The delicious food scene of the Old 96 District
Whenever I’m visiting South Carolina, a resident spots my Georgia license plate and promptly lets me know that their state grows more peaches than mine. It happens all the time! California takes the peach cake as the number one producer, but South Carolina comes in second, delivering about three times the peaches Georgia does.
They have a right to be proud. South Carolina peaches are juicy and sweet. Naturally, I took a basket home to the Peach State (Georgia’s keeping the name because Peanut State just doesn’t cut it).
Some of the best peaches may be found in the Old 96 District, but also delicious pecans and a host of fabulous restaurants serving up nature’s bounty.
Peaches
Drive through the Old 96 District and you’ll spot peach orchards everywhere. Over in Ridge Spring, Titan Farms produces peaches on their 6,000-plus acres, the largest peach grower on the East Coast.
During the summer months, when peaches are ripe, visitors will find produce stands on the side of the road selling South Carolina’s best. We stopped at The Peach Stand outside Greenwood to purchase a basket, but couldn’t resist the other peach-enhanced goodness such as peach salsa and peach jam.
Pendleton Farms in Abbeville sells a variety of South Carolina products, so if you’re in town looking to bring home some of the state’s finest, drop in and let owner Andrew E. Hartsfield point you to the right product.
Pecans
Just as America has two political parties insisting their beliefs are right, so does it have a divided populace on how to pronounce pecans. Is it pee-can or puh-cawn? My Irish GPS man took the conflict a step further. He guided me to the 96 Pecan Company in the town of Ninety Six (yes, that’s its name) and pronounced it peh-kin. Owner John Murray and I had a good laugh on that one —for the record he and I pronounce pecan both ways but we got along well, likely because no matter how you pronounce pecan, the definition remains “delicious!”
Murray’s small store is choke full of pecans in all varieties: salted and roasted, Key lime, cinnamon, praline and, of course, peach. And that’s just a few! He’ll give you a sampling to whet your appetite. Trust me, you’ll go home with a bag…or two…or three.
Proprietors
Visitors could spend a good week traveling the District enjoying the many restaurants serving up goodness. Thankfully, I had time to sample a few.
Abbeville
Two Brews on historic Court Square plays double duty serving up hamburgers, a variety of wings, sandwiches and salads (the strawberry-pecan salad with poppy seed dressing is the bomb!) and a wide variety of local brews. It’s both a restaurant and a gathering place, plus there’s seating outside beneath a covered patio, the perfect spot to sip a beer and people watch.
Everything’s good at Chef Erica McCier’s innovative Indigenous Underground, but don’t miss her black-eyed pea gumbo and a type of egg roll that’s filled with black-eyed peas and collard greens with a chili dipping sauce. McCier’s self-taught and through her mixture of culinary training with being raised in a Southern family that knew cooking, it’s no wonder she became the state’s 2023 Chef Ambassador.
On a dark and stormy night, I literally refueled at Refuel, a bright and colorful remake of a former gas station. They offer breakfast and lunch, plus late-week dinner which I enjoyed, choosing the special of stuffed chicken breast with a white sauce served over rice. On one side of the establishment is the restaurant, enhanced by car-related artwork and a check-in station that’s an old car front, and serve Bliss Artisan ice cream on the other.
Edgefield
This historic city birthed 10 South Carolina governors and is home to the National Wild Turkey Federation headquarters, why visitors will spot decorative ceramic turkeys around town.
It’s also where you’ll eat extremely well.
TLC Confections is aptly named; it’s owned by Tina Louise Colarossi. Stop here for breakfast and lunch to sample her sweet concoctions and sandwiches made from scratch and craft coffees. Make sure to pause at the POW place setting for those who never returned, such a sweet tribute to those who are sometimes forgotten. And don’t leave without dessert!
Around the corner, Christine’s Farm to Fork is both an experience in local cuisine—emphasize local—and a true family enterprise. Christine Smith runs the ship but her husband Jacob and children help out in the restaurant and farm in nearby Johnston, where most of the ingredients come from. The menu constantly changes with the seasons and availability. I visited in spring and enjoyed Smith’s innovative uses of strawberries, including a strawberry cocktail.
Greenwood
The biggest question when you enter Sweet Indulgence in Uptown Greenwood is not whether to indulge your sweet tooth but which delectable treat to buy! I ended up purchasing three types of macarons and two varieties of cookies. My waistline might disagree but I made the right choice and I’m sticking to it.
For dinner, especially for date night or a special occasion, don’t miss the white table cloth dining at Cambridge Chophouse at Inn on the Square. Chef Larry Johnson’s menu highlights a variety of steak options and other classic dishes but the night I visited he recommended a flounder dish. I heartedly agreed—love grilled fish—and was not disappointed. Be sure to order his black-eyed-pea hummus, a unique twist on hummus that consists of black-eyed peas, lemon juice and peanut butter. Yes, peanut butter! Served with pita chips and vegetable batons, I knew I should save room for dinner but I couldn’t help myself, ate it all. It’s not every day I had the opportunity to sample a dish so unique and so good.
Note: If you’re looking for Greenwood accommodations, Cambridge Chophouse is located at Inn on the Square, a boutique hotel located conveniently in the heart of Greenwood.
By Cheré Coen
Cheré Coen is a travel and food writer living in Marietta, Ga., and the author of the Weird, Wacky & Wild South blog (weirdsouth.com). She also writes the Viola Valentine paranormal mystery series under the pen name of Cherie Claire.
