May 11th, 2021

82 Queen, Charleston, South Carolina, Restaurant, Review, Lowcountry Cuisine, Historic Charleston, Good Food, Will Travel, Spring Travel

Charleston, South Carolina is known for its Lowcountry cuisine. This type of cooking has influences from the coast and from soul food. Classics like the she-crab soup and the shrimp and grits are some of the offerings I taste as I go from one restaurant to another. Which one is best? As you know that is so personal but so is a blog. My personal experiences!!

Lunch at 82 Queen in Charleston in early March was memorable because of those 2 dishes I mentioned above.

The restaurant is located at 82 Queen Street. http://www.82queen.com

It opened in 1982 and it is considered one of Charleston’s oldest restaurants.

March is a great time of the year in Charleston. Cooler evenings and days are warm, perfect for enjoying an outdoor lunch.

Starting with the French 75. Love this cocktail. I wanted made with Courvoisier because it makes such a difference. Very refreshing.

I was recommended to have the Queen’s Salad which was a mixture of lettuce, grape tomatoes, cucumbers, green onions, sweet corn, field peas, apple wood bacon, hard boiled egg, with a cheddar, buttermilk herb dressing. Starting with a salad and a cocktail, it is perfect for me.

They have been serving the She Crab Soup probably since the restaurant opened so there is perfection in its taste. Here, in Delaware, I don’t see this soup in restaurants. You use the female crab for this tasty soup.

Best of the several ones tasted I decided to look for their recipe. I think I found it and here it goes.

1 cup chopped celery

1/4 cup chopped carrots

1/4 cup chopped onion

1 stick plus 2 tablespoons butter divided

1/2 cup of flour

3 cups milk

1 cup heavy cream

2 cups fish stock or water and fish base

1/4 lb. crab roe

1 lb. white crabmeat

1/4 sherry

1 tablespoon Tabasco or your preferred hot sauce

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce.

Lightly saute celery, carrots and onion in 2 tablespoons of butter. In a separate pot, melt remaining 1 stick of butter; stir in the flour to make a roux. Whisk in milk and cream until smooth. Bring to a boil. Add sauteed veggies and remaining ingredients. Simmer 20 minutes. Serve and garnish with sherry.

This soup has the consistency of a bisque. The recipe came from Great American Publishers.

The other dish we had was one that has also been made in this restaurant forever. Their Barbeque Shrimp & Grits. Shrimp, stone ground grits, a bourbon-barbeque sauce, applewood baon, cheddar, and scallions.

On this particular trip the Fried Green Tomatoes were offered as starters but I can tell you that if you like to share this one is a nice big portion. I ate it all. It was my total favorite.

Pimento cheese, a must, stone ground-grits the best partner, and tomato bacon jam. The best.

So if you decide to take a trip to Charleston check these restaurants here on AboutMyBeaches. You can put Charleston on the search and see if some of them catch your interest.

AboutMyBeaches has a FB page.

May 6th, 2021

Peninsula Grill, Restaurant, Review, Charleston, South Carolina, Southern Hospitality, The Ultimate Coconut Cake, Good Food, Will Travel

In going to Charleston, South Carolina, there are a few things that I want to taste all over the place…The She Crab Soup and Fried Green Tomatoes.

Have you been to the Peninsula Grill? This restaurant is elegant and their food is delicious. The first time in Charleston everywhere we went they kept saying we have to try the Coconut Cake at The Peninsula Grill. If you want to see that post with photos just put The Peninsula Grill on the search on the top right side of this blog. It is heavenly delicious. You can mail it but it will be expensive. It weighs like 15 pounds but it feeds a ton of guests.

Every visit I like to stop at this restaurant. Great service and atmosphere. The decor is very traditional. Their cooking has low country accents like greens, grits, and black eye peas.

The Peninsula Grill is located at 112 North Market Street. The website? http://www.peninsulagrill.com

The soup above is the She Crab Soup Jumbo Lump Crab with a Sherry drizzle and you do need that Sherry. It does something to this soup. An enhancement if that is what you want to call it. Yummy!! I find it interesting that as many blue crabs as we have, the she crab soup is never offered at restaurants.

This salad was my starter and it was light with macadamia nuts. The citrus added a light character to the salad.

The Red Snapper was the fish of the day. Loving seafood I decided to get and it did not disappoint. A little crab and asparagus finished the entree.

The Roasted Breast Duck got a review like “the best duck I have ever eaten”. I guess I do not need to expand on that. Confit leg, grilled cabbage, shiitake mushroom, wax bean and black garlic jus. Cooked per chef’s suggestion.

No dessert was necessary. But, the Coconut Cake was ever present in my mind as I saw several orders go to other tables. It was the beginning of my stay in Charleston and because it is a foodie town I needed to show some restraint.

Have a great day. Check AboutMyBeaches on Facebook.