Seriously, though, I'm kind of in love with Southern Charm Kitchen at the moment. I remember hearing about them back when they opened a couple of years ago, but didn't get around to trying the place right away, and then I kind of forgot about it. (Side note: they're owned by the same people who own Reggae Shack. You usually start to lose me once you start to talk about multiple locations; I equate a restaurant empire with profits and appealing to the masses, neither of which tend to contribute to what makes a restaurant amazing, unfortunately. These people seem to break that mold, though, at least so far. Both restaurants are great. I hear an Indian restaurant is in the works, now, too.)
Anyway, I first stopped in there with Anna (she of Puerto Rico fame) a couple of months ago. I was utterly blown away by the chicken and waffles, the lemon squall (a pretty fabulous homemade lemonade and pineapple juice concoction) and the pimento cheese burger. (Relax. I didn't order all of that. I just believe in plate sharing.)
I kept meaning to drag Marc and Anita there; I just had this gut suspicion they would like it. Tonight turned out to be the night. I do believe my gut suspicion was right.
We started out with appetizers - a fried green tomato and pimento goat cheese tart and some sweet potato fritters. To be honest, it wasn't a great start - they were out of the first couple of menu items we asked about, the phyllo pastry tasted a little freezer-burnt, and the fritters came out looking almost burnt black. False alarm on the fritters, though; they tasted just fine - a little bit of onion and a crisp, shattery crust tempered nicely by a bit of a brown sugar counterpoint.
After that small disappointment, we started moving in a more positive direction. The smoked turkey chowder was pretty good, and the sweet tea was just right. Then our entrees hit the table.
Roasted chicken drizzled with caramel, black-eyed peas and caramelized pork belly (gosh, I love caramel) and mac and cheese better than what I can make in my own kitchen, and THAT is saying something, let me tell you.
This girl raved and raved about how much she loved her Pentecostal fried chicken sandwich. This girl does not rave and rave about food very often. Just saying. (And, frankly, how can something named Pentecostal fried chicken not be good?) In addition, the author of this blog post did some serious fry-snitching. The sweet/salty Cajun spice they sprinkle on those things has addictive qualities.
This lady went with the Cheating Pig - a gloriously messy mix of pulled pork and corned beef.
Then there was the oxtail with mashed potatoes and gravy and okra - I really liked the oxtail. It was beefy, but with an extra kick of meat flavor.
I like her. A lot.
There's still a lot more on that menu I want to try. The liver and onions... meatloaf... ribs... coconut mint julep... cake... apple dumplings... My mouth is watering and I'm still full. Yeah, I'll be back there.
Oh, and I forgot to mention. The ambience is pretty cool. Mason jar lighting, old implements on the walls, and a positively glorious B.B. King soundtrack. The only sad thing is the location - it's kind of off the beaten path - my guess is that the residents in the immediate vicinity probably find it a little too highbrow, and the restaurant's target clientele might not automatically find themselves in the neighborhood of a weekend night. Sad, because they're so worth visiting. Frankly, I admire what the owners appear to be trying to do; I sincerely hope they succeed. I know I'll gladly do my little bit to support them, as long as they feed me as well as they do!
P.S. Second undrinkable Starbucks drink in a row. I've had it. Off to Elliano's I go. And trust me, this girl spends a chunk of change on coffee these days. I wonder if and when Starbucks corporate will wake up and realize what incompetence is costing them.
