We made a very quick trip up to Charleston this weekend. Our biggest issue, as always, was where to eat. Charleston obviously has some excellent restaurants and we even like some of them but we tend to avoid those normally recommended in travel guides and travel blogs. We like things that are a little different or a little more laid back.

Since we were in the West Ashley/Downtown area I wanted to stay in that area. Driving into North Charleston or Summerville was really not something I wanted to do just to eat. So, I looked at the Charleston City Paper and TW read the hotel travel guide, I picked a couple and called Jenn and Michelle to find out what they wanted – plate food, not pizza. So, we hit The Triangle for dinner on Friday night. Awesome. The fried avocado rolls were, well, the defy explanation. Next time I go, I might just order a plate of those as my meal rather than having to share with the table! The spinach/avocado dip was also good and the main courses were as well. (TW got a bread pudding to go and was not as pleased with that – so if you like bread pudding, you might want to skip that one)

While TW was reading the hotel magazine she noticed Cereality had come to Charleston! The magazine said it was opening in mid-June. The company’s website still had it listed as “check back for grand opening”. Since we had really enjoyed the Cereal Bowl version in Miami last year with the little kids we thought we’d take the big girls to this one – so I called on Saturday to find out what time they opened. The young woman who answered the phone was unsure and had to ask – 10am, she said. So, we arranged to meet the girls there at 10 before they headed to the beach and we headed home.

As TW were standing outside waiting for the girls and pondering the menu, a gentleman from inside came over to welcome us to “the first 15 minutes of the first day” – huh? We had no idea we had arrived for the grand opening. What luck! The girls arrived, we all pondered the options and ordered. Fun! Pop Rocks in Michelle’s cereal were a huge hit. She and Michelle plotted all sorts of combos, just like the little kids did after we took them to The Cereal Bowl.

We enjoyed the communal tables, it’s a little loud and I really hope they turn the music down just a little bit so we can enjoy the cartoons playing on the TV and the conversation a bit more. Other than that, it was a hit with all of us today. And I’m pretty sure it will be a regular breakfast stop for us on our frequent trips to Charleston.