where to — charleston
a lowcountry holiday, charlotte layover + la’s new cafes
quick psa: la’s still hurting from the fires so please continue to support your favorite restaurants, cafes + bars, and keep shopping small and local <3 in case you need inspo on which spots are giving back, i have an ongoing list here
charleston:
i wrote where to — the south last year, claiming charleston’s my favorite city in the southeast. and after visiting again during the holidays (for the first time in years), i still stand by it!
wake up in charleston with a babas with a housemade PEANUT (!) milk cappuccino, pastry at either (or both!) of the sister cafes harken cafe and the harbinger, lunch at leon’s, grab a bottle of natural wine to go at graft, walk along waterfront park, king street, rainbow row and the battery, dinner at kultura, and oyster and cocktail at the ordinary for dessert. scroll to the end for my full charleston guide with google map bookmarks and what not, for my cute paid subscribers
lowcountry holiday:
holiday-ed in hilton head island, and made the mistake of bringing my parents to see a christmas matinee of baby girl — i enjoyed, but my dad left half way thru :) … we did some adams xmas traditions: latkes and margs (don’t knock it till you’ve tried it)... and my grandma gunn’s scandinavian rice pudding for dessert with one almond hidden, and whoever gets the nut in their serving has good luck for the year. i’m the lucky one this year apparently??… as well as beach walks, bike rides and christmas tennis — very wholesome island time per usual
stranded charlotte layover:
hilton head’s a pain to fly in + out of, and with american airlines’ glitches / flight cancellations made it worse. we got stranded for 24+ hours in charlotte, leaving our furry oslo hanging in la. don’t get me started with american airlines… after accepting our fate, i looked up nytimes 36 hours in, eater’s recs on coffee and natural wine bars, etc. and some good ol instagram sleuthing, i found myself two solid capps c/o stable hand and hex, spotted a bottle of my favorite spanish microbio correcaminos wine, secured a sourdough loaf from verdant bread + some jam and “saw the city” with a long multi-stop uber in thirty-something-degree rain. though there’s a few gems, if i find myself back in north carolina, i think i’ll stick with asheville. speaking of which, i’m dying to go to crocodile wine…
la happenings + openings:
not no bar - new santa monica bar with pizza, aaand a pesto (!) martini i can’t stop dreaming about — someone take me to the westside please
just what i kneaded - same space but with a newly renovated cute indoor cafe
a bunch of new cafes in la’s caffeine spike — it seems la is spending less out on dinners and opting for more coffees + pastries, or maybe that's just me
wynd - virgil village cafe-meets-gallery
gonggan - korean cafe with instagram-y drinks in silverlake made for tiktok
couplet - took over the former bloom & plume space in echo park / hifi
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