FARM Bluffton — Restaurant in Bluffton

My wife and I consider ourselves to be “foodies”. Not at the elite level (gastronome), but at a fairly high level. I traveled internationally in my work (now retired) and my wife often accompanied me. We have dined in in some nice restaurants around the world. In particular, we appreciate restaurants with unique offerings. For instance, we recently ate at a local restaurant that offered a beet/grapefruit salad. Who would have thought of that pairing? Not us. So, we were presently surprised when we saw the menu at The Farm. It contained many interesting dishes/pairings, as well as a few traditional dishes. We started with a wedge salad and a tomato salad. Both were very good. Interesting presentations. Next, a roasted summer squash and a lamb Once again, they were very good. The squash was seasoned very nicely. Our final serving was our entrees. My wife had a chicken dish and I had New York strip steak with crispy fries. My wife commented that the chicken was good, but not overwhelming. My steak, on the other hand, was incredibly, undeniably, irrefutably bad. In fact, there are no words to describe how bad it was (though I did try). It was cooked properly, but it was so full of grizzle that I could hardly get through it. In fact, I didn’t. I left half of it on the plate because we would have been there another hour if I tried to eat it all. It was so bad that after chewing each piece for 2-3 minutes I had to take the residual grizzle ball out of my mouth, put it on the plate, and move on to the next cut. I can honestly say that I have never had a strip steak that was that tough. The flavor was not that great either, though I may have missed it because I was working so hard at getting it into a form that could be swallowed. I will say that the au jus was good. I ended up licking that off the pieces of steak that I chose not to eat. The service was good, but a little puzzling. It seemed that the entire service staff was somewhere in the 16-20 age range. I have nothing against that group, but our experience has been that if you go to a restaurant that you pay almost $300 for two people (which we did), you expect to see some staff that can legally drink alcohol. It was kind of like going to McDonald’s, but paying a lot more, and getting higher level of food. So, what can I say? We were hoping that it would be that “go to” restaurant for us since we live in the area. It’s not going to happen. We ate at two restaurants last week on Hilton Head Island and both were much better (I had a steak at one that was to die for), so we’re going to make the drive or find an alternative...

It would be hard to overstate how elegantly FARM is executing their trade. But elegant is perhaps too cold a word. Too often the ubiquitous flannel shirts and jeans are masking cold detachment. From service to food to drink all you feel is warmth and genuine hospitality. Moreover, everyone seems very easy in their skin, which is a marvel for a place like Bluffton or anywhere in the region, for that matter.

For the guest what you get is a seamless and harmonious service experience. And let me tell you, the food execution is excellent and on-point without feeling too cold or technical for technical's sake. The flavors were varied, confident and balanced. They told us they had gone through a couple hundred menu iterations already and you could tell this wild flurry gave them all the opportunity they needed to evolve and get it right. The cocktails were stunning, well balanced and delicious without being showy. Too often I feel modern cocktail makers are trying to show off while sacrificing drinkability. Not so with these drinks. They were delicious, balanced, and you felt you could drink them all night. We opted for the wine pairings with the Chef's Tasting and Thaddeus harmonized his pairings to show both synergy and contrast. The dance was flawless and not once did we feel like a wine was stepping on the toes of a dish. In fact, we learned so much about flavor that night.

Finally, I'll say that I was jealous - jealous because I am a restaurant professional myself and I could not attain the level that they are here at FARM, not currently anyway. But this is high praise, I think. Because my experience also made me feel aspirational, like one day I could cut from the F&B bolt my own piece of fabric like FARM had. Something soothing, warm, and...

This is a farm to table restaurant so the menu changes fairly often. Today they were serving brunch which was an entree and two sides, or three sides. I had shrimp and grits as an entree and I believe they were the best I've ever had. I love shrimp and grits and if they are on the menu I order them so I've eaten my fair share. The dish had red corn grits, a lot of shrimp some thin sliced red onion and a sunny side up egg. All done in a new orleans style. Absolutely wonderful. For sides I had bacon and a stuffed beignet. The bacon was thick crispy and drizzled with maple syrup. These two items would make chefs in New Orleans jealous. The beignet was not what I expected, it was good but to me it was an eclair. It was filled with vanilla custard and covered with chocolate sauce. My wife did the three sides, all I can really say is that they looked great and she obviously loved them. If you go. Make a reservation if you possibly can. With covid, space is at a premium and they try hard to make accomodations but you really do not want to miss this restaurant. The decor is very much farm inspired and both my wife and I thought it was wonderful. The service was wonderful. I'm sure all the wait staff is awesome but I do recommend Cheyenne, very attentive, quick to answer questions, always there and very professional. They also have craft drinks that are tasty and you will probably be able to find one to fit your taste. The price point on the food is very good for a chef owned restaurant so if you're thinking chain restaurant prices they will seem high. For me the drink prices were a little overboard but it didn't stop me us from ordering them. They were tasty.

Have...