 Another of our "sure things" in Charleston . . . The
food at Circa 1886 was excellent and the service most attentive. For the first course, we decided upon the Carolina Crab Cake Souffle with Mango Puree, Pineapple Relish, and crispy sweet potatoes. The quite inventive combination was complimentary. The sweet tanginess of the fruit preparations succeed in drawing out the delectable crab
flavor. My wife ordered the Spicy grilled shrimp over fried green tomatoes with chow-chow and tomato sauce. This dish too was
quite lovely and tasty.
I am not one to order salad that includes fruit; and I was pleasantly surprised with effect of
watermelon and ginger along with Green Forest Romaine Lettuce, 50 year old Balsamic vinegar and organic olive oil. Cara was delighted with her Field Lettuce and Heirloom Tomato Salad with a Black Cherry Vinaigrette, candied pecans and basil
cornbread.
The main course was my favorite…the scallops exploded with flavor gently accompanied by
asparagus, saffron corn, black chick-pea sauce and fried sweet shallots. One of us, of course, had to try the American Wagyu
(Japanese) beef selection of grilled strip and flank steak, quenelle of celery root, coffee onion jam and apricot yam sauce. The
beef was very tender and flavorful, and of course was punched up nicely by the chefs choices of accompaniments.
Well, maybe the dessert was my favorite; it's so hard to decide. I tried the Raspberry Soufflé
Hazelnut Tart and Cara indulged in the baby banana fritter with golden pineapple upside down cake served with maraschino cherry
mascarpone ice cream.
In fine dining, sauces and presentation are often what separates one establishment from the
other. Everything about our experience at Circa 1886 worked together to create a fabulous evening. Our sincere thanks to the
chef, management and staff for putting it all together for us.
Visit their website at Circa 1886.
We both agreed to add Circa 1886 to our list of "sure things" in Charleston | 
