Fine Dining Standard Charleston Grill Dazzles Critic Jeff Allen

Usually reviews focus on the new, but this month, writer Jeff Allen takes a look at "the Holy City’s long-standing zenith of fine dining" Charleston Grill. Chef Michelle Weaver took over the kitchen at the restaurant in 1997, and Allen discovers her dishes today are just as fresh as ever.

Any trip to the Belmond Charleston Place restaurant starts with a warm greeting from maître d' Mickey Bakst, which Allen appreciates:

At the entrance stands longtime manager Mickey Bakst, who’s known for treating all guests like actual royalty, and for heading the most skilled service team in Charleston. (The restaurant was a James Beard Award semi-finalist in the Outstanding Service category this year.) Like colleagues executive chef Michelle Weaver and sommelier Rick Rubel, Bakst executes a level of personal service and attention to detail that others would do well to emulate.

The critic surveys each category of the menu, and quips, "The menu’s four sections—'pure,' 'lush,' 'cosmopolitan,' and 'Southern'—could almost describe the diners as well as the food." He highly recommends the beets with the lebnah. And while the food is divine, a visit to the Grill is all about the experience, which Allen notes, "You’ll leave feeling sated, knowing that the next time you need a taste of the luxe life, you can find it right here, where it’s been all along."