FIG

Helmed by a duo of James Beard Award winners—Mike Lata and Jason Stanhope—FIG is a Charleston institution. A pioneer of the farm-to-table movement in the South, Lata opened the the restaurant 15 years ago, marrying European technique with Southern inflections. “I want people to eat in a way that’s familiar, and try to introduce to them something totally new and different,” Lata says. A great example is the restaurant’s take on beef tartare, where the steak sits atop a tuna conserva. You get the familiar tartare, but with a little twist. Another highlight of FIG is the outstanding wine program that features producers you wouldn’t necessarily expect to find on a list in the South, like Lieu Dit out of Santa Barbara.

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Ricotta Gnocchi alla Bolognese

Photo: Courtesy FIG