Charleston Culinary Tours Offer Tasty Tours at the Best Restaurants in Charleston

I had the chance to do a review of one of the best tours in Charleston. Foodies, make sure to read this blog I posted at Apartments.com. You won't be disappointed. This is a must do tour for tourists and locals alike! Absolutely delicious and informative for all.

Catfish Row - A Quaint Spot of Reflection

Catfish Row, formerly known as Cabbage Row, was the inspiration for the novel, Porgy, by Dubose Heyward. Later, Heyward partnered with George Gershwin to rent a house on Folly Beach to create the play Porgy and Bess, where they would travel by boat each day to write the script. The term "Cabbage Row" originated in a slum area off Church Street just past Tradd, where three-storied houses line up to form a row. The name was changed to Catfish Row after the collaboration between Heyward and Gershwin developed into the dramatic play we've come to know so well in Charleston.

Inhabitants would place cabbage and other vegetables on their window sills for sale during these poor times. Black families, descendants from freed slaves, would live together, sometimes 10 families at a time. The main character for Porgy and Bess, Sammy Smalls, was said to have been an angry crippled black fellow who was thought to have murdered several people. There are many myths with regard to his burial grounds. In keeping with black culture during the time, his grave should not have been dug North to South as his was. The tradition of digging from North to South was for those who died accidentally and "rooted", meaning that the person had been "fixed" or turned via Voodoo or witchcraft. With Smalls, this was not the case. As such, his soul was left to haunt an unknown assailant indefinitely. There are mutterings that his soul still inhabits downtown to this day.

Currently, private homes and businesses make up the local market in the area that has seen much change over the past few years. No longer slums, renovations have been made to improve downtown Charleston with the preservation of these beautiful vignettes. If you get a chance, wander through some of the side streets of Downtown, or better yet take a tour with one of the fabulous guides sprinkled throughout the area. There are many historical stories behind discreet little spots such as this. You'll definitely want to take your camera with you.

Folly Beach Crab Shack Celebrates 15 Years

The doors opened at the Folly Beach Crab Shack 15 years ago. Ron Hill, owner, is celebrating the anniversary with us by offering great deals on some of the Shack’s most popular dishes. Patrons may indulge in some of the Shack’s favorite seafood dishes for $15 during the month of November. While you’re there, make sure to pick up a Crabby Mary created with Absolut Peppar, a blend of clamato and spices, and topped with a huge crab claw, pepperoncini, celery, and accented with slices of lemon and lime. The delicious cocktail is served in a mason jar with the rim lightly coated with their signature seafood seasoning.

Years ago, partners Dan Doyle and Ryan Condon convinced Ron to follow through with his lifelong dream of owning his own restaurant on Folly Beach. Their decision to offer seafood on tables with huge buckets in the middle for trash was an innovative way to serve customers at the time. Their creativity didn’t stop there but continued as they created an extensive menu loaded with a full raw bar, fried or grilled plates, and buckets overflowing with extra large shrimp, snow crab legs, and oysters. Land lovers have fierce lunch and sandwich options as well.

Upon arrival, take a close look at the murals in the open restaurant. Ron commissioned his brother, James Christopher Hill, to demonstrate what the restaurant represents. Scenes of the old pier and front beach are awe inspiring. A bounty of seafood surrounds an old house that could be found anywhere off the Folly River. James brings an instant familiarity by integrating the old with the new.

Hill’s dedication to the Lowcountry Local First community is extending past just buying local seafood from merchants in the area. Backman’s and Crosby’s provide many of the staples used in the restaurant. For hard to get items, or as a supplement, Hill negotiates with Sysco for only the best and freshest ingredients. He keeps his ears to the ground and listens to what his customers want. His intuition now is to expand his buying habits to local farms.

The Wandering Eye had a chance to review a 4-course meal with Hill’s contribution to how each dish is created. He gives full credit to his chef, Chef George Rivers, who works solidly to perfect and maintain a high quality of standard, Sous Chef Nathan Albertson, and General Manager M. K. O’Connell. First, gigantic shrimp were served two ways, fried and grilled, with remoulade and cocktail sauces. Crisp and fresh, the shrimp were absolutely divine and well cooked. The fried shrimp, coated just once and lightly floured, had a nice flavor. Being so large, they can sometimes be overcooked and chewy. Not here. They were absolutely perfect.

Next, we were served a sample of their shrimp and grits with tasso gravy. If you are like us, we like our gravy light and not drowning the plate. In many instances, restaurants use their gravy to cover up a plate of average (or below average grits). Again, not here. Being true down home Southerners, we are grits snobs and appreciate them when done well. The Crab Shack uses a stone ground yellow grit, heavy cream and just the right amount of salt to make the creamiest grits in town. The gravy didn’t hide the texture of them but added a nice flavor to the plate. Again, huge shrimp nestled into the grits, inviting us to try each bite, which we did and enjoyed immensely.
The third course consisted of a bucket full of Frogmore Stew and topped with snow crab clusters. The overflowing bucket contained tasty bits of sausage, potatoes coated with their seafood seasoning, more of those gigantic shrimp and corn on the cob. The crab legs and shrimp were the heart of the bucket. Well cooked and easy to crack and peel, the moist pieces of sweet meat were delivered in perfect bites to our mouths.

Finally, slices of key lime pie and salted caramel cheesecake rounded out our meal. By this point, we could hardly eat any more, but the desserts were top notch. The excellence in service, food and passion for truly connecting with the public is easily seen in both Hill’s attitude and throughout the restaurant’s culture. It is clear why the business is celebrating 15 years, and it’s also no surprise that Southern Living Magazine has called the Folly Beach Crab Shack one of the top 10 seafood restaurants in South Carolina.

John Duckworth at the Charleston City Gallery

The City Gallery at Waterfront Park is hosting an opening for John Duckworth's exhibit, Awake, on Friday November 7th from 5-7pm. I had an opportunity to stop by and have a peek at the exhibit and talk with the artist himself today. The transformation of the gallery will astound anyone familiar with the original setup, and his creativity in both art and design will lead you through corridors and to different levels. The strikingly tall artist now carries a full beard and plans to meditate throughout the show. Enter the front door tomorrow evening and plan to experience a provocative and thoughtful evening.

The first thing that will occur as you walk in the building is you'll be given a glowing headset. As you pass each room, you'll press a clicker to listen to a presentation or musical accompaniment that will enhance the mood. Flowing easily through Rooms 1 and 2, you'll become "Awake" and then be sent into a Paradox and Confused state. As Duckworth's combination of Eastern and Western styles intrigues you, you'll begin to wonder exactly where this is going. To be frank, it's headed somewhere beautiful and staggeringly exotic.

You'll pass through The Void, where you'll find 3D effects and landscapes. As the pieces literally pop out at your, you'll want to reach out and caress them. The serenity of this area will offer you peace as you wander through, and you'll most likely find yourself wanting to remain there for a while. However, as you enter the next rooms, corridors filled with poetic and literary references will test your sense of calm. A longing for each "page" will inspire your inquisitive nature to understand the basis for each of the individual faces. They are the perfect precept to the final rooms where exotic and intricate symbolism of stillness, death, and rebirth exists. Cicadas are used, as in the Eastern tradition, as a symbol of rebirth, change and protection of souls.'

As you enter the final destination, you will bear Witness to the sensual and interpretive visuals and sounds of the ocean. A video and musical montage allows us all to do as Duckworth and reflect upon the grace involved in all areas that embody life itself.

This exhibit is an extensive production that took Duckworth five years to create. 90 pieces are strategically placed throughout the gallery to incite an emotional response, which is handled with perfection. Having musicians, such as Quentin Baxter's added dramatic background for effects, helps to engage the audience. If you have never seen any of his artwork, this is a perfect time to browse his expansive collection. The diversity seen in this event is as impressive as it is well done. Make sure to get there early, as you might just find yourself there for the entire show.

Watermark, an exploratory film by Jennifer Baichwal, Nick de Pencier and Edward Burtynsky

Canadian directors, Jennier Baichwal and Nick de Pencier, joined with world class photographer Edward Burtynsky to explore the use of water throughout the world. The history of water and how different cultures view it is displayed through the exemplary photographic style for which Burtynsky is so famous. The film was a five year project and took them to ten countries, and what they learned is both shocking and beautiful. Burtynsky's experience with Baichwal as his director for Manufactured Landscapes has proven to be an indelible match.

The film has been well received by critics and has been viewed at the Toronto Film and Berlinale Festivals. The TFCA has declared the film to be the Best Canadian Film for 2013, and they are expanding to new audiences throughout the world. The Charleston Music Hall will hold a viewing tomorrow evening at 7pm for just $5. The importance of understanding the great expanse of how differently the world views water and its use can help us to understand and appreciate the sometimes unappreciated resource, as many Californians may attest.

The seductive style will introduce you to places like China's Fujian coast. The Xiluodu Dam, six times the size of the Hoover Dam, is being built for hydroelectric power generation and flood control. It is currently the 4th tallest dam in the world. They visit Huntington Beach for the US Open of Surfing and the dried out Delta region where Colorado River is reduced to a trickle before completely drying out prior to joining the ocean. Their tour of the Ganges, where millions of people bask in a sacred bath simultaneously, is awe inspiring.

The domination of water over civilization is not always apparent until it's gone. We depend on it, need it to survive and thrive on its power. This film should be seen by everyone, including children, as its imperative educational and historical is necessary for us as our climate changes. Learning how to use water effectively is necessary. Our survival depends on it.

Best Local Places to Buy Fresh Organic Chicken

I wrote a review of the best chicken farms in the lowcountry. You can read it here at Apartments.com. These farms focus on providing the freshest eggs and meats without antibiotics, steroids or other unnatural additives. The best eggs in town are from Chucktown Chicken, and can be purchased at local retailers. Check it out and add these to your healthy food choices! Now you know.

The Mac Off - A Snappy Mac and Cheese Event

We had the opportunity to go to the recent Mac Off event at the Grove in Mt Pleasant. Read the full review here. It was a fun event, but there were so many people in lines that the small samples we got were rather cold. The ingenuity of the chefs was fun to see. In the end, I think we would rather head directly to the restaurants and try full size portions right out of the oven. I mean, who doesn't love good mac and cheese, right?