best things to do in charleston: the 500 year old Angel Oak on Johns Island

Charleston’s Charms

I always knew that I would like Charleston.

Something about the historic sprawling homes, abundance of fresh oysters, warm weather and pimento cheese spread speaks to me at a very deep level.

If anything, I worried that Charleston would charm me so completely that I would need to add it to my secret short list of places that I may want to live one day. Let’s just say that I knew we would be fast friends.

best things to do in charleston the lobby of the francis marion of hotel in charleston

best things to do in charleston the custom house in charleston

Drew and I spent a few days in Charleston, a perfect amount of time for a proper introduction. We found our days pleasantly full, and I think we’d both agree that we left town feeling like we checked off all the best things to do in Charleston. Just sayin’.

Our first order of business when we arrived on a lovely winter day, was to take a long walk in the sunshine to The Griffon, one of the city’s oldest and most adored bars. The distinct financial decoration is ‘unapologetically awesome’ and The Griffon has won many accolades in Charleston and beyond.

best things to do in charleston: the signage for The Griffon pub

best things to do in charleston: the dollar bills on the wall at the Griffon

Rather than a big dinner, we chose to snack our way around town that first evening. Kicking off the festivities was Minero, a casual taco-fueled eatery on East Bay street. You can’t go far in Charleston without hearing the name Sean Brock, the city’s most well known restauranteur. He put Charleston on the map, so to speak, and Minero is one of his offerings. We snacked on tacos and planned our next move.

best things to do in charleston: the menu at Minero

best things to do in charleston: chips and salsa at Minero

best things to do in charleston: delicious pork tacos at Minero

We spent the rest of the evening at relative newcomer Pawpaw, just down the street from Minero. Pawpaw offers what I like to think of as ‘refined’ Southern cuisine. It hits all the southern notes – fried chicken, shrimp and grits, biscuits – but with a more refined presentation and interesting secondary ingredients. I like the look of one dish that uses andouille sausage in a bolognese pasta.

best things to do in charleston: a great meal at Paw Paw

best things to do in charleston: the dining room at Paw Paw

The next morning dawned warm and clear and we didn’t dawdle (for the first time in life?) to get out exploring.

First, we drove out of town to check out Angel Oak, the famous oak tree that leads many lists of what to do in Charleston. It’s the only tree I know with its own website. If trees can inspire controversy, the one around this particular tree is its age – generally considered to be 400-500 years, some contend that it is as old as 1,500 years. She’s old and enormous and gorgeous. The free park is open to the public during daylight hours.

best things to do in charleston: the branches of the Angel Oak tree
best things to do in charleston: the enormous branches of the Angel Oak tree

We planned ahead for one meal in Charleston, lunch at famed restaurant Husk. Husk was Sean Brock’s first restaurant and it won all kinds of awards when it opened in 2011. Finding its home in a historic house, the gracious rooms are minimal in decor, the food the obvious star of the show. We read up ahead of time and knew to order the Husk cheeseburger. We also got an amazing pimento cheese starter and shrimp and grits.

It’s hard to eat light and tight in the south and Husk certainly won’t win any awards for being particularly healthy. But when a meal here can keep us full for the bulk of the day, well, we’re cool with the indulgence. And Drew was happy to get a hit of gluten (hello burger bun!) as a special occasion.

best things to do in charleston husk restaurant outside

best things to do in charleston: the daily menu at Husk

best things to do in charleston: Pimento cheese on toast at Husk

best things to do in charleston: the famous Husk cheeseburger

We spent most of the rest of the day walking around downtown Charleston. We loved wandering around the historic district, south of Broad Street. Charleston architecture is unique and captivating and we also stumbled upon the local family of guinea fowl running around the neighborhood. (We’ve done some research and it turns out this flock of about 10 birds lives in a yard and spends the days waddling within a few block radius.) We were so stunned to see guinea hens that we didn’t take any photos, so you’ll just need to take our word for it.

best things to do in charleston the cobblestone streets of charleston are beautiful

best things to do in charleston many of the houses are still lit by gas lamp

best things to do in charleston the window boxes in charleston are charming and lovely
best things to do in charleston many of the streets of charleston are mews streets

In the evening, we visit two oyster bars. As former Mainers, we are well versed in the language of oysters and were happy to see some of our favorites on the menu, as well as a few local varieties we’ve never tried. More to come on the local oyster scene in a post next week, but for now, let’s just say that our oyster itch was sufficiently scratched, so to speak.

best things to do in charleston: oysters at The Darlings happy hour

On our final morning in Charleston, we had breakfast at Hominy Grill, another local favorite. There is a decadent dish on the menu called the Charleston Nasty Biscuit, which is every decadent southern breakfast item on a plate. But, in the hopes of avoiding a day of heartburn, we steered clear, with a lighter breakfast of huevos rancheros and a single biscuit with gravy (hey, it was better than some of the alternatives!).

best things to do in charleston: a mug of coffee at the legendary Hominy Grill

We did walk from our hotel to the restaurant, so I’m thinking that the couple miles of walking more than made up for it.

As we drove out of Charleston, heading south to Florida, we reflected on our visit. Charleston is small, less than 100,000 people. Given its size, it’s pretty astounding how prominent the restaurant scene is, how lively the downtown is (even on a mid-winter weekday) and just how many tourists we saw shopping and touring the city.

best things to do in charleston drew relaxing on the docks at charleston's shore

best things to do in charleston the gorgeous spanning bridge, an icon of charleston

It’s also great that in just a single weekend, we felt confident that we did all of the best things to do in Charleston. In short, it’s a small place with a big personality and definitely deserves the accolades it gets for being one of the most charming southern towns in America.

We agree, America, we agree.

Check out our short video below of our time in Charleston. It looks so warm, doesn’t it??

Having Fun In Charleston, SC-min

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  • February 13, 2017
    Kacy

    You are hitting all of my top East Coast travel destinations lately. Tucking this away for whenever we’re finally able to visit. Did it end up on the list of places you might like to live one day? I have a feeling I might want to move there immediately based on the food.

  • February 18, 2017
    Amber Baxley

    How funny is this…..I was just searching the web about getting sponsors for traveling and your blog was the first one that popped up on google. When I got to the first page of your blog it was about your trip to Charleston, SC. That is where I live!! I enjoyed reading about your time here and I’m glad you both had a blast! I enjoyed looking through your blog. 🙂 Happy Travels!

    • February 23, 2017

      Thanks, we appreciate the kind words! Hope the sponsorship article was helpful!

  • February 20, 2017

    Charleston looks like a beautiful place. I have never been there and no plans visiting soon, but loved the post and the photos.