Weekend in the Low Country

What a great trip,BB.Absoluetly love following along with you!!!

The best part...two weekends in a row!

Saturday June 21, 2009 cont.

One of the main reasons for this trip was to eat at Sweatman's BBQ, outside of Holly Hill. I have only been here one time before and that was in 1999. This was very soon after I bought my first Jane & Michael Stern book. Along with the late great Mendenhall Hotel Revolving Tables Restaurant in Mississippi, this place convinced me how special these Roadfood restaurants are and how much I enjoyed seeking them out.

As an added bonus, my friend Lisa, her husband Tim and daughter Carly agreed to drive over from Columbia to meet me. They moved to SC from Pittsburgh in 2004 and haven't been very impressed by the local bbq. But then, Lisa was born in Memphis, so you know what type of 'q she is used to.

I arrived right before the designated time of 4:30, but Lisa called to say they were slightly lost. This gave me some time to snap some photos of the outside.



Notice the limited hours they are open. In the tradition of the classic South Carolina "pig pickin", they are only open on Fridays and Saturdays.

I also had time to snap some more photos on the inside.


Even the reserved sign is shaped like a pig!


My friends arrived and we got in line. Note of warning..... Sweatman's doesn't take credit cards, which my friends found out! By the way, they no longer have the policy that if this is your first visit here, you get two trips to the buffet and if you have been here before, you only get one. It is now, the more typical, go as many times as you want.

You can order off the menu,

but the buffet is the way to go.

I really love this photo of the little girl in the buffet line.


There aren't a lot of choices here. But you can get hash,

ribs,

white and dark pork, pickles and cole slaw.


The barbecue sauce of choice in this area of the country is the yellow mustardy sauce.

It reminds me of a more vinegary honey mustard salad dressing. I know it isn't for everyone, but I absolutely love it! They do also offer, what they called a "ketchupy bbq sauce", but I had no interest in trying it.

Here is my first plate.

As you can see, I let the sauce get away from me a little bit.

I wish some of my photos of the pork itself had come out better, but the pork is outstanding. The dark is especially moist and piggy flavored. I would have no problem eating it sauceless. I am less impressed by the ribs. Both the hash and cole slaw also get big thumbs up from me. Lisa, Tim and Carly also really enjoyed their food very much.

Sitting in a tree surrounded house, this is a more polite bbq parlor. The dining room is pleasant and comfortable.


Another nice touch is that, since everyone is drinking the sweet tea, they just put an entire pitcher on your table.

The sweet tea is also outstanding and near Beacon Drive-in quality.

I had a wonderful time seeing old friends and we ended up talking for over three hours. With frequent returns to the buffet line in between, of course. Dessert here is banana pudding, a real bargain at .60 cents.

This is world class banana pudding. CajunKing, you would love this stuff! I ate two there and grabbed a third for the drive back to Charleston.

I really love Sweatman's and I'm glad it lived up to my memory. I would give the food a 9 and the atmosphere a 10. I have six bbq parlors I have visited, that I consider the absolute elite level places. Those are Lexington #1, Skylight Inn, Cozy Corner, Clark's Outpost, Louie Mueller's and Smitty's. I would put Sweatman's just a notch below those six.

I had given some serious thought to going to another restaurant late Saturday night, but I was spent. I was quite happy to relax in my room the rest of the night, snacking on the goodies I bought at George & Pink.


More to come.....

It looks kinda like your pork was covered in that banana pudding.

Great trip report! I'm hungry right now, but since I'm in downtown Los Angeles at this moment, there's no quality BBQ in my immediate future.

Question: I'm unfamiliar with the hash you've shown in a couple of different photos. It doesn't look like any hash I'm familiar with ... looks more like some kind of gravy. Can you explain this type of hash to poor ignorant me?

quote:

Originally posted by The Travelin Man

It looks kinda like your pork was covered in that banana pudding.

Thanks for the idea, I will try that next time!

BB

I sat in that same exact table @ the pavilion!!!!! The beach house I had rented was just down the way (walking/stumbling) distance.

SC used to be a no open pour state and only served alcohol in those little airplane sized bottles, man did we get toasted.

I am sorry to see that so many RF places have closed down in EB. I really enjoyed my stay there could have been the food or the alcohol or the company

That nana puddin looks awesome, I haven't been to sweatmans in several years. I really enjoyed my time there. I am not really too big on mustard based que sauces, but their sauce had a good flavor.

catosaurus

SC BBQ Hash is sort of like BBQ stew without the veggies (if that makes any sense)

The meat is simmered in the mustard based sauce, until extremely tender and then served over rice or with white bread.


Here is my low country hash recipe, it may give yo a better idea of what it is

3 to 4 lb. pork shoulder
cold water
dash black pepper
dash salt

Sauce

Medium onion, chopped
2 TBSP butter
4 TBSP vinegar
2 TBSP brown sugar
4 TBSP lemon juice
1 Cup chili sauce
chopped parsley
1 TBSP dry mustard
3 TBSP worcestershire sauce
4 TBSP prepared mustard

Instructions

Place pork in a large saucepan with enough cold water to halfway cover it
Add salt and pepper
Bring to a boil, then simmer until well done
Remove from pan, cool, then remove all fat and bones
Shred the lean meat and set aside while preparing the sauce

Brown the onion in the butter
Add vinegar, brown sugar, lemon juice, chili sauce, chopped parsley, dry mustard, worcestershire
sauce and prepared mustard
Simmer for 30 minutes

Add the shredded meat and simmer this mixture for another hour

Serve with white bread or serve over cooked hot rice.

catosaurus, barbecue hash in the South is typically what your cook does with the leftovers, so in polite places like Sweatman's and in Don's recipe, it only calls for trims from the shoulder or ham or whatever they're barbecuing. But at a pig pickin' or a home cook's hash might include organ meats chopped fine. That's why in the South you say you gotta know who made the hash, or who washed the chitlins. It's what you did with the rest of the pig when you were too poor to just throw it away, and it's often what the children ate, thus the rice or white bread to stretch it. I don't think I ate anything but hash until I was grown. Again, poor people food. If you're thinking about corned beef hash or roast beef hash it's really not the same thing. It's almost always wet and gravylike, but the underlying notion--using something you can't serve otherwise--is the same.

Nancy

Hey in the south we use every part o the pig cept the squeal.

I provided my "Yankee" version for those of that persuasion

Thank you to Nancy and CajunKing for providing informative answers to catosaurus' excellent question. I should have realized not everyone was familiar with hash. Knowing that it is whatever is leftover from the pig, this is one of those foods you probably don't want to think too much about while you are eating. It sure is good over a bed of rice, though.

So Don do you ever make hash the 'old school' way, even just for your family?

Really, hash is one of those dishes a cook can show off at, because you're basically making something from not much. I can remember being told to have some hash when I wasn't feeling all that well and didn't want a big supper; it's a comfort food for people who grew up with it. As I recall, Sweatman's example was quite good. I'm so sorry I didn't get to meet up with you Cliff; it looks like you had a delightful time.

Okay, one more thing about Sweatman's. You'll notice they really don't do a lot of sides; they keep it to what they can do well. That's a sign of a great barbecue buffet. Cliff now I want you to try Duke's in Orangeburg or Walterboro, and Shealy's, and give me a comparison.

Nancypalooza-
It would have been great had you been able to join us. But, we will have other opportunities. My friend Lisa is really nagging me to come visit her in Columbia, so I will have to make a point to do that. I told her if she can get Gamecock football tix this Fall, I am there!

I do like the fact that Sweatman's doesn't make a lot of sides. You are there to eat bbq and that is what they do. Look how poor my sides were at Po Pigs earlier in the day.

I have been to the Duke's in Walterboro twice, but not for many, many years. I loved the place! They definitely have a much bigger selection on the buffet, though. I told Lisa, when I come down, they have to take me to Shealy's!

BB - When sweet tea is the preferred beverage, do you usually find unsweetened tea also?

I usually make hash with leftover butt or shoulder now, If I have the scraps from a whole piggy then yes I like using it all. Not os much on the organ meat though

There are folks who are discriminating with the organ meat, and folks who aren't at all. It can make it taste funky.

CTD yes, typically. You might have to ask for it and it might be in a very lonely pitcher off in the corner. There are too many folks with diabetes in this part of the world to not have it at all.

Gregg
Our experience makes the availablity of unsweetened tea as an option to the 'normal' sweetened version fade the further south you go. Here in Louisville, at non-national chains, I would guess it is about a 75% chance you can get non-sweet as an option...and many places will ask which you prefer. By the time you get to Nashville, my guess is a lot fewer places will offer the choice and south of Tennessee it would be a rare foodstop that served non-sweet. At least that has been our experience. perhaps the choices vary more as you travel down I-95 along the east coast. West of the Mississippi, grab the little bags of sweetener, as most places seem to serve non-sweet.

Nancy & Al - Thanks for the information...I appreciate it!

I swear bb, I don't know how you manage to travel so much and hit so many places to eat! Good for you.....and as always another great trip report and pics.

quote:

Originally posted by buffetbuster
Everything I know about chatting up the pretty waitresses, I learned from wanderingjew and Travelin Man!

Whoa, wait a second there....I think TTM deserves sole credit for that.....

I'm so jealous that you got to Sweatman's. As you know I really, really really wanted to get there this past February but i now realize (and should plan in advance for this) that the airlines have been consistently "screwing me over" for the last 3 out of 4 trips I've taken.

As always, a suprb report and great photos. it is always a pleasure to read about one of your trips. hope you will make it out to the west coast. We'll try to add some more reviews so you can continue to up your total.

So BB, was this AFTER the baseball trip with WJ and TTM? You are the BAAAADDEST man in Roadfood! Thanks for providing a wide open window into a world and cuisine I know next to nothing about. Oh, how I wish we had those Sweatman's prices in NYC!! Love the "dude" in the lawn chair, just truckin' along, good buddy! No pie, eh? We'll need to remedy that this fall. You really must come to the Pie Social in Brooklyn in September. There are usually about 40-50 different kinds of pies there each year!

Sunday June 22, 2009 

My favorite spot in Charleston is the Battery. Located at the end of the peninsula, it is a great place to walk or just relax near the water. My plan was to grab a couple snacks and eat them on a park bench. So, my first stop was Cafe Cafe.

They are apparently a sister restaurant to Diana's, which I ate in two nights earlier. There wasn't a lot to choose from, but there was a fine looking chocolate cake sitting out, so I asked for a piece of that. When I got to the park and picked my box up, it was soaked as was everything else around it. They had covered it with whipped cream, which made a ridiculous mess.

I'm not much for whipped cream myself, but this didn't ruin the cake for me. It just made it a lot less photogenic. I did dump all the whipped cream I could in the garbage can and ate it that way.

Trust me.....it tasted better than it looks. I also enjoyed a fine banana nut muffin.


I spent the next hour or so, walking around the Battery and the nearby streets.





As much as I enjoy the Battery, the restaurant I wanted to eat breakfast in was opening at 8:00AM and I had expected there to be a line. I arrived at Hominy Grill

at 7:50AM and was the sixth person in line. That gave me plenty of time admire this sign on the side wall.


You know how sometimes when you walk in to a restaurant and just know you are in for a really good meal? This is one of those places. Located in a bulding that used to be a barbershop, the poles on the inside are still here.


Here is a blurry photo of the specials available that morning.


Liver pudding, Ort! Once again, where are you when I need you?

This was a tough decision, but the mushrooms and pimiento cheese sauce in the hominy egg casserole leaned me in that direction. I got the sunflower toast on the side.


Everything on that plate was top notch, yet still could not match the amazing bacon.

Double thick bacon, this is as good a bacon as I have ever had!

Dessert choices were plentiful,

but how could I pass up homemade chocolate pudding?

Devilishy thick and rich, this competed with the banana pudding at Sweatman's for best dessert of the weekend.

http://www.roadfood.com/Reviews/Writeup.aspx?ReviewID=1866&RefID=1799

Full after another saisfying meal, it was time to do some sightseeing.

More to come.....

BB - As I read the Specials list, i was torn between the Crab Stuffed Omelette and the Mushroom and Hominy Egg Casserole...your choice looks great!

I would have been swayed by the Shrimp Burger, but I would have had a tough time turning those two down as well. Nice dessert choice too. I haven't been to the Hominy Grill in like 8 years, I gotta go back.

CTD-
The crab stuffed omelette would have been my second choice for breakfast at Hominy Grill. But once again, I figured that if they are so proud of the hominy that they put it in the restaurant's name, then that is something I must try. I do get the feeling, though, that absolutely everything is good there.

As for your sweet tea question, I am finding it more and more in the South that you will be asked if you want your iced tea sweet or unsweet. If they don't ask you, you will get sweet. At home, I always get my tea unsweet and don't add anything. But there is just something about being in the South that makes me want to drink the sweet stuff while I am visiting. Maybe it is a "When in Rome", kind of thing.

What dessert would you have chosen?

NancyPalooza-
Had I been eating lunch, the shrimp burger would have been an easy choice. That just didn't sound like breakfast to me. But then again, some might not think chocolate pudding is breakfast food, either.

I'm thinking of the old Bill Cosby routine about feeding his daughters chocolate cake for breakfast. ;) You didn't ask me but I would have had a hard time turning down either of the pound cakes. I bet the lemon-ginger is to die for.

It might just be anecdotal, but it really seems to me that sweet tea is getting indiscriminately sweeter here too. There are places--and they often tend to be chains--that the tea is so sweet as to be near undrinkable. I find myself ordering water to thin it real often, or just sticking to unsweetened. When it makes your teeth hurt, folks, it's too sweet.

quote:

Originally posted by Nancypalooza

I'm thinking of the old Bill Cosby routine about feeding his daughters chocolate cake for breakfast. ;) You didn't ask me but I would have had a hard time turning down either of the pound cakes. I bet the lemon-ginger is to die for.

It might just be anecdotal, but it really seems to me that sweet tea is getting indiscriminately sweeter here too. There are places--and they often tend to be chains--that the tea is so sweet as to be near undrinkable. I find myself ordering water to thin it real often, or just sticking to unsweetened. When it makes your teeth hurt, folks, it's too sweet.

I'm a sweet tea drinker, my Mom not so much. She orders her's "half & half".

quote:

Originally posted by buffetbuster

Sunday June 22


Here is a blurry photo of the specials available that morning.


Liver pudding, Ort! Once again, where are you when I need you?

This was a tough decision, but the mushrooms and pimiento cheese sauce in the hominy egg casserole leaned me in that direction. I got the sunflower toast on the side.


Everything on that plate was top notch, yet still could not match the amazing bacon.

OK
You are definately my brother from a different mother, that would have been my choice for breakfast too.

Ok CK, which dessert would you have ordered?