Charleston has some pretty amazing restaurants peppered throughout the city. A turn down any street will result in a number of gastro options, enough to make your mouth water. When we went to Charleston for a 4-day mini-vacay, we had made reservations for dinner each night well in advance of our arrival, and locked in a few lunch reservations at restaurants that were booked for dinner but were on our must-eat list. One such restaurant was Husk. Because Husk was right outside the door to our hotel, we moseyed across the street the morning of our reservation to see if the daily lunch menu had been posted. Fortunately it was posted, but unfortunately it was a very limited menu and my husband wasn’t feeling the selections that day. Luckily for us, there was another restaurant immediately next door, called Poogan’s Porch. We checked out the menu and our mouths immediately started watering. We decided to forgo lunch and have brunch instead.
We walked past a number of populated tables in the front outdoor garden, to be greeted by a sweet hostess inside the foyer of this old home. We were given the choice of dining inside or outside and chose to stay inside as the temperatures were starting to rise and we wanted the comfort of air conditioning. The hostess instructed us to walk upstairs and advised that she would meet us up there. Hubs was perplexed, but he complied. We climbed the very old stairs and just like magic, there she was! She let us in on the secret that there was another staircase just behind the one we climbed. You could feel the age of this home in the finishes and photographs along the walls.
We were seated at a table just inside next to french doors leading out to the balcony. I sat in the booth against the wall and hubs sat across from me in a chair. We took a gander at the menu and discussed our selections. As we were enjoying some of the best homemade biscuits I’ve ever indulged in, something dropped down from the ceiling immediately to my left. I let out a scream, which is so uncharacteristic of me, and hubs screamed and pushed his chair back halfway across the restaurant! It turns out that it was a bird! It flew out of the french doors, over the balcony to freedom. And of course, we were the spectacle on display in the restaurant. There were stunned faces and a bit of silence. People started asking what happened, and one guy joked about hubby’s reaction.
We composed ourselves and the excitement died down. Shortly thereafter, our meals arrived. I indulged in the Pulled Pork Benedict, one of the most popular menu items, according to our waiter. It’s exactly what it sounds like-eggs benedict on top of a biscuit, topped with pulled pork and a BBQ hollandaise sauce, served with a side of duck fat potatoes. To. Die. For. And this is why I was put on Lipitor after returning home from this mini vacay. So that I don’t actually die. Just kidding, I’m actually in pretty decent shape, unfortunately the high cholesterol is hereditary.
Hubby ordered up the Chicken and Waffles, which the waiter explained is marinated for over 24 hours to really absorb the flavors. The chicken is fried to a gorgeous golden brown and placed on top of a sweet potato waffle. The chicken was so tender, flavorful and juicy and the waffle had the perfect amount of sweetness to counterbalance the savory flavors of the chicken.
My sign of a good restaurant is when I want to order nearly everything on the menu and have a hard time narrowing down my selection. This was one of those restaurants. It was one of the best brunch meals we’ve had. We both agreed that we’d return to Charleston in the future with the twins, and Poogan’s Porch will certainly be on our list of restaurants.
Have you been to Poogan’s Porch? What did you order? What was your favorite dish?
Tamar Blazer is an attorney-turned-twin mom, with a passion for her family, friends, writing, good food, home decor and laughing. When she’s not lamenting on her lack of sleep, you can find her doing one of the too many projects she likes to take on, usually with a twin on either side.
The Shrimp and Grits there were the best I’ve ever had!! We sat outside on the porch and were treated to the story about the ghost residing in the house across the street and truly believe we saw him! Or could it have been the wine?
Definitely must go back the next time we’re in Charleston.
OMG the grits everywhere in Charleston were amazing! I will put that dish on my list for our next visit!