Bacon Archives - Queen of the Food Age

Edmund’s Oast

August 22, 2014

I’ve been to Edmund’s Oast a couple of times. First for brunch, and then for dinner. For brunch, I went with Lily, on a lazy Sunday morning after a night of drinking and debauchery. When we walked in, I was struck by how massive the beer list is. It’s not even a list, it’s a whole wall.

I’ll have one of everything!

I also really liked the design of the menu. Simple yet sophisticated.

So many words!

We started with an order of the cornbread (served with honey butter, $4) which is absolutely mindblowing. I think it might be the best cornbread I’ve ever had. And that honey butter. OMG. I can’t even explain it, you’ll just have to try it for yourself. Somehow, we hit the jackpot, and they accidentally sent out a second cornbread, which Lily and I devoured before they’d realized their mistake.

Seriously. Is this made out of angels?

They change their menus weekly, so I don’t know exactly what I ordered, but it was delicious. I ordered a dish that was a play on biscuits and gravy. It was potatoes confit with jerky gravy, cornbread (more cornbread!) and sunnyside eggs. Now, I don’t love eggs, and I can really only eat them scrambled (it’s a texture thing). It was so freaking good.

You had me at “Potatoes.”

Lily had braised pancetta with polenta, slow poached far eggs & smokey greens. That braised pancetta was unreal. Lily fought my fork away when I tried to steal a taste off of her plate, but I managed to sneak some away when she succumbed to the bliss of her breakfast and closed her eyes for a second.

With a side of sunburn.

We also split a side of bacon, because we’re lardos. It turned out to be a good decision, because it was awesome. Plus they smoke all of the meat in house, so it would’ve been wrong to not try the bacon. Right?

Right?!

Here’s where they age / smoke all of the meat. It’s cool how much it adds to the ambiance while still being functional. I love this place!

Can I come back here every weekend??

The second time I visited was with my mom for dinner, and we went all out (as one usually does when Tina’s involved). Since it was after 5, and they had such a nice selection of specialty cocktails, Tina decided to try a Red Wedding cocktail (Elijah Craig 12 year, amaro averna, orange peel, hibiscus thyme sweet tea ice cubes, $12), which seemed appropriate because we were going to be watching Game of Thrones later that night. She loved this cocktail, and despite it being kind of pricey, ordered a second one. She loved that the flavor of the drink changed as the ice cubes melted, and she said it tasted unlike anything she’d had before.

I mean, how could you not??

When you first walk into EO, one of the first things you notice is the massive beer wall, 48 taps chock full of local and not-so-local ales that you can try. One of the beers they brew in house, the PB&J beer had always intrigued me, so I decided to give it a try. OMG. It is so good. It sounds like it might taste overly sweet or overpowering, but it’s anything but. You get a slight sweetness when you first sip, and a hint of peanut butter after you swallow. I’m a fan.

Even though they apparently don’t have it anymore. Sadness.

To start, we got the “Gin Joint” style Jerky (1.50), which was cut thin, appropriately tough, and super flavorful. It had a very “real” taste. Nothing artificial here. Slightly firm, but also crisp that made is seem homemade and like a lot of work was put into it.

Even if it was a little more on the “well done” side.

At the waitress’s recommendation, we also ordered the braised lamb meatballs(apricots, argus cider, mint, $12) as an appetizer. Although this was probably my least favorite dish of the meal, it was still very flavorful and yummy. I really liked the salty-sweet aspect that the apricot added, and I liked that they were kind of spongy, but not frozen tasting.

Like if Swedish meatballs were made of lamb and tasted nothing like Swedish meatballs.

I ordered the chicken gizzard and duck heart tagliatelle because I was feeling adventurous after the amazing bone marrow pasta I had in NYC, and was not disappointed. Tina was really grossed out by the idea of the dish, but was absolutely astounded by how good it tasted. I would probably order this every time I go back. The noodles tasted homemade and were the perfect vehicle for the sauce. So yummy.

I think the only part of a duck I haven’t eaten now is the feet.

Tina got the Chicken and rice porridge which was so delicious. She’s always really nervous about getting chicken soups because she considers hers to be the end-all-be-all. She just kept saying “Oh my god, this is so yummmeh,” every time she ate a spoonful. So I’d say that’s a hit.

And this one was juuuuust right!

For dessert, we couldn’t resist the call of the fudgy brownie with graham crackers and meringue. This dessert is possibly heaven on earth. If heaven had a flavor this is what it would be. I don’t even think I can accurately describe it here, so just go order it and be astounded. Like. It’s SO GOOD. I can’t get over it.

I don’t think I’ll ever have a brownie this good ever again.

The waitress recommended the dessert cocktail, which we were a little skeptical of since it had egg in it, but we decided to go for it to try something new. Not my favorite.

Can’t win ’em all!

Tina also ordered the cookie sandwich (because, why not?) and it was delicious and simple. I want to start making this at home.

I love cookies and sandwiches, so this is the best of both worlds.

We ordered the strawberry cake as well, and it came to the table after the chocolate thing. I think we would’ve loved it a lot more if we’d eaten it before the chocolate orgasm dish, but after that brownie, all other desserts pale in comparison. I think if you’re less of a chocolate person, you’d much prefer this strawberry cake, which was tangy and fruity and not so sweet, but somehow that was ok.

And plus, look at how pretty it is!

I’d have to say that this was an outstanding meal, and I can’t wait to go back again. Plus, the atmosphere is something else. I absolutely love it here.

It’s like modern medieval.

Edmund’s Oast
1081 Morrison Dr
Charleston, SC 29403
(843) 727-1145

4 Comments

Charleston, SC Restaurant Reviews

Oak Steakhouse

October 4, 2013

My final restaurant week visit was with my roommate, Regina, to Oak Steakhouse. I’ve been wanting to try Oak for a while now, curious to see if it could beat out my beloved Halls Chophouse (spoiler alert: it doesn’t). I know that most people say that you shouldn’t judge a restaurant based on Restaurant Week, but I think that’s just BS. If they can’t produce quality food during RW, then they just shouldn’t participate.

Ok, I’ll get off my soapbox now.

We started off with the spicy strawberry margarita, which definitely lived up to its name. So. Spicy. It was good, but we had to have them tone it down a little bit because we’re wimps. My mother would’ve loved it though.

More like StrawBURNy margarita.

After we placed our orders, we were brought some bread and butter. It was good bread, I have to say. Nice and warm, and salty, very similar to the benne seed rolls at Husk. And the butter tasted like butter..so there’s that.

Bread and butter are my bread and butter.

For my starter, I got the wedge of Kurios Farms Bibb Lettuce Salad (local grape tomatoes, bacon lardons, creamy danish bleu dressing, regularly $10). Bibb wedge salads are not actually anything like your typical wedge salad (it’s just the nature of the beast), so I’ve learned not to be disappointed when I order a Bibb “wedge” salad and it comes out as basically just a bunch of lettuce leaves stacked on top of each other. But it tastes delicious!

Kind of like Lincoln Logs, but with lettuce and bacon and significantly less fiber.

Regina got the Vidalia onion bisque (lump crab, bacon crumble), which apparently was a special restaurant week thing. It was weird. Neither of us particularly cared for it. I get that vidalia onions are sweet, but this was ridiculous. It was overly sweet for a savory dish and I didn’t think that the flavors melded well together. Glad it’s not on the regular menu, because I would not order that again.

It seems like a lot of soup until you realize that the bowl is only like half an inch in depth.

For entrees, I got the Certified Angus Beef Filet Mignon with whipped potatoes, spinach, petite carrots, and Oak’s housemade steak sauce. Being a renowned steakhouse, I was really looking forward to it. I even ordered it medium because everyone gets mad when I order it medium well (because apparently there’s some rule leftover from caveman days where your meat still has to be bleeding when you eat it, or you’re an uncultured swine). When it came out, I was upset to see that they’d precut my filet. Part of the satisfaction of ordering a steak is cutting it at the table and watching the juices ooze out onto your plate. Because they’d precut it, when I went to eat it, my steak was already cold, like it had been sitting out for a while, and not under a heat lamp. This was only emphasized by the fact that Regina’s food came out steaming for a good 5 minutes. I was also bothered by the “smear” of potatoes I got on my plate. I’m all about good plating, but this was ridiculous.

I think they really took that “Lincoln log” comment to heart with those carrots.

Regina got the pork shank served with sweet potato puree, braised greens, sweet apple and peach chutney. She replaced the sweet potato puree with roasted corn maque choux, by telling them she had an allergy, because they didn’t allow substitutions, which again, just bothers me. (I hate chefs that get so hoity toity about their food that they don’t let you substitute stuff. Yes, I get that some people like to make like 15 substitutions, and those people suck, but if you’re like me and you abhor mushrooms, AND you’re paying upwards of $40 dollars a plate, you shouldn’t be forced to eat them. I think this might have been another RW thing, where they already had everything premade and didn’t want to have to make real food for people who were only paying the RW price. Ok, I’ll get off my soapbox for real now, I promise.) The pork shank was awesome and fell right off the bone. The maque choux was super tasty and I’d definitely order this dish again. Basically, I was really jealous of Regina’s meal.

Plus, she got like 100% more food than I did.

I also couldn’t resist ordering a side of the smokey bacon macaroni and cheese, $8.50. I mean, smoked bacon macaroni and cheese sounds delicious. I thought it was pretty good, but was a little disappointed in the cheese sauce. It was a little too creamy and not quite cheesy enough, but that didn’t stop me from devouring it. I’d probably still order that again. I like it better than Halls Chophouse’s mac & cheese and that’s about the only leg up that Oak got over Halls during this meal.

I’m really bad at Mac & Cheese photography. What’s up with that.

The dessert that came with the RW menu was “S’mores” with dark chocolate mousse, graham crackers, taosted marshmallow, and salted caramel. It was weird, but I liked it. The graham cracker wasn’t like normal graham cracker, I’d say it was more like a nilla wafer (but like a rock hard version). I thought the combination was really interesting. Regina wasn’t a huge fan of the dessert, and although I can’t say it’s my new favorite thing, I thought it was pretty good.

Now this is pretty plating.

Oak definitely didn’t live up to my expectations, but it had enough potential that I might be willing to give them another chance (on someone else’s dime, of course, that place is expensive).

Does anyone else think that tree looks more like a mushroom than an oak? (photo: from Oak Steakhouse)

Oak Steakhouse
17 Broad St
Charleston, SC 29401
(843) 722-4220

3 Comments

Quote of the Week

Quote of the Week 5/13/13

May 13, 2013

I’m cruising somewhere in the caribbean right now, lounging under the sun, stuffing my face with free food. No new review or recipe on Friday, but here’s a quote to tide you over until my return.

“Ever eat so much you feel sick? Isn’t that the best?”
–Jim Gaffigan

This pipe is filled with bacon.

Restaurant Reviews Washington, DC

Eatonville, Washington DC [CLOSED]

April 26, 2013

When visiting Washington DC from Charleston, SC, the first thing any true Southerner starts to miss is sweet tea. Even southern transplants like Lauren find themselves craving that sweet nectar that, for some reason, is only found in the south. Asking for sweet tea and receiving a glass of unsweetened tea and a packet of Sweet’n Low, just isn’t the same. Not by a long shot. Which is why Lauren decided to we needed to eat brunch at Eatonville, because they have “homemade sweet tea” on the menu.

We love sweet tea so much we infuse it in our liquor. That’s dedication.

I was worried that they were going to try to cater their sweet tea to more northern palates, but they surprised me by actually having legitimate southern-style sweet tea. It was delicious. Plus it came in mason jars with plenty of ice, which for a moment made me forget I was in DC. Our waiter had personality oozing out of the ears and was hilarious, attentive, and generally just a very fun dude. I wish more waiters were like him. The restaurant itself was also very cool. The whole restaurant is themed around Zora Neale Hurston and is in fact named after her Florida hometown. They have lots of cool murals on the walls, which I quite enjoyed looking at while eating my brunch.

Sorry for the unflattering picture, Sara, but that artwork is just so cool!

We were joined by Lauren’s roommate Ashley and friend Sara (who’s a vegetarian. But a real one, not like Naomi). Sara got the arugula-spinach frittata (sautéed shiitake mushrooms, grape tomatoes, avocado, crumbled feta cheese, basil pesto with a buttermilk biscuit). It actually looked delicious, and I’m assuming it tasted good, too, as Sara definitely did some damage. They do a really good job of identifying vegetarian- and vegan-friendly items on the menu, so this is a good place for herbivores and carnivores alike. Sara also got a mimosa, which she said was especially yummy because they used fresh squeezed orange juice instead of that slop from a carton. The rest of us skipped out on alcohol with brunch because we were recovering from the night before.

This has Christine’s name written all over it.

Lauren stuck with your basic breakfast fare of scrambled eggs, bacon, and a biscuit. She also ordered a side of fried okra, which came unlike I’ve ever seen fried okra before. They cut the okra into strips before breading them and frying them, almost like okra fries. I actually liked them a lot, despite how different they were. Lauren loved them and ate all of it, which is surprising because she doesn’t actually eat real food.

But you can cut basically anything up into strips and fry it and I’d think it was delicious.

Ashley opted for scrambled eggs with cheese (which looked delicious), macaroni and cheese, a bowl of fresh fruit, and a biscuit, which she seemed to enjoy.

Mmm…. Cheeeeesy

I was the only one who didn’t get eggs. I decided to get “The Callahan,” a fried chicken breast on a buttermilk biscuit, covered in jalapeno-sausage gravy, served with a side of mac and cheese. I thought the the mac and cheese was delicious (hooray cavatappi!) and I applaud any restaurant who decides to serve macaroni as a bunch side dish. My only complaint is that I would’ve liked a more detailed description of what cheeses it was made with on the menu. I thought the fried chicken biscuit was delicious; the biscuit was perfectly buttery and flaky and the chicken had just the perfect amount of breading. The jalapeno-sausage gravy was good, although I was a bit thrown off by the fact that it was brown (it’s camouflaged in that picture, blending in with the chicken), but it was still tasty. I do wish they would’ve put more on than the tablespoon I received. I like lots of gravy with my biscuit. I also thought the collard green garnish was a nice touch.

Man, that macaroni looks delicious. I have a problem.

I couldn’t resist the temptation to try their jalapeno-gruyere grits because I’d never had grits with jalapeno before. I think part of me wanted the grits to be bad so I could hold onto some shred of superiority, but I was sorely disappointed, when they turned out to be de-freaking-licious. They came out after we’d all pretty much finished eating, and although Lauren had been complaining of being “stuffed” only moments before, she miraculously regained some of her appetite after one spoonful of grits. They were that good.

Gosh, I love grits.

I didn’t expect to get good southern food at a restaurant in DC, but Eatonville pleasantly surprised me. Whether you’re a seasoned Southern cuisine connoisseur or have no idea what “grits” are, I’m confident you’ll have a positive and memorable experience.

I love that font / logo. #Nerd

Eatonville
2121 14th St NW
Washington, DC 20009
(202) 332-9672

1 Comments

Charleston, SC Restaurant Reviews

Crave Kitchen & Cocktails

March 29, 2013

The first time I visited Crave was June of 2011 with my mom for Sean’s birthday (and because I had a Groupon). I remember it was really delicious, so I don’t really know why it took me so long to go back again. Probably because it’s all the way out by the Isle of Palms connector and I rarely venture out in that direction if I can avoid it. Both Crave and its executive chef, Landen Ganstrom follow me on twitter, and tweet at me pretty much anytime I post anything food related, (ie “Looking for somewhere to eat lunch in Charleston,” etc) with suggestions, which can be really helpful.

Plus, those are some excellent suggestions.

After I saw that Crave won “Most Life-Changing Mac and Cheese in America” from Esquire Magazine, you can bet they shot to the top of my list of restaurants to try. I had their mac and cheese at the Mac Off in October where they won People’s Choice Best Macaroni and Cheese, and it definitely stood out from the crowd.

It’s especially good with pulled pork or brisket!

So I dragged Becca out there last Saturday for lunch to try it for ourselves. I started with the Macaroni and Cheese, which I reluctantly shared with Becca, and I have to say, it was pretty damn delicious. It reminded me of that Mitch Hedburg joke “Fettucini alfredo is macaroni and cheese for adults,” because it had a similar flavor. I was almost tempted to cancel my entree and just get another order of the macaroni, but I had just enough self-control to resist.

Creamy, cheddary, deliciousness.

Becca got the Greek dip to start (Creamy garlic hummus and Mediterranean olive tapenade, served with flat bread and mixed greens topped with cucumbers, tomatoes, olives and feta cheese), which I gladly shared with her. We were surprised at how good the hummus was. For some reason, I was expecting it to be really generic tasting, but it was actually really yummy. I don’t do olives, but Becca said she loved the olive tapenade.

Gosh, I love hummus.

For my entree, I went with the turkey club (oven-Roasted half pound turkey club served with toasted ciabatta bread, apple wood smoked bacon, cheddar cheese, lettuce, tomato and cajun remoulade), which was outstanding. You could really tell that the turkey was fresh and not lunchmeat out of a package. It was thick and flavorful and so good. I also love that the bacon was nice and crispy. I hate when restaurants serve chewy, rubbery bacon. This was perfect. And the cajun remoulade was the perfect condiment. The sandwich just went together really well. I got a side salad to accompany my club (to try and cancel out some of the damage I did with the Mac), with the lemon vinaigrette which was good also. It had olives, feta cheese, and cucumbers on it, and it was really good for a side salad, but I wouldn’t say that it blew me away at all. Then again, it’s really difficult to get me excited about a salad, no matter how good it is.

I wish they delivered downtown. I’d eat that sandwich every day.

Becca got the “Wedge salad” (local Butter lettuce with Humbolt Fog Blue Cheese, Duroch pork lardons, crisp fresh red onions, apples and a cracked black pepper and dill dressing), which more accurately should be called a “butter lettuce salad with a wedge of bleu cheese.” She liked it, but was a little disappointed that it wasn’t actually a wedge of lettuce.

I, however, think all “wedge salads” should actually be a wedge of cheese and a side of lettuce.

For dessert, I was really excited to try the Salted Caramel Chocolate Cake that they tweeted me about a couple weeks ago when I was looking for a dessert place in Charleston. It’s a “rich Gluten-free chocolate cake with salted homemade caramel butter crème and sea salt chocolate frosting topped with caramel drizzle.” It was, in the words of my mother, “The Bomb.” It was so yummy. I don’t think I would’ve known it was gluten-free if they hadn’t specified it on the menu. I loved that it was sweet without making me feel like I had diabetes by the second bite (I’m looking at you, Applebee’s). They have a bunch of other desserts that look good, too, like Baked Alaska, Seared Pear, Hot Fudge Snickers, Coconut Cake, and an array of ice cream. I definitely know where to go next time I’m looking for dessert.

Omigosh, it’s so good.

I also see that they have a bunch of options that are gluten-free, paleo, and cross-fit friendly for people like me who are trying (keyword here being TRYING) to eat healthier. Despite the fact that our service wasn’t really that great and I really wish they had a better website, the food more than made up for any issues I may have had. I highly recommend stopping by Crave whenever you’re out in Mount Pleasant or Isle of Palms.

Now, I’m CRAVING Crave! hyuck hyuck

Crave Kitchen & Cocktails
1968 Riviera Dr
Mt Pleasant, SC 29464
(843) 884-1177

1 Comments

Charleston, SC Restaurant Reviews

Coleman Public House

March 1, 2013

I actually ate at Coleman Public House back in November, but I’m only just now getting the chance to review it. Sorry about that. I’m kind of lazy. But, I digress. I first heard about CPH in the City Paper in last year’s Best of Charleston where they were voted “Coma-Inducing Skillet of Cheesy Goodness.” Sounds like my kind of restaurant. Plus they reference The Hunger Games on Facebook. What’s not to love?

I’m a sucker for anything Hunger Games

I was able to get a taste of their mac and cheese at the Mac Off in October, and it was delicious. So I was super pumped to go visit. The parking lot was crowded and we ended up having to park in the shopping center next door, so we thought it was going to be super crowded, but it wasn’t actually that bad and we were seated immediately. I started out with a 4 beer flight sample of Fort Collins Chocolate Stout, Van Den Bossche Buffalo Belgian Stout, O’Dempsey’s Big Red, and Railhouse Honey Wiess. I liked all of them except for the Honey Weiss which was way too sweet. I think the O’Dempsey’s Big Red was my favorite.

Big Red, Honey Weiss, One of the Stouts, The Other Stout.

We started with two appetizers because we have a really hard time making decisions and couldn’t narrow it down to one. But I’m really glad we chose the two of them because they were really yummy. The first one was duck confit taquitos (Duck Confit, Queso Fresco, Crispy Yellow Corn Tortillas, Tomatillio & Avocado Salsa). They were sooo yummy, although I’m not sure I would have liked them as much without the avocado salsa. It really tied the whole dish together.

I’m really into instagram.

Our second appetizer was Mini Lamb Burgers (Ground Lamb, Spices, Onion Chutney, Pickles, Tzatziki Sauce) which were seriously good. They tasted like gyros, but better. I think next time I might order them as an entree and just get a side of mac and cheese, because they were soooo good.

Also, I’m really into lamb right now.

For our entrees, we got the fungi burger (Gruyere, Roasted Mushrooms, Caramelized Onions, White Truffle Oil) which he was really excited about since he loves mushrooms. He was a little disappointed once it actually arrived, saying it wasn’t really as flavorful as the appetizers had been and while the burger was good, he had really been hoping for something outstandingly delicious. He did like the truffle & parmesan fries though.

More like nomburger

I debated for a while between the caprese burger (Fresh Mozzarella, Vine Ripe Tomato, Pesto, Balsamic Reduction), the black and bleu burger (bleu cheese, vine ripe tomato, fried onion strings…it’s not on the menu anymore, so I’m just spitballing here), and the barnyard burger (Goat Cheese, Oven Roasted Tomato, Fresh Spinach, Caramelized Onions). Our waitress talked me into getting the Black and Bleu burger, which I ordered with a side of their smoked gouda mac and cheese (Smoked Gouda, Parmesan, Pecan Smoked Bacon, White Truffle Oil) in place of fries. The mac and cheese was damn good. The burger was also a little disappointing. There was just too much going on. Plus their buns are huge, so there’s this overwhelming ratio of bread to burger. Plus, I think maybe I just don’t like bleu cheese as much as I think I do.

God, that mac and cheese looks amazing.

We were both super stuffed, so we ended up opting out of dessert. All in all, I’d say CPH is definitely worth going back to. Maybe next time I might just order a bunch of appetizers with my mac and cheese, or maybe try some of their homemade flatbreads. I would definitely recommend trying this delicious pub if you’re ever in Mount Pleasant!

Now all I can think about is that mac and cheese

Coleman Public House
427 W Coleman Blvd
Mt Pleasant, SC 29464
(843) 416-8833

Charleston, SC Restaurant Reviews

Chucktown Tavern [CLOSED]

October 18, 2012

Chucktown Tavern is my favorite bar in Charleston. Hands down. Where else in Charleston can you get a Trashcan? No where. So go order one. I’m not going to tell you what it is, this is something you need to learn for yourself. I know Chucktown Tavern’s not for everyone–it’s far from hipster, there’s karaoke every night, and they close early on Saturday nights–but it has its own special kind of charm that I hold dear to my heart. Sometimes I forget that most of the bars I frequent at night are actually restaurants during the day. I’ve been going to Chucktown Tavern for over 2 years now, and I’d never eaten there before this week. I honestly didn’t even realize they served food.

They do serve up some delicious karaoke, though.

When we arrived, we grabbed a menu clipboard and silverware from a stand at the door and seated ourselves at a booth with a nice view of the TV. The bartender came by to take our drink orders within 2 minutes of when we sat down, which was nice. The menu is very straightforward and unpretentious, nothing fancy or frou-frou about it, which is kind of refreshing for downtown Charleston. We started with an order of the black bean cakes, which were absolutely delicious. Ben was a little iffy at first, because they look like slabs of asphalt (I mean, it’s a black bean cake. It’s hard to make it look pretty), but he ended up loving them. They’re made with black beans, mushrooms, tomatoes, onions, and peppers, and a little bit of flour, pan fried, and topped with a sour cream sauce and served with a side of pico de gallo and jalapeño pepper slices. This was my favorite dish out of everything we ordered–they were soooo good.

I know it doesn’t look it, but it is damn delicious.

Ben was feeling kind of boring, so instead of trying one of their signature stuffed burgers, he opted for an old fashioned 1/3 lb burger topped with cheddar cheese, bacon, lettuce, tomato, onions, and mayo, served with a side of house cut fries and homemade coleslaw. As soon as he took a bite, he started making those noises people make when they really like the food they’re eating. He kept mumbling “this is so good,” but with his mouth full of burger, so it sounded more like “threfsj irskds srrrr grsiodbfdl.”

This burger is straight up de-loy-cious

I’m more adventurous, so I ordered the Swamp Fox burger, a 1/2lb angus beef burger stuffed with chili, cheddar cheese, and bacon, topped with lettuce, tomato, mayo, and homemade coleslaw, served with a side of fries and even more coleslaw. It was divine. Seriously. I never end up finishing an entire burger at a restaurant, let alone a 1/2lb burger stuffed with chili and bacon, but I definitely finished this burger (even though it started to fall apart at the end and I had to finish eating it with a fork, like a barbarian). The chili definitely tasted homemade and had hints of chorizo sausage in it, which I really liked. The meat was really well seasoned and would have been tasty on its own. I think the coleslaw was a really great addition to the burger, as it was made with vinegar (rather than mayo), and gave the burger an extra level of freshness.

Burgerlicious.

The only thing we weren’t really crazy about were the fries. They were definitely hand cut and fresh, but they seemed to me to be a bit overcooked and lacked the fluffy interior one has come to expect from this national staple. In the future, I’ll probably replace the fries with something else on their delicious list of side items, like the mac and cheese….which I totally ordered. (I mean, you had to have known I was going to order it. I order mac and cheese LITERALLY every time it’s on a menu. I’m a sucker) So I ordered the side of macaroni and cheese and I absolutely loved it. It was creamy (rather than baked), and tasted like they made it fresh the second I ordered it. You can definitely tell it’s made with real cheddar cheese and fresh cream. It was basic and extraordinary all at the same time. It’s probably my favorite mac and cheese in Charleston (other than KSG’s mac and cheese eggrolls which are something of a religious experience).

Cheesy nectar of the Gods

They didn’t really have a huge dessert selection (only 3 options), so we chose to skip dessert and opt for the check (which was relatively cheap considering all the food we got). I have to say I couldn’t have been more pleasantly surprised with the entire experience. We had a delicious meal that made me feel like I was eating dinner at my friend’s grandmother’s house (I’d say my grandmother, but they’re both horrible cooks). Everything was fresh and delicious, and made with a certain amount of love and care, which I think is really makes a difference in the food.

Also, there’s a patio!

Chucktown Tavern [CLOSED]
159 Market Street
Charleston, SC 29401
(843) 637-3681

1 Comments

Quote of the Week

Quote of the Week 10/10/11

October 10, 2011

Today’s food quote comes from author Orson Welles. I find it to be the most inspiring weight loss advice I’ve heard so far. I’m going to start taking this into account, and I’m positive the weight is just going to melt off.

“My doctor told me to stop having intimate dinners for four unless there are three other people.”

— Orson Welles, author

I've got a fever. And the only prescription.... is more BACON