I visited the 2 most Iconic Restaurants in Charleston and was not Pleased- SNOB and Husk Restaurant Reviews
I’ve only lived in Charleston (or actually Summerville) for 2 weeks so of course I’ve already researched everywhere I needed to eat. Most of the lists that I perused included SNOB and Husk, so I thought I had to go check them out. I will warn you that I knew that I wasn’t that big of a southern food and both of these places are know for southern comfort food. I still wanted to try them because so many people ask me if I have been there, so I thought I might as well just get it out of the way in the beginning. I have to say that I really wasn’t pleased with either.
SNOB- Slightly North of Broad
This place has been here forever! I guess it mainly serves the tourists because it’s in the touristy area. It looks pretty fancy inside with the white table clothes, but no need to get dressed up (I was in a sweater and sneakers). My boyfriend and I ordered the appetizer of tuna tartare. I really did not like this. It may because because I’m more used to Asian versions of this, but I also think that I just didn’t like the mixture of black-eyed peas and green peppers. But hey- if that’s what you like then you should go for it!
I ordered the shrimp and grits (pictured above) and I have to say it was pretty good! I would definitely go back for it again, but it was kind of pricey. I want to say around $18? But the sauce was very very good. My boyfriend ordered the special of tilefish and said it was good! I didn’t try any.
I guess what I’m disappointed in is the lack of modern appeal. I know that this place probably more so appeals to those who want a deep southern feel, so I could see how people still like this place. And the food was very good. However, they didn’t have many healthy options, so don’t go if you’re on a diet. Go if you want a taste of Old Charleston and some hometown shrimp and grits.
Husk
Now I don’t feel like I’ve given Husk a fair chance because I’ve only been for brunch, but I really wasn’t pleased. Like SNOB, the food was very good, but I think the healthy options were very limited. But I guess if you don’t care about that then you would love it! The atmosphere is kinda fun because it’s inside an old house, but it looks kind of antiquated. They have a list of where they source all of their ingredients from which is nice to know that they care about buying local! We ordered wings for the table, and they were actually really good! They had some sort of mustard sauce. I ordered an omelette with some sort of poultry gravy...it was okay. There were collards inside that weren’t really cooked so that was kind of odd. But the gravy on the outside made everything taste really good! It wasn’t served with any side, but the omelette was big enough that I couldn’t even finish that alone. The price was pretty good (I think around $17) as well.
I guess my main complaint is just the overall vibe (of both of these places really). Coming from Raleigh, NC, I’m used to everything being pretty modern. We have southern kitchen but they still “keep up with the times” by having nice décor or fun drinks or something pretty healthy. Both of these restaurants lacked that (Husk didn’t even have an espresso machine!). I would still say that the food was really good, but I guess for me it’s the overall experience of dining out. Neither of these places gave me that experience. But if you’re looking for true southern food, these would be perfect for you.