It was a day I will never forget.  It started the same as any other.  I sat in my home office banging away at a keyboard, prepared to write about whatever eats I had enjoyed that previous week.  I wish I could say something poetically dramatic like the sound of the ringing phone snapped me clear out of a razor sharp focus, but that wouldn’t be true.  These days, most good news comes in silence, via an email.  In this case it was in the form of a question.

I’m paraphrasing, but the question essentially asked me if I’d be interested in writing a book documenting Charleston, South Carolina’s food scene.

My reaction was the equivalent of the long pause on the other end of a proverbial phone call, because time froze.  I stared. I smiled. My eyes became the size of silver dollars.

I got scared. 

If we are being completely honest, my initial reaction was ‘no way.’  I mean, I had just written a book on Savannah’s food scene, sure, but I know Savannah like the back of my hand. This Summer will be my 20th in Savannah.  When I tell people I wrote that book in 9 days they are shocked.  In the big picture, my biggest challenge in writing Savannah Food Crawls came in sorting out 20 years worth of knowledge and information.  Easy peasy lemon squeezie

Charleston though?  One of the greatest food towns in America?  A place that, yes, I had visited over a dozen times, but didn’t know nearly as well as Savannah?  The word is intimidating.

My initial gut reaction? No way. Too intimidating. Too much to learn about. Too much to try to document without leaving something important out, accidentally or otherwise.  I called my wife.

Her response?  “Well, you have to do it, whether you want to or not.”  “If you truly want to grow your brand and your following beyond Savannah as you have always talked about, then this is something you simply have to do.”

There wasn’t a lot of convincing. She was right in the first 25 seconds.

Most people don’t realize this but it has always been our vision to make Eat It and Like It a regional brand. There were two initial reasons for that.  When we started, Savannah didn’t have nearly the food scene it does today, number one.  Number two: I love to travel.  Wanderlust and the good food that comes along with it was always going to be fair game. And it has been.

I enthusiastically accepted the assignment and began making plans to dive right in.

I spent 4 long weekends in Charleston a couple of winters ago. Some by myself, others not. All we did was eat and drink for hours upon hours upon hours on end.  Tough gig, right?  I shared that story with a group last year and there was an audible groan in the room.  Amusing, for sure. But don’t get it twisted.  That was work.

How else do you describe needing to have 2 lunches in a day, then trying some ice cream you’ve never had followed by a doughnut you’ve been told is the best in the city.  In Savannah, I could easily come back tomorrow.  Charleston didn’t afford me that luxury.

I walked the streets of Charleston alone more than once, canvassing every neighborhood. I almost literally went door to door kicking tires and kissing babies.  Also more than once, I sat across three feet of wood chatting with probably half a dozen bartenders asking them a series of questions about their eating habits and the spots that don’t get the headlines.  Once the answers begin to resemble each other, then you know you are zeroing in on those ‘hidden gems.’

The result of all of that research is my 2nd book. Charleston Food Crawls, much like Savannah Food Crawls, is a collection of a dozen or so ‘walkabouts’ through the Holy City. It features, very literally, some of Charleston’s best lunch spots and casual eats.  Are some of the places mentioned open at night? Of course they are, but this could best be described as a day time book. Why?

If you know the food scene in Charleston, there’s an amazing ‘finer dining’ restaurant at nearly every turn. A far majority of those spots are not open for lunch. Their service begins at 5pm.  Charleston’s BEST food is dinner only and a topic for another discussion.  Charleston Food Crawls-like Savannah-isn’t about fine dining. The publisher prohibited it.  These books are collections of the best casual eats to be found as you make your way through one of the most historic cities in America.  Which I did.

Ultimately, writing this book was a huge treat. As a journalist, I’ve always been naturally curious. So making my way through a town as deliciously picturesque as Charleston, South Carolina (and being compensated to do so) is the kind of thing we dreamed about once upon a moon when we created Eat It and Like It.  If you enjoy making the short trip to Charleston a few times a year, then Charleston Food Crawls is something you should most certainly have in your collection.

I can assure you, you will Eat It and Like It.

You can find them on Amazon.  Signed copies are available here.

Happy Eating.

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