Charming Charleston
BY JOAN HEFFERNAN
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In Gone with the Wind Rhett Butler extolled Charleston, its genial grace of days gone by. It’s the magnificent antebellum homes, the weather in spring and fall, the hidden and peek-a-boo gardens and the food. Pat Conroy was recently interviewed about the city, and said that it used to be one couldn’t find good food beyond shrimp and grits. That is no longer the norm. It’s hard not to get a good meal in Charleston these days. Thank goodness for the walking-friendly town; a visitor needs the exercise to work up an appetite.
The city is set out in an easy-to-follow grid. Gracious horse-drawn tours are a good way to get oriented. The historic district boasts street after street of historic homes of charming architectural interest. South of Broad is Conroy’s latest book set in Charleston, and the South of Broad area is the place to start for historic Charleston. Beyond the architectural interest of the district’s homes, there are the gardens. Many of them have decorative metal cutouts set into the protective fences, so the street stroller can peek into the yard and view the formal topiary and hedge-filled yards.
There are dozens of houses to visit, but one not to be missed is the Nathaniel Russell House. Completed in 1808, the neo-classical dwelling holds rare glass doors, elaborate plaster ornamentation, and a magnificent free-flying (usable) staircase. A round room and an oval room with double-hung floor-to-ceiling windows evoke the gracious living enjoyed by the city’s merchant elite.
Back on the street, the visitor will find tiny green-filled alleyways with street signs to signify their public access. These lanes lead to Waterfront Park, a stroller’s dream. One can walk along this park to the breakwater and actually view the peninsula which makes up the outer limits of the historic district.
Strolling back downtown to the restaurant row, one can eat where George Washington dined, at McCrady’s. Now one of the city’s finest kitchens, the food is beautifully prepared and perfect for the California palate. If it’s Southern cooking you came for, you’ll find a Southern-style steakhouse in High Cotton Maverick Bar and Grill; besides steaks you can find buttermilk-fried oysters and barbecue-spiced flounder.
S.N.O.B. is another tasty choice, standing for “Slightly North of Broad Street.” The kitchen prides itself on being a culinary maverick, but the food is carefully prepared and the Southern crab cake comes over a sauté of corn, okra and roasted yellow squash. For a decidedly upscale experience, try the elegant and delicious Peninsula Grill, or the Charleston Grill’s excellent food, extensive wine list and jazz played five nights a week by celebrated musicians.
With many hotels and inns to choose from, one that stands out is the Wentworth Mansion, once a private residence filled with hand-carved marble fireplaces, Tiffany stained glass windows and gracious gardens. Most of the house has the original details, and the guests have a chance to sample the elegant life style of a bygone era.
Charleston is definitely worth a visit to get a friendly, historic view of the antebellum South, an age gone by but beautifully preserved in this genteel city.
The city is set out in an easy-to-follow grid. Gracious horse-drawn tours are a good way to get oriented. The historic district boasts street after street of historic homes of charming architectural interest. South of Broad is Conroy’s latest book set in Charleston, and the South of Broad area is the place to start for historic Charleston. Beyond the architectural interest of the district’s homes, there are the gardens. Many of them have decorative metal cutouts set into the protective fences, so the street stroller can peek into the yard and view the formal topiary and hedge-filled yards.
There are dozens of houses to visit, but one not to be missed is the Nathaniel Russell House. Completed in 1808, the neo-classical dwelling holds rare glass doors, elaborate plaster ornamentation, and a magnificent free-flying (usable) staircase. A round room and an oval room with double-hung floor-to-ceiling windows evoke the gracious living enjoyed by the city’s merchant elite.
Back on the street, the visitor will find tiny green-filled alleyways with street signs to signify their public access. These lanes lead to Waterfront Park, a stroller’s dream. One can walk along this park to the breakwater and actually view the peninsula which makes up the outer limits of the historic district.
Strolling back downtown to the restaurant row, one can eat where George Washington dined, at McCrady’s. Now one of the city’s finest kitchens, the food is beautifully prepared and perfect for the California palate. If it’s Southern cooking you came for, you’ll find a Southern-style steakhouse in High Cotton Maverick Bar and Grill; besides steaks you can find buttermilk-fried oysters and barbecue-spiced flounder.
S.N.O.B. is another tasty choice, standing for “Slightly North of Broad Street.” The kitchen prides itself on being a culinary maverick, but the food is carefully prepared and the Southern crab cake comes over a sauté of corn, okra and roasted yellow squash. For a decidedly upscale experience, try the elegant and delicious Peninsula Grill, or the Charleston Grill’s excellent food, extensive wine list and jazz played five nights a week by celebrated musicians.
With many hotels and inns to choose from, one that stands out is the Wentworth Mansion, once a private residence filled with hand-carved marble fireplaces, Tiffany stained glass windows and gracious gardens. Most of the house has the original details, and the guests have a chance to sample the elegant life style of a bygone era.
Charleston is definitely worth a visit to get a friendly, historic view of the antebellum South, an age gone by but beautifully preserved in this genteel city.