While downtown often gets the glory when it comes to Charleston’s best cuisine, some of the most delicious restaurants in the area are off the peninsula. From a treasured beach spot to the 2026 Best New Restaurant winner in Charleston City Paper’s Best Of Charleston awards, here are five stellar meals you’ll find outside downtown.
Obstinate Daughter is an island trailblazer
When Jacques Larson and Doug Godley opened the Obstinate Daughter on Sullivan’s Island in 2014, the duo was well-versed in fine dining outside of downtown. Wild Olive, their Italian restaurant on Johns Island, has been a Lowcountry favorite since 2009.
At Obstinate Daughter, Larson — a two-time James Beard Award nominated chef — serves a seasonal Southern menu influenced by French, Italian and Spanish cuisine. Think pizza, pasta, small plates and a raw bar highlighting the best that local ingredients have to offer.
Diners enjoy plates like a shrimp roll with Marsh Hen Mill frites, ricotta gnocchi with short rib ragu and pesce a la plancha (fish grilled on a metal plate) with Carolina gold rice “risotto.”…