I'm going to be spending a few days in Charleston and need recommendations for casual dining (downtown) for an evening meals. Everything I've seen on the web looks too dressy for my tastes. I don't care if it's a hole-in-the-wall bar. I'm just not the dress up type. Thanks.

I don't think you need to be dressed up for most of Charleston's good places--SNOB, Magnolia, and such. Maybe not T shirts but probably few require a coat. Our kids liked Hank's a lot.

Chas is a resort town, so the dress is not so fancy as you might think given the food(and prices!) of the restaurants you may have heard of. My husband has never been bounced from anywhere and he wears shorts most of the time.

I have gone straight to Hanks from the beach with nothing but a rinse under the boardwalk shower and a sundress pulled over the bikini. Try also Sermet...I think they have a menu on the web somewhere. Garibaldi's is good and not too fancy and has outdoor dining, which makes my chronically undressed husband happy.

that would be "underdressed" not "undressed", although come to think of it, I don't recommend anyone drop by the house without calling first.

Magic Mushroom Pizza. As I recall, there is a bar that you could sit at if you are by yourself. We were there 2 summers ago and thought it had some of the best pizza we'd had anywhere. I can't remember exactly what street it was on but it was in a trendy and cool area. Maybe King's street?

When we eat at Magnolia's in Charleston, my favorite restaurant there, I feel uncomfortable if I'm not in a dress or dressy slacks outfit, and my hubby doesn't wear a jacket. I went there underdressed recently (in a hurry), and felt out-of-place. I swear everyone else in the place was dressed up!

Try reversing your dining. Eat at the nice restaurants for lunch and the less formal ones for dinner. We eat at Magnolias for lunch (less expensive) and then eat something like Stickey Fingers barbeque at night. Anyway, during the summer chinos and a golf shirt can take you anywhere. Have a fun trip - I love Charleston.

There are many casual places:

Bubba Gumps Shrimp Co.
Hymans Seafood
AW Shucks
Tommy Condons
T Bonz

This should get you started

Hanks has good food, fairly low prices, and casual dress code. We went there for our wedding anniversary, and the cook wrote out "Happy 19th" (in chocolate) on our dessert!

We didn't want to dress for dinner either - ate at Poogan's Porch, Boccis (our favorite - Italian), and 82 Queen Street.

jane, no restaurants in Charleston require jacket or tie for men.

You'll see blue jeans in the nicest Charleston restaurants. It is just too hot to get too dressy. Sundress or khakis are fine.

Do the same statements about dress apply in October when its not so hot--we'll be there mid-October.

October will still be hot and comfortable during the day.

No restaurant in Charleston at any time is dressy. There are some I wouldn't wear jeans into (Penninsula) and I have worn jeans into Carolinas, Magnolias, SNOB, and the like.

Remember, Charleston is basically a beach town.

SNOB.
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