Maybe it’s because both cities are in the Carolinas, or the drive between them is short, or because the names start the same, but Charlotte is often compared to Charleston — at least when discussing food. So we reached out to Steve Palmer, the restaurateur behind Indigo Road, to get his take. His concepts span Charleston, Charlotte, and Atlanta; locally, O-Ku, Oak, and Sukoshi fall under the restaurant group.

“It’s interesting to me that people compare them,” Palmer says of the cities. “I think they’re very different.”

Here’s why.

 

WELCOMING THE NEW

“I’ve been in and out of Charlotte a lot,” Palmer says. “There’s a mix of a couple of things going on in Charlotte in my opinion, though I certainly don’t want to speak as an authority on Charlotte. But there’s an open-mindedness to try new things and there’s an optimism and an enthusiasm for new restaurants that is really awesome.”

Charleston, on the other hand, has a much stronger sense of place, Palmer says, and because of that, has been slower to move outside of its typical coastal cuisine.

“I think that diversification in Charleston has started to happen.”

 

VACATIONERS VS. RESIDENTS

“I think people that come to Charleston to vacation,” he says. “They’re expecting seafood, they’re expecting low-country produce. I think there’s more of an idea of that modern American palate, there’s obviously a lot of seafood restaurants in Charleston. I think people that are coming there are expecting — not all people that are coming there, but a lot of the people that are coming there — are looking for really Southern food.

“I think with Charlotte, you’re dealing with mostly residents. And so they’re going out on a Tuesday night and they might be trying Indian food, they might be trying Italian food the next night. Certainly that diversity exists in Charleston, but I think we talk a lot about the people that are visiting Charleston. They’re coming there to experience low-country and Southern food.”

 

THE DEMOGRAPHICS

Those who do live in Charleston tend to be older than Charlotteans, changing what’s in demand and how new restaurants are received.

“I feel like Charlotte is, not that there’s no history in Charlotte but there’s so many young people there’s just a real youthful vibrance the city’s got right now,” Palmer says. “I think it’s very unique in the South.”

There’s also a difference in size; Charlotte is home to millions, Charleston only around half a million.

 

JOHNSON & WALES

There’s constant debate here over whether Johnson & Wales has helped grow Charlotte’s culinary scene, and while Palmer says he can’t answer that, he has noticed how the school’s departure has hurt Charleston.

“In the kitchen, it’s been really hard,” he says. “We had the benefit of all the students that again being a smaller town, the campus was downtown, they all wanted to cook in downtown restaurants. When they left, we definitely felt a shift in our labor force.”

 

LOOKING AHEAD

Charleston may have been first recognized as a foodie town, but Charlotte isn’t far behind, Palmer believes.

“For Charleston, I think it’s been a long arc,” he says. “I think with Charlotte, it’s already happening, so I think we’re going to see more and more chef-driven restaurants and better and better food offerings and I think that makes us all better. Any time a great restaurant opens I think it just makes us look at ourselves in the mirror and say, ‘Okay, we’ve got to get better.’

“In other words, the more that great restaurants open, the more that great restaurants will open. I think that a rising tide floats all boats, and in Charlotte it’s already happening. And there’s already chefs that have been doing it. I mean, Jim Noble has been around Charlotte for a long, long time and he’s a friend and somebody I deeply respect.

I’m certainly not trying to suggest that there haven’t been great chefs in Charlotte doing great food. Bruce Moffett is another guy that I think has been quietly doing great food in Charlotte for a long time. I just feel like Charlotte’s having its moment now. I don’t know exactly why, but it’s exciting to be a part of.” —Kristen Wile

Unpretentious People Say...

Other Articles You Might Enjoy