Disclaimer: Before I get started with this review, I’ve got to divulge some things in the interest of full disclosure. 1) Until recently, I worked for a company called Table Maestro, a central reservation service which has McCrady’s as a client, so I’ve developed somewhat of a relationship with the staff, 2) McCrady’s staff knew I’d be coming in, so I definitely got some special treatment. All that being said, I don’t personally benefit in any way from giving them a positive review and, by all accounts, their service is stellar for everyone, not just friends of the restaurant. Alright, let’s get down to business.
McCrady’s has received some big time accolades in the past few months, most notably Chef Sean Brock’s “Rising Star Chef” James Beard Award nomination and their appearance near the top of Opinionated About Dining’s list of the Best Restaurants in North America and Europe, both of which I’ve previously discussed here. It is always a major name in the local debates about the best restaurants in the city and the structure itself is a landmark. It was built in 1788 and once hosted a dinner party for George Washington. I had never had the opportunity to dine at McCrady’s before (I’m a college student living on a budget after all), but I’ve always wanted to and was hoping to get the opportunity to do so while they still remembered me from Table Maestro. So, when I learned my mother was coming into town for a weekend I used my best PR skills to pitch her how great an idea having one really nice dinner on her trip would be. Needless to say, my pitch worked and I was granted an opportunity to embark on a three hour, nine-course journey that was unlike any other meal I have ever experienced.
When we arrived at the restaurant and seated, the perfect ambiance of the dining room immediately struck me. Everything from the lighting to the wonderful art on the walls screams of class and sophistication. Our waiter was exceptionally knowledgeable, answering any and all of our questions without more than a moment’s thought. The menu, while not particularly extensive, offers options to please any taste, and the nightly specials display the chef’s creativity (a word that you will find yourself using quite frequently after a dinner at McCrady’s). The menu is broken down into first, second, and main courses and the cuisine is described by the restaurant as “modern American with unique style and presentation,” a wording that really doesn’t give you much of an idea about what to expect. The food at McCrady’s is the result of a unique melding of Chef Brock’s frequently noted interest in molecular gastronomy and his commitment to using the very best and most local ingredients, which frequently come from the restaurant’s own farm on Wadamalaw Island (check out Chef Brock’s blog for pictures and more information).
After placing our orders, we were treated to two tasting dishes selected by the chef. First, an amuse bouche of chilled corn soup with a pickled chanterelle and grape tomato, an excellent, light start to the meal that would follow. Next, we were brought the chef’s rendition of chips and salsa, an item which I’m assuming was drawn from the current tasting menu which focuses on chips and salsa as its theme. This was truly an innovative dish which I couldn’t fully wrap my head around, let alone accurately describe, but in short it was two powders which distinctly tasted like and played the part of tortilla chips and a clear gel that they somehow managed to make taste like a full salsa.
For my first ordered course of the night, I selected the nightly special, sashimi bluefin tuna toro with a cucumber foam and soy glaze ($18). Toro comes from the fatty underbelly of the fish and is the most sought after (and expensive) part of the tuna. The texture of the toro was tender to a degree that you must experience to believe, it basically melts in your mouth. The taste of the tuna was complimented masterfully by the subtle cucumber foam and the soy glaze that packed quite a bit of flavor without overwhelming the fish.
Following our first course, we were pleased to be given another round of chef selected tasting dishes. The first of which was a prawn served with local corn, tomato, and bacon. The prawn was perfectly cooked and the combination of it alongside the corn and bacon made for one of the highlights of my evening. The final tasting course we received that evening was my mother’s favorite dish of the night, a thin slice of house cured meat, which I believe was a lonzino, over potato wrapped with truffle. The meat had a nice, delicate texture with just the right amount of saltiness.
My second ordered course was definitely the simplest, yet possibly best dish I tasted all evening: a salad of locally grown heirloom tomatoes and arugula over housemade ricotta, pine nuts, and raspberry vinegar ($12). I’m admittedly a little obsessed with tomatoes; I find it difficult to resist them when they are green and fried, and impossible to resist them they are paired with fresh mozzarella. This dish featured some of the very best tomato I have ever ingested. Bright, delicious flavor that gave the impression that this particular tomato had been hand picked by a farmer and handed to the chef 10 minutes earlier. The housemade ricotta was wonderfully creamy without any overpowering richness. These two elements paired with the raspberry vinegar forced my face into the same involuntary look of complete joy that Giada de Laurentiis gets every time she ever tastes something on TV.
Our entrees followed and did not disappoint. My mother opted for the local wreckfish($28),which is a white fish, similar to grouper with a nice meaty texture. My mother really enjoyed it, however, while I thought it was good, it didn’t blow me away like many of the other dishes that evening did, perhaps it was merely a victim of stiff competition. I decided to go with the spice roasted rack of lamb with local eggplant, pine nut puree, and golden raisins ($34). The lamb was cooked to an ideal medium-rare that left it wonderfully moist. The flavor combination of the lamb with the pine nut puree was rich and decadent, continuing the gradual, logical progression that the meal had steadfastly followed from the first amuse bouche.
In what may have seemed like an impossibility around the evenings fourth or fifth course, both my mother and I still had room for dessert. Being a sucker for all things chocolate, I chose one of pastry chef Winburn Carmack’s creations that seemed like it may have been designed specifically for me: crispy chocolate mousse topped with milk sorbet and accompanied by espresso and Irish cream glazes ($9). In case you thought there was any possibility that I would express any other emotion but love for this dish, you can go ahead and clear those thoughts from your head right now. The mousse was out of this world, the milk sorbet was light and refreshing, and, if McCrady’s wasn’t such a classy establishment, I would have been very tempted to lick my plate clean. One other interesting part of our dessert course was the sampling of McCrady’s famous liquid nitrogen strawberries that were brought out smoking and ladled onto our plates. Our server instructed us to eat them immediately and we quickly became the stars of our portion of the dining room. As soon as you bite into these ultra chilled fruits, smoke starts uncontrollably bellowing out of your mouth, which makes you look like you just walked out of Snoop Dogg’s tour bus. As we paid our check, we received one final treat, a piece of melt-in-your-mouth-chocolate covered in shredded coconut, a perfect end to a full on perfect meal.
A couple concluding points I really want to drive home: 1) the service at McCrady’s was far and away the best I have ever experienced in a restaurant. I loved Mickey Bakst and his staff at Charleston Grill, but the attentiveness and sense of pacing of McCrady’s staff is unmatched. If we ever had a need someone was available, but I didn’t once feel like I was rushed or smothered. Our courses were brought out in a smooth succession, with just enough time between them to allow for conversation breaks. General Manager André Guillet really has the restaurant running like a well oiled machine. 2) One of the most impressive aspects of my experience at McCrady’s is how they managed to provide us with so many courses over our three hours in the restaurant, but left us feeling merely full and satisfied rather than overwhelmed or stuffed. The meal started out light and, as I mentioned earlier, progressed smoothly through the final course.
All-in-all, my dinner at McCrady’s was, bar-none, the best meal of my life. While I understand that I received a few more items than the average diner would receive, my absolute favorite dishes of the night were those that I ordered off the menu, which you have access to as well. I want to personally thank Andre, Chef Brock, and wine director Clint Sloan for taking the time to come say “Hello” to me, I cannot recommend your restaurant highly enough. For the college students in my readership: start planting the seeds now, whether it’s for parents’ weekend, your birthday, or graduation, you want to convince your parental units to take you here, above anywhere else, if they can afford it. Hell, if you’ve got the money and a significant other who you really want to impress, start saving your pennies, eat ramen and Easy Mac for a few weeks and take them out for a meal they will always remember. Don’t expect to make it out of McCrady’s for less than $65 a person, but rest assured that you will not regret your purchase.
DH’s Extra Note: In direct contrast to my above advice, I will be investing a large portion of my expendable income for August at McCrady’s on August 31st for the 12-course Richard Blais (of Top Chef fame) dinner as he teams up with Chef Brock for what I’m sure will be a mind-opening culinary experience.
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