Pearlz Oyster Bar

My husband and I dropped by for an early dinner. We weren’t too hungry so we decided to share a dish. We were warmly greeted by the host and the waitress, who were both very friendly. The menu was one page and the back of the menu was a cool picture of a map.
We started with appetizers: fried shrimp and a dozen raw oysters. Our entrée was the mix grilled fish and later on, I ordered a cup of clam chowder.
Our appetizers were brought out first and everything was so fresh! Our entrée was brought out next and our waitress pointed out which fish was which. The fish was delicious and it was perfectly cooked: not dry and not undercooked. All fish should be cooked this way! The clam chowder surprised me because it had a kick to it that I can’t explain. It tasted spicy but it wasn’t. You’ll just have to taste it for yourself!
The restaurant was good and it had a good atmosphere. I’d like to come back again and explore more of the menu.

Two and a half years later and my dad still loves Pearlz — I think I have been there 30 or more times in my life now. 3 times this week alone. The staff has changed but the quality has not — the food and service are really excellent.
Until yesterday, I would’ve stood by my 4 star review, but something great happened that I really appreciated:
I prefer not to eat animals every day of my life. After 2 days in a row of Pearlz, I was a bit tired o’ oysters and crab, but the 3 standard vegetarian options (two salad choice or a pasta) didn’t really appeal to me. I asked if they had any off menu veggie options and the waitress said not really. A few minutes later, Chris (I think he’s the new manager) came over and asked how I felt about veggie risotto. They made me a DELICIOUS vegetarian risotto, went easy on the cream to keep it as light as a risotto can be, and loaded it with vegetables.
I appreciated their accommodation of my food preference so much, and even better that it was something really tasty! It was also very fairly priced and big enough to share.
Thanks for giving me a great experience and meal; I’ll be back! Probably tonight.

Fun place with great service and a good raw bar. DH and I had oysters, peel-​and-​eat shrimp and a side of fried pork rinds.
But what was really great was an oyster shooter we had with a house-​made infused vodka. Husband was so excited about it, he is going to try to make his own infused vodka at home. Should make a great bloody mary!

Probably one of the few who’s not that impressed with pearlz. (The service was great). First off I didn’t find the menu at all interesting. We ordered 2 fish stick kids meals. They were average, decent, typical acceptable price. My husband got the first cheeseburger on the menu. He liked it. He didn’t like the chips, said they were over rated. As a matter of fact no one but me could tolerate the chips. I had the tacos. One shrimp, one mahi. The shrimp taco was heavy, the shrimp had a strange flavor. The mahi taco was better– still not light and fresh like I would expect or wanted and had the tiniest sliver of mahi that I’ve possibly ever seen. and both were packed w what I’d call, imo, an undesirable slaw. At this point I still prefer triangle bar across the street. We’ll give it another try eventually. One other thing, it wasn’t happy hour but I feel since it was lunch time they should have better lunch specials on a regular basis. They had «specials» but the prices were def NOT special. Just Wasn’t feeling it.
The second time we are here was much better. The tuna burger is delicious. However, every time we’ve eaten oysters here there is always a ton of sand in them): so disappointing bc I love oysters! Even in Ohio, where I come from, I haven’t ever had sand in any of my oysters from any of the restaurants I’ve eaten at and I have had my share of oysters. It seems to be the regular thing in Sc so far tho. No one knows how to properly clean an oyster.

I really liked my Tuna burger and coleslaw, but everything else was very mediocre. Fried oysters ranged WIDELY in size and how much they were cooked. Oysters Rockefeller were all breadcrumbs and cheese and basically no oyster. Daily specials looked interesting so I may have to come back to try some. Drinks were pretty cool, and service was solid. Fun atmosphere and oyster shooters really are the main reason to come here. Just too expensive for the quality in my opinion in the competitive Charleston market.
Still, not amazing and not terrible, therefore 3 stars.

fried oysters are pretty good. I wish they were a little larger. The dipping sauce is great.

Very fresh, delicious oysters! The staff was great! Me and my boyfriend were visiting from Philly and this was the first place we stopped at and I’m glad we did. They Definitely helped us out and recommended a few other places for us. Thanks chase, chess and Lucas for welcoming us to Charleston :)

OMG OMG OMG!!! every restaraunt I hit now we r like the only black folks there. ?? But i walked into Same scenario here. The kind of tables they have they «make u» sit near the next man. U feel me? They put us next to older white couple. (50 – 60 yrs old) n then it got KRAY!!! great stories. Tips on life n marriage great food. The other side was so loud couldn’t hear ureself think. I got fuuuuuuukd uuuuuup. MAN!!! Needed dat. Listen maaaaan… OYSTER FRIKN SHOOTERS!!! spicy oyster with cocktail sauce n vodka. Fresh seafood. Bettr n more laid back than the downtown pearlz. (Downtown is becoming overrated) $ 100 bill but worth it. Had 4 – 7 drinks. CaNt rEaLlY rEmEmBeR. U feel me???

Bottom Line: Best Happy Hour Prices for Raw Oysters!

When my friend heard that I loved oysters and had never experienced a oyster shooter, she made it a point to include a visit to Pearlz Oyster Bar on my weekend away in Charleston. Pearlz has a vibrant welcoming energy. We found a seat at the raw bar, were all the action was taking place. The bar staff were making one oyster shooter after the next, non stop. The raw bar offers a variety of Lowcountry and gulf oysters. They also have a variety of specialty oysters, and fresh seasonal shellfish. They also have a full food menu to select from. I ordered a oyster shooter, the plate special of the day w/​assorted fresh shellfish, and a side of their house made chips. The oyster shooter is served with an infused pepper vodka, or a house infused vodka. I tried both, and loved the house infused vodka the best. Their raw seafood was fresh, and tasty. I want more of it now that I am thinking about it. The chips are a definite must. The blue cheese sauce that comes with the chips is lovely! Pearlz is a great fun friday night get away, with delicious seafood.

Stopped in for dinner a few nights ago… was told booth for two would be available in approx 20 min.
What a great excuse to head to the bar! One perfectly prepared cocktail and an icy cold local draft. Enjoyed watching the guys «give a shuck» …
Chris, the manager (?), kept his word and the booth was ready. IF, I ever found myself that owning a restaurant, I would seek to hire people as talented as Chris.
Moving along — oysters! I had two dozen… basically without even blinking. Shuck, yeah — the reason to visit Pearlz. My dining companion had something that wasn’t an oyster (honestly can’t remember). I also had a side of the fried sweetbreads — not the best.
Would return and stick with enjoying the service and the oysters.

Had the peel n eat shrimp, oysters, corn fritters for happy hour. Everything was great but the shrimp were outstanding! My friend had the. NY Strip and she loved it. Ate the whole thing. Happy hour is a great time to go. The prices are awesome, it’s not crowded, and the food is outstanding!

By far the best service I have gotten in Charleston! The Owner noticed that I was struggling getting my oysters open and taught me a trick to open them faster. Happy hour here is a steal too!

We’re here to throw down for the AYCE oyster roast and for $ 15 it’s totally worth it. Besides that, this place has the best happy hour a girl could wish for on a chill afternoon (which also includes some delish oysters!). The beer is cold and the staff is friendly and helpful.

Nailed it! Not just once but every time! Best fruit de mer in Charleston. Reasonably priced considering the wife and I split it for our entrée. If you’re looking for a consistent, quality, seafood meal they are the best!

This place is definitely a great local spot (the location downtown is nice too but a little small but that’s because it’s always crowded because it’s so great), the staff is always nice and bartenders know what they’re doing. The shrimp tacos are amazingggggg! I’ve never had anything bad from there and have never heard anything bad from anyone else so great job guys!

Pearlz is one of those restaurants that you just can’t help but like. I mean who doesn’t love oysters, beer, and a warm sunny patio?
I went on a pleasantly warm Sunday afternoon to the Pearlz West Ashley location and we promptly grabbed a patio table. Even though it was well past proper brunching hours, we all ordered traditional brunch cocktails. No complaints were raised over the mimosas or bloody marys, and I personally really enjoyed my white sangria. We ordered a dozen of the house raw oysters and our server quickly brought out a plate of 14 oysters saying that the staff tossed in a couple extra because they were kind of small. Hailing from the mainland for the past decade, their «small» oysters seemed normal sized to me, so the extra two were most appreciated and quite unnecessary.
As the afternoon lingered on and the drinks kept coming, a couple of us decided it was time for more substantial food. I opted for the fried fish taco. It was $ 5.95, large, and your standard fried fish taco that benefitted greatly from a healthy dose of hot sauce. One of my friends ordered the pork special but received the wahoo special I believe. She didn’t order it, she enjoyed it, and the server wasn’t around to correct it. It’s at this point we realized our server was frequently absent throughout the course of the afternoon.
All and all, the service was laid back to the point of lackadaisical, but Pearlz is an excellent spot to enjoy oysters, beer, and patio season before it gets to be unbearably summer hot again. It’s the kind of place you go when you just want to have a chill, low key afternoon and sometimes it’s A-​OK not to have your socks knocked off by the service when you’re enjoying a slow Sunday funday.

Stopped in for happy hour with a friend, didn’t get to experience much of it considering our waitress checked on us twice in 1 hour. Can’t very well order what we wanted off the happy hour menu when you don’t check on us until AFTER happy hour is over. Saw a table beside us leave after waiting too long to be greeted. I’ll give it another chance but will certainly ask for a different waitress. What we did get to try was good, and the prices were as well, what we saw other people being served looked pretty good ha!

Stop in for the first time with my father (very picky eater). Ordered the ½ shrimp ½ oyster fried plate with a dozen on the half shell.
He was halfway through the oysters before looking up to talk to me. Needless to say, Pearlz’s was the right place for this discerning palate.
My cod and chips were seasoned to perfection and piping hot. An absolute must for me.
My service was great as they checked on us regularly and kept the drinks coming.
We’ve definitely found our go to spot for good seafood.

Would definitely come here more if I lived in the area. thought the price point was excellent and the quality of the food and presentation of it was as well. It was nice to be able to select various types of oysters from around the country and canada. The peel and eat shrimp had more shrimp than most other restaurants serve — the cocktail sauce had the right amount of zing. I had a menu item that had 4 peices of fish prepared on a bed of rice with all sorts of stuff in it. Can’t recall the name of it but I think it was about $ 24 and it was very enjoyable. Overall a solid experience.

Should be 4.5.
The New England chowder is *really* good, and we also tried today’s daily soup, the blue crab bisque with old bay oil, but I think they put way too much Old Bay in it – was a little overpowering.
Mussels in the white wine broth was good, but a little bland. HOWEVER, the oysters Rockefeller were Off. The. Hook. A definite must.
At the end of our meal, either the manager or owner came out and checked in on us and talked to us a bit which was a nice touch.
All in all, pretty good!

I’ve been hearing about Pearlz happy hour for a while now, so I made it a point to stop by on a recent Monday night. I didn’t think it got much better than $ 10.95 for a dozen oysters, $ 9.95 for a ½ pound of peel, $ 3.50 oyster shooters and eat shrimp and $ 6.00 cocktails. However, I think my expectations were a little high after enjoying some of the best oysters ever at another local raw bar. I’ve learned that good oysters have a price tag, so I highly suggest skipping the happy hour oysters here! But honestly, the oyster in the shooter was even worse than the dozen we received, so chewy you might as well just swallow it whole.
The best part of the experience was the peal and eat shrimp! I highly recommend ordering these and of course, Pearlz has great drink specials. The menu at this West Ashely location IS different from downtown, but they’ve got some interesting options, including a gin and champagne. None of the cocktails I tried blew me away, but when you usually pay $ 6 for a gin and tonic, a fancier drink for the same price can easily satisfy. This location leaves a lot of to desired compared to the downtown location, if you’re looking for a great atmosphere, just suck it up, stand in line, and head downtown.

Amazing oysters! Seriously! Great, great staff! They were so friendly and gracious! Toy have to try the oyster shot too! They had great a lobster roll but it wasn’t beyer than one I had in southern Florida. Go, go, go!

I liked this place a lot the one time I went. The food was great. Crab dip was amazing – I’d highly recommend it! Fried shrimp were huge and fried oysters were great too. I also really like their hush puppies.
Staff was friendly and helpful. The hostess was very nice.
The grilled mahi tacos, which I got, were decent. The fish tasted slightly burned but not so bad that it was completely inedible– just threw off the flavor a little– and the pico de gallo on it was YOWZA spicy. There should be something in the menu that describes it as a spicy dish. It probably wouldn’t be terrible for people who like spicy foods, but my palette is a little too sensitive for it. I just went in and picked out the little pieces of jalapeño as best I could and it was fine.
Decent beer selection and wine list. I still haven’t had the oyster shooters which I’m really looking forward to on my next trip there!

Pearz is always a treat for a seafood lover like me.
Fantastic customer service, fantastic food, very reasonable prices.
On my last visit I ordered a double dozen of house raw oysters. Yup 24 raw oysters.
Hey, in my defense I live in Colorado, thousands of miles away from the ocean. Good seafood is hard to come by. As always, the oysters were fresh, shucked well and the sauces that came with oysters were spot on. Oyster shooters are my second favorite. The first time I did an oyster shooter I knew I was hooked for life. Peel and shrimp are my next favorite dish.
I am already looking forward to my next visit to Charleston, as I will surely visit Pearlz again.

I don’t go here very often and I’m not sure why because it’s always great! The first time I hesitantly had the New England clam chowder (I’m from New England) and it was perfect. Next time, oyster shooters and burger.: DELISH. Next time? One of the bartenders who’s name I can’t remember (sorry!) who is always so awesome, guided my father in from the pearlz downtown. What a guy! I’m totally into the atmosphere too.

We couldn’t have asked for a better place for dinner.
We started off with a dozen steamed oysters. They came with melted butter and house cocktail. Perfection! Would have order another dozen if we had saved room after dinner.
I had the pimento cheese shrimp and grits with tomato relish. Very tasty and the shrimp were jumbo. He had the fried shrimp with corn fritters and cole slaw. Out of the two, the shrimp and grits were the way to go. Our wonderful server mentioned that the shrimp and grits change flavor almost nightly, so be on the lookout for new creations.
The table next to us got the gumbo, looked very tasty also. Would highly recommend coming here!!!

This place deserves 5 stars due to their great service, the corn fritters, and the tuna tartare. Let me explain.
We stopped in for an early dinner to find out that it was happy hour. Yay! We started off with the corn fritters and decided to get the seafood plateau. I wasn’t too sure we were going to be satisfied with the amount of food but god was I wrong.
First off, the corn fritters came out HOT and covered in powdered sugar. They’re crunchy and soft and pillowy on the inside however there isn’t a whole lot of corn in there. We didnn’t finish them since our plateau arrived and we needed to focus on that.
Oysters, peel and eat shrimp, crab dip, tuna tartare, shrimp ceviche, clams, a lobster, and giant handfuls of mussels were presented to us and we went to TOWN. Like, polished off 95% of it between the two of us. Afterwards, I was crying because I was sad that it was gone and because I was so full that it hurt. The tuna tartare and ceviche were the two winners on the plate for me, as well as one of the oysters that they had gotten in from the west coast. Highly recommend this! But maybe split it between more than 2 people… hahah.
While we were eating, a weird leak from the ceiling splashed onto our table. A server saw it, immediately cleaned it up, and got us new drinks and refilled our corn fritters for us, in case they had been contaminated by the leak. What!!! I was so happy that even though I was so full, I stuffed another fresh corn fritter in my mouth out of excitement. So, thank you Pearlz! You guys are awesome.

To start off i must say I only tried oysters for the first time about 5 months ago. A girlfriend of mine asked me to meet here here for a GNO. I was excited because now in love with oysters! We got here and the staff was very friendly. I brought my 2 nieces with me and the waitress was outstanding. She was a pleasure to talk to. It wasnt just generic hi my name is annie and im your server today. She was completely involved. We had some great discussions and she was very informative about the menu. She also made great suggestions. My niece got the cheeseburger and the other got the chicken tacos (they were amazing! Very full of flavor, made us lick our fingers). My friend and i both got the house special oysters. Wow! I couldnt believe what a deal it was for a wholed dozen oysters. One of mine came without an oyster and the manager came out and gave me a half dozen more! I wouldve never expected that. The food, staff, and establishment was great! Clean and great for families or GNO they have a separated bar and seating area which is really nice.

While visiting Charleston with my mom, we were determined to find a raw bar, and Pearlz definitely answered the call!
Amazing house oysters at a good price! Perfect size, schucked beautifully, just delicious. The oyster shooters were equally amazing, with just the right amount of spice!
I got the tuna sandwich, which was out of this world-​cooked perfectly, great seaweed salad and my mom got the fish and chips, which she also loved. Their house chips are crunchy and seasoned well — and they dip perfectly in their wasabi crème!
Our server, Chelsea, was amazing as well! Well done Pearlz!

This place has a Fangtasia vibe minus the fang bangers, glitter, synthetic blood cocktails… okay I guess it is not very Fangtasia like at all.
But as soon as I stopped in, I thought this might be the top of drinking hole that Sookie and her crew might stop at if they were craving a cold brew and a bi-​valve and they weren’t busy slaying (or saving) vampires.
It’s dark, a bit divey and quiet but they have some great Abita brews and fresh, delicious Gulf Coast Oysters for you to munch on. The service was friendly. It’s a little bit off the beaten path but well worth a stop in if you are in West Ashley, South Carolina.