post #2 - Charleston Trip {Restaurant Reviews - 82 Queen, Magnolias, Husk}

Indulging in All the Things - an Adventure in Charleston Food

A few weeks ago, I was invited to a girls night in Charleston, SC. As a reward for finishing law school, we decided to treat ourselves to a nice dinner and spend some quality time together before we went our separate ways.

We left Columbia on Saturday morning, equipped with Starbucks and a full trunk. Did we pack enough for one night? (In our defense, the weather was very questionable all weekend!)

I've been to Charleston many times, but have never dined at any of the places that we went this weekend, so the meals were extra exciting! Madison's family lives in Charleston, so she was familiar with some of the best places to eat. 

(magnolias)

Magnolia's was such a cute restaurant - when we arrived around 1:00, it was slammed! We were so hungry that I (almost) forgot to take pictures of our food. I'm still new at this blogging thing! 

(charleston crab cake sandwich with green tomato-caper tartar sauce + sweet potato fries) 

I chose the Charleston Crab Cake sandwich. It was served on a brioche bun and was very crabby - just the way I like it. The sweet potato fries were crispy and the service was great. Another friend got the Blue Crab Bisque and the Wadmalaw Field Greens Salad, while someone else got the Fried Green Tomato BLT (with corn & jalapeno bread, melted pimento cheese, and smoked bacon - oh my!) 

(*celebrations*)

Once we finally had food (and rosé) for sustenance, we shopped along King Street then went back to get ready for dinner. 

(girls before dinner)

Once we were ready (and after some yummy appetizers + cocktails from Madison's parents!), we finally ventured down to Husk, which certainly did not disappoint as our main event for the weekend. 

Starting with the drink menu, I had such a hard time deciding between the many unique options that Husk had to offer. I finally settled on the School House on the Rock. This was definitely one of the craziest tasting cocktails I've ever tried, and while it took awhile to get used to, I ended up really enjoying it.

(school house on the rock - aperol, cruzan white rum, orange, lime, & palm sugar, topped with bleinham old #3 ginger ale and unsweetened whipped cream)

For dinner, I chose two appetizers. I decided to be adventurous and go with the Soft Shell Crab & the Pig Ear Lettuce Wraps. Both were phenomenal!

(tempura fried soft shell crap + english peas and spring onions, lemon yogurt, shaved fennel, & radish salad)

("kentuckyaki" glazed pig ear lettuce wraps + sweet vinegar marinated cucumber)

Other orders at our table included:

(wadmalaw spring lettuces, fried chicken skins, marinated husk mozzarella + tomatoes, radish, onion, spicy buttermilk) (pork ribs, slow smoked + pecan shells, charred scallion-citrus glaze, ky soy & spiced peanuts, & cilantro)

(kegan-filion chicken + carolina gold rise risotto, smoky tomatoes, leeks, & english pea pesto)

(champagne la)

We ended the night with drinks and lots of laughs at a few Charleston bars and, as to be expected, some silly behavior. 

(madison goofing)

We jumped (slowly) out of bed in the morning to go to our last stop - 82 Queen. We sat outside in a covered area, despite the disgusting less than ideal weather. 

(biscuits + peach preserves. ate them all, oops!)

Lauren and I both tried a bowl of their famous she-crab soup, then split the Grilled Prosciutto & Egg Sandwich. (P.S. - Do you think I enjoy crab, judging by my meal choices over the weekend?)

(she-crab soup + sherry)

(grilled prosciutto & egg with fried green tomato & pepper jack cheese on a toasted english muffin + home fries)

Madison tried the Peppered Ribeye Sandwich.

(grilled ribeye, arugula, merlot reduction, herb monray, olive oil baguette, fried egg + house-made chips)

After brunch, we rolled ourselves out of the restaurant and traveled back to rainy Columbia, where I spent the rest of the day lounging with the husband and pup and catching up on DVR'ed shows.

The weekend was too much fun and I am so sad that these sweet friends are leaving! Luckily, we have tons of fun activities planned for our graduation week before everyone moves away, and this was certainly not the end of our celebrations. More to come!

What are your favorite Charleston spots? I'd love to read your comments!

MBC

(the door stop in rachel's room at madison's house - purrrr)