Divine Dining in Charleston, SC

We were fortunate enough to spend New Year’s Eve and a few days after in charming Charleston, SC. Not a bad way to ring in 2015, eh? Actually, we were on Isle of Palms, so we were near the ocean, so naturally it planted seafood on our minds! And since it’s a new year, we decided to try 2 new restaurants. Boy, did we hit the foodie jackpot with the Obstinate Daughter at Sullivan’s Island and The Ordinary in Charleston! These 2 restaurants are both divine dining in Charleston, SC area!

 

The Obstinate Daughter

The O in The Obstinate Daughter stands for “Oh My Goodness Good!” So I must say that I absolutely LOVED our New Year’s Day lunch here from top to bottom. We devoured local oysters for appetizers, which wasn’t too shabby.

 

But the real star for me was my entree: Ricotta Gnocchi – short rib ragu with horseradish gremolata. I was already leaning towards this dish when the server said it was his favorite. They make all the pasta on site, and the gnocchi were indeed as described: pillows of love. It was divine and sublime. Naturally, the kids noshed on The Moultrie, a pizza of tomato, mozzarella, pepperoni, Mepkin Abbey shitakes, and parmesan. Everyone oohed and ahhed, and ate to our hearts content.

 

The Obstinate Daughter really impressed me and lived up to the foodie billing it has received. Number one, my dish was phenomenal! Two: the relaxed boho chic cool atmosphere was perfect for the beach. Three: diverse food offerings gave everyone in my party something to suit their palates.

 

The Ordinary

Housed in a old bank building, The Ordinary is anything but what its humble name implies.Instead, it is a shellfish lovers mecca! From the moment we stepped into the cavernous main room with its 22 foot ceiling, we knew we were in for a culinary treat. Especially when we laid eyes on the raw bar!

 

In fact, Food and Wine listed The Ordinary as one of the top oyster bars in America! Joining that list was one of our favorites from our Boston trip in August, Island Creek Oyster Bar. The Ordinary’s standout dishes included the smoked oysters; the Nova Scotia and Capers Blades oysters; and the baked stuffed lobster.

Drawbacks to the Ordinary are its beer selection (weak to say the least with some real oddball choices that even my beer-loving husband couldn’t settle on one he liked), the lack of kid-centric menu items (our son ended up having a very expensive steak), and despite our server’s recommendation, the razor clams did not live up to their billing. But the pros to this restaurant really make it worthwhile: the ambiance is fun, the food fabulous, and the freshness is unparalleled!

So for a celebratory meal and the freshest oysters around, this was a wonderful (albeit expensive) option.

So don’t be Obstinate–or run from the Ordinary–check out these two dining gems next time you find yourself in the charismatic city of Charleston, SC!