Charleston Restaurant Report October 2013
Charleston Restaurant Report October 2013
ISSUE #18
ON THE MENU
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1. Green Scene – CHARLESTON COUNTY OFFERS COMMERCIAL FOOD WASTE COMPOSTING
2. Local Restaurant News – DOES ANYONE COOK OR DRINK AT HOME ANYMORE?
3. Restaurant Openings, Closings and Coming Soon!
4. National Restaurant Trends – TABLETOP TABLETS ARE GAINING TRACTION
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GREEN SCENE
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CHARLESTON COUNTY OFFERS COMMERCIAL FOOD WASTE COMPOSTING
Charleston County's recycling program website claims that 40% of food goes uneaten. Seems like a really big number and a lot of wasted food. In 2010, Charleston County established a commercial food waste composting program to reduce the flow of recyclable food waste into the landfill. The county has partnered with local trash haulers to pickup the food waste from local restaurants and grocers (for a fee) in specially-marked containers and deliver it to the Bees Ferry Compost Facility. The county then processes the food waste and sells the compost by the bag or ton at the Bees Ferry Compost Facility -- 1344 Bees Ferry Road. In exchange, participating restaurants benefit from reductions in their annual county environmental user fees and potentially lower monthly trash hauling bills. How much money would you save if you switched from an 8-yard to a 6-yard dumpster and dropped from two pickups a week to one? It's worth a look. Check out www.recycle.charlestoncounty.org or call 843.720.1111 for info.
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LOCAL RESTAURANT NEWS
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DOES ANYONE COOK OR DRINK AT HOME ANYMORE?
We all know the food and beverage scene in Charleston has exploded over the last five years. The number of restaurant openings over the last half-decade makes you wonder if the recession skipped over the F&B industry around Charleston. The marketplace has filled in many food gaps over the last few years --- one year it's burger joints, the next year it's asian, then breakfast and brunch-focused concepts. What remaining gaps are left to be filled? BEVERAGES! Our thirst for adult beverages is unquenchable. Looking out over the F&B landscape, within the next six months we'll see 3 new beer gardens, a brewpub, another brewery, and 3 micro-distilleries opening in the area. That's in addition to the specialty beer joints and breweries we already enjoy around town. With all of the specialty beverages and mixers being made around here, Charleston is on its way to becoming an international beverage destination. Thinking about all of this is making me thirsty.
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RESTAURANT OPENINGS, CLOSINGS + COMING SOON!
The following list reflects 3rd Quarter 2013 market activity (July 1 - September 30):
OPENINGS --
Agaves Cantina (Daniel Island – former Lana)
Another Broken Egg (Downtown – former Barbara Jean’s)
Basico (N. Charleston)
Big Game Bar & Grill (Mt. Pleasant -- former Foster's Pub)
Bonefish Grill (N. Charleston)
Cory's Grilled Cheese (James Island)
DeSano Pizza Bakery (Downtown)
Green Goat (West Ashley -- former George's Sports Bar)
High Wire Distilling (Downtown)
Indaco (Downtown)
Ladles (Downtown)
Ladles (West Ashley)
Leyla (Downtown – former Izakaya Ramen)
Local 616 (Downtown)
Low Down Oven & Bar (James Island -- former Andolini's)
Marco’s Pizza (West Ashley – former Quizno’s)
Moe’s Southwest Grill (Summerville)
New York City Pizza (Downtown)
Newk’s Express Café (Summerville)
Pick Thai (Summerville – former Sweetwater Grill)
Prohibition (Downtown -- former Mercury Bar)
Southerly Restaurant & Patio (Mt. Pleasant)
Sweeney’s (Johns Island – former Island Soul Food Café)
Sweet Radish Bakeshop (Downtown)
Sweets Cafe (N. Charleston)
Water Dog Grill (Mt. Pleasant -- former Pal Joey's)
Woody's (Mt. Pleasant -- former Iacofano's Italian Bistro)
CLOSINGS --
Bojangles (West Ashley)
China Gourmet (West Ashley)
Chucktown Tavern (Downtown)
Crave (Johns Island – closed due to fire)
Eurasia Café (Mt. Pleasant)
Foster’s Pub (Mt. Pleasant)
George’s Sports Bar (West Ashley)
Iacofano’s Italian Bistro (Mt. Pleasant)
Jack’s Cosmic Dogs (James Island)
Massi’s Wine Bar & Osteria (Downtown)
Mercury Bar (Downtown)
Pal Joey’s (Mt. Pleasant)
Queen Anne’s Revenge (Daniel Island)
COMING SOON --
Bangkok Asian Bistro (Mt. Pleasant -- former Vino Burgerz)
Bohemian Bull & Beer Garden (James Island -- former Jack's)
Checker's (Hanahan)
Chez Nous (Downtown)
Dickey's Barbecue Pit (N. Charleston)
East Bay Biergarten (Downtown – former Rice Market)
East Coast Wings & Grill (Mt. Pleasant)
Egan & Sons (Downtown -- former Moe's Downtown)
Edmund’s Oast (Downtown)
Five Guys Burgers & Fries (N. Charleston)
Jersey Mike’s (N. Charleston)
Leon's Oyster Shop (Downtown)
Marco’s Pizza (N. Charleston)
Mellow Mushroom (Summerville – former Perkins)
Rio Grande (Summerville)
Scratch Taco Boutique (Mt. Pleasant – former Abe’s Oyster House)
Smashburger (Summerville)
The Beach Bar (West Ashley -- former Dog & Duck)
White Duck Taco Shop (James Island)
Wild Olive's Sister Restaurant (Sullivans Island – former Atlanticville)
Zoe’s Kitchen (Mt. Pleasant)
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NATIONAL RESTAURANT TRENDS
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TABLETOP TABLETS ARE GAINING TRACTION
I can only think of one restaurant in Charleston that currently incorporates interactive tabletop tablets into the dining experience. However, looking out upon the national dining scene, it's worth noting that national chain Chili's has committed to installing 7-inch tabletop tablets in 800+ corporate restaurants by the middle of 2014. Their multi-market testing showed that 50% of customers used the tablets to pay their tabs, 10% purchased $0.99 games, and dessert sales rose as much as 20% in some restaurants. Customers can use the tablets to order food and drinks as they wish. The tablets showcase only a limited number of menu items, specialty drinks and desserts with the intent to enhance the guest experience and not completely replace customer interaction with the server.