Bluffton just landed on the Michelin Guide’s radar, and it took two restaurants to do it.

At Wednesday night’s ceremony in Nashville, Okàn earned a Bib Gourmand, Michelin’s nod for excellent cooking at a fair price. Radici Italian Chophouse (photo above) earned a Michelin recommendation, meaning inspectors found it worth seeking out. Both are fairly new, in a town long overlooked in the Lowcountry food conversation.

Okàn -in the heart of Old Town Bluffton, is led by Chef Bernard Bennett, whose menu blends West African, Caribbean, and Lowcountry traditions. Radici-on Bluffton Parkway-is led by Chef Mattia Bianchi and his team. Inspectors who eat for a living just confirmed what locals have been saying for a hot minute.

These two have both been on the ‘if you know you know’ list for a minute. Now everyone will know.

Radici was already collecting hardware. A few months ago it earned the Marchio Ospitalità Italiana Gold Seal from the Italian government, a certification for authentic Italian hospitality. It’s the only restaurant in South Carolina to hold it. Now Michelin has noticed too.

Why it matters: Michelin attention travels. Diners plan trips around these lists, and travel writers follow them. The guide is still new to the American South, and in the Lowcountry the story has centered on Charleston. Bluffton has never been part of that conversation. Now it has two restaurants carrying a designation the industry recognizes.

For a town this size, this is a major shift. It tells young cooks serious work gets noticed here. It tells owners weighing a lease that the audience exists. And it tells everyone else the dining scene deserves a closer look. It also tells those ‘islanders’ who are allergic to bridge crossings that the food receiving national attention in the area is in ‘lil’ ol’ Bluffton.’

I know some Savannah residents who are regulars at both. Now that table might just get a little harder to nail down.

Well deserved for both of them.

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