CO Restaurant — Restaurant in Charleston

When my wife and I walked past CO and saw the unique food offerings, we were so excited that we ended up walking back many blocks to have a late lunch at the restaurant. The environment in the restaurant was nice. Our difficulty started with me ordering an iced tea and asking for sweetener. When our drinks arrived, I asked again for sweetener. The waiter said that he forgot and that he would be right back. After reminding him a third time that I still did not have any sweetener, the waiter brought me one packet of Splenda.

For an appetizer, we ordered the Mango Summer Roll. Please don't let the name fool you, because they should have been called cilantro rolls. There was so much cilantro, along with the stalks, in the rolls that you could taste nothing else. My wife and I had to take out most of the cilantro to even try to taste the three small slivers of mango that were in each roll. In addition, there was so much jalapeno in the second half of my roll that it was inedible. I like spicy food, but this was beyond spicy. It caused my lips to swell and my mouth to burn. Sadly, I had nothing to drink since the waiter never returned to fill my drink, so I had to go to the bathroom to get some water out of the faucet because I couldn't find our waiter. When I returned and told the waiter that the roll was so hot it was inedible, he told me that I must have bitten into a jalapeno and took the plate from our table, leaving half of the order uneaten but never taking the item off of the bill.

In fairness, my entree, the Thai Green Curry, was tasty and it was because of my entree that I gave the place two stars. I ate all of it, and enjoyed the flavor of the dish. My wife ordered the Pho Dac Biet, and her entree experience was much different than mine. She barely touched her dish due to the fact that there was so much mint cooked into the broth that you could barely taste anything else. It literally tasted like meat and noodles in mint broth.

While the prices are reasonable, we felt that taste of the food was not deserving of the price we paid for the meal. If you love chewing on cilantro stalks and the taste of mint in your entrees, I would highly recommend this place. Also, I would recommend that you bring your own sweetener if you drink iced tea, otherwise order something else to drink. After our experience, I am sure that there are better options in a section of the city where there is an abundance of...

I want to tell you all about my two least favorite bowls of soup.

I went out looking for ramen. Heard there was a pop up at basic kitchen and was directed here. Sat at the bar and waited. This would become a theme the waiting. I waited so long I got a parking ticket.

I wanted a white Thai and was promised it was being changed over, 30 minutes later the bartender (we will get to her) tells me she hasn’t changed it ‘cause she didn’t have time.’ This was a blatant lie which I discovered when she attempted to change it after I asked about the beer for the third time and she had the co2 hose spraying the restaurant for 5 minutes so nobody could talk.

Also I could not understand a word she said. Something about the Scottish accent - they don’t feel like they have to adjust to be understood and they speak so fast it’s just not convenient for my brain or ears. In a noisy environment especially.

Here’s the kicker. After waiting 30 plus minutes for my soup (Vietnamese ramen) it came out without a smell. I swear to you if you put your whole nose over this thing you will detect nothing. To me this is the greatest crime. What is the point of soup (especially ramen) if you can’t waft it up and experience the rich bone broth, the fat which has been rendering for hours just for you to warm up your soul? No smell, no taste. Couldn’t find any pork belly. The shredded pork was unseasoned (this would be a theme as well.) Boring noodles, no spice, nothing really to be interested by in this bowl. Sent it back and asked for the curry laksa.

This one was guaranteed to have more flavor. Unfortunately it was only in the broth (which was ok) but not in the chicken or shrimp. It’s like everything got combined at the last second and none of the flavors had time to marry. Also they made me make my own damn soup with the sprouts and cilantro on the side. I don’t want to work tonight! The worst part of the second soup was the soba was miserably over cooked. To the point of mush. Nothing worse than an over cooked noodle. Well, maybe one you have to wait another 20 minutes for and still don’t have the right beer.

She did offer a free beer after I’d finished eating and was ready to leave.

Sad. Please comment a good ramen bar in Charleston...

Everything here was spot on! The steamed pork belly buns were light and fluffy. The pork belly was rich but not overpowering. The acid from the pickles cut through the fat wonderfully! We both had the Vietnamese Ramen, and it was unlike any ramen we've had! We usually go for rich milky tonkotsu, so this was a fresh alternative to what we're used to. The pork broth was light and well seasoned. The poached egg was absolutley stunning and the yolk came out like a perfect little sun which just added that much more depth to the whole bowl! What I loved also were the thin egg noodles, they just seemed to keep coming out of nowhere! They weren't too starchy nor were they heavy, they were a nice chewy springy texture (which I personally love). I'm not a fan of cilantro but the chef here REALLY knows how to work with it and made me a fan!

The ginger mules we got were refreshing, and the perfect drink for our meal and the hot day. Every person on staff was kind and well versed in their menu. Not a single person gave less than their best and were extremely sweet! The chef even came out and made a point to speak to every person that was dining, and I was so glad I got to tell him about our experience!

The decor is a nice mesh of asian modern and industrial and I can't imagine it being designed any other way. It gives everything a clean yet cozy vibe. I wish I'd gotten some pics of the inside but I was so in love with the food i couldn't lol

We are going to come back and make it our mission to over time try every single thing on the menu. Best of all, they don't overcharge (in NYC this meal would have easily been over 150). Just a delightful...