This last Sunday was Mother’s Day, and both my wife and my elderly mom wanted out of the house after nearly two months of social distancing due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The governor of South Carolina just eased social distancing restrictions last week, and this weekend was the first weekend that restaurants were allowed to be open, but only for outside and patio dining. We decided that we wanted a water view if we were going to be dining outside and chose the Salty Dog Café on Seabrook Island.
Of course, there was a wait when we arrived at 6:00 PM because every restaurant in Charleston that could have outdoor dining was packed for Mother’s Day. Still, we didn’t mind the wait as it gave us an excellent opportunity to walk around the picturesque Bohicket Marina.
Once we were seated, we were immediately greeted by our server. The server recommended several appetizers, which we were happy to order. The two appetizers that we ordered were the hush puppies and pimento cheese dip. Both were excellent. The hush puppies were paired with sweet butter that complemented the hush puppies that were crispy on the outside and soft and tasty on the inside. The pimento cheese dip came with carrot sticks, homemade pita chips, and homemade thick-cut kettle potato chips. The pimento dip was savory with a robust mix of spices, but to be honest, I think that those kettle chips stole the show. This appetizer is worth ordering just to try the kettle chips.
Our main courses did not disappoint either. The highlights of our meal were the shrimp and grits, seafood pot pie, and the fresh catch of the day, which happened to be a marvelous swordfish. The shrimp and grits were served with creamy andouille sausage and bacon gravy. The gravy was a perfect complement to the stone-ground grits and sautéed shrimp. The seafood potpie contained shrimp, scallops, and fresh fish wrapped in a light but tasty puff pastry. Lastly, the swordfish was quite amazing. It was light and delicious. For those people, like my wife, that like fish that don’t have that overly “fishy” taste, this is for you. My wife, who is not a fan of fish, tasted it and said it was the best fish she had ever tasted. On this particular night, we were too full to look at the dessert menu but were pleasantly surprised when our server told us that the two moms’ in our group would receive a complimentary slice of red velvet cake for dessert. The red velvet cake was moist and delicious and well received by both my wife and my mother.
As great as our food and service was, the highlight of the dining experience was watching the sunset go down over the marina and the surprise visit that the diners had from a group of local dolphins who decided to show up at the dock just about 100 yards from our table. We give this restaurant a thumbs up, and we will be returning to the Salty Dog Café in the near future.
