While the team behind 1010 Bridge calls it “Appalachian Lowcountry,” that term might sell the place short. It is distinctly Appalachian, succinctly Lowcountry, and notably tinged with international influences. But that still doesn’t get at what makes chef Paul Smith’s kitchen one of the best in the state (and maybe the region). A born-and-bred West Virginian, Smith trained at the Culinary Institute of America and cooked in Napa Valley, at the Biltmore Estate in North Carolina, and in an exclusive community on Florida’s Treasure Coast before returning home to Charleston. After returning, he launched Charleston Restaurant Week, helped open Barkadas, and then helped develop 1010 Bridge with owners Aaron and Marie Clark.
While you could make a meal of the appetizers—crispy fried Nashville hot oysters; Bloody Butcher corn and scallion griddle cakes (a new take on a Southern classic); guacamole with chimol, boiled egg, and pickled ramps—you’ll want to save space for the main event. The sausage and grilled shrimp en brochette is served over corn and scallion grits with a bit of tomato lobster piquant sauce for a renewed vision of shrimp and grits. Or opt to go vegan with a rotating dish like cauliflower steak or the cashew and togarashi-dusted tofu. For dessert, don’t miss the white cheddar beignets, a savory-sweet surprise you’ll crave long after you’ve paid the bill. Add an excellent wine list, cocktails that dare to reinterpret classics (like the Bridge Sour with bourbon, lemon, egg white, and beet juice), and enthusiastic staffers and you’ve got a place that’s reshaping the face of the food scene in West Virginia’s capital city. @1010bridge
