Blog

What brought you to Charleston?
I had just come back to Alabama from a bit of traveling and really wanted to keep moving around a little. My long time friend had moved to Charleston a year or two before and really encouraged me to come live here. I traded an Isuzu Trooper that didn’t run for a Hyundai that did and headed toward the salty coast.

What do you love most about Charleston?
The marsh areas. They’re so beautiful.

What's your favorite spot in Charleston?
James Quinton’s chair.

What's your favorite restaurant in Charleston?
Hard question. As a vegetarian, it can be tough indulging in the staples of Charleston’s food scene. It keeps me with a core group of restaurants I just can’t stop going back to. I don’t know if I could say what my favorite restaurant in Charleston is but I can say that I’ve never, not one time, not ever had a less than great meal at Two Boroughs Larder…..and they put an egg on all my food.

How did Sweeteeth begin?
Sweeteeth was just something I liked to do for myself and a restaurant that was 100% brought to full life by the support of the eater. The more people requested the more I made and I just continued to follow their appetite. So instead of spending free time doing dangerous adventures and what not, I was spending that time trying to come up with flavors to fill candy bars with. I’ve been a cook and then a pastry man my whole working career and flavor is what I love to make. I just wanted to make food more like candy and vice versa.

What's a typical day like for you?
I get up at 6:30, shower, dress for success, get Liam up and dressed. He usually helps me with breakfast if it involves cracking or flipping anything. He’s to school by 8 and then I come home and do emails until 9 and have lots of coffee and whatever kind of carb I can get my hands on. I slide into

What brought you to Charleston?
I came to Charleston in 2002 to study astrophysics at the College of Charleston. Having grown up on Cape Cod, Charleston seemed like another world: the Spanish moss, architecture, weather, palmetto tree lined streets, and the reminder of history around every corner. Moving here was truly a culture shock, and I've loved every moment of it.

What do you love most about Charleston?
There's something special happening here, and though it's difficult to describe, I absolutely love what it is. There's so much opportunity, energy, creativity, and hustle in this city, and that combination is incredibly powerful. I love feeling as though I'm playing a role in shaping the direction of this city, this region, and even a significant moment in our time. Charleston provides that opportunity right now--to impact the direction of things. To be a part of this moving wave. It's all very exciting.

What's your favorite spot in Charleston?
Anywhere on the water. But since that's a pretty ambiguous answer, I'll also say my house. My buddy and I just finished building a really cool place on the westside of town. It's still pretty bare, but it's a great spot to work, cook, relax, read, think, write, and sleep. We installed an awesome garage-style door in the living room that opens up onto an outdoor balcony. It's kind of bad ass. 

What's your favorite restaurant in Charleston?
It's so hard to choose just one, and my list is always changing, but currently, depending on the time of day, these would have to be my picks. Coffee at Kudu, breakfast at Caviar and Bananas, lunch at Ted's Butcherblock, dinner at FIG or Fish, drinks at Belmont or Closed for Business, late night at Butcher and Bee.

How did Charleston Waterkeeper begin?
I was fortunate to grow up on the water, and I was fortunate to attend a school surrounded by water. In a way, I feel as though 

What brought you to Charleston?
I came to Charleston to study art and Classics. Before I officially decided to come to College of Charleston, my mom and I drove down from DC for one night to feel the place out. Wisteria was blooming along 95 South, hinting at the magic we were about to see. I was completely enchanted when I got here.

What do you love most about Charleston?
The fact that downtown is like a sitcom, full of characters. Also the jasmine and possibility that there are ghosts??

What's your favorite spot in Charleston?
I think it depends on who I'm with. I love biking to the top of the Mt Pleasant bridge for perspective, but also sitting at the end of a dock in the marsh with just the sound of the very loud cicadas.

What's a typical day like for you?
Lots of computer click-clacking. This summer I was spending many days with my laptop at Hope and Union, though now I'm

What brought you to Charleston?
A scholarship to the College of Charleston. Growing up in Columbia, I visited Charleston as often as I could, even playing hooky from high school to hit the beach and shop on King Street.  When trying to choose a college my Dad said, “Go to Charleston.  I think it speaks to your soul.”  The scholarship didn’t hurt either. 

What do you love most about Charleston? 
Aside from the food, the weather, the people?  I love the energy level.  I admire the bustling energy in bigger cities like New York, but I am more suited to the pace of Charleston.  While there seems to be a near constant excitement in the air over one thing or another, Charlestonians know how to relish and luxuriate in a moment.  We take our time and enjoy the smaller moments -- bike rides, porch swings, Sunday brunch, whathaveyou --  that really make life here special. 

What's your favorite spot in Charleston? 
My drive to work.   Each morning the beauty of the city waking up takes my breath away as I come over the bridge from West Ashley -- sometimes the harbor is choppy and windblown, sometimes glassy as a mirror, reflecting blue skies or grey.  The water dotted with sailboats and yachts and marsh grass is different every day. 

What's your favorite restaurant in Charleston?  
FIG, naturally.  I’m probably a little biased since I’ve worked there for 8 years, but a meal at FIG consistently blows my mind, from food to service to drinks.

What's a typical day like for you?
Mornings at FIG are the best because I’m alone and it’s almost peaceful.  I play The xx station on Pandora, sift through emails, Twitter, and EaterCharleston while planning out my day. 

What brought you to Charleston?
College. When I was young an older girl from my neighborhood showed me around the campus after her first year. I applied early and got in early and didn't look anywhere else.

What do you love most about Charleston?
The ability to walk or bike anywhere. Also the heat. It's an equalizer of sorts. Everyone is sweating. There cannot be too much pretention when you are constantly reminded of your unifying bodily condition.

What's your favorite spot in Charleston?
South of Broad, but also north of the Crosstown, from Huger on up passed Hampton Park.

What's your favorite restaurant in Charleston?
That's a tough call. I would have to say it's a tie between FIG and Two Boroughs Larder.

How have your travels altered your view on Charleston?
The transition between my teenage years and early adulthood took place in Charleston, so for awhile I felt my identity was bound by the city, so much so when I left I felt unstable. After college I traveled alone across the world. When I returned I changed and no longer identified with the conceptions of the community I had grown up in. That allowed me to view Charleston with fresh eyes. This last summer I lived in New York and LA. Doing so allowed me to gain a further appreciation of Charleston and its conveniences that make each day a blessing. Now, of all the places I've lived in, Charleston is by far my favorite.