| The storefront exterior belies the upscale dining experience inside this gem of a restaurant. Each dish is expertly prepared and presented by a highly skilled staff. The menu changes seasonally so diners enjoy fresh ingredients. Each dish is graced with sauces and reductions, then embellished with fresh garnishes. The professional, knowledgeable wait staff suggests wine pairings from an extensive international cellar to further enhance the meal.
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By Jack Kneece
(Janaury 2008) Langdon's Restaurant and Wine Bar in Mt. Pleasant may not be in downtown Charleston, S.C. but it certainly exemplifies the finest in Charleston-style cuisine. If there was ever an excuse to cross the beautiful, new Arthur Ravenel suspension bridge over the Cooper and Wando Rivers to nearby Mt. Pleasant, this is it.
Dinner reservations are a must for this prestigious, AAA Four-Diamond restaurant, an indication of its soaring popularity among locals and visitors alike.
It won the Wine Spectator Award of Excellence in 2004, 2005 and 2006 for its commitment to an excellent wine list geared to its Low Country cuisine. All of this has happened just since the restaurant opened in 2003.
A recent visitor to the establishment, chose Oysters Rockefeller as an appetizer, a tomato soup with shrimp as a second course, and seared locally caught grouper over asparagus and leek risotto, topped with jumbo lump crab meat as the entree. It was topped with a Meyer lemon and chive beurre blanc sauce. This entree, according to Chef-owner Patrick Langdon Owens, is the most frequently ordered entree, and with good reason. An excellent house Cabernet was the perfect accompaniment. (No, you don't have to order a white wine with seafood if you don't want to.) Coffee and a selection of sorbets finished off a perfect dining experience.
The grouper was cooked to soft-flake perfection. The Oysters Rockefeller selection was on a par — if not better than those at Antoine's, founded in 1840, in New Orleans, the restaurant that invented the dish early in the last century. The major difference: Langdon's did not use as much creamed spinach for a topping as does Antoine's. The local oysters were slightly larger than medium and locally harvested. They were just shy of firm and were delectable.
Price tag for this meal was $81.58 per person. An 18 percent tip would add another $14.68 per person, but few would begrudge the tab after such a dining experience. Service was attentive without being too solicitous. The ambience, with local oil paintings adorning the red walls, was not intrusive but soothing.
Other popular items on the menu include main courses of wood-grilled and lemon oregano butter basted chicken breast with Greek potatoes; thick-cut kurabuto pork rib chops brined and candied with Hoisen Honey glaze with citrus-seared sweet potatoes and collard greens; orange-soy-grilled salmon with crisp cucumber salad and aromatic basmati rice; Maine Lobster, shrimp and scallops over creamy local grits with a savory seafood sauce; Pepper-crusted Hawaiian Ahi tuna over baby greens with avocado relish and wasabi cream topped with fried leeks and infused soy; Black skillet tenderloin of beef with roasted mushrooms, whipped potatoes and truffled cabernet demi (the second most popular dish); Lamb chops with roasted fingerling potatoes, apple, jalapeno and mint gastrique; and, finally, grilled all-natural Niman ranch ribeye steak with creamy gorgonzola and caramelized onion potato gratin finished with a veal demi glace.
The restaurant has proved so popular that Owens said he is planning to open other restaurants in the Charleston area, but each different in theme and cuisine from the others.
Owens, 32, was born in Charleston — a Wando High graduate where he was an all-star football player — and grew up in Mt. Pleasant, where he learned to love southern cuisine, particularly the Low Country variety, which includes generous use of shrimp, other seafood and collard greens. As a young man, he was torn between two loves: music and becoming a chef.
A Clemson marketing graduate, he began playing the guitar professionally and also worked as a private caterer and directed jobs for the Charleston Bay Gourmet Catering Company. But first he paid his dues by working in a number of Charleston restaurant kitchens, slowly learning his craft and experimenting with new dishes an entry level.
Owens is passionate about good food, and he stresses using fresh ingredients from the area, especially the abundance of local seafood. He is plainly proud of the success he has had, and he should be.
The restaurant, situated at 778 South Shellmore Blvd. also has a brisk lunch business. Lunch prices are in the $7 to $15 range.
The wait staff was knowledgeable about all of the dishes and the nuances of the preparation, the sauces and the food origins. The Normandy bread was hot and delicious, served with savory garlic-whipped butter.
The dessert menu, which changes with the availability of fresh fruit, on a recent night included just five items. In addition to the various fruit sorbets, there were: seasonal berry crisps, homemade, large chocolate chip cookies served with vanilla ice cream, chocolate cake served with coffee ice cream and other toppings; and Madagascan-Bourbon vanilla bean creme brulee, garnished with fresh berries.
Langdon's is the only AAA Four-Diamond restaurant in Mt. Pleasant. Reservations can be made by phoning (843) 388-9200. (Updated Janaury 2008) |
