Eli's Table — Restaurant in Charleston

I feel I should start this with: We attempted to come yesterday. The website stated you're opened for brunch and dinner. When we arrived it was dark and obviously not opened. Perhaps update this, I'm sure we aren't the only ones to walk directly into the dark restaurant. The gentleman there didn't question why 4 people walked in, just saw us and kept walking. I asked; even though it was obvious if they were opened or opening and he said no. Just no.

Very disappointed as soon as I walked in for this visit. I was with a group and didn't want to disappoint them. A few times I wanted to just leave. The serving staff seemed to have no direction and wandered around. No communication from hostess to the server who claimed our table, pretty sure the hostess should be the one seating. I had company from out of town and they always heard me talk about how much I love Eli's table. We had a great table but since one in our party had to use the restroom it was given to a party of 2 when we were a larger party and felt cramped where we were placed. The saving grace in the start was the bartender Billy was fantastic. He happily made drinks for my friends that were not on the menu. Which then turned into a large table next to us also ordering the drinks, so that was fun. Billy has a lot of personality. The thing that bothered me the most was my friend wanted a switch of bread on a sandwich and was told the chef would refuse to do so. Terry reassured us Corey is an excelled chef but I feel it's just bread. And a first time customer should have had a wow experience, we're in Charleston and are suppose to known for Southern Hospitality. I respect integrity of the dish but this is simply a bread switch. My Beet salad came out missing its basil oil and ricotta. I was told the person who put it together, it was their first day. I get that, I have grace for that; nonetheless, it's Expo's job to send out the food correctly. I did not send it back since I didn't want to waste it, did receive my cheese but not the oil. I could not tell if the Expo was a kitchen manager or a floor manager. She was not put together well. The first comment from my friend was, "who is she touching the plates?" She had a buttoned top but instead of it being buttoned she was sporting a low cut tank and her chest tattoo was on full display. Definitely out of place. Terry, Billy, the hostess and other servers all looked their parts. She was not an elevated staff member by sight. Nor did she play the role, seeing as how the food was sent out incorrectly. With that being said, if we retained our original table (reservation called in) we wouldn't have been able to see this person until her many trips away from Expo.

Seems a lot has changed in a year, might try dinner or something in the future. Not sure. Change is good...

We were looking forward to a Valentine's dinner at Eli's Table.

We were welcomed by the bartender at the reception desk, then, escorted to our table by the hostess. We expected any restaurant would make maximum use of their dining space on a holiday like Valentine's Day. We were seated slightly under The Red Wine Cabinet, and I was cautioned to watch my head each time a server would open the cabinet door to retrieve a Red. No effort was made to address that problem.

Sophie, our server, responded to our dining questions and if she was unsure, she sought the advice of the Chef. She was diligent in finding answers to my gluten questions (yes, I am in need of accommodations - sending Eli's Table an advance email with a simple inquiry about their ability to accommodate. I never received a response.). There were a couple of accommodations.

There were supposed to be strawberries for the Forager's Salad, but Sophie informed us that they were out of strawberries, nonetheless the Forager's Salad was recommended. The salad was overwhelmed by an abundance of tart blackberries. The blueberries were tasteless and mushy, and the balsamic reduction was difficult to detect - all aspects that would have offered a welcomed balance that would have complimented the blackberries.

The She Crab Soup was most satisfying: just the right creaminess, and a trace of sweetness from the crab and sherry.

The Rack of Lamb was tasty, cooked for tenderness, and seasoned effectively (though surprisingly in need of a trim of fat). The Brussel Sprouts were a welcomed side, enough crunchy bite.

The Roasted Chicken was juicy, but the creole sauce was neither creole or sauce. It was set like a thin paste spread on the skin of the chicken breast. None of the seasons one associates with a creole sauce were detectable. The dish was saved by wonderfully sauteed zucchini, bell peppers, red onion slices and I suspect arugula.

Both main dishes also added a fried mashed potato side that was less than lukewarm thus undermining the taste and crunchiness. Really disappointing. Too disappointed at this point to inform Sophie.

Sue ordered a highly recommended Key Lime Tres Leches dessert. The Tres Leches was a white cake with a baked meringue on top. Sue could not find a hint of lime, and the meringue suggested lemon meringue rather than key lime pie.

Eli's Table provided an uneven dining experience that was not fine dining. And we were so looking...

We had a family dinner at Eli’s Table the other night and here were our thoughts. I want to preface this by saying some of these comments could be considered nit-picky but keep in mind this is a restaurant centered in downtown Charleston and our total for the dinner for 5 adults was over $400 so we had certain expectations. We are from Charleston so we know the restaurants that surround Eli’s Table and this unfortunately is not somewhere we would quickly return.

Atmosphere The live music we had that night was great! Not too loud and the perfect background music for a dinner.

Food/Drink We all agreed our cocktails tasted great. One thing that was slightly bothersome was one member of our group ordered a Moscow mule and this was presented in a standard water glass. The waiter then returned to our table with a plastic ramekin of liquor that was then poured into the Moscow mule and apologized as the liquor was left out of the cocktail when it was made. We had the fig and prosciutto crostini and they were very tasty. I had the vegetable risotto which was quite disappointing and even move so since this was a side dish for almost every entree on the menu which told me it was a highlight dish. Based on presentation alone, I knew that their risotto was premade and more than likely sitting in a large pot in the kitchen and was being scooped out for each order. After the first bite, it was confirmed further that this was premade and not a dish that was cooked for order as it was very overcooked. I do want to point out that the taste of the risotto was very good but it was ruined by the grain being overcooked. Another member of our table had the lamb and ate every single bite and only had excellent things to say about it! The shrimp and grits were also throughly enjoyed by another member of our group.

Service Our waiter was very nice and personable. The head chef for the restaurant was seen going around checking in on tables which was very nice.

Charleston is a tough city for any restaurant as there are incredibly high expectations since the city is saturated with exceptional high end dining. I hope some adjustments can be made as I feel there are many aspects that can put Eli’s Table at this same level but unfortunately they fell...