19, 2016

Holy City Hospitality is proud to announce the second installment of the Taste of Hutson Alley on Thursday, April 7 from 6:00-8:30 p.m.

taste of hutson alley april 7

The celebration is a refined take on street fair and will take place along the historic alleyway with tastings from six restaurants, wine sampling, beer from Freehouse Brewery and live jazz music featuring Jon Thornton.

“We can’t think of a better way to usher in spring than under the sweeping palmettos and glowing lights of Hutson Alley,” said Marty Wall, managing director at Holy City Hospitality.

Menu highlights include:

39 Rue de Jean

  • Chicken liver mousse banh mi with spiced pork, pickled daikon, carrot, cucumber, spicy aioli and fresh cilantro.
  • Frites and garlic aioli.

Coast Bar and Grill

  • Shrimp ceviche tostada.

Michael’s on the Alley

  • Certified Angus Beef filet, sliced and served with a trio of house sauces, including Michael’s on the Alley steak sauce, bordelaise sauce and horseradish crème fraîche.

Vincent Chicco’s

  • House spaghetti alla chitarra with Sunday gravy and Pecorino.

Virginia’s on King

  • Miniature chocolate pecan pies.

The Victor Social Club

  • Dark strawberry mojito specialty cocktail and special tasting station with Red Harbor Rum.

Tickets are now available for $65 and all attendees must be over 21 years of age. For additional information and to purchase tickets, visit the event website.

Charleston Restaurant News Events

Slow Food Charleston’ Snail Awards Finalists Announced

March 18, 2016

[Updated: 3/22 with winners]

Slow Food Charleston is organizing an inaugural Snail Awards program to recognize leaders in the community that support the Slow Food movement. The event, set for Monday, March 21 from 6:00 to 9:00pm will take place at The American Theater.

slow-food-finalists
For the event, there will be an awards ceremony that will announce the winners of the following award categories—The Activist, The Provider, The Artist (food & beverage categories), The Snailblazer, and The Place. There is also an award for The Legend ,which will be presented to Chef Mike Lata of FIG and The Ordinary, who was one of the original founders of the Slow Food Charleston chapter and is a starch advocate of supporting local foodways.  Lata will receive a custom trophy by Robert Thomas. Winners will receive a custom Le Creuset Dutch Oven with a custom snail knob crafted by Robert Morris.  The Snailblazer will receive a $1,000 cash prize.

Finalists and winners were chosen by a panel of esteemed judges including:

  • Dr. David Shields, University of South Carolina, Slow Food Southeast Ark of Taste Committee Chair
  • Stephanie Burt, The Southern Fork
  • Jed Portman, Garden & Gun
  • Patricia Agnew, Culinary Institute of Charleston
  • Vanessa Driscoll Bialobreski, Farm to Table Event Co,
  • Caitlin Etherton, Community activist

  • Mike Lata, FIG/The Ordinary

The 2016 Snail Awards Finalists in each of the following categories are:

  • The Activist:
    An individual or organization that is a spokesperson or voice for the Slow Food mission.

    • Germaine Jenkins, Fresh Future Farm
    • Nikki Seibert, DirtWorks Incubator Farm
    • WINNER: Charleston County Green Waste Program
  • The Provider:
    A producer or provider of food at the most basic level.

    • Kerry & Mark Marhefka, Abundant Seafood
    • WINNER: Celeste Albers, Green Grocer
    • Greg Johnsman, Geechie Boy
  • The Artist:
    An individual or business that is using refined skill with locally, sustainably soured ingredients to provide for the community. One winner will be recognized for work with food and another for work with beverage.

    • Food
      • Josh Walker, Xiao Bao Biscuit
      • Chris Stewart, Glass Onion
      • WINNER: Craig Diehl, Cypress/Artisan Meat Share
    • Beverage
      • WINNER: High Wire Distilling
      • COAST Brewing
      • Cannonborough Beverage Company
  • The Place:
    A business that adheres to Slow Food principles in terms of its business practices and philosophies.

    • Wild Olive/The Obstinate Daughter
    • WINNER: Grow Food Carolina
    • Neighborhood Dining Group
  • The SnailBlazer:
    The publicly-nominated award for an individual who is making strides in their own field to positively impact the Charleston community.

    • Chris Wilkins, Roots Baking Company
    • WINNER: Germaine Jenkins, Fresh Future Farm
    • Nikki Seibert, Lowcountry Local First
    • Kate DeWitt & Lindsey Barrow, Lowcountry Street Grocery
    • Frasier Block & Blue Laughters, Johns Island Farmers Market
    • Dr. Stephanie Zgraggen, Lime and Lotus Healing Center
    • Ann Marshall & Scott Blackwell, High Wire Distilling

A celebration of the winners will follow the ceremony featuring dishes by chefs Kevin Mitchell of the Culinary Institute of Charleston, Nico Romo of FISH, Lauren Mitterer of WildFlour, Jason Stanhope of FIG and Jacques Larson of Wild Olive  & The Obstinate Daughter, and John Fleer of Rhubarb in Asheville, North Carolina.

snail-awards

Beverages will be provided by High Wire Distilling, COAST Brewing, Westbrook Brewing and Vicario wines. McCarus Beverage Company is providing a toast to the winners to kick off the celebration of the awards. Entertainment will be by The V-Tones.

Tickets are $80 per person for members, and $90 per person for nonmembers and can be purchased at www.snailawardschs.com.

Events

Persimmon Cafe’s Charity Sandwich Contest

March 17, 2016

One of Charleston’s (and my) favorite gourmet sandwich restaurants, Persimmon Cafe, has opened up voting for their Charity Sandwich Contest from Monday March 14 – Friday March 25, 2016.

persimmon-charity-sandwich

For two weeks the Charleston community can vote for their favorite local nonprofit that will become the beneficiary of an exclusive sandwich that owner Rob Cassi and the Persimmon Cafe team will be creating.  The sandwich will be on the menu for the entire month of April from 4-9pm daily, Monday – Saturday, and a portion of the proceeds will go to the winning charity.

Vote at www.persimmoncares.com before 5pm Friday March 25, 2016.

The sandwich will be announced next week!

Events Random Fodder

Charleston Wine + Food Recap 2016: Culinary Village

March 11, 2016

I know I’m a little delayed, but I’m only just now recovered from my wine + food hangover. It was a jam-packed weekend and I only went to a couple of events! I can’t even imagine have a full-access pass (although that’s definitely on the list for next year). One of the events that I was most excited about attending was the Culinary Village. So, on Sunday, my parents joined me for a day that we were sure was going to be full of excitement and wonder and delicious food. Little did we know what lay ahead.

Here’s a photo blog showcasing how our day went down:

charleston-wine-and-food-11

12:00 – “Oh look! A photo booth! Let’s take a fun photo since we just walked in. None of us have eaten all day, so we should try to find some food right after this!”

12:00 - Oh look! A photobooth! Let's take a fun photo since we just walked in.

12:05 – “Oooooh, cocktails! Don’t mind if I do! And I should probably take one of each, just to test ’em out. Then we’ll find some food.” charleston-wine-and-food-2

12:10 – “No food yet, but I love Striped Pig! Might as well try these out, too. The striped Gin & Juice is so refreshing, but that Lowcountry Tea is STRONG. I smell some food coming up soon, so that’s good.”

charleston-wine-and-food-3

12:20 – “Matzoh ball soup is an….interesting choice for a festival. And boy, that’s a small portion of food. Oh well. It’s called the culinary village, so there’s gotta be more food around here somewhere!”

charleston-wine-and-food-4

12:30 – “‘Absentroux’? Is that like absinthe? Let’s try it and find out!”charleston-wine-and-food-5

12:35 – “Is that more food up ahead! Yes! It’s….broccoli salad? Uh… ok. It’s pretty tasty, but my head is feeling a little fuzzy, so I should probably eat like 3 of these.”

charleston-wine-and-food-6

12:45 – “Ooooh a winery! And they’ve got 5 different kinds of wine, so I should probably try all of them just in case.”

charleston-wine-and-food-7

1:00 – “Ooookay, I definitely need to find some food now.”

charleston-wine-and-food-8

1:15 – Is that pork and grits I smell? OH THANK YOU MIDDLETON PLACE, YOU’RE SAVING MY LIFE RIGHT NOW.”charleston-wine-and-food-7

1:25 – “Ok, I’m feeling a lot better now! I wonder what’s in the Baker tent. Oh, it’s drinks made with Tanqueray? Let me make myself comfortable.”charleston-wine-and-food-9

1:55 – “Ok, well that was fun hhahahahahaha. Food time! Mmm. I like hummus. How much hummus do I need to eat to equal an actual meal? Let’s find out!” charleston-wine-and-food-10

2:15 – Boy that hummus was delicious but I’m not sure it constitutes as food. Maybe there’s food in the artisan market! Oh, no food, but there are 6 different kinds of old-fashions made with Bittermilk, so…let’s give those a try!”

charleston-wine-and-food-12

2:45 – OH BREAD, THANK GOD.

charleston-wine-and-food-13

3:15 – “Oh hey, ice cream! Ice cream…with alcohol. *sigh* Well, YOLO.”

charleston-wine-and-food-14

3:30 – “Oh look! A beer garden…..Do you think Mellow Mushroom will deliver to Marion Square??”

charleston-wine-and-food-14

3:45 – “Shrimp & Grits, you complete me.”

charleston-wine-and-food-15

4:00 – “Guess which one of these people was supposed to be the DD? Hint: It’s the one holding the beer. Good thing there’s Uber!”

charleston-wine-and-food-15

4:30 – “Alcohol brings people together!”

charleston-wine-and-food-15

4:45 – “The line for the port-o-potties is too long, so I’ll just hang here for a bit.”

charleston-wine-and-food-16

5:00 – “Over already?! But I haven’t even gotten to the food yet! NEED CARBS.

charleston-wine-and-food-17

I’m glad Wine + Food only happens once a year, because I’m going to need that time to recover.

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Events Random Fodder

Charleston Wine + Food Recap 2016: Havana on Hutson

March 7, 2016

My second ever official Charleston Wine + Food event was “Havana on Hutson,” hosted at Victor Social Club on Hutson Alley. VSC is part of the Holy City Hospitality Group, which also encompasses Vincent Chicco’s and Michael’s on the Alley (among others). Here’s the recap:

Havana on Hutson

Cuban-themed event at a Hemingway-inspired bar? Yes please!

Cuban-themed event at a Hemingway-inspired bar? Yes please!

I was really excited for this event because I love Cuban food, and I’ve yet to find any really solid Cuban food in Charleston (although I have found this amazing Peruvian place, which is about as close as I’ve come). We started off with strawberry mojitos (made with local Red Harbor Rum), which were tangy and sweet and fun.

Hello springtime!

Hello springtime!

There was also some great live Cuban music out in the alley way that was perfect for the ambience and the warm weather.

Can you think of a better place to spend a Saturday afternoon?

Can you think of a better place to spend a Saturday afternoon?

The food was also delicious and creative. There was a lobster ceviche served with a plantain chip, coffee-rubbed ribeye with chimichurri sauce, a mini arepa bite, and fried empanada balls.

testing

And they made up this nice plate for me to take a bunch of photos of. And yes, that is AN ENTIRE WOODEN BOARD FOR 4 HORS D’OEUVRES. I’m very important and special, y’all. 

On-site was Justin Buchanan, who spoke at Pecha Kucha (and told us that our founding fathers were basically all alcoholics), who’s also one of the founders of Red Harbor Rum (which is really smooth and easy to sip on, I highly recommend you pick up a bottle!). He’s super friendly and very passionate about rum. He also very kindly posed for a picture for me, even though I’m sure I creeped him out.

"This is for my uh....blog? Yeah, blog! I definitely have one of those."

“This is for my uh….blog? Yeah, blog! I definitely have one of those.”

They also had the guys from Southern Smoke bring their airstream-trailer-turned-smoking-lounge by for the event, and even though I don’t smoke and have no idea how cigars work (something about don’t inhale, but I’m not Bill Clinton, so I don’t know how that works). But it made me feel pretty cool just sitting in there and pretending to smoke a cigar, which also shows how effective the marketing campaign for tobacco has been, which is terrifying, but I digress…

But just tell me this doesn't look cool. Cancer shmancer.

But just tell me this doesn’t look cool. Cancer shmancer.

Overall the event was really fun, and makes me look forward to returning to Victor Social Club on a normal night.

Events

Pecha Kucha and Charleston Wine + Food

March 5, 2016

This is the first year in as many years as I’ve lived in Charleston (going on 9 now), that I’ve actually been able to attend the Charleston Wine + Food Festival (I know, I know…how crazy is that?!). I’ve been so excited looking through all the events to pick and choose which ones to attend (hopefully next year I’ll get one of them fancy “all access passes” so I don’t go completely broke). My first official event was last night at Pecha Kucha 23 at the Sottile with my new contributor, Sydney Turnquist. It was her first ever Pecha Kucha, and I thought this was a great introduction to the cult event.

P'cha K'cha

P’cha K’cha

This isn’t my first Pecha Kucha rodeo (and technically, I guess you can say that I went to chswff last year because I went to the pkchs event during wine + food in 2014…but I’m not sure that entirely counts). They really stepped it up from last year’s weird-noodles-in-a-takeout-container that made up the “food” portion of the evening. This year, there was an entire block party dedicated to Pecha Kucha, featuring 4 food trucks, and alcohol aplenty.

#pechakucha at the #sottiletheatre tonight. So fun! #PKCHS #CHSWFF

A video posted by JBs PR%F (@jbsproof) on


The first (and in my opinion best) food truck option of the night was the Short Grain Food Truck. They were serving up Spicy Vemillion Snapper Tartar with Carolina Gold Rice, Ponzu, and Furikake. It basically tasted like a deconstructed spicy tuna roll, and it was delicious. Nice a creamy, with a spicy kick from the spicy mayo in the snapper tartar, and a bit of crunch from the crispy Carolina gold rice.

Aka, the most delicious thing ever.

I may or may not have eaten 3 of these little bowls. #dontjudgeme

Next up, was the Outta My Huevos food truck, which never disappoints. Tonight, they were serving up Crispy Chicken Biscuits with 3-Year Aged Cheddar Pimento Cheese, and Pickled Jalapeños. It was kind of the polar opposite of the first dish, but still so tasty. The biscuit was nice and flaky, the pimento cheese was creamy and sharp, and I loved the slight sourness from the pickled jalapeño.

I'm outta my huevos for trying to keep my diet during wine + food week.

I’m outta my huevos for trying to keep my diet during wine + food week.

Next in line was the Roadside Seafood truck’s Bam Shrimp Taco Bites with Fried Shrimp, Lettuce, Tomato, BAM! Sauce, and Sour Cream. The best part of this taco was the BAM! sauce. It’s got a little bit of a kick to it, and it’s perfect with the fried shrimp. This was a great little 2-bite taste of what they have to offer.

BAM! That's a good taco!

BAM! That’s a good taco!

The final food truck of the evening was the Lunchbox Food Truck, which is the only one of the four I’d never actually tried before. They were serving up Pulled Pork Tacos with Kale & Swiss Chard Slaw, and Corn. Although not my favorite of the night, they still were packed with flavor (maybe a bit too much from the swiss chard & kale), so I’ll blame it on the fact that they were making a ton of food in such a short period of time.

Kale has no place in my life.

Kale has no place in my life.

We also got to try samples of JB’s Proof, a South Carolina-made alcohol-infused ice cream brand serving up flavors like Caramel Moonshine, Chocolate Bourbon, and Peach Rum, with each flavor even better than the last. They legitimately don’t taste like alcohol, but, be careful because they’re actually 7% alcohol per serving. You really have to taste it to believe it!

"WE'RE BOUT TO GET DRUNK ON ICE CREAM" -Epic Meal Time (or me, anytime there's ice cream around).

“WE’RE BOUT TO GET DRUNK ON ICE CREAM” -Epic Meal Time (or me, anytime there’s ice cream around).

The speakers were such a great range of talent from the Charleston community. They were funny, inspirational, passionate, and moving. The perfect mix for an event like Pecha Kucha. You should look into each of these amazing Charlestonians and learn more about them and what they’re doing for the Holy City:

Today, I’ll be attending the Havana on Hutson Alley event with my friend Basil & Bubbly, which I couldn’t be more excited about because I love Cuban food so much. On Sunday, you can find me wandering excitedly through the culinary village, drooling and nerding out over every little thing. Hope you’ve all got great Wine + Food plans!

Follow along with my adventures on Instagram!