Here are the favorites: Bacco, Lucca, Il Corte del Re, and Pane e Vino. Where to start? Good grief - all are phenomenal.
Let's start with Lucca. In the interests of transparency and to be compliant with Sarbanes Oxley, I have waited to review Lucca (on the advice of a friend) until I had visited three times to install some sense of objectivity since I live in the area. Opinions can warp when proximity plays a part!
But the restaurant is batting 1000 - it went three for three. When I moved to Elliotborough, Lucca, which used to be the Old Charleston Tea Room where it is rumored that Martin Luther King used to dine when in town, was an abondoned, bat infested building - although it wreaked of potential. And luckily, Elliotborough has someone like Ian Tomlinson (otherwise known as the Baron of Bogard) who was able to tap into the Tea Room's potential. His renovation of the building is nothing short of amazing. And it was a blessing that a visionary like Ken Vedrinksi decided to bet on Elliotborough. As you sit through dinner, it is easily apparent that Ken's prior experience as chef at South Carolina's only five start restaurant (the Woodlands) and owner of Sienna on Daniel Island shows through in the Lucca experience.
Onto the food, the wine selection is amazing. The appetizers are divided into three categories: vegetables, cheeses and meats. Try the cheese with the pear and the honey glazed cheese - both of these will make you thankful that humans are born with taste buds.
Now let me digress for a moment, one measure of a good restaurant is the quality of bread served. If it is served hot, bonus points are awarded. If some kind of dippin sauce or oil is provided, more bonus points can be awarded. Let me just say that Lucca scores well in the bread category with freshly baked, warm ciabatta and a dipping sauce composed of olive oil with fresh, shredded parmesean cheese mixed in. Like I said, to die for.
Ok - back to the main course. The first time I went, I had a vegetarian pasta dish - it was ok. But then in subsequent visits, I discovered culinary utopia - the hanger steak. Cooked to perfection, it melts in your mouth - and it is does so even without being laid on a thin bed of mashed potatoes (which it is) - and it does so even without being surrounded by some kind maple reduction (which it is).
I'll call it quits for tonight, but expect updates on the others in short order.
