The Lot

The Lot has a laid back approach to the farm to table! They also have one of the best brunches in town! If it’s a nice day, GET THERE EARLY! The Lot is attached to The Pour House so went and had a great dinner before seeing an entertaining show! They change their menu daily with a few staples. On our last visit we both ordered their signature burger. I usually never order the same as others at the table but their burgers make the exception. I think they have one of the best burgers in the city! Everything was great and the servers are amazing. They also have an extensive local beer selection. Some of their entrees are a little pricey but the portions are large so it’ll be worth it! They’re also on OpenTable which is very convenient.

I’ve eaten at The Lot twice, during two separate trips to Charleston — and I have been very pleased each time. The shrimp and grits are outstanding, and if it is on the menu when you are there, I recommend ordering it. It’s great mix of Southern flavors — which will be so memorable for me.

The Lot has some of the best food Ive ever had. Real farm to table and a casual atmosphere. Not as fancy as some would like, but its fits me just right. Its attached to the best music venue in the city which is a huge plus. Plenty of parking and good staff front and back.
The food is on pair with plates FIG or Husk, without being as busy as downtown. I look forward to going back again and again.
and the bunch is great too!

We went to grab a bite before going to listen to some music at The Charleston Pour House. We decided not to eat after seeing the limited and very over priced menu. The place is small but looked clean. With all the other great place in the area, you would expect this place to cater to clientele going next door.

This is a local restaurant that serves local food. Delicious food. I had the scrapple and it was just like the kind I had when I lived on the farm. The folks working there are really nice and the atmosphere is cool it can get a little noisy when the bands start playing but you know that when you get there. You can get reservations for dinner and a show. the only problem besides the restroom are that the prices are pretty steep for what you get. Small portions, big prices. Yes the food is good but just remember this. Also the menu changes daily, sometimes you dont know what is available till you get there, give it a try.

I had the pleasure of enjoying a delicious brunch at The Lot this past weekend. Great atmosphere on the front deck, the high fence and lush greenery make you forget that your sitting right next to Maybank Highway! The burger was fantastic, cooked perfectly to temperature, super flavorful grass fed beef with a delicious gamey flavor. The accompanying fries were thick cut and seasoned to perfection. My brunch mates enjoyed the huevos rancheros, fried chicken and waffles, and frittata — not a dissatisfied palette in the bunch! After brunch, we enjoyed some live funk Motown on the deck outside The Pourhouse while the Farmers Market wound down — what more could you want in a Sunday Funday?!

The lot is what it is. Dont let the name confuse you. You will not find grilled cheese, burritos, or loose sierra nevadas, in fact, there is very little that resembles a show lot at all save for the loud music booming through the double doors that lead into the venue. I have not eaten here since Chef Lira left but while he was there I was not overly impressed. There are a few solid choices on the menu: First is the poutine, house fries covered in chicken gravy, lardons, and cheese curds. This is a meal by itslef and probably the most filling thing on the menu. Second is the burger, it is grass fed beef and cooked perfectly medium, but on the pricey side at $ 12 which includes a childs sized handful of fries. Everything else I have tried has been good but not blown me away. I felt like the lot was trying just a little too hard to pander to the locavore foodie and not the person who just likes to eat. I have not eaten there when I did not feel the need to go to the grocery store after and buy a frozen pizza. All that said, a lot of people love the lot, and what they do is not bad, I have never had a bad meal there so there is that.

We come to Charleston couple times a year and always are on the lookout for good places to eat outside of downtown. Found this recently and found it spectacular. Unusual dishes (rabbit) and familiar ones (chicken). Food was unbelievable. The serve great dishes and mot large quantities. Also the bar options\mixed drinks are very well done. I chose for the bar to make a creation (on menu). Was fantastic. Also the deserts were heaven as well.
Highly recommend. Will go back. Hopefully will continue to thrive. Reservations recommended.

Charcuterie plate was decent except the cheese had gone bad, smelled of ammonia.
Flat iron steak was good. It featured a green sauce of some kind which really paired well.
The pork chop for 2 entrée was fantastic!
The crab and shrimp wrap was sub-​par. Too sweet and no subtle flavors. Almost sugary.
Everything was over priced.

Good breakfast food and amazing grits. Not usually a fan of grits but these won me over. Only down fall is not enough seating. Overall good experience.

Would have had to give this an overall 2:5 stars here, as the VALUE and Quantity of food for the $ is just not there. Prices are heavily inflated for what you get, «I get the fact» that it is all organic, locally produced, yadda yadda, but hey that is nothing new these days. A bowel of soup was hardly a cup. $ 10 for three spoonfuls is not worth keeping on the menu. Had one order of seasonal veggie salad and the soup and it came to $ 20 w/​just water. We canceled out entrée order, fearing the same paucity of food for $ 28. Our waitress who was excellent a 5:5 stars here as she recited the entire menu from memory over a 5-​min time period did comp the soup and added a dessert free for our imposition that evening. So she saved the day. If the chef/​owners decide on some fair pricing and quantity reevaluations we are likely to return.
Food taste and quality is not at issue here… it is purely the quantity and what you dish out for it (no pun intended).
Also some sound dampening needs to go into that place as the Live music Bar next door is an assault on the ears of this restaurant’s patrons.
SaleebScore: Value: ¹⁄₁₀; Service: 9/5:10; Food quality: ⁸⁄₁₀; Food quantity: ²⁄₁₀; Value: ⁴⁄₁₀.

The Lot is in my opinion the best restaurant on James Island. Serving up unique dishes that change daily based on what’s in season, Chef Alex Lira works with farms all across the Lowcountry to create true farm-​to-​table dishes. I have yet to have a meal I didn’t love there. Yes the food is a bit on the pricier side, but worth the cost considering the high quality ingredients being used. Hard to recommend what to order since the menu of around 10 – 12 items changes daily (and the server does take about 10 minutes to explain everything), but they always seem to offer a unique fish, chicken, red meat and pasta option, along with a collection of appetizers and desserts. If you are looking for a simple burger and fries, The Lot probably isn’t for you, since most of the plates involve unique twists on ingredients and flavors, like Carbonara with bacon, asparagus and duck egg and Fish N’Grits with tomato/​green chili sauce.

Cold food, small portions and wrong descriptions. The ribs had very little meat and the Asian sauce did not go well with the meat. Not even the bread, that we had to ask for, was good. Fish was ok but not fresh as indicated by server. They gave us 2 free deserts and a discount. Kudos for that, but we were expecting the chef to come out of the kitchen and talk to us. Waitress was snippety! Not coming back.

I was pleasantly surprised when I came here one night. Even though I’m not sophisticated enough to be familiar with all the food names ha ha. I had the Scrapple and it was incredible. (I don’t care what is made of!) I really enjoyed the small intimate feel of the place, which is the complete opposite vibe of next door at the pour house. The bartender was very knowledgeable of everything on the menu and friendly as can be. I will be back for sure.

My friends Tracey and Brian love this place. Go here all the time and rave to us about how great the food is. So finally finding a Tuesday night we could all make it over to The Lot we made 7 o’clock reservations for 8. It’s $ 8 burger night on Tuesday so we all knew what we were going to order!
I normally wouldn’t leave this low of a review for a place if I planned to go back and give it another try, but I don’t think that’s going to be the case for them. Our experience was the pits last night. Had it not been for the manager Chelsea, (who my friends know b/​c they’re always in there) I would be giving a 1 only, just for the burger because it was tasty.
The biggest problem was our service. There was only two other two tops when we got there. Another couple came in making it three tables and our table. Two servers on the floor. No bartender, so the server had to take the order, ring it in, then go make the drink. That was time consuming. We all ordered a burger and three of the guys ordered soup for an app. Well, one guy got his soup about 30 minutes after ordering. Not the other two though. They had to ask so they eventually got soup after the burgers had arrived. And boy was that fun. First two burgers come out. One right, one wrong. Next two burgers come out. One right, one wrong. The kicker that made the experience so bad was one guy finally getting his burger by the time everyone else at the table was done eating… :(I hate eating before everyone at the table gets their food, but we had no choice. Chelsea did her best to help, but the damage was done. (She did comp his meal for him though)
My friends say the brunch is fantastic so some day I MAY try The Lot again, but not anytime soon…

Change is afoot at the Lot, which bums me out since it was my favorite place in Charleston. Things just haven’t been as consistent lately, in food or service. The last two times we’ve been in, our meals were either really misrepresented by the server (the «bacon lovers» salad literally had one square cube of bacon in it) or missing ingredients that were listed on the menu.
What has been consistent is the increase in prices, making it just as expensive as the hot spots downtown ($ 9 soup, $ 18 for charcuterie, $ 28 for chicken, $ 15 for a sausage link). For the atmosphere and quality of food, the price was right on for the first 9 months they were open. Now it’s up there with every other «special occasion» joint in Charleston.
I really like the chef and staff there, so I feel bad dropping the stars, but I’ve had more than one person say they tried the Lot because of my review and were disappointed. Yikes! I gotta stay true to my Unilocal peeps.

I was not expecting to go the The Lot for dinner. Crust was overflowing, my husband was crabby, tired of grilled cheeses…‘look! Let’s stop there!’ I walked in the small restaurant connected to The Pour House and immediately fell in love.
The lighting was perfect, the family style meals made it feel homey instead of stuffy, and the waitstaff knew their shit. The menu changes every night and every nigh the waitress will walk you through the entire menu. She will use descriptive words to teach you about the dishes preparation, helpful but torturously long and awkward. Every meal sounded delish so it was hard to choose. We shared the prosciutto after an appetizer of bruschetta. Pleased with both. This restaurant is unique and intimate. Perfect date night refuge.

I’ve eaten here many times. The service is perfect every time. The ladies serving know their food and take it seriously without being snooty. The food has yet to disappoint me. Yes, it is a bit louder as the bands fire up next door, yes it is a little pricey, and there’s no white linens or sommeliers. If you want the quiet, fancy experience, with great food at a very high price, go to McCrady’s. This is excellent food, at a slightly high price, with friendly knowledgable service, in a lively fun atmosphere. I love it. This is a James Island restaurant sharing walls with a live music venue, not South of Broad finery.
To sum it all up… awesome food and service in a fun and lively atmosphere.

If I dreamed up a restaurant, it’d pretty much be The Lot: local farm-​to-​table meals served out on a breezy, sunny patio complete with chalkboard menus and a community table. Everything is sourced locally and/​or made in house. It’s glorious.
Before getting to the food, I HAVE to give kudos to the knowledgable servers. The actual service itself was a little sparse at times, but the servers’ detailed knowledge of everything on the menu blew me away! Given that the menu at The Lot changes pretty darn frequently, these servers are awesome for knowing every single ingredient in every single entrée.
Okay, back to the food. Literally everything on the menu sounded delectable, from the Farmers Plate to the French Toast. I ended up devouring a Pastrami sandwich with Parmesan fries, and didn’t regret a single second.
I wish I lived in Charleston purely for The Lot. :)

The one big thing I found uncomfortable about this place which is why I have it one star off is that they don’t have the best neighbors when it comes to ambiance of the place.
The server was great, the food was all natural, yummy, & fantastic. The ambiance of the place is very laid back and relaxed with some top 49 music playing low in the background. There is a nice bar at the back and a huge chalkboard wall with the always changing menu.
About 15 minutes into our dinner however we start hearing some loud bass and don’t understand where it’s coming from until someone opens a door which I guess leads to next door because we start hearing. A band practicing for a gig. And about 10 min later that gig started. It was loud and def not the type of music I would like to listen to while eating dinner. Plus the fact that they never turned off the in house music made this dining experience slightly less appealing.
The food was so good though that I def would come back, just maybe earlier in the night.