Charleston, SC has never disappointed me! AND, this was my first influencer trip! I arrived with one best friend (Becky), and left with two (add Kristin, lol). Courtnie, another influencer who recently moved to Charleston, met up with us for dinner and hangs a few nights too. We had a BLAST, y'all. The blogging/influencing community is so welcoming, I just love it.
Whenever I make a return visit to any city, I try to do different things each time. (Read my past Charleston guide here). This trip was one of the best yet thanks to so many businesses and restaurants that hosted us! Let's get to it
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WHERE TO STAY
If you're looking for a perfectly located gorgeous condo that looks like HGTV had it's way in there, CKC Charleston Rentals is the place! Our condo was 2BR, 2 bath, had a Pinterest worthy kitchen, washer/dryer, and a smart TV in each room. My goodness this place was so nice! It only took about an 8 minute drive to get to the heart of downtown, but we were in walking distance to a lot of good eats too!
WHERE TO EAT
Night one started it off right with dinner on the water at Fleet Landing. All of us gave our meals 5/5 stars. I had crab cakes, collard greens, and pimento cheese grits. Hashtag, SOUTHERN. Literally craving the grits as I type.
Millers All Day knows how to do breakfast. And coffee bars, and desserts, and photo booths. All wrapped up in the cutest retro-vibed spot on King Street. I'm not a huge breakfast person early in the morning, so I got a hearty yogurt bowl with a side of fruit. Plus coffee, duh. If this wasn't a hosted meal and I didn't care to look looney, I would've licked the bowl clean.
What's a week without tacos? Not one I want to live through, haha. Taco Boy had the best tacos and margs, and has two locations in the Charleston area. We visited the downtown insta-worthy location. The appetizer trio and mahi tacos were my favorites!
I love the Mount Pleasant area as much as downtown Charleston, and while there we found a new restaurant that I'll absolutely be back to! Tavern and Table was hands down one of our favorite meals of the trip. Not one of my smartest decisions to type this out while I'm waiting to go to lunch, but I'm dying for some of their crab artichoke dip now! Pretty sure the pita bread (for dipping) was so extra good because it was cooked in their brick oven. I also had a super refreshing Spiked Watermelon Rose with a salmon salad and lemon vinaigrette dressing.
If you're looking for fantastic Japanese cuisine and pretty drinks, you have to try O-Ku! O-Ku's head chef himself prepared a special menu for us, and the entire staff made us feel so welcomed and appreciated. It was one of the most hospitable restaurants I've ever dined in. See the photos for exact details of our dishes. All the fish was incredibly fresh, the drinks were so good, and the mango tartlet dessert was the cherry on top of a great meal!
DRINKS
I've been to The Skinny Dip a few times to shop, but this was my first experience at their precious rooftop bar and coffee shop. Here you can get your caffeine fix, sip on peach froze, or just get productive in their communal workspace that's open to the public fo' free! Well, the workspace is free to use. The drinks will cost ya just a tad, but they're worth it.
Cameilla's Bar at The Bennett Hotel is straight off of Barbie's Pinterest board. I literally couldn't believe how pretty it was! We don't have cute fancy things like this in Bristol!
I always stop in The Rise Coffee Bar when in Chucktown. They have the cutest marble table top window seats for you to hang, people watch, and cool off.
Engraved Bracelet // Link Bracelet (David Yurman dupe!)
SHOP
Charleston has just as much good shopping as they do food! I love going to Mount Pleasant (hello Nordstrom Rack!), the straw market downtown, and all of King Street. Dress Up was so sweet to us on this trip and hosted a little shopping event for us! I've been a long time lover and customer of Dress Up because of their super affordable prices and on-trend style.
Major thank you to CKC Charleston Rentals and all the restaurants/shops that hosted us!!
