Far be it from me to not look for any excuse to return to Charleston. I arrived on Friday for (officially) day 2 of the third annual Food & Wine Classic in Charleston. Food & Wine, Travel + Leisure and Southern Living host it, with Explore Charleston presenting. It feels like a friendly downtown takeover, with events spread across some of the Lowcountry’s most beautiful venues, and restaurants.
Two Grand Tasting sessions on Friday afternoon with 2 more on Saturday highlight samples of some of the best eats in a city overflowing with them. Friday night starts with Travel + Leisure’s “Pearls of the Coast” Lowcountry Oyster Roast. Anthony Ramos co-hosts with Jacqueline Gifford, bringing a taste of his Brooklyn restaurant, Milly’s Neighborhood Bar, along with a musical performance. Mike Lata, Shuai Wang, Terrell Burg Brown, Hector Garate and Nyesha Arrington join oyster farmer Trey McMillan for live-fire roasted oysters and a raw bar.
Weekend programming includes:
- Cooking demos: Tyler Florence on fried chicken, Carla Hall, Andrew Zimmern, and Esther Choi. Martin Yan and Melissa King team up for the first time, and Amethyst Ganaway leads a Gullah Geechee cuisine session.
- Conversations: a fireside chat with Eric Ripert, a live taping of The Sporkful, and a barbecue pitmasters panel.
- Seminars and new offerings: more than 20 wine, cocktail and beverage seminars, plus the debut Southern Living Makers Series with hands-on workshops.
Beyond the pass, Night Out With F&W runs through Sunday with single-night dining experiences. There’s also the Style Stroll shopping tour, city tours (oyster farm, harbor cruise, American Revolution, homes and gardens), Sea to Table crabbing, and the Lowcountry Tailgate.
Sunday wraps with The Sunday Slice, the Classic’s wrap party celebrating the hospitality industry. A lot of these events are already sold out. If you are reading this on Friday, you can probably get into something on Saturday. See a full list of events here. The weather should be glorious.
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