FIG

On the same day we visited the Glass Onion for lunch, we headed to FIG for dinner. I didn't know it before, but the chefs at Glass Onion worked at FIG before setting out on their own.

FIG ("Food is Good") lives up to its name in terms of food. The chef, Mike Lata, stresses local, sustainable food generally prepared in a modern Southern fashion. Lata knows what he is doing. The food is good. My only problem, see below, was the service.

I ordered the chicken liver pate as an appetizer.

This stuff is amazing! Flat out delicious. It is so rich and creamy, almost like meaty air. I know it sounds like an oxymoron. It seems like such a deep, rich, meaty taste could not come from something so light and airy. It leaves your tastebuds in a perplexed, happy stupor. Salty, rich, and smooth. While it would probably result in a rapid heart attack, I could eat this morning, noon, and night. It is that good.

The beef tartare appetizer was also excellent.

The tartare had smooth, tender bits of raw beef with a little spice and a little sour and a little sweet from the meat. Beef tartare is both such a sophisticated dish and such a primal dish. The raw beef recalls our hunter-gatherer days. But it also has a delicate taste. There is nothing like tender, raw beef. It is so good that one of my friends ordered a double beef tartare appetizer as his entree. It was a little over-the-top but that is how he does things.

Others ordered a stone crab claw appetizer. Local stone crab claws served with a sriracha mayo dipping sauce.

The crab was sweet and delicious. The sriracha mayo was delicious on the bread we were served but on the crab it almost overpowered the crab taste. Too little on the crab and you didn't taste the mayo, too much and it overpowered the crab.

Several people ordered the Wagyu steak as an entree.

The steak was super tender and flavorful, literally melt in your mouth tender. The jus/sauce served over top was the perfect accompaniment to the steak. Served with the steak were sweet potatoes and mushrooms. Both the sweetness of the potatoes and the meatiness and umami of the mushrooms went well with the steak.

I ordered the sweetbread entree.

The sweetbreads were excellent. I have never had such a large portion of sweetbreads in one large piece before. Sweetbreads are the thymus or pancreas of a cow. While the part of the cow may be unusual, the taste is, in my opinion, a rare treat. They were pan fried with a nice crusty exterior. The interior was smooth and creamy with a milky, meaty taste. They were served over cauliflower and, I believe, an herb sauce and spinach. The sauce and spinach had a sourness that nicely complimented the creaminess of the sweetbreads.

We ordered two side dishes for the table: roasted artichokes and brussel sprouts, and mashed potatoes.

Both were good but unnecessary due to the portion size of our entrees. The potatoes were probably about one part potato to one part cream and butter. They were super creamy and rich.

Our waitress started out friendly and helpful. As the night wore on the service declined. By the end of the night we were irritated. To top it all off there were six of us so we were slapped with an automatic 18% gratuity. She started out giving us advice about the menu and our wine choices. Our appetizers came out without delay and our wine was only a little slow. But then the appetizer plates sat finished on the table for more than ten minutes before she came to clean them off. Our entree came out and the cycle of empty plates repeated with a longer interim. We refilled our own wine glasses. She rarely came by to see how we were doing or to refill our water. She cleared our entree plates away and neglected to ask about dessert. At least ten minutes went by before she came back to ask about dessert. Then ten minutes more went by before we ordered dessert. We told her we would like to order dessert to go and the check because our dogs had been locked inside at home for quite a while and we had a long drive to get back. She brought us dessert and not the check. By the time she brought the check we had eaten all of the dessert and were bored waiting. I know we are young and young people may be light on tipping. But I enjoy fine food and a fine dining experience and I am willing to pay for it. I am more than happy to reward good service. Don't let your server coast on her guaranteed 18% tip and ignore her customers. When we pay FIG prices for dinner and spend well over two hours at the table we deserve more.

FIG serves delicious food. FIG pushes Southern cooking to new boundaries and admirably emphasizes the use of local, sustainable ingredients. FIG is a great place to stop in for a meal in Charleston. Just hope you get good service.

FIG
232 Meeting Street
Charleston, SC 29401
843-805-5900
http://www.eatatfig.com/