Foodies Love Charleston

It just happened to be restaurant week in Charleston when we were there last weekend.
What perfect timing!
We got to eat at two pretty fancy restaurants for a pretty reasonable price.

Unfortunately, I am not really comfortable taking photos at super fancy restaurants.

McCrady's was birthday dinner on Friday night.
The building is on the National Historic Registry and and the menu was designed by James Beard Award Winning Chef Sean Brock.

It was an amazing dinner, where I had rutabaga bisque, pork belly, and chocolate mousse with a beet gel.
Delicious!

We had dinner at the slightly less fancy Magnolia's on Saturday night.
I had a tasty grit cake and perfectly cooked salmon there, but dinner at McCrady's was a just a touch better.

I think my favorite meal in Charleston was Sunday brunch at Hominy Grill.

This place is a local favorite, serving classic Southern food, by James Beard winning chef Bill Neal.

We had some southern fare on our trip (grits, crab, fried oysters), but I was really excited for a Southern breakfast!

Lauren and the boys started off the hour long wait with some Bloody Mary's.
Turns out the wait was only 15 minutes.
Also turns out the boys do not like Bloody Mary's.

Lauren made sure they didn't go to waste.

She only finished two :)

For brunch I got smothered eggs.
Poached eggs over a biscuit with ham and covered in mushroom gravy. 
(This was my one food cheat of the weekend. I ate soft eggs, generally not recommended for pregnant women. I just couldn't resist runny yolks on a fresh biscuit!)

This may have been the best breakfast I have ever had. I am certainly no expert on biscuits, but this biscuit was amazing. Light and fluffy and perfect for soaking up egg yolk and gravy.
Even the home fries were delicious, crispy and perfectly seasoned.

As delicious as the Big Nasty Biscuit that Brett and Jerry got for breakfast?

Featured on an episode of Man v. Food

A piece of fried chicken between a biscuit and covered with another Southern staple, sausage gravy.
Jerry said it was delicious, and cleaned his plate.
And ate a side of bacon. 

We finished brunch with a Hominy Grill specialty, chocolate pudding.

The chocolate pudding was featured on Food Network's Best Thing I Ever Ate: Chocolate
It was one of Alton Brown's favorites.
He was not joking. This pudding was intense! It tasted like a cross between a truffle filling and a really dense mousse. Super smooth and very chocolaty.
I inhaled this pudding an probably could have eaten another one.
Absolutely one of the best desserts I have ever had.

Overall the food in Charleston was outstanding.

If you are looking for a weekend getaway full of history, charm, and food, I highly recommend Charleston!