April was a busy month for me. After my cross-country trip to Oregon, I was able to actually sleep in my own bed for five nights before heading on vacation to North and South Carolina. Our first stop was Charleston, a place that I have always wanted to visit but never seemed to get there. Now that I have visited it, I won’t hesitate to revisit it again.
My first impression of the city was what you would expect from a location so steeped in history from the American Revolution to the Civil War to the present. There are very few buildings that are not homes and the few that exist are no taller than 5-6 stories. The styles of homes include Antebellum, Georgian, Federal, Greek Revival, Italian and Victorian. I haven’t visited any cities that have such a wide diversity of architecture.
The other lasting memory of Charleston will be the great old southern oak trees throughout the city. These wonderful trees, with their large far-reaching branches, are beautiful and add to the feel of the city. This photo was taken in White Point Garden located in The Battery section of the city.
Triple D Update – We were only able to visit three restaurants that were featured on the Food Network’s Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives television show on our southern trip.
- Barbecue King Drive-In – We landed in Charlotte on the first day of our trip and headed here for lunch. With a three-hour drive ahead of us and with the place having no bathrooms to wash our hands, none of us opted for the fried chicken, which was featured on the show. Big mistake. Everything that we ordered was average at best (I had the BBQ Platter – Pulled Pork, Hush Puppies, Slaw and Fries). Not sure if we would have felt different had we had the chicken but I don’t think we will ever know.
- Tattooed Moose in Charleston. I had what the menu described as the best sandwich ever made, Mike's Famous Duck Club. It is a triple-decker filled with duck confit, apple smoked bacon, hickory smoked cheddar, on sweet Hawaiian bread with garlic aioli, lettuce, tomato, & red onion. I am not sure if it is the best ever made but it certainly is in the top ten that I have had.
- Early Bird Diner – A classic old time diner outside of downtown Charleston. It was a late dinner and I opted to try the Chicken and Waffles mainly because it was featured on the show and also because I have never eaten it. It included pecan encrusted fried chicken and cinnamon waffles drizzled with honey mustard sauce and maple syrup. It was quite good and I wouldn’t hesitate to order it again.
- The Wich Doctor – This was not featured on Triple D but absolutely should be in the future (hear that Guy?). We stumbled upon it in Folly Beach, SC and it specializes in sandwiches and pizza. I had a pork belly sandwich served on toast with a sunny side up egg, shaved cabbage & tomato. Absolutely yummy.