recently, I went to charleston fo the first time and i was truly blown away by all the vegan options! i wasn’t quite sure what to expect but trust me when I say i ate good. so, in this blog post we will dive into where and what i eat in charleston.
the area
I am definitely not a Charleston aficionado but I definitely feel I have a bit of a better grasp on the geography than I did. So, if this is your first time visiting I want to explain it to you a bit. Also, please note I am just a visitor that traveled there and this was how I felt it made sense in my head.
When watching TikToks and doing research I felt very overwhelmed. So, I think the best thing is to look at a map. There are 3 main points in Charleston, at least that was how I thought of it.
In the middle is Charleston. This is where King Street, the French Quarter, Rainbow Row, Cannonborough and Elliotborough are. Then, to the north is another main point which is called Mount Pleasant. This is where Shem Creek, I’on, Island of Palms, Sullivans Island, and Mount Pleasant is. Finally, a bit to the south is the other main point this is where Folly Beach is.
the restaurants
Basic Kitchen – Charleston
One of my favorite places we ate. If this was where I lived I would be there weekly. The food all comes from local farms in area. They have clearly marked vegan options. We enjoyed the corn ribs they were so delicious. I got the basic bowl with tofu which was so delicious and their mocktails/cocktails were so good! The island blossom was beautiful. Everyone enjoyed their food and the place itself is so cute.
Holey City Bagels – Charleston
As a New Yorker it is hard for me to truly enjoy bagels anywhere else. The bagel itself was decent. I believe the owners are from either NJ or NY because there were NY Yankee and NJ Devils signs on the wall, So, I do believe they tried their best to make bagels like home. They have a wide variety of delicious flavors of bagels with the ones that are vegan being clearly marked. They also have vegan butter and vegan cream cheese! For coffee they had a bunch of non-dairy milks. This place does get very busy so be sure to either go early or be ready for a wait.
BKeDSHoP – Charleston
I wish I were joking when I said this was the best donut I have ever had in my life. The dough was unlike anything all of 3 of us had ever had. It was chewy but also doughy. I can’t even begin to explain how delicious it was. They had 4 vegan donut flavor options when we went: orange blossom, lavender sprinkle, almond crunch, and lemon poppy. I had the lavender sprinkle and almond crunch which were both incredible. The almond crunch reminded me of an almond croissant. They also have fun seasonal lattes and drinks. I got a delicious blueberry green iced tea.
Off Track – Charleston
This ice cream place is INCREDIBLE. I truly think for once the vegan flavors were better than the non-vegan flavors. They have vegan cones, vegan hot fudge, vegan sundaes, vegan cookies – seriously everything. Their vegan ice creams are made with a variety of ingredients so you can check on their website for allergens. They do definitely have one completely nut free flavor if nuts are a problem for you. I got the Cookie Monster flavor which is blue ice cream made with spirulina with oreos and chocolate chip cookies. Vegan Brown Sugar & Oat Milk which was like oatmeal cookies and Vegan Fluffernutter Blondie which had hints of vegan marshmallow and blondie pieces. If you are an ice cream lover you have to go.
Frannie and the Fox – Charleston
There are no explicit vegan options on this menu. However, this kept coming up on TikTok as a restaurant to go to and as my friends aren’t vegan I knew I could finesse this menu. I simply told our waiter I was vegan and he was so nice. We started off with the olives and beans appetizer. I got the margherita pizza without cheese and I asked if they could make any veggies as a side. He said they had broccolini so they just sauteed with some oil and lemon, it was delicious. I also had a beautiful mocktail. The ambiance is so nice there I highly recommend sitting outside by the huge fireplace. Definitely, make a reservation!
Pineapple Hut – Folly Beach
As we drove onto Folly Beach I saw the cutest little truck and then I said it said the Pineapple Hut! It is just dole whip which if you don’t know is basically pineapple soft serve. There is no dairy, nuts, soy, etc as it is only made from pineapple. They have a few options to choose from and tons of toppings. I got coconut flakes and tajin. It was the perfect snack after a long day at the beach.
Chico Feo – Folly Beach
Full disclosure I did not eat here. My friends did but they aren’t vegan. After we left the beach we walked over to Chico Feo, which was one of the coolest places I have ever seen. It truly just reminds me of someone’s outdoor treehouse dream. The menu is small but they do have bean tacos and burritos. Since, I didn’t eat there I didn’t verify if their beans were definitely vegan, so you may want to call ahead and ask. The menu is small and they have a really interesting cocktail and beer/IPA menu. They are open late, you order at the bar, and seat yourself. There is also live music and tons of dogs. It is just a really good time
Tavern & Table – Shem Creek
One spot I kept seeing that you had to visit was Shem Creek. I am going to be honest I was so excited to go there but I personally would pass. We did take the water taxi over which was really fun but from there you need to Uber down to Shem Creek. It is a bunch of restaurants on the marina and they said you can see dolphins but sadly we didn’t see any. There is nothing vegan at Tavern & Table. However, I figured I could either get the poke bowl without the tuna or there was a grilled veggie dish. Our waiter was very nice and told them to double up on all the veggies on the poke bowl and I will say it was delicious. The restaurant is pretty and very big.
Little Line – Charleston
We actually found this place because it was in our Air B&B booklet. They had breakfast sandwiches. Unfortunately, their specialty seems to be biscuits and they don’t have vegan ones. But they have vegan sausage, vegan cheese, and all their bread aside from the biscuits were vegan! I had gotten a potato roll. It was yummy and delicious. Their coffee and teas are minimal but they were good. This place is very small and menu is limited but I definitely appreciate them having vegan options.
Stella’s – Charleston
On our first night of dinner we didn’t know where to go. We looked at a few places and decided on Stella’s! It is a beautiful restaurant with some great options. It is Greek/Mediterranean Food which I love. We had shared the pita with hummus and tabouli. Then, for my main dinner I had lentil soup, the lemon potatoes, and gigantes beans. Personally, the lentil soup was a bit too tomatoey but the gigantes and lemon potatoes were amazing. They also have a dish called Yia’s Yia’s Skillet which is marked as vegan.
Three Girls on Spring – Charleston
This is an all vegan Italian deli! I was so so so excited to try here because their original location is in CT. Even though I am from NY it is about a 3 hour round trip which has always felt like a big ordeal. However, I finally got to try their food because our Air B&B was a 3 minute walk away. They have so many amazing sandwich options. I got the Bellissimo which was amazing. It was my meal on the airplane and it really hit the spot. The cutlet sandwich is made out of flax seed! I couldn’t believe it and I don’t know how they did it because I would never guess in a million years that is what it was made out of.
Bad Bunnies Coffee – Charleston
I just wanted to throw in this little coffee shop. It was cute inside and the hibiscus peach tea was delicious. Everyone who worked there was so nice and it had a good vibe.
places we didn’t go but wanted to try
While we did eat at so many amazing places there are of course always more things to see and try.
The Citrus Club – Charleston
On our last night we were going to go here to get drinks and watch the sunset. We got a little lazy and had a bottle of wine to drink that we bought anyway so we ended up staying home. However, the view is apparently beautiful and it is a nice rooftop bar.
Bangin’ Vegan Eats Food Truck – Charleston
A vegan food truck that is all around Charleston! You can find info on their Facebook page with where they will be. Their food looks like complete and utter delicious comfort food with sandwiches, burgers, and more!
Sorghum & Salt – Charleston
This restaurant has vegan options and vegan modifications clearly marked on their menu. The menu sounds delicious and very unique.
Annie O Love’s Cookie Cafe – Charleston
This is a fully vegan cafe with gluten free options. They have tons of desserts and smoothies. The menu sounds delicious and like it would be the perfect place to stop by for a sweet treat.
Lost Isle – John’s Island
I know very little about this place other than that it looked really cool. They had a smaller menu and only a few things that I thought could be made into having a vegan option. The ambiance looked incredible. It just looked like a total beachy cool place to eat. This is close to the Angel Oak tree so if you are planning on visiting that, you should look into here!
Huriyali Gardens – Folly Beach
We originally thought we would stop here on the way to Folly Beach but then we did not. It is a place for smoothie bowls, sandwiches, and more. It looks so adorable.
Post House – Mount Pleasant
This restaurant looked so cute. They had one vegan option. It was just a typical bowl of things but it did look very adorable.
Of course you always look on Happycow.net, research on Tiktok, and find blogs with even more Charleston eats! Don’t be afraid to call places ahead of time and also look up menus and see what you can work with. I think because Charleston has become such a huge travel destination so many places are accommodating now.
grocery shopping
We also went to the grocery store while we were in Charleston. There was a huge Publix about a 10 minute drive from where we were staying. So, it made it super easy to grab some vegan things there like vegan yogurt, and vegan ice cream. We stayed in and did vegan tacos and vegan quesadillas one night. I saw all the brands I know and love.
If you are renting an Air B&B it is so nice to be able to grab some things you know and like. I don’t know about but it is hard for me to eat every meal out. I miss my own food and cooking at home. So, having a kitchen was great.
overall thoughts
I truly loved Charleston. We saw and did so many beautiful things. This was a girls long weekend trip with 2 of my friends from college. None of us had ever been so it was so great to experience it all together.
We ate so much great food, made amazing memories, and saw such beautiful things. We felt that we had enough relaxation time but we also did so much. I also high recommend if you go to Folly Beach for the day, to use the Folly Beach Chair Rental. We had the chairs and umbrellas from 9 to 5, they were a bit pricey but divided by 3 of us with a tip it was about $40 each.
In Charleston I felt it was so easy to get around. We did constantly compare Lyft and Uber prices. Lyft was usually cheaper so that is just something to take into consideration. Our longest car rides were to the beach and the airport that took about 20 to 25 minutes.
Finally, I love the airport. Compared to the chaos of my typical NY airports, looking at you JFK & LGA, Charleston airport was a breeze. We got through security in 2 seconds and it is only one terminal.
So, if you are debating visiting Charleston I definitely recommend the trip! It is small enough to be able to do what you want in a few days while being big enough to do a lot of things!
Thank you for visiting charleston south carolina. I love my city and love that you enjoyed your time here.
Hi Lisa!! it was truly so beautiful I cannot wait to come back one day!!