If someone were to ask you what is the most wonderful time of the year, most would immediately say the Christmas holiday season. I mean, really. Once you have a song made about you in that regard, then it’s all but a formality, right?
Some people prefer spring in full bloom. Others might opt for summer and the beach season that rolls along with it. Me? With all due respect to Lee Majors, I’m a Fall Guy. Crisp evenings and football weekends are the butter to my biscuit. (That last sentence lets you know just how long I’ve lived in the South.)
A close second for me, though, is any time I can enjoy good food. That means festivals, of course, but also any Restaurant Week in and around the area. The restaurant week concept is a win-win for everyone, really. It’s a great time for local restaurants that stay so incredibly busy during peak season to get some support from locals looking for a deal.
Hilton Head Chamber Restaurant Week, Jan. 27-Feb. 3
In many cases, the menus are “one price fits all,” but the Chamber Restaurant Week is a little different with participating restaurants there being allowed to set their own price points. For example, Skull Creek Dockside’s menu offers three courses for $42 while Alfred’s on Hilton Head is offering three courses for $45. Others vary anywhere in the vicinity.
Now in its 16th year, this restaurant week has been very well received. Some of the island’s best, like Chez Georges Bistro and Michael Anthony’s, are regular participants. It is not uncommon to have 40 plus area restaurants taking part in this week-long celebration of food in the South Carolina Lowcountry. You can see the list, which grows almost daily, at hiltonheadisland.org
Meanwhile, if you’d like to take the opportunity to try something different, consider heading across the Talmadge Memorial Bridge.
Eat It and Like It Restaurant Week in Savannah, Jan. 26-Feb. 4
Clunky name? Perhaps, but that is a story for another time. Long story short, yes, it is our party in Savannah. This is our 4th Restaurant Week–our first since 2019. Why is that?
If you pay any kind of attention to the landscape, Savannah has seen some serious growth over the past few years. “Post pandemic” travel was at or near record highs in and around the city in the first couple of years after 2020. Restaurants were breaking all-time revenue records multiple times a month. Yes, they were that busy.
Summer of 2023 was the first time we heard that numbers were falling back to something more resembling pre-2020, which means soft-ish summers and likely a soft-ish winter ahead.
For that reason, we’ve decided it is time to bring Restaurant Week back in Savannah. Local restaurants clearly agree. As of press time, we have more than a dozen participating restaurants on our way to 20 or more. Some of the Savannah’s best–like Fleeting, Rhett, and St. Neo’s–are involved as are some of the most popular casual concepts like Desposito’s Seafood, River House and Dockside. By time time you read this, there will be more. You can find them at eatitandlikeit.com
From my seat, we hear a lot of locals bemoaning the fact that Savannah has become overrun by tourists and touristy restaurants. While I don’t necessarily agree with that notion, I do recognize the fact that larger crowds make getting around downtown Savannah a little more complicated. Point taken, but that doesn’t mean it is impossible. Crowds will never be at a lower point any time during 2024 than they will be the final week of January and into early February. It’s the perfect time to take a ride to see downtown Savannah and enjoy some of the great eats that have been making national headlines for a few years now.
The restaurants might be slow, but that doesn’t mean it’s any less of a great time to celebrate great food and drink.
Or as they say around here sometimes, it’s the most wonderful time of the year.
