Travel: Charleston

Anyone who knows Jeff and I knows we have the BIGGEST soft spot for Charleston. Bodie’s middle name is Charles and that’s a family name, but we really love that it hits on our favorite city, too. We make a point to travel there once a year, try new options, and we’ve been lucky enough to really hit our favorite spots multiple times. So much so, we have an aggressive Google Sheet I share with just about anyone visiting there. Well, it’s time to take the spreadsheet into blog form.

I first traveled to Charleston with my family when I was little, on a trip to Isle of Palms, then used to regularly vacation on Kiawah Island with a friend and her family. I was reintroduced to Charleston through my first job after college where I was lucky enough to work with a digital marketing firm located right on King Street in Charleston – some of the coolest & most talented people ever.

I follow tons of bloggers from Charleston, my Instagram is full of Charleston posts, it’s kind of ridiculous. We adore our hometown, but it’s truly the only other place I can imagine us living as a family. Talk about polar opposites, especially given the Pittsburgh snowfall today!

Where to Stay:
Jeff and I were lucky enough to stay at Zero George shortly after it opened in 2013. Total chance and we booked on Expedia based mostly on price, had no idea the quality of the hotel and how amazing it would be! We were lucky enough to return here for our 5-year anniversary last year, and they really took such amazing care of us. We can also recommend the Grand Bohemian Hotel, Hotel Bella Grace, the Dewberry, and Jeff’s personal favorite (I missed our last trip because of an awful stomach bug!), the Restoration. We love staying at these cool, boutique hotels, but I’m sure more traditional hotels are wonderful as well, just make sure you can walk where you want to go! We’ve also loved the Andell Inn on Kiawah Island, and I’d easily make a return trip there! It’s worth noting we had one bad experience with a random Expedia booking, similar to an Airbnb, so I would try to take advantage of one of the fabulous hotels there!

Where to Eat Breakfast:
It might be hokey to recommend the Hominy Grill but honestly, it’s always one of my favorite meals. Prepare for a heavy, delicious breakfast and long lines if you’re there on the weekend – tourist trap? Perhaps, but worth it. Callie’s Hot Little Biscuit is a must for grab-and-go biscuits. Jeff actually smuggled some home for me on his last trip! Glazed and the Daily are awesome, and Hall’s Chophouse has a fabulous brunch. Miller’s All Day is a newer spot that Jeff loved and I see popping up on Instagram regularly, I’m so in love with their branding. We like to hit up the Farmer’s Market downtown if we’re there over a weekend, too!

Where to Eat Lunch:
We usually try to make time for some activity of some sort after a filling breakfast in Charleston, and it’s totally necessary to keep the amazing food coming. Last visit we jogged from our hotel to Lewis BBQ and their food is just on another level (see above!). There is a lot of outdoor seating (good for families) and a great selection of draft beers! We love Rodney Scott’s BBQ, Taco Boy, HomeTeam BBQ, Butcher and the Bee, Basic Kitchen, and Husk for lunch. Husk is nationally-known for it’s incredible, James Beard award-winning chef, Sean Brock (whom we essentially worship in the Knorr house), but it’s SO filling for dinner! We usually try to do lunch here so we can either easily grab a reservation or sit at the bar adjacent to the actual restaurant, the bar is so cool.

Where to Eat Dinner:
One of my favorite places on earth is 167 Raw. The overall vibe and liveliness in this place is just amazing. We always joke that Jeff is ready to move to Charleston and get a job shucking oysters here. Currently they don’t take reservations and there’s nearly always a wait, but if you can get in, I highly recommend it! We saw that they are moving to a larger space and we are so pumped. Other faves include Darling Oyster Bar (again, such great branding!), Leon’s Oyster Shop, FIG, and The Ordinary.

Where to Drink:
To be honest I’m always so stuffed from eating and drinking at restaurants, we rarely make it out for more than one drink, but we really love Edmund’s Oast Brewery, Stars Rooftop Bar & Grill, and the Rarebit has incredible Moscow Mules. Maybe use your booze calories on Jeni’s Ice Cream instead?

Where to Grab Coffee:
Coffee is critical to us, and while I’m coming around to more mature coffee options (Dunkin’ ’til I die), Jeff is the connoisseur so these recommendations come directly from him. City Lights is a favorite and Bitty & Beau’s obviously gets a glowing recommendation.

Where to Shop:
King Street has an incredible shopping district that’s so fun to walk through. Hampden Clothing is an upscale win, with lots of adorable boutiques like Skinny Dip Charleston, and a personal favorite kids’ store and brand, Pink Chicken.

What else can I do there other than Eat & Drink:
While we’re always happy to play tour guide to ourselves, there are plenty of historic tours that are look awesome. The Straw Markets are super cool to walk through. You can easily rent bikes from Holy Spokes to see downtown on bike, and we were lucky enough last time that our hotel provided bikes we could take over the Ravenel Bridge to Mt. Pleasant. I’ve taken lots of classes at the Downtown Pure Barre location and it’s amazing. If you want to see a beach, we have visited Sullivan’s Island (love Poe’s burgers!) and Folly Beach is on our list too. Dying to spend more time on Mt. Pleasant, getting my nails done at adorable Mylkbar, and completing my BlenderBomb obsession by visiting Hustle Smoothie Bar.

So there you have it, my first overly-aggressive travel post! We’ve never visited Charleston with a group of people and I’d love to try that. Here’s hoping we can make it back in 2019 and I’ll be sure to update this post with anything I visit or hear is a must!

Did I miss anything? What’s your favorite place to visit in Charleston?