January Food Events

January is a great foodie month for Charleston. There are always festivals and restaurant events going on most months, but January has three very popular, personal favorites. Any time you can pay less for the same great food that you love is a huge thumps up to me. Especially after the holidays when we still want to go out, but the budget is a little tight. So here are three fun food things to enjoy this month.

Poogan's Porch Anniversary Rollback Menu

The first time I learned about Poogan's Porch Anniversary Rollback Menu was from a paper ad I found about 3 years ago. Let's just say I was ecstatic. I immediately got a group of friends and went. I was amazed at the prices. The Rollback menu features the prices from when they opened in 1978. Basically the prices are 50% off. If you are a bargain shopper, that is AMAZING!! In my head, I get 2 Gouda Mac n Cheese for the price of one. And I always pretty much ask for a double portion, because it is sinfully good. I also ask for a double order to go and I am not ashamed to say so. Poogan's is running the special from early January till January 10th. They will break for Restaurant Week from the 12th-22nd then resume the Rollback menu from January 23rd till February 9th (Some people wondered if they are going back to the Rollback menu after RW, so I called and was told they would). They are taking reservations all month, so if you want to eat there during their Rollback menu event, make reservations at least a week before or you'll be going at 9pm at night.

Charleston‘s Restaurant Week

That leads into my next favorite food event Charleston's bi-annual Restaurant Week. I wrote all about this in September, so you can refer back to that blog for ideas on how to navigate Restaurant Week. Last time I went to the Swamp Fox Restaurant with some lovely girlfriends and the Barbadoes Room at the Mill House Hotel for a group date. My date was a lovely brunette named Vikki, since my beloved could not join. Vikki was a fabulous date ;) Of the two restaurants I would recommend the Barbadoes Room. It was FABULOUS. Swamp Fox I had great convo and friends, but the food was not up to par. However the Barbadoes Room was lovely. The maître d’ was more than hospitable, the food was elegant and tasty, and the decor made you feel like you were on vacation in...Barbadoes. Who would not want that in a cold January month! Restaurant Week is the best! This time I am looking at going to Graze, Opal, Saffire and/or Jacob’s Kitchen, but Grill 225 has a good menu and at $40 for 3 courses that is hard to ignore! I will probably go to two restaurants, one for a group date and one with the ladies. So let me know if you want to go! Check out this website for the participating restaurants and their menus.

http://www.charlestonrestaurantassociation.com/charleston-restaurant-week/

The Lowcountry Oyster Festival

The last food event is the Lowcountry Oyster Festival on January 29th at Boone Hall Plantation. This a HUGE oyster roasts that for over 20 years has been named one of the top food events in the area! Boone Hall is a beautiful plantation located in Mt. Pleasant and the festival is a great Sunday afternoon. They will have buckets of oysters for you to buy and plenty of other food for the non oyster loving attendees. It cost to get in and the food is also an additional charge, but it's a lot of fun for a casual Sunday afternoon after church. You will want to make sure you bring your own oyster knife, gloves, and chair. Beyond that just relax, enjoy, eat and listen to the music. Here is the website for more details and how to buy tickets.

http://boonehallplantation.com/annual_oyster_roast.php

You can see why January is such an awesome foodie month!! If you are like me, January can be kind of a sad month. I always hate saying good bye to the holidays. SOOO lets all get out of the house, ignore any "New Year Diets', kick the “Christmas is over” blues good bye, and have a blast exploring the culinary world of Charleston! Bon Appétit!