Location: Summerville, SC
Last Visited: September, 2006
Mobil Rating: 5/5
Michelin Rating: N/A
My Rating: 8/10
Website: visit site
For my 30th birthday, my husband surprised me with a trip to Charleston. We stayed at the Woodlands - a luxury resort in a beautiful classic revival mansion, just outside of Charleston. Their 5-Star Mobil rated restaurant - The Dining Room at Woodlands - is truly extraordinary. Everyone at the Woodlands is treated with a special Southern hospitality, but in our case we had reserved the Chef’s Table and were treated like royalty. We were seated right in the kitchen and had a full view of all stations. Here, we had a chance to participate in a personalized interaction between our chef, sommelier, and the rest of the team.
Chef Tarver King leads the young and energetic culinary team. He’s worked in places such as the French Laundry, Le Bec Fin, and The Inn at Little Washington. During our wonderful evening, we shared stories and ideas with Tarver and his staff. We felt like we were part of the team. At the same time we had the most wonderful culinary experience.
Our dinner began with the presentation of salts. Tarver brought about 15 different salts including a rare "Jurassic" salt, Kahlua, and several special Fleur de Sels. With each dish that was to come we were to try different salts to experience different textures and flavors. That was definitely a special part of our culinary adventure. Then there were the courses themselves - 14 in all. All of our 14 courses were wonderful. Tarver presented each one by describing the local ingredients he used or the story of how the dish was created. We loved each and every bite.
Especially memorable was the Crispy Carpaccio of Local Swordfish with soy infusion, cilantro dressing, topped with a slice of locally grown avocado. The surprise inside the swordfish was crispy pieces of tempura. I also really liked the Spanish White Gazpacho with almond sorbet and Banyuls vinegar. We absolutely loved the lobster poached in butter "at the last minute" served with a tomato tarte tatin and roasted olive "Aigre-Doux". It was definitely the best lobster we have ever had. Yet while I thought that the lobster was my favorite at the time, I now cannot stop thinking about the Hay Smoked Maple Leaf Duckling served with Chanterelle mushrooms over white polenta. The smoked flavor of the duck was truly unique and unforgettable. Thinking back, every dish had something very special to offer.
Even with small portions, 14 courses is a lot to sample. After the duck, we started slowing down, so Tarver made us a special digestive drink called "fernet branca". He claimed it was a miracle drink, and he was right. After a few sips of that drink, we felt ready to enjoy the rest of our meal. In fact, he warned it was a dangerous drink for chefs, since we felt like we could go on eating!
Our dinner experience at the Chef’s Table of the Dining Room at the Woodlands was unforgetable. All in all, the memory of this young talented team sharing their joy of cooking with us that evening will last us a lifetime.
