Circe’s Grotto

«The best panini I have ever had» is a direct quote from my husbands mouth. This is coming from someone who was skeptical about it in the first place because sandwiches can be «too bready».
We stopped in for an early lunch around 11, which to my delight is still in time to have breakfast. I had an egg, ham and cheese sandwich which was pretty good. I feel like it needed a sauce, or something to make it less dry. The flavors were very good, but it just needed something else.
My husband got the turkey panini, which like I said was the best sandwich he has ever had. He was so excited I could not give this place less than 5 stars.
There is not a lot of seating, I wouldn’t bring a large group here. They also only have chips as sides (I think), but the rosemary ones are VERY good.

When the service is just as great as the food, you know you’ve found the best lunch spot in Charleston! Nick’s personality compliments his outstanding sandwiches and panini’s and the overall atmosphere of Circes!

We ordered to go from Circe’s Grotto at work, and it was delicious! I ordered the Caprese sandwich and am still in awe at how huge it was! It could easily feed two people. The bread was toasted and filled with pesto, greens, fresh mozzarella and tomatoes. It was soooo good, though I may opt not to have the bread toasted next time.
Everyone who ordered was pleased. Everyone raved about the quality and quantity! They delivered quickly after we ordered, and were very appreciative of our business. Can’t wait to order again soon!

I’m not kidding when I say that these are the best deli sandwiches I’ve had in my life! I get roast beef, cheese, lettuce, tomato & avocado on un toasted bread and it’s just so simple but so fresh & good every time! I work at a local barbershop and the girls and I order often and have never once been disappointed. The sandwiches are huge (2 days worth to me:) and inexpensive for the quality of food you get. I’m blown away every time. Staff is always friendly and helpful & the owner is genuine and a great add to the downtown community! I obviously can’t say enough! I’m glad to see someone doing well that deserves it & I really appreciate good customer service. Keep up the great work Nick! And if you’re searching for a sandwich you won’t be disappointed!!!

Circe’s rocks! I love this place when I am downtown. They are quick, the place is quaint & the food is über great quality. Check them out!

Nice to find a good stop off the beaten path. Great bread and tuna sandwich — big enough for two. Seriously.

Love the sandwiches here! The staff is really friendly and wonderful as well. I have tried the hummus wrap, black bean wrap, and tuna salad– all were done very well. Everything has always been so fresh. The location is great too, 1 block from King Street, can’t wait to go back!

Circe’s sandwiches are by far the best in Charleston, possibly all of South Carolina. This quaint sandwich shop offers a wide verity of fresh, quality sandwiches. The staff is great, Nick always has a smile on his face. If you haven’t been your missing out!

This is probably my favorite quick lunch spot downtown. The people who work here are friendly, the food is fantastic, and the mango tea on a hot humid Charleston day is a life saver. My favorite sandwiches are the «Italian Stallion» on the panini bread, or the cuban sandwich. The turkey melt is good too, though I think it is a bit heavy for a summer meal it would be great when it gets colder out. The other things on the menu look great as well, I just have not gotten to them yet. Only potential downside is a limited amount of seating at peak times, but when that happens I just get it to go. Overall a great spot.

Ended up here with my toddler, seeking shelter from an awful rainstorm! They were so sweet to give us towels to dry off and one of the teammembers charged my cellphone behind the bar. Love the service. :)
Annnnddd… the sandwiches were amazing. If I lived in Charleston, I’d go here every day! Only downside is that the restaurant is very small, so it’s difficult to eatin during a rush.

This place has got the biggest, baddest, best sandwiches in town by far. For eight bucks you get a huge sandwich that serves as two meals. Get the mango tea, too.

Amazing sandwiches, great environment and even better people! This needs to be on your charleston list!

Been here twice in two days. Amazing Turkey Sandwich. The honey mustard is amazing with a tough of heat. Would eat here everyday of my wife let me.

One of my favorite places to get lunch period! The sandwiches are amazing, but be prepared to wait at least 10 minutes. Well worth the wait though! The ingredients are fresh and everything is made with care. It can be a little pricey when you get a drink, but the food is well priced for the amount you get. Definitely try the turkey melt and the caprese sandwich!

I can only comment on two sandwiches from here… because they are delicious and thus sadly I cannot bring myself to order anything else.
The turkey melt and the cuban… both delicious… both gigantic… bring your appetite:)
The turkey melt is a warm, melty, turkey and avocado loaded panini.
The cuban… well is just that… pressed pork, ham, melty cheese, grainy mustard… yum. The only problem is that if they don’t press it long enough…(which has happened)…the bread is a challenge to bite through… the cheese is not melted and the meat not as warm as it should be to make it amazing.
Other reviews have mentioned this problem of under «pressing»…so I guess they need to work on that. or maybe mention to the person making yours to leave it on a bit longer. The order at the counter style… with the «kitchen» behind the counter makes this easy to do.
Customer service is good. Not overly friendly but polite and efficient.
The space is small but has great light. Just a few small tables… personally I like to take mine to go and picnic in one of the beautiful parks nearby.
Solid sandwich spot. This one is on my list of regular stops. Def recommend.

I’m painfully giving this place 3 stars. Id love to give a better rating, and i might be able to in the future due to the great potential this sandwich shop offers. My biggest complaint is that the food here is very boring. They don’t need to change their menu, just add something jazzy to their sandwiches. Take a tip from Pie and add jelly or spices or something. There’s also very limited seating. They could definitely fit one or two more tables to give some more seating. In concurrence with previous reviews, the cheese on my turkey melt wasn’t melted. Kind of defeats the point of getting a melt if it isn’t melted.
The best qualities of this restaurant are the atmosphere and the service. All the workers are very friendly and patient, and the open air feel of the building is quite pleasant.
Since this place is so new, I’ll attribute the bad things about it to them getting in sync. I will come back if the edit their sandwiches a bit and add some more seating.

Amazing. seriously! Freshest ingredients and great prices! The sandwiches are absolutely huge and beyond tasty. This could be my new favorite lunch spot. Oh and the employees are the nicest. Both times I’ve been here I’ve left with an ear to ear smile on my face.

Best Mango Iced Tea I Have Ever Had. Ever.
Our vegetarian family of four popped in here for an impromptu lunch over the Thanksgiving break (when we were in Charleston as tourists) and were very, very pleased. It’s a bright, open space with pale wood floors and a view into the open kitchen. There are three tables with stools, and a brief but steep set of steps up from the street, so not really ADA-​friendly … but we managed because we’re strong. We had our youngest son sit in his wheelchair for lunch which worked out just fine. This will not work for everyone, alas.
To start with, the lovely lady at the front counter could not have been kinder or more patient as we perused the detailed menu — really liked her, which let’s face it, set a positive tone. (Also setting a positive tone: we entered when there were no other customers so we were able to take over the joint. We have no doubt that if we’d visited while school was in session it would have been a markedly different encounter.) The au courant bearded young man running the kitchen was also inviting but not as garrulous (with me) as the lady, but the lady and I shared the femme d’un certain age lingua franca.
Two of us had sandwiches and they were **fantastic**. The bread was top-​notch and we felt the ingredients were high quality. Sacrilegious but I still ordered the Caprese in November because that’s what I wanted, and the tomatoes had a surprisingly good flavor and texture. The other sandwich (Italian Stallion) was altered to be vegetarian. We also got a souped-​up salad for our youngest son (turned out he wasn’t feeling it) and a wrap (think it was the breakfast burrito) for my husband: the youngest son ended up devouring the wrap and my husband thought it also delicious.
But oh my god was that mango iced tea a cup of heaven. I am in my 40s and have never had such a delicious mango tea of any iteration. Wow. Heavy on mango with a chaser of tea. Bliss.
The sandwiches were huge so because of that didn’t feel too expensive (they provided lunch for two of us the following day), but the chips and drinks did feel expensive. But I’d pay that again for that mango iced tea …

Okay, so I wasn’t entirely jazzed with this place, but it wasn’t necessarily bad. We’ll start with the context that I have eaten at almost every lunch place within walking distance of the college and so it’s being measured against some heavy hitters. I’m also someone on the lookout for new, creative twists on sandwiches. So, that being said:
The PROS:
The sandwiches are huge.
The bread is awesome.
The drink selection is neat (though as someone mentioned all on the expensive side)
The atmosphere is pleasant.
The CONS:
My grilled cheese sandwich wasn’t melted. I mean… really, it wasn’t. You could still see the separate cheese slices. I asked it be heated a bit more and they did though.
The sandwiches myself and my coworker had were solid, but generally not as exciting or memorable as other lunch places like Persimmons or Caviar and Bananas.
Seating is very limited.
The TAKEAWAY:
It’s not a bad place to get a good sandwich, but in my opinion they have some room for improvement to get to dazzling. My sandwich was filling, but lacked creativity (they did put on avocado and tomato, but nothing that added flavor). Though some people don’t need flair, I like getting something I couldn’t make at home. I’m hoping the grilled cheese thing was just someone having an off day, but if I had gotten it to go and hadn’t been able to get it heated throughout, it would have been a pretty big blow to my experience.
If you want a safe, solid option, this is a good bet for a large, filling, sandwich. If you’re looking for something unique and exciting, I’m not sure it does better than a few other places in the area.

Was skeptical reading about the origin story of this place. Mom opens shop for CofC grad son to open up next to campus? OK.
But I think this could really become a mainstay in Charleston– like Persimmon Café has become on other corner of campus. The sandwich I had (the thanksgiving sandwich) was pretty solid and HUGE. Easily could have been two meals. The décor is bright and airy (perfect for Charleston), selections are varied and the service is very friendly. On the day I went it looks like it could have been staffed better, so you may be prepared to wait. Solid spot, even better if they can get 2 fellas making sandwiches!