Charleston’s Newest Restaurant Openings, Now on Resy

Fans of the former Trattoria Lucca can rejoice, because chef Ken Vedrinski is back and has brought his beloved family-style Italian menus with him. A casual counterpart to Vedrinski’s Coda del Pesce, Volpe’s is where guests can experience his signature seafood dishes alongside excellent pastas, served in the four-course tasting or the à la carte menu.

Felix Landrum’s Felix Cocktails et Cuisine was a hit, but he didn’t stop there, and you won’t want to either. Instead, walk down the glowing hallway at the back of that place to his Provençal-inspired “sipping lounge,” and settle back for some good wines, rare whiskeys, colorful cocktails, and a curated menu of French-accented small plates. 

Charleston almost lost a vital piece of its culinary history when the century-old Harold’s Cabin prepared to close on this site. That is until a neighbor, Heather Greene, stepped in to save it. And though the name’s changed, the spirit of Harold’s (now Lillian’s) still prevails, with its gourmet market, bar, and restaurant, where one can find excellent Southern-accented cuisine three times a day.

If deviled eggs, pimiento cheese, shrimp and grits, and fried chicken sandwiches are your idea of good food (and why wouldn’t they be?) then Momo is for you.

You come to this laid-back North Charleston spot to worship at the poultry temple. From Korean fried chicken nuggets (with kimchi mayo) to chicken-fat fries, to a signature brick chicken, Barnyard has you covered. Just don’t skip the whipped potatoes, made “with loads of butter and cream.”

This high-style addition to the local dining scene, from the owners of Berkeley’s, first got Charleston’s attention with a series of pop-ups featuring deft takes on familiar fare (like gin and tonic salmon crudo and chicken-fried grouper), and it continues the theme in brick-and-mortar form, with a dazzling cocktail program added for good measure. 

The three-meals-a-day dining room at The Dunlin, a luxury resort on Johns Island, exudes beach-house cool, and establishes its Lowcountry credentials with views of the Kiawah River, sea-fresh fish and shellfish (much of it local), seasonal produce, and the mix of culinary informality and sophistication that characterizes Southern cooking at its best.

Because Herman Ng (longtime director of operations for Oak Steakhouse) is energizing the Charleston Chinese restaurant scene with XO Brasserie. The upscale-yet-casual establishment brings modern Sichuan and Cantonese dishes to this dramatic (see the building’s architecture) NoMo corner, rooted in the food his family cooked at home but also in the Chinese restaurant they once ran in South Carolina.

When the group behind paradigm-busting restaurants like Husk and Minero opens a steakhouse, you know it’s going to be something else. Think an exciting menu that boasts almost as much seafood as there is meat; side dishes that go above and beyond the traditional offerings; and a wine list that covers a world that transcends the usual trophy Cabernets. 

At this Charleston sibling of The Select in Atlanta, you’ll enjoy a brasserie ambience, an American-international menu that hits all the right notes, an array of fruit-forward cocktails, and plenty of live entertainment, all adding up to a memorable evening out.

You might confuse the Cooper River with the Aegean after a meal at this more elegant Mount Pleasant offshoot of the popular Philosophia nearby. Highlights include a glistening array of whole fish, some straight from the Mediterranean, and an immense selection of Greek wines worth discovering.

You’ll want to put this easy-going, indoor-outdoor James Island restaurant into regular rotation for its neighborhood feeling, its classic cocktails, and its all-American menu, ranging from char-grilled oysters to a buttermilk fried chicken sandwich with dill pickles and candied hot sauce that puts the Colonel to shame.