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
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.
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.
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.
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!
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.
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).
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:
- Alluette Jones, Alluette’s Cafe
- Justin Buchanan, Red Harbor Rum
- Margaret Seeley Furniss, Caviar & Bananas
- Michael Blake, Teach the Need
- Quintin Middleton, Middleton Made Knives
- Scott Shor, Edmund’s Oast
- Thomas Bowen, Cycles Compost Charleston
- Will Altman, Righteous Ranch
- Emcee: Amy Robinette, Cake Farmer (*2015 PK + W + F speaker)
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!
