I first learned about Hall’s in my Seminar in
Entrepreneurship class where they came to speak to us. I admire that it’s a
family run business that is based mainly on quality of service and building and
cultivating relationships with their customers. A lot of places talk a lot
about customer service, but for many, it’s just that—talk. Hall’s actually
delivers on its promises. They give you great service and great food. Seriously
good food. I’ve said before that Husk is my favorite restaurant, but if I’m
craving steak, there is not even a competition. Hall’s would win out every
time. Literally the best steak I’ve ever eaten. And this is coming from a girl
who doesn’t actually like steak. (Ditto salad. I’ll talk more about the chopped
salad later, but trust me—it’s as close to divine as a salad will ever get). I’ve
ordered steaks at other restaurants in Charleston before—Peninsula Grill, Husk,
Red Drum, 82 Queen, and Grill 225—and there’s no comparison. I’ve not been to
Oak yet, and I have a feeling I probably won’t go anytime soon, either. I just
can’t imagine they’d be better than Hall’s.
They're better than you (at cooking steak), and they know it.
I’ve been to Hall’s for dinner twice. The first time was
with my dad and Shay to spend the gift certificate they gave out to my class
(that’s good marketing right there. I saved $25 but probably spent 3 times that
on the meal for the three of us. And trust me, it was worth every penny). We
started off with the she-crab soup which was really good. I hate it when
restaurants add too much sherry to their she-crab soup, but Hall’s does it
right. The dominant flavor is the crab, with only a hint of sherry—exactly how
a good she-crab soup should be.
Does this qualify as pornography? I hope so.
I then got the Hall’s Chopped salad, which is Uh- May-Zing.
I live for chopped salad. If more restaurants had them, I’d eat salad way more
often, and if they all tasted like Hall’s, I’d actually enjoy eating them. It
has lettuce and tomato and celery and black-eyed peas, peppers and bacon and a
whole bunch of other stuff in a buttermilk dressing. But it’s perfectly
balanced with the dressing. I hate it when my salad is drowning in salad dressing,
but the Hall’s salad is perfect in every sense of the word. I’d say I’d go
there just for the salad, but I know there’s no way I’d go there for food and
not get a steak.
Try to touch my salad, and I will cut you.
Shay got the filet mignon, while my dad opted for the prime
rib. This being my first time at Hall’s (not realizing how amazing their steaks
are), I opted for the lobster. The lobster was about 4 pounds and it was taken
out of the shell and arranged in the lobster shape when they serve it to you,
so basically all you have to do is dip it in butter and shove it in your face
(which I did approximately 3.5 seconds after they set it down). I do love me
some lobstah.
This is not a picture of the lobster from Hall's. I found this on Google so you would understand.
Shay offered me a bite of her filet (which she had
butterflied and cooked to medium well) and as soon as it touched my tongue, I
knew I’d ordered the wrong thing. Don’t get me wrong, the lobster is delicious,
but it’s nothing compared to the filet. Did I mention it’s the best filet I’ve
ever had? Because it’s the best filet
I’ve ever had. The prime rib was top notch as well. I’m pretty sure none of
us spoke after the entrées had been delivered; we were too busy enjoying the
food to carry on a conversation.
I'm gonna eat you, sucka!
They serve their sides family style, meaning that one side
serves 2-4 people. They’re pretty big. For sides we got the asparagus with
hollandaise and the pepper jack grits. Now, as a southerner, I am particular
about my grits. Quaker sells this instant crap that says “Grits” on it, but
trust me—those are not grits. Hall’s serves real grits. Thick and creamy and
delicious. Not cheesy enough so that you lose the flavor of the grits
themselves, but just cheesy enough to make the dish feel complete. They are all
about balance Hall’s. It just works perfectly. The asparagus is a side that you
might have a harder time stretching out amongst four people. It is perfectly
cooked. Not mushy like that crap that comes out of a can (which is the reason I
thought I hated asparagus for the first 20 years of my life. Thanks mom). I
usually don’t like hollandaise partly because I don’t really like eggs (see my
Husk review for more info), but mostly because when I had to make it in class,
I got a blister from whisking so much that took 2 weeks to heal. It was
painful. Plus my hollandaise tasted terrible, so then I was mad that I got a
blister making nasty crap that I didn’t even enjoy eating. Hollandaise is a
douche bag. But the hollandaise from Hall’s is perfect. It tastes exactly how
hollandaise should. Not too eggy, not too buttery, but creamy and perfect. It’s
delicious, and a perfect complement to the asparagus.
This is what real grits look like.
The second time I went to Hall’s for dinner was for my mom’s
birthday. It was my parents and me, and we went all out. We got spicy shrimp
and tempura lobster as starters. I didn’t really care for the lobster, but my
parents loved it. The spicy shrimp were pretty good, but I was expecting them
to be boiled shrimp, like you’d find in a Creole or jambalaya, but they were
just fried shrimp tossed in a spicy sauce. They were still good, I’d just had
my heart set on non-fried shrimp. I once again got the chopped salad while Tina
opted for the roasted beet salad (who orders things like that? Really, Tina?
Really?). The chopped salad is better. I almost stabbed Tina for trying to
steal a forkful of my salad. I don’t play around. For our entrées, I chose the
filet (did I mention it’s the best filet I’ve ever had? I did? Ok, well I just
want you to understand that it’s THE BEST FILET I’VE EVER HAD). You can get
sauces on the side with your steak, like Gorgonzola sauce, or béarnaise, but
trust me—you don’t need any sauce. The meat tastes amazing all on its own (that’s
what she said!). I can’t remember what Tina and Russ got, because I was too
focused on my own food to take the time to care about their choices. All I know
is that there was meat, there was a lot of it, and we ate it all. Ron Swanson
would be proud.
MEAT TORNADO
For sides this time, we got the asparagus again, and the
macaroni and cheese. Macaroni and cheese is one of my weaknesses. It’s the one
thing I seem to be unable to resist. It’s my kryptonite. Even when I’m dieting,
if there’s mac and cheese within reach, I won’t even hesitate. I just start devouring
it without giving myself time to think about it. The mac and cheese at Hall’s
is good. It’s not great, but it’s good. It’s more creamy than cheesy, and I
prefer my mac and cheese to be extra cheesy. The waitress was raving about the
mac and cheese (she loves it. It’s her favorite), so I guess it’s all a matter
of personal preference. I do have to say that I'm a fan of the squiggly noodles. I'd just prefer more cheesy in the saucey pleasey! Next time, I’d just stick with the grits.
Macaroni skillets are what I dream about at night.
You may have noticed that I clarified both of my visits by
saying “The first/second time I went for dinner.”
This is because Hall’s has an amazing bar. Rather, they have one drink that I’m
obsessed with called the 434 martini. It’s pineapple infused vodka that’s
served ice cold and frothy. It’s not overly fruity, but it definitely tastes
nothing like alcohol. Except for the fact that it’s straight alcohol. So you
don’t realize how much alcohol you’ve actually had until you stand up to go to
the bathroom after the 5th one and you almost fall on your face
(that’s actually a true story about my dad the night I graduated). The first
time I had one was at a party hosted at Hall’s for my entrepreneurship class
after our final exam. It was a 2 hour reception with free food and drinks
courtesy of Tommy Baker (anytime there are free drinks involved, you can
guarantee I’m going to make an appearance). I made Lily come with me and we
started drinking martinis, excited for some free Hall’s food. We found out,
about 3 martinis in, that the “free food” was actually a veggie tray. Don’t get
me wrong, I love carrot sticks, but if I’d known that’s all the food I was
going to be having, I would have eaten something hearty before I starting
downing liquor. Needless to say, Lily and I had a great time.
Don't be fooled by how pretty it looks. Secretly, it's deadly. And delicious.
I took my mom and Jenn to Hall’s for drinks before we went
to Pantheon for the drag show, and we sat at one of the community bar tables
drinking and hanging out. One of the Hall family members, usually Billy or
Tommy, came by a number of times to make sure we had everything we needed and
that we were enjoying ourselves (we were). We stayed for about an hour, and we
getting ready to head out to go across the street to O-Ku (they make these
habanero-infused vodka martinis with sugared rims that my mother is obsessed
with) when Tommy Hall stopped us to ask why we were leaving so soon. My mother,
being my mother, told him “We’re going over to O-Ku to get sugar and spice
martinis. They’re my favorite.” Tommy Hall replied “O-Ku is great, but did you
know we actually invented those? Why don’t you have a seat and I’ll bring you
one.” So we sat back down and he brought us a round on the house. Tina was
skeptical that they would be as good as O-Ku’s, so she was quite surprised to
find out that she actually liked these more. Apparently the ones that Hall’s
makes are spicier. I don’t really do spicy. I took one sip and then had to chug
a gallon of water to be able to feel my lips again.
It's easy to confuse this with the 434. But, you will know you made a mistake IMMEDIATELY after taking a sip.
I’ve literally never had a bad experience at Hall’s. Every
time we leave, Billy is there to shake our hands, or give us a hug and thank us
for coming. Once he even chased us down the street, to make sure he thanked us
properly. The service continues, even when you’re not at the restaurant. They
sent my mom a hand-written thank you note, telling her how much they
appreciated her coming into the restaurant on her birthday. They even wished me
a happy birthday on Facebook, even though I hadn’t been to Hall’s in over 2
months. They’re all about the relationships that they build with their
customers. Pairing their outstanding customer service with their delectable
food (did I mention the filet is the best
I ever had??) and you have a recipe for an unforgettable night out.
Did I mention it's the best filet I've ever had?
