Thursday, December 31, 2009

The BEST RESTAURANT in UPSTATE SOUTH CAROLINA

Going to New Orleans on a regular basis has gotten me used to places that look like dives, but serve great food. You can read about those restaurants on my other blog IF I LIVED HERE, I'D BE DEAD BY NOW.














But here in Upstate South Carolina, we have a restaurant that could hold its own in New Orleans. The looks of the restaurant are definitely deceiving. One side is a bar and you can eat on that side, but be warned smoking is allowed in the bar. The other side is small, it might hold 60 people, so count on some wait time, if you go during peak hours. And keep in mind that there isn't a list or anything to sign, everyone just mills right inside the door or outside the door until a table is available. Believe me, it's worth the wait.


I have eaten or been able to sample off dining companions' plates just about everything on the menu and I don't hesitate to state that you could just blindly point at the menu and be pleased with whatever your finger landed on.












The restaurant's most famous dish is probably ribs and killer shrimp. My recommendation is to get the ribs dry rubbed and the sauces on the side. The shrimp are wrapped in bacon and grilled and smothered in BBQ sauce. The photo above shows part of a 1/2 rack (some had already been shared) and cheese/bacon fries.















My wife had the Carolina Medallions. Steak medallions topped with a combination of shrimp, mushrooms, onions, and jack cheese and sauteed in white wine garlic butter. The plate also has the baked sweet potato with brown sugar butter.















On my last visit, I had the Charleston Grouper. You can get the grouper fried, grilled, or broiled. I had fried. It's topped with shrimp and served with a crab cake in a cajun cream sauce. I also had the very creamy cheese grits. You get a choice of two sides with each meal. Our other sides were house salads. They're huge with cheese, eggs, and bacon.


Two meals with beverages only run around 26.00 before tip. Not only is this some of the best food you will eat here in Upstate South Carolina, but also a steal of a deal.

6 comments:

Peggy said...

Also, the service here is always great, no matter how busy the restaurant gets.

Frontal Lobe said...

I agree, every time I have been, I have had nothing but top notch service.

G-MINUS-MARK said...

Oh my God

I literally want to fly there tonight!

Mark

Frontal Lobe said...

If you ever make it to this part of the country, just let me know. I'll treat!

Traitor Vic said...

Eek!

I've read the entire post several times now and still can't find some very important information!

Where is it? And what is it called?

Frontal Lobe said...

Hi - I intentionally left the name out to see if anyone was reading and interested. Congrats! You are the first person to notice. It's called the Carolina Cafe and it WAS in Chesnee; however, our friends from Spartanburg who we usually go with, have told us that it has moved somewhere closer to Gaffney in a larger location(and they could definitely use a bigger place). When I find out where, I'll let you know. We're hoping that the move doesn't change the food!