Local Eat Drink Celebrate — Restaurant in South Carolina

Where do we begin?! The warm and welcoming greetings with staff and the host into the comfortably-lit and spacious dining room! We have children and love to have an option to sit with other families so we don't disturb guests who may not appreciate the noise of young ones dining. The atmosphere is perfectly approachable with a comfy flare of elevation and big city hip vibes. You can really tell the level care and management in a restaurant based on the movements and attitudes during bustling hours on a Saturday night. Our server, Kristen, was a class act, there with us start to finish, appropriately attentive as could be at the perfect timing. On point with suggestions, helping to orchestrate the small but important details for us to enjoy our first experience with Local. Great smile, authentic attitude and super efficient and proficient in the details of their menu. All other servers seemed calm and confident with approach to a busy night. They all help each other and visit the tables with smiles and genuine care. We even had quick visits to ensure our enjoyment from the managers and chef. Local has a menu that can please any taste. It's the opposite of boring. But mostly importantly, their execution exceeds the expectations of the words typed out on the menu. Unfortunately in such a tough industry, especially in "post pandemic" times, the food falls short of a once-known standard. Not Local! It was a breath of fresh air, truly, to be able to order inventive dishes that come out with evident care for quality in mind. Based on the variety of food we ordered last night, you can put your trust in their menu for being fine-tuned for a deliverance of high caliber of flavor, freshness, value. For appetizers, my party enjoyed the crab cakes that were packed with huge chunks of crab meat and a scrumptious lemon aioli alongside, as well as the tofu and pork tacos that were assembled with such care and detail, maximizing balance of flavor and texture, including the crunch of perfectly pickled red onion and jalapeño and and the creaminess of avocado. The tofu was bonkers and loaded with flavor! For meals, we enjoyed their special of local Mahi over rice pilaf with crispy fried Brussel sprouts, an oyster basket, the fried chicken dinner, the hot chicken sandwich, and a Mediterranean salad with blackened chicken. Just to name a few small but awesome details- the crispiness of the delicious exterior of the fried oysters and fried chicken while being perfectly cooked on the inside, the perfectly cooked FRESH local Mahi that was seasoned to perfection, the thin, homemade fry, the celery seed and perfect balance of tang and creaminess in a bangin' coleslaw, the freshness and variety greens in the cold Mediterranean salad with appropriate amounts and placement of crunchy, fresh veggies, topped with a hot, heaping pile of perfectly- cooked, juicy chicken breast. Then, the desserts- a fresh berry skillet cobbler with crumbly crunch, perfectly sweetened, served with a giant scoop of vanilla ice cream, their chocolate peanut butter pie with hints of bourbon (looks like it belongs on the front of a food magazine) and lastly, a gluten-free chocolate torte that will leave you rolling your eyes back into your head and needing a cigarette afterwards. All with a wicked local beer selection, inventive cocktails and really nice wine list covering many price points and tastes. Our experience with Local was beyond lovely and comfortable. We love their mission! Simply put, they serve phenomenal food in an atmosphere that welcomes all! Go try this gem of...

On this fine Saturday in the most amazing state of Sc i decided to try local for a late lunch/ brunch. Located in the Hammock shops . Walking in i was greeted by a smiling staff ( something i am not used too at many places as it is tourist season) I sat at the bar ( there are 2) on the family friendly side . The restaurant appeared clean and hand sanitizer was placed nearby for those wishing to indulge. I ordered a margarita off the drink menu it was delicious with a hint of jalapeño. After reviewing the menu and special menu i settled on the cheese purses appetizer over a bologonase sauce . It was presented neatly and garnished nicely - i am not sure which i enjoyed better the fried purses or the most amazing Bolognase sauce i have had in a ling time. This appetizer was spot on delicious! I then ordered the fresh ( non pasteurized) crab cakes over risotto. I specifically did that as a recent review bashed them on this. The entree was served with a artistic flair and garnished very nicely as well as a smiling manager with a disclaimer stating that it is fresh crab and not processed as much . The risotto was cooked to perfection with the the right amount of corn to not overpower it and each rice piece held its own so as not to appear as a mound of grits . The crab cakes were cooked perfectly and had just enough breadcrumbs to help hold it together. I use the term cake lightly as they were definitely not a cake - more a construction of a perfectly cooked crab. As for the prior review i read i did not see an lu substance to it. Although I did not look at price other than mkt price. - so be it. Good food is not cheap , cheap food is not good.

Well done local i...

Well, THIS was a great time...

OH WAIT NO IT WASN'T.

Stopped in here a week BEFORE to vet the place before eating here, talked to someone, who, was presumably THE OWNER, and she ended up talking to me for about AN HOUR before I left.

Thought I learned how the place operated.

Stopped in here the following week (sometime between early-to-mid June of 2022) at about 8:00pm (7:54pm, to be exact), and they told me the kitchen was CLOSED, despite the fact that the place didn't actually close until 9pm.

There were still plenty of people still there, eating their meals and having drinks, so I don't know why they wanted to close ahead of time; I guess their kitchen staff hate(s) their job(s) and want to go home as soon as they can. IDK.

No apology, no nothing; I was essentially told to go pound sand.

Ended up going to South End Bistro (At the end of the Pawley's Island strip along 17).

Good job, guys. Good job. Thanks for deferring business intended for you to one of your competitors, instead. Good job.

EDIT: Oh look, I got a response from them; so argumentative, absolutely not apologetic at all. NO, IT DOES NOT STATE that their kitchen closes at 8pm on ANY of their signs AT the restaurant, and I SHOULDN'T have to check their social media to figure that out, information like that SHOULD BE on their OFFICIAL WEBSITE. If this's how they talk to ME, I don't think you should want to patronize their establishment, either. Bad management is such A WASTE of an otherwise nice place.

Why can't you get YOUR act...