The Best Sandwich in Charleston

Some of the best places to eat in Charleston, S.C. don’t have tables or chairs. Case in point: Street Hero, a food vendor that sells Vietnamese banh mi sandwiches and tacos downtown every Saturday at the Farmers’ Market in Marion Square from 8:00 a.m. until 3:00 p.m. Street Hero serves up sandwiches and tacos so good they will change your mind about what ‘street meat’ means.

I first tasted Street Hero’s fantastic fixings a few weekends ago with an out of town guest and I have been dreaming about their food ever since. I should have known that a line so long was a very good sign.

“I’m torn,” I said, “between the ginger lemongrass chicken banh mi and the traditional Vietnamese pork and pâté banh mi.”

“Well, I’d go with the ham and pâté,” said one of the owners. (Regrettably, I cannot remember his name.)

“Sold!” I said. My friend ordered the lemongrass chicken.

We stood to the side of Street Hero’s yellow tent. Plates of tacos and French baguettes brimming with Vietnamese fare flew into hungry hands rapidly. We watched as careful hands assembled each sandwich attentively and piled on refreshing pickled carrot-cucumber salad and fried shallots.

After a liberal squirt or two of sriracha, I bit into my monstrous baguette. My mouth waters, even now, out of both respect and jealousy for the memory of that first bite. Creamy-earthy pâté danced with the refreshing crunch of a pickled carrot-cucumber salad. The Vietnamese ham (not sweet like most American deli ham—much more subtle yet still distinctly porky protein) and the salty crispy fried shallots hit it all off. I can’t do the sandwich justice; you just have to taste it for yourself. It will be the best $8 you ever spend.

There’s something to be said for street food. Without the use of refrigerators your ingredients have to be fresh and they have to be the best; especially when you’re working in 85ºF heat! There are no fancy sauces or foams or complex preparations for street food to hide behind. If it’s good, you’ll know; there will be a line.

You can follow Street Hero on Twitter at @CharStreetHero

Farmers' Market Treasure: Diana Lauderdale

The Charleston Farmers’ Market is something locals and tourists alike enjoy every Saturday morning downtown in Marion Square. By 8:00 a.m., Marion Square smells almost good enough to eat. Doughnuts are fried right before your eyes. Crepes are made to order. Later in the day, bahn mi sandwiches make their appearance after you’ve worked up an appetite selecting your produce for the week. If you haven’t yet made this a Saturday morning tradition you are missing out.

For me, as a local, I’m there for the food vendors, like Roots Ice Cream, and the fabulous local produce. Artists’ booths normally don’t catch my eye. Yesterday, my mother and I stumbled across the work of a photographer, Diana Lauderdale, and we walked away with quite a bit of her work.

Lauderdale’s artwork is distinctive. She simply sees things that you or I wouldn’t. There’s a degree of rawness to each snapshot that brings you to the very moment it was taken—and in some instances the birth of the object itself. The pieces I selected are part of her This and That of Thine Eye,  Americana and In Other Words projects. Lauderdale finds a way to bring the subject of each photograph to life. She’s particularly gifted with color photographs.

I’m very excited to have two of my four photographs already framed. I’m even more excited to be supporting a local artist. In speaking with Diana, she’s absolutely a character. A wounded bird with gumption and an artist’s personality.

Food Stamps

I'm an NPR fanatic. I no longer listen to popular radio stations, just NPR. I've become my mother. Yesterday I managed to catch the end of an interview of a restaurant reviewer who has lost his job and is now on food stamps. As he is single, he receives $200.00 in food stamps from the government per month. $200 a month?! It's easy for me to go to Whole Foods and spend over half that amount in one visit. The secret for him, he says, is shopping at the farmer's market. Now this is where I believe in divine coincidence. I got home and opened the current issue of Garden & Gun magazine. Low and behold, there is a feature on the "The Secret South" and what do I find? Gainesville, Florida's Alachua County Farmer's Market featured because all of its produce is sold by the farmers who actually grow it. Lovely. The only thing that makes me nervous is none of the vendors say "organic." Oh and to top it off? I received an email from NPR's book club all about new cookbooks featuring farmer's market recipes... God? Hello?



I'm starting graduate school at the University of Florida in a few weeks. I am receiving 100% of my financial aid through the Federal government therefore my budget is somewhat limited. If someone on food stamps can make it on $200 a month eating locally grown, fresh fruits and vegetables, why can't I? I'm absolutely making this a goal once I move to Gainesville next week. I am limiting myself to $200.00 a month for groceries. Let's see if I can do this!

Check out the NPR interview here: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=127743434