The 39 Best Restaurants in Charleston

"It's a little 1970s basement rec room meets dark corner bar meets tiki spot with a raw bar in the corner, and if it all seems a little tilt-a-whirl, that's kind of the point. But the cocktail game is Charleston cocktail pedigreed. Co-partner Joey Goetz was formerly at the beloved The Belmont on King Street, and he left that project to partner with Chef Alex Lira here. His approach at Bar George is what he likes to call "cheap tiki," which he interprets to be a generally tropical approach with nods to tiki cocktail culture without getting all serious about it. Lira's menu is wonderfully all over the map: There's a snappy hot dog that would be at home in northern pool halls or diners of the 1970s, perfectly chosen, exceptionally briny, and well-shucked oysters with elegant mignonettes, a roasted Peruvian chicken that is comfort food squared, and a rotating selection of housemade filled doughtnuts." - Stephanie Burt