Myrtle Beach--Part 2

In addition to spending lots of time at the beach, we also took a few day trips. On Monday, we drove to Charleston for the day. Tim was off, so he was able to come with us, and since we had the handy MV (mini van), we were able to fit all 7 of us (including 2 car seats and 2 strollers) in one vehicle. This was especially nice because Charleston is about two hours away from Myrtle Beach. We left about 9:30am, and decided to take a tour of Fort Sumter first. Since Fort Sumter is an island, we had to wait for the 1:30 ferry from Patriot's Point. Since we got there around 12:30, we were able to have a nice lunch outside from their snack bar, and let the kids explore.

Sitting on a cannon:


One of the naval ships:

Ready to get on the ferry!


The ferry ride took about half an hour, and it was a lot of fun. The ferry was open on the upper level, so the kids could look out, and the lower level was air conditioned and almost empty, so Collette and Reed were able to run and play and burn some energy. :o)

LL and Collette on the ferry:




Fort Sumter was really interesting, and the weather was beautiful. Also, for any of you who remember the past Gettysburg debacles of 2010 (wherein the menfolk wanted to spend untold hour exploring every rock and reading every.single.sign, and wherein the womenfolk were about to lose their minds dealing with small children who were BEYOND MELTDOWN while their beloved menfolk looked at aforementioned signs), the Fort Sumter had a limited time frame, because when the ferry departed, we had to be on it. :o)

After taking the ferry back, we decided to explore downtown Charleston until our dinner reservations. (Sorry, no pictures of that!)

And then it was time for dinner at FIG. LL and I have wanted to go there for years, since we had our fabulous Viking Cooking Weekend with Chef Mike Lata, who owns FIG. So we were ecstatic to get a dinner reservation for 7 (including 2 high chairs) for 5:30 at night. The dinner was INCREDIBLE! Seriously, some of the best food I've ever put in my mouth. It was right up there with our Marc Forgione experience in NYC.

And yes, I took pictures of our incredible food. If food isn't your thing, you may want to scroll past this part. ;o)
Ricotta Gnocchi and Border Springs Farm Lamb Bolognese (Deemed the best appetizer by the table; even Collette approved!)

"Capers Blades" on the Half Shell, Lemon infused migonette (LL and Tim ate those and swore they were the best oysters they had ever eaten. I will take their word for it!):

 Selection of Domestic Artisanal Cheeses with vidalia onion jam:

 Main dishes!
Pan Roasted Gag Grouper, sauce romesco, jumbo asparagus, crispy shallots, tomato confit:

Strube Ranch Wagyu Bistro Steak, new potatoes, hen-of-the-woods, sauce bordelaise, salad verte:

Caw Caw Creek Suckling Pig Confit, sauteed greens, roast spring vegetables, mustard jus, smoked bacon:

 Sauteed Beeliner Snapper, capers inlet clam and spring vegetable chowder, pancetta, fine herbs:

And of course we can't forget dessert! Unfortunately, the desserts weren't listed on the main menu, so I don't have their "fancy" names.  But you will still get the idea!



Chocolate-salted caramel pudding with hazelnuts and olive oil crustini (voted best dessert by our table):

Blackberry cream custard:

 Almond pound cake with peaches and blueberries:

It was not a low-calorie day, but it was incredible! And for a 2 hour dinner, both Reed and Collette did exceptionally well. :o)

By the time we got back from Charleston, it was after 10:00pm. It was a long day, so worth it!