Choose Charleston

Shall we dine? 

Breaking bread is a time-honored means for folks to get to know another. It also works quite well as a way to become better acquainted with a city or region.

Charleston has been a diner’s delight for as long as history has been recorded and even a bit before. If prehistoric shell rings serve as any indication, native peoples were enjoying the plentiful oysters, clams, and conch in these coastal waters long before the first brick was placed in the foundation of Charles Towne. A great example of a shell ring (also known as a shell midden or mound) can be viewed just shy of Awendaw on a nature trail off of Doer Road.We’ll talk about that a bit more when I discuss the lore and legend of the Sewee.

That’s called a teaser, so stay tuned.

It should surprise no one to learn that seafood remains a large slice of the local fare. But what might raise a few eyebrows is that fact that a great deal of the seafood supped upon in local restaurants is not harvested from local waters. It may seem counterintuitive to think that frozen shrimp from Asia can be purchased in bulk for less money than it costs to buy from a local fisherman whose boat is docked just a few yards down from the restaurant doing the buying, but that’s just the world we live in.

Many folks are doing their part to support the local fishermen and farmers, however. Choosing foods harvested in South Carolina has become an increasingly popular form of activism. There are good reasons, in terms of supporting the regional economy, for making local and sustainable choices, but mostly, I think, people just like it because it feels better, being able to put a face to the name.

That’s the philosophy of one of our top local (not to mention James Beard Foundation nominated) chefs, Mike Lata of FIG, who can tell you exactly why the kale, beets, or triggerfish on your plate tastes so good. He knows the name, methods, and reputation of the man or woman who grew or caught it before it was delivered to his restaurant.

There’s an enormous amount of pride in Charleston cooking. We do love our rice – any rice, really, but especially we love the rice with a local history, like Carolina Gold.

We love our sweet tea. It pains us when we travel and are offered, in far-away restaurants, unsweetened tea with a couple of sugar packets to the side. It is simply not the same.

We love our shrimp and grits, Carolina Gold, and sweet tea as well as we love our fried chicken, drop biscuits, and greens but we are also becoming more and more open to other influences and culinary styles as well. Today, downtown Charleston features a wider array of ethnic and experimental restaurant choices than ever before.

We adore our pastry chefs. May I have an afternoon just to sing songs in their honor? Sweet things, only know that if we foodies had our way, statues of each and every one of you would be on pedestals in Marion Square.

So that’s it, right on the table, in a nutshell. Dining in Charleston isn’t supposed to be a means of filling up before rushing off to the next attraction.

Child, dining in Charleston is the next attraction. So, slow down and savor every bite of it.

In the heart of the peninsula of Charleston lies an intersection where more than just two roads diverge. As unique as the city itself, the Four Corners of Law encompass all aspects of the law, canonical, federal, state, and city. According to Ripley’s Believe It or Not, nowhere else does such a gathering exist. Starting today with God’s Law, we’ll explore each corner and meet some of the people from its history.

St. Michael’s Church (God’s Law)

A church has occupied this corner, nearly from the beginning of the city. The first church in the new Charles Towne was a small wooden building called St. Phillips. After moving to a larger facility on Church Street in 1727, as the town continued to grow, it was decided that another house of worship was needed. So, in 1757, construction began on a new church to occupy this corner.

Nine years later, the first services were held in the newly constructed St Michaels. No one is really sure who the architect was, but the style was very much like Sir Christopher Wren, generally used during our Colonial period and up to the Gothic revival in 1841. Little has changed over thye years, except for the addition of the sacristy in 1883, on the the south east corner. St. Michael’s is one of the few city churches in America that has retained its original design.

As unique as the city itself, the Four Corners of Law encompass all aspects of the law, canonical, federal, state, and city.

In 1764, the curch ordered a clock and ring of 8 bells for their tower. These were restored in 1993 and are thought to be the oldest functioning colonial tower clock in the country. The organ has undergone many changes since it’s construction in 1768 by Johan Snetzler. A pedal division was added by Henry Erban in 1869, and a new organ was constructed in 1910, using the original case and several of the original pipes. A new 40-stop, 51 rank tracker organ was installed by Kenneth Jones of Bray, Ireland to fit in and behind the original Snetzler case (which is thought to be the only surviving church organ-case by Snetzler made of mahogany).

The Cemetery

Buried in the adjoining cemetery are two signers of the US Constitution. Charles Cotesworth Pinckney (1746 - 1825) was a lawyer and legislator, Major General in the US Army, Minister to France, and Presidential candidate. When Charleston fell to the British troops, he was taken prisoner and held until 1782. Although his proposal that senators serve without pay failed, he was still very influential at the Constitutional Convention.

John Rutledge (1739 - 1825) also a lawyer, and a statesman, served as governor of South Carolina and Chief Justice of the US. Brother of Edward Rutledge, he was a delegate to the Stamp Act Congress, Continental Congress, and Constitutional Congress. He played a major role in drafting the constitution, then was a member of the SC Ratifying convention.