The South Carolina coast is filled with mouthwatering restaurants worthy of a stop during your travels. From Bluffton, Charleston, Myrtle Beach, and other cities with a view, these 24 places to grab a bite and a cold drink are sure to have just what you’re looking for.
Chicest Vibe
The Darling has it all: a top-notch seafood program from raw bar to shrimp and grits and blue crab tagliatelle, a welcoming and expert staff, and a gorgeous dining and bar space that’ll make you want to show up in your favorite outfit and order one of their elegant cocktails, like the Oyster Bar negroni or the Khaleesi with pisco, dragon fruit, Lillet, and lime.
Best Duo
Felix and La Cave, Charleston
First, Félix gave us a taste of Parisian sophistication in Charleston (all hail the raclette burger). Then, they expanded with La Cave, inspired by Provence with exceptional petit plats, cocktails, and wines. Culinary director Alex Eaton has taken the already-delicious dishes to the next level, and we expect great things to continue.
Best Seasonal Menu
Pushing the boundaries of Bluffton’s food scene, FARM provides a high-level, seasonal-small-plates experience in a cozy, casual space. But you don’t have to take our word for it. Bona fide local and chef BJ Dennis says it’s one of his favorites for “seasonal ingredients done right.”
Best Dinner Series
Southern Italy is the focus here with seasonal and locally sourced ingredients. Under the direction of chef de cuisine Malcolm McMillan, the offerings have expanded to include a series of monthly Passport Wine Dinners paired by sommelier Mark McNeely, each focused on the individual cuisines and wines of a dozen regions throughout all of Italy.
Best Surprise
Chef Jill Mathias writes the menu by hand each day, keeping to a structure of two appetizers, two entrées, and two desserts (served for both lunch and dinner), and is heavily influenced by southern France, northern Italy, northern Spain, and Charleston-local ingredients. While Chez Nous is known to post their daily offerings on their social channels, we recommend arriving with a clean slate, eagerly prepared for a culinary journey.
Best Wine Bar
Stems & Skins, North Charleston
This Charleston wine bar helped pioneer the tinned fish, natural wine, and vinyl movements before they were cool. The name refers to the natural winemaking process, and the menu reflects this with an extensive selection of natural wines and vermouths, all of which go well with their small but fresh menu that includes salads, pasta, and charcuterie in addition to conservas. Go Thursdays for vinyl night, when they’ll play your personal records on their system.
Best Old School Southern Food
Hannibal’s Soul Kitchen, Charleston
This casual Black-owned Charleston institution has been in operation since the 1970s and is now run by Sani and Felicity Huger, daughters of previous owner L. J. Huger. Pull up a chair and go for the whole fried flounder and seafood rice, collard plate, okra soup, or turkey wings.
Best Seafood Boil
Hudson’s Seafood House on the Docks, Hilton Head Island
This historic property often has lines out the door, so go early. If you choose to sit outdoors on the dock, there are waterfront views and shaded canopies, but inside shows off the original structure’s charm. Wherever you are, don’t miss their Lowcountry boil with steamed local shell-on shrimp, smoked sausage, corn, potatoes, and Old Bay.
Best Noodles
The most recent brick-and-mortar from Top Chef finalist Shuai Wang excels with its menu of Chinese barbecue-inspired dishes—we always order the noodles with five-spice rotisserie chicken and the chili crisp corn pudding.
Best Happy Hour
You can’t beat $10 cocktails and $10 dumplings at this fine-dining Sichuan and Cantonese restaurant with options like the Xo manhattan with a house vermouth blend and Chinese five spice, or the Huajioa negroni with Sichuan peppercorn-infused gin, Cocchi Americano, and Suze. Go Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday from 5 to 6 p.m. for Dumpling Hour, and stay for a full dinner of green salad with Sichuan vinaigrette and five spice honey roast duck.
Best Sandwiches
The Pass, Charleston, Mount Pleasant
This superior sandwich shop now has a location in Mount Pleasant where you can order classics like Such a Nice Italian Boy or seasonal specials like The Bear with roast beef, melted provolone, and balsamic peperonata. Or make a reservation downtown for 12-seat The Italian Boy tasting menu, which includes sandwiches.
Best Beach Vibes
The Co-Op, Sullivan’s Island
Sullivan’s is their flagship, but with five locations in the Charleston area, The Co-Op has your frosé needs covered. If you can’t choose, enjoy a flight of flavors like blood orange and Aperol spritz while dining in, or a wine bottle full to-go—don’t drink it on the beach, but do pair it with one of their super-fresh sandwiches or salads.
Most Worth the Drive
Rivertown Bistro, Conway
2025 South Carolina Chef Ambassador Darren Smith left Charleston 30 years ago to open Rivertown Bistro and never looked back. His upscale bar and grill menu is full of familiar favorites with a Southern, cheffed-up spin, like Lowcountry spring rolls with tasso ham and a buttery duck confit sandwich with bacon, mustard, and soy aïoli.
Best Distillery Experience
Twelve 33 Distillery, Little River
Step back in time with a VIP tour to meet stills named Bonnie and Clyde and see a speakeasy designed to be “as 1933 as we can,” according to owner Kevin Osborn. Enjoy the best of South Carolina in the 3 Peppers Vodka infused with locally grown Carolina Reaper peppers, plus a range of spirits from bourbon to gin all named for and rooted in the history of Prohibition.
Best Lunch
The latest concept from chef Nikko Cagalanan and Paula Kramer, Bareo offers a streamlined menu for lunch (and dinner) in the petite space formerly occupied by Kultura, with dishes inspired by the foodways of the Philippines and Japan like onigiri (rice balls), hand-folded dumplings, bento boxes, noodle soup, and kakigōri. Diners can also enjoy beer, wine, sake cocktails, and a tea service inspired by Chinese Gong Fu traditions.
Best Biscuits
Oak Prime Kitchen & Bar, Myrtle Beach
Cheffed by Myrtle Beach native Jerrett King, Oak Prime was recognized by MICHELIN in 2025 for its steaks characterized by a Pittsburgh-style charred crust. We love the whole French/Southern-leaning menu, though: smoked gouda gratin dauphinoise, crab-stuffed lobster, charred peach and burrata salad, and most of all, housemade biscuits with gouda, jalapeño, and piquillo pepper, served with blueberry lavender jam.
Best Marsh-Side Meal
Linnette’s at the Dunlin, Auberge Collection, John’s Island
Since opening in 2024, Linnette’s is hitting its stride with a menu that combines Lowcountry classics with creative flair. Get an upstairs patio seat overlooking the marsh along the Kiawah River and order the tuna crudo and whatever seasonal appetizers are available (the heirloom tomato salad with Clemson blue cheese and the melon with Benton’s ham and pickled banana peppers were outstanding summer favorites), and the grilled whole fish. You can’t go wrong with their bourben pecan sticky bun either.
Best Barbecue Sauce
Melvins BBQ, Charleston, Mount Pleasant
The recipe for Melvin’s Golden Sauce dates back to 1939 and is undeniably part of the lore surrounding South Carolina’s mustard-based barbecue tradition. It tastes great on everything, but we especially love it on the Big Joe chopped pork sandwich and the pork spareribs, available as a plate with hushpuppies, hash and rice, and other old-school sides.
Most Delicious Education
Chef Bernard Bennett brings together influences of the African diaspora, charting the route of the transatlantic slave trade with his ingredients. Dig into pumpkin seed dip, duck and oyster gumbo, curried oxtails, or beef mafe, and don’t miss his selection of hearth- baked breads.
Best Seafood and Sustainability Combo
This spot is owned by chef Heidi Vukov, a 2018 South Carolina Chef Ambassador and one of the area’s first chefs to offer simpler seafood preparations where the protein shares the spotlight with the seasonal produce. Fish, meat, and vegetables are sourced thoughtfully, coming from regional purveyors as available or, if from afar, commercial suppliers with sustainable certifications.
Best Place to Order it All
Everything on the menu from pitmaster Hector Garate is a delicious indulgence, from juicy beef cheeks and smoky pulled pork to rich barbacoa and flavorful house sausage to carefully crafted sides like sofrito-laced hash and rice and mustard slaw.
Best Homegrown Sides
Rustic Table, Pawley’s Island
Chef Adam Kirby wanted access to fresh produce and honey so much, he now owns his own farm and apiary, where he sources a significant portion of the ingredients for his restaurants. Rustic Table focuses on expertly prepared comfort sides—don’t miss the sweet tea collards, served with fried chicken and pimento cheese grits. And always get the butter beans and the summer squash when in season.
Best Hotel Bar(s)
The Independent and Elizas, Georgetown
If you’re feeling glam, sit at The Independent’s elegant bar and order the Low Tide for peel-and-eat shrimp, oysters, and crab salad with a glass of bubbly, followed by the scallops with morel mushrooms and key lime pie with torched meringue. Or sit outside by the water at Eliza’s for a more casual vibe for blackened shrimp tacos and crab fingers with house remoulade.
Most Infamous Seafood
Rockefellers Raw Bar, North Myrtle Beach
Rockefellers is “infamous” for their steam kettles, a creative take on the seafood boil with flavor combos like Old Bay and beer, wine and garlic herb butter, or the Fra Diabolo. (Be prepared—it’s super spicy!) You can also venture away from the southern Atlantic with a whole Maine lobster pot, a deep-fried po’boy, or fish-n-chips.
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