Beach Week 2014: Good Eats

Obviously we go to Sullivan's Island for the beach.  It's family-friendly, there are wave-free tide pools for the kiddos, and you can ride your bike just about anywhere.  We also go for the FOOD!  Charleston has quickly become an area that is known for its uptown cuisine with a laid-back attitude.  We have favorite stops that can't be missed, and try to find at least one new place each time we visit.

Saturday was Pete's birthday and he had one request - TACO BOY!  We eat at Taco Boy at least once every time we are in the area and have since we were all in town after Adam Bitters' wedding in 2008.  The guac is delish, the drinks are good, and, obviously, the tacos can't be beat.

2008 - our first visit

2010 - the whole gang (ellie 5 weeks gestation)

2011 - ellie's first Taco Boy trip at three months old

2012 (Kate 5 weeks gestation)

2014 - Caroline's first trip to Taco Boy

Sunday we had to eat at our next must-stop location:  Poe's Tavern.  Anyone who has ever been to Sullivan's Island will tell you it is not to be missed. 

Mmm, so tasty.  The fries are also amazing!

I usually get the Annabelle Lee -comes with a crab cake on top, and Pete gets the Tell Tale Heart - comes with a fried egg and bacon. 

Ellie enjoying her first Poe's cheeseburger

Ellie's first Poe's visit in 2012 - not old enough for her own cheeseburger :)

Caroline liked it, too.

Monday we picked up dinner from Home Team BBQ, which is across the street from Poe's.  It was fine, no City Barbeque, and certainly no Betty Rose's, but it was just fine for our hungry clan.  The smoked chicken on Ellie's quesadilla might have been the shining star.  That or the barbeque tortilla chips which tasted great, not weird at all as I had thought they might.

Tuesday was a big night for us - all four of us went to dinner - WITHOUT OUR CHILDREN!!  Jen got a babysitter recommendation from a coworker, so, after the kiddos were snug in their beds, we were off!!  In all the excitement and enjoyment of our night out, the only picture is from Pete's phone:

 

I think we would all agree, the Best Entree of the Week award would go to SALT for their shrimp and grits.  Neither Jen nor I ordered it, but we each had a bite of our (wise) husbands' dinners - and I can still taste it to this day!!! SO GOOD!!  My swordfish was fine, and Jen's pesto gnocchi was also really tasty, but those grits, with andouille sausage, my word.  I would also order the She-Crab Beignets appetizer again.   

Wednesday morning, we hopped in our cars to go to a local bakery:  Joey Bag-a-Donuts!  The donuts all looked really good - very appealing to the littles with googly eyes and colored sprinkles, but their taste was just so-so.  The coffee drinks, however, were fantastic!  I had an iced salted caramel macchiato (surprise) and the Wheelers each had an iced coconut coffee - and we both raved about them.

Picking out their treats.

A pleasant morning outside.

Nom Nom Nom

Wednesday night, Pete and I got to go out again!

Wearing mascara two nights in a row - that's crazy!!

We decided to try 82 Queen.  Our favorite restaurant, FIG, is booked all the time now, and HUSK is also similarly full.  82 Queen is owned by the folks who run Low Country Bistro, where we've been once (or twice?) before and had a great meal.  82 Queen is supposed to be a fancier version.  Which it was.   

We're going to be in our fifties and he'll still look fifteen.

However, and we didn't see this noted anywhere until we were seated, the whole place is OUTDOORS.  It's situated in one of those little alleys for which Charleston is so famous.  Which may be okay in October in Charleston, but in August, with my hair down, and Pete wearing pants,  well, we were warm, to say the least.  Our meal was fine.  I think it was our waiter that made our meal not as good as it could have been.  He was okay, I'm just a better-keep-my-glass-of-water-full-kinda-girl or I'll give ya the stink eye.  My cocktail was so sweet I couldn't drink it and the pimiento cheese mashed potatoes didn't have much flavor.  My crab cakes were excellent, though.  We were too full to order dessert.

Thursday morning we rode our bikes to Cafe Medley (also across the street from Poe's).

 A little porch rocking.

Great atmosphere, great pastries - I had a scone, Pete had an amazing looking bagel with nutella, Jen had a piece of blueberry pound cake, and Matt had a piece of coffee cake the size of my laptop.  My coffee was just okay.  Not as good as Joey Bag-a-Donuts.  After breakfast we decided to keep riding our bikes down to the end of the island so we could stop at Fort Moultrie.

Whoo-hoo.  A Cannon.

We lived in coastal Virginia for four years and had season passes to Yorktown and Colonial Williamsburg, and probably a few others.  So if I never sit on another cannon in my life, I will be okay.  But Fort Moultrie was a great place for the girls to get out of their seats and run around a bit, and they did have a section underground that was full of actual uniforms, magazines, posters, etc depicting life at the fort in various wars (it was active in the Revolutionary, Civil, and World wars), and I enjoyed seeing that.

That evening it was Matt and Jen's turn to go out on a date - yay!  They went to The Granary.  I don't remember what Matt ate, but Jen raved about her Duck 2 Ways.  The duck itself was great (pan seared and duck confit), but the real show-stopper, according to Jen, was the brussels sprouts.  She ate them all!!  This from a non-vegetable eater!! 

Pete and I got Poe's takeout for our dinner back at the house.  He had the Amontillado (burger with guac and chipotle sauce) and I had the grilled chicken salad.  I've had it once before - it's one of the best salads I've ever eaten - amazing dressing and it comes with pimiento cheese toast.

To finish out our week we went back to Taco Boy for lunch on Friday and stayed home for dinner.

This is Caroline's give-me-more-guac!!! face

Hope you enjoyed reliving our meals with me - I enjoyed thinking about them as I wrote!