Chive Blossom Cafe — Restaurant in South Carolina

A complete disaster of an experience (from a repeat customer)

I have been to Chive Blossom many times, but this was one of the worst meal experiences I’ve ever had.

I waited at the host stand, and no one came. Finally somebody came and just stared at me. She didn’t even say “hello.” I assumed she worked there so I told her about our reservations.

It was 25 minutes for a server to come. She seemed harried and did not greet us, just wanted to know if we wanted drinks. She rattled off some specials, and seemed genuinely grumpy. She didn’t ask if we had any questions on the menu, and I asked about the special daiquiri, and this is where things really went downhill quickly. It was a burnt sugar daiquiri. A traditional daiquiri has lime juice and sugar and rum, and I just asked if the burnt sugar element made it very sweet. She said she had no idea and flagged down another person who also seemed not only agitated but said “I have no idea.” She told me the daiquiri was not frozen, I told her I don’t want anything frozen, I was just wondering about the sugar element. She just said “I’m sure it’s fine. We have a good bartender.”. I ordered it and some crab nachos for the table. When she returned with my husband’s drink, she said, “after ALL THAT problem, we don’t have the burnt sugar daiquiri.” Which made me feel like I was a high maintenance Karen, when I just asked one question. So I asked her to make me a regular daiquiri, and she said they could not do that. and she said, “we don’t have frozen drinks.” And I told her again I don’t want a frozen drink, I just want rum and sugar and lime; she asked if it was simple sugar and I nodded, and then she said “we can’t make you a daiquiri. We don’t have the ingredients.” And I wondered what they were out of. Lime? Sugar? I told her I just would NOT have a drink. She then told us that they were also out of a lot of items on the menu. (it was not even 8).

Another woman came with two drinks and asked if they were ours; when we said, no, she just stood there and said, “they’re NOT yours?” We again said no, and she seemed really aggravated with us but finally left.

Then our server arrived with a daiquiri. Which was totally unexpected. And she said she talked to one of the “special” bartenders who understood how to make one. Then she took our order, and said “oh, and you wanted the nachos as well.“ At this point, we have been there about 45 minutes. We were hoping to have the nachos earlier, because we ordered them a long time ago.

Throughout the night, the grumpy woman who tried to give us someone else’s drink, came back again with other drinks, and seemed very aggravated each time that they were not our drinks, and very confused. At one point she said, “these are really NOT yours!?” And I felt like we had done something wrong by not accepting drinks that we didn’t order. She was that accusatory about it. Then she would huff off and ask other tables if the drinks belonged to them. Since she was there, I asked if they made a traditional planters punch, and she said “absolutely not.”

Finally, the nachos arrived, and the cheese was completely congealed, and they were cold. Not a little warm, not a little congealed, but actually cold. The same could be said for my grits. Completely congealed. See photos.

When the server came to fill my water glass, I told her I did not want ice, and she said “well, this has ice in it.” And just walked away. She never came back to fill my water glass or bring me water with no ice. She just left.

Why didn’t we call a manager? . It was in so uncomfortable that my whole family felt uncomfortable. We were made to feel as if we were doing something wrong just by asking for no ice or not accepting drinks that we didn’t order, we were not about to make ourselves more uncomfortable by asking for a manager and complaining about the cold food. We will never be back, which is such a shame, because I really loved this place over the years, especially with brunch.

I will add that she did not charge me for the daiquiri, so that was one...

We can't recommend Chive Blossom enough. Every aspect of our dining experience was top notch from start to finish - the atmosphere, the service, and the food. It might not look like much from the road, but both the indoor and outdoor dining areas are quaint, charming, and magical. The staff was lovely and accommodating. They were attentive, kind, and paid attention to detail. The food was out of this world and we're still talking about it months later.

For lunch, the Angus Burger was incredible. You could tell the burger meat was high quality and cooked to perfection, the bacon was crispy, the pimento cheese melted in your mouth (and I don't even traditionally like pimento), the caramelized onions were bursting with flavor, and the bun was toasted to perfection. The fries were crisped and golden on the outside but soft in the middle and full of flavor. Truly the best burger and fries I've ever had.

For dinner, the Filet was just as great. Cutting into it was like cutting into butter - it was so tender that it just melted in your mouth. Full of flavor, it was perfectly charred on the outside and cooked perfectly in the middle. The asparagus and potatoes complimented it well, but the truffled mushroom cream sauce was what took it from a 10 to an 11.

We're sure the rest of the menu is just as incredible as our dishes were, but it's hard to imagine ordering anything else. We look forward to visiting Chive Blossom again in the future and will probably make it our first stop on our way into town! If only it weren't...

I absolutely loved our experience here! It exceeded 5 stars. Why? Workers enjoy working there and it shows in all they deliver. In fact we walked out of another place who had yet another bad hostess. I don't understand restaurants who put so much into their establishments and have a below par greeter. Oh I digress.

Anyway, just a great staff. We were greeted at the door, were told it was a 15 minute wait, and within 5 minutes the host told us he would arrange setting the table for us. Then a minute later, let me sit these people and I will set your table.

And the menu was amazing. I appreciated a smaller menu that rocked it. And then there is the food. Out of the park! Pimento cheese that they made better than anywhere with chips that I think were made from lavash. It was stellar.

And then there was my wife's wild caught Salmon prepared perfectly with its lightness. Not dense like we mostly get.

And for me it was the seafood sampler. I swear the chef went out back and caught and prepared it. It was better than any local seafood restaurants. Absolutely fresh Grouper, shrimp, scallops, and oysters! So fresh, light, and new oil. Then the grits.

This place rocked my world and I will be back again, again, again and again. The chef is my hero, whomever you are!

Ps. The drink, cucumber water, bubbly, and gin was...