Best Restaurants in Charleston: Top Picks & Hidden Gems

Sora serves a tasting menu with flavors from France and Asia. | Sora More often than not, tipsters, readers, friends, and family of Eater have one question: Where should I eat right now? What are the new restaurants? What’s everyone talking about? Have you been yet? While the Eater 18 is a crucial resource covering old standbys and neighborhood essentials across the city, it is not a chronicle of the “it” places of the moment. Enter the Eater Heatmap, which changes continually to highlight spots...

A big bowl of ramen from Katsubō. Chef Joe Nierstedt, formerly of fried chicken spot Kinfolk, opened Park Circle restaurant Katsubō Chicken Ramen this summer, and it’s finally starting to feel like soup weather in the Lowcountry. Nierstedt previously worked at Mu Ramen in New York, and now he’s brought a wide range of shio, shoyu, miso, and tonkotsu broths to the area, along with his super crispy yard bird. What to order My go-to bowl is the spicy red miso with chicken chashu, kikurage, corn, sc...

Kultura started as a Filipino pop-up around the Lowcountry before it found a home at 73 Spring Street in 2023. From that address, chef Nikko Cagalanan and his team put out dishes like bright bowls of pancit topped with Lowcountry crab meat, tender pork ribs in banana ketchup barbecue, and yellow adobo salmon over crispy rice with a delicate salad of local vegetables. The flavors captured the attention of Charleston diners, food writers, and the James Beard Foundation. After all the awards and ac...