Restaurant between the airport and downtown

We are driving to Charleston and our friends are flying into Charleston. Can anyone recommend a good restaurant(preferably not a chain) that we could meet for lunch between the airport and downtown. We like to eat where the locals eat. Also, we will be staying at the Hampton Inn Patriots Point so we are looking for a good restaurant for dinner.Thanks

Restaurant between the airport and downtown

You are only 15 minutes from downtown at the airport. Might be worth waiting...

Restaurant between the airport and downtown

I agree. We often go downtown for lunch after an airport pick up ... even though we don%26#39;t need to drive through town when we are heading to Kiawah, which is south of Charleston.

It%26#39;s just so easy to park in a garage and grab a nice lunch. Gets the vacation off to a wonderful start.

Indeed, here is a secret about Charleston - it%26#39;s easy to get around everywhere - and from the airport to downtown is 20 minutes-ish. (if you%26#39;re from a busy or high-traffic city, you%26#39;ll laugh at what we call ';traffic';. I still do! Watch the morning news to see the traffic on the Ravenel Bridge at 7:30am - it has made me laugh more than a few times!) Also - even if your friends check in their luggage, we only have 2 terminals and each has only about a half dozen gates so we%26#39;re talking 2 minutes from the gate to the baggage claim. Really makes picking up luggage fast, too. If you park in the lot by the baggage claim, I believe the first 30 minutes is free, so if you time it right it%26#39;s not only convenient but cheap. There is a cell phone waiting area so you can park when your friends call to tell you they%26#39;ve landed.

Just another reason to love the area!

If you%26#39;re all staying at Patriot%26#39;s Point and want something local before you check in to your hotel, I%26#39;d suggest perhaps Vickery%26#39;s on Shem Creek if the weather is nice, or if you%26#39;re adventurous and want to try Gullah food, there%26#39;s Gullah Cuisine on Hwy 17 near where 526 and 17 meet. Another nice outdoor place is 5 Loaves on Hwy 17. All of those would be within 10 minutes of Patriot%26#39;s Point, with Vickery%26#39;s and 5 Loaves less than 5 minutes.

For dinner, Charleston is as easy to get to from Patriot%26#39;s Pt as almost anyplace in Mt. Pleasant, so do you want rec%26#39;s for Charleston? Also - what type of cuisine and what price range are you looking for? Atmosphere? (outside dining, music, etc??)

I love seafood and I know that everyone likes steak. We will be in the area 3 days so maybe we could go eat seafood one night and then they could have steak one night. It doesn%26#39;t have to be a fancy restaurant we just like good food.As I said earlier we like to eat where the locals eat not the tourist traps.

For a very casual, inexpensive local lunch downtown, I like Joseph%26#39;s - http://www.josephsofcharleston.com/

For a slightly more elegant, but still casual, lunch, I like 82 Queen, especially if the weather is good for eating on the garden patio -

http://www.82queen.com/

You can park at the municipal garage on Queen Street, which is just behind (and connected to) The Mills House Hotel. No worry about security for your friends luggage. The garage is right across the street from 82 Queen and just around the corner from Joseph%26#39;s.

I agree with 82 Queen if you%26#39;re lunching in the city (or it makes for a nice dinner, too!)

If you%26#39;re lunching in Mt. P near Patriot%26#39;s Pt, an upscale place (gorgeous) is Langdon%26#39;s (www.langdonsrestaurant.com/index.php?s=mw

Another Mt. P breakfast or lunch place - really casual but completely local place is the Boulevard Diner (really casual but nice selection, great food and great prices). It%26#39;s near Shem Creek. Do try to go there for breakfast one day (closed Sunday) and have the crab and shrimp omelette. Take 2 extra Lipitor that day! (but I am not a doctor so you%26#39;d better not!)

Enjoy!

We are staying in Mount Pleasant. Any restaurant recommendations for that area. I just received an email from the couple that we are meeting and it simply said ';SEAFOOD';. So, I do need seafood restaurant recommendations. Thanks

If you head a little further out toward the beach you could try the Boathouse at Breech Inlet. Great for seafood and a sunset.

Have fun!

The Shrimp and Grits at the Boulevard Diner is excellent for lunch, and Shrimp and Grits is of course a Charleston specialty, as is She Crab Soup. Remember - BD is very casual and you will often encounter lines to get in. Across the street from that I%26#39;d recommend Locklear%26#39;s for great seafood dishes, and either before or after dinner, enjoy a cocktail (if that%26#39;s your thing) at one of the creekside bars/restaurants.

Red%26#39;s Ice House is a great place for a bucket of oysters and a bucket of beer and one of the best views of the creek and sunset, shrimp boats, dolphins and pelicans. The back deck at Vickery%26#39;s is great, too for drinks and sunset views. It is worth checking the sunset time before you make plans for dinner! Enjoy.