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Pg 60 - ON THE ORGANIC TRAIL...
Charleston
By Alia Akkam
Visitors to Charleston fall in love with its beautiful old homes and quaint streets, but while the city is rich with history, it also has an environmental eye toward the future. The Circular Congregational Church, one of the oldest churches in the country, has an impressive new building addition that features geothermal heating and a grass roof. Half Moon Outfitters, a clothing retail chain in the Carolinas and Georgia, has the first LEED-certified platinum status building in the region. Its North Charleston distribution center has solar panels and water recycling. Many of the charming B&B's that Charleston is known for are making small changes, like using low-watt fluorescent lighting, and operating linen re-use programs. The focus is on environmental education with the Charleston Green Committee.
Formed by Mayor Joseph P. Riley, Jr., and the city council, it's taking actions to make Charleston a forward-thinking model of sustainability. The Sustainability Institute of South Carolina, headquartered in
North Charleston, teaches locals how to make green lifestyle changes. For a city so passionate about its past, it's inspiring to watch Charleston serve as a model for other cities on how to usher in the future.
GREEN LIVING
Lovely old mansions with columns and sweeping verandahs that hark back to a glorious past are making way for a modern green real estate boom. The 3,000-acre master planned green redevelopment, Noisette, in North Charleston, integrates portions of the former Charleston Naval Base. It will encompass Oak Terrace Preserve, a fully green EarthCraft-certified infill neighborhood, with 400 preserved trees, recycled pavement, and eventually, 374 homes. It's also the site of Riverfront Park; Storehouse Row, which includes the Building Arts and Design Center and work space for artists; new office buildings that will be designated LEED silver status or above; and Powerhouse Basin, a $165 million infrastructure improvement.
Mixson, which was developed by the I'on Group, is a new neighborhood in North Charleston's rapidly burgeoning Park Circle community that has just unveiled its first round of homes. It will take 14 years to complete, but once it's through, each will be an Energy Star home and most will be made of energy-saving autoclaved aerated concrete blocks.
HOTELS
Market Pavilion
Starting off the morning with a yoga session is always invigorating, but it's especially effective when those downward dogs take place surrounded by the pool, statuary, and fountains of the Market Pavilion Hotel's glorious rooftop. The hotel's Hatha yoga sunrise salutations are a true daily mental retreat, with natural honey and bran muffins along with cleansing aloe juice on hand once you've stepped off your mat. A decidedly modern hotel, with the aforementioned rooftop turning into a mob scene in the evenings as locals and tourists gather for a soothing sunset view, it is still rather sumptuous. Classically designed rooms have mahogany furniture and deep Italian marble baths. If you make your request ahead of time, your room can be stocked with good-for-you treats like handmade granola bars and antioxidant-rich low-fat blueberry, vanilla bean and flaxseed oil smoothies.
225 East Bay Street, 843-723-0500,
www.marketpavilion.com
Inn at Middleton Place
A visit to Charleston often includes a tour of one of its old-world plantations. Middleton Place, an 18th century plantation not far from downtown Charleston, is a popular choice—as is checking into the inn. The Middleton Inn, set on the bluffs of the Ashley River, is in harmony with its peaceful backdrop. Guests who stay in rooms facing the river or woodlands may walk the inn's therapeutic labyrinth or stroll through the organic garden for some outdoor inspiration, but once inside they can rest assured they're staying in a hotel that would surely meet with Al Gore's approval. A member of the Green Hotels Association, the Inn operates an extensive recycling program, places used coffee grounds on landscaping instead of in the trash, and features water saver showers and toilets in its rooms. Housekeeping duties also revolve around sustainable practices. For example, newspapers are used to clean mirrors and frayed towels are cut and transformed into rags.
4290 Ashley River Road, 843-556-0500,
www.theinnatmiddletonplace.com
SPAS & BEAUTY
The Sanctuary at Kiawah Island Golf Resort
Rustic Kiawah Island, outside of Charleston, known for its sprawling beach and marshlands, is where locals and tourists come to escape the city. One of the most striking places on the beach is the Sanctuary, a luxury beachfront hotel known for its topnotch spa. Treatments incorporate ingredients that are distinctly South Carolina Low Country, derived from mineral-packed mud and botanical extracts. Two organic options on the spa menu include the Black Cherry Anti-oxidant Peel, a deeply cleansing and exfoliating treatment that concentrates on the face and neck and the 90-minute Southern Café Latte that uses Arabica coffee beans to exfoliate before proceeding to a milk and honey shea butter massage.
One Sanctuary Beach Drive, Kiawah Island, 843-768-2121, www.kiawahresort.com
Viridian Day Spa
Laura Kennedy's tale is familiar. She had a successful job (working at local software giant Blackbaud,) and then one day decided to escape the corporate bubble. Kennedy's metamorphosis resulted in the opening of Viridian Day Spa in Charleston's neighboring Mount Pleasant. But Kennedy's spa wouldn't be the usual quickie spa catering to ladies of leisure—it would be sustainable from the décor to the treatments. "I wouldn't consider opening a spa today without some attention to environmentally friendly practices. Typically, the core mission of a spa includes the promotion of a healthy, balanced lifestyle and caring for oneself. These qualities easily extend to caring for our environment," says Kennedy. No decor detail was spared. Floors are made of cork and bamboo, funky countertops are recycled glass, and non-VOC paints were used. All spa treatments here really should begin with Kennedy's personal favorite—Viridian's signature seaweed bath that uses Voya hand-harvested whole seaweed from the western coast of Ireland (this is the only spa in the U.S. to carry this seaweed). You're left alone in a big tub and encouraged to have a tactile experience with the seaweed, draping it over your skin and hair, letting its detoxifying powers naturally tame aches and pains. It's the perfect precursor to a healing herbal massage, enhanced by a wild lime scalp treatment. In the relaxation room, guests are inspired to read and sketch while sipping strawberry and soy smoothies from demure shot glasses.
1067 Cliffwood Drive, Mount Pleasant, 843-972-0871, www.viridiandayspa.com
Charleston Chemist
Each Saturday at the Charleston Farmers Market, Elin Cate sits with her array of Charleston Chemist products, from her Grits & Giggles Salt Scrub made with organic oils (and real grits) to her vegan, 76 percent organic Mother Pucker lip balms (we like Buttered Rum.) Cate has been hooked on beauty products for as long as she can remember. "My first steps just may have been toward the beauty counter of Rite Aid," she muses. But, she was also a science geek, and in the last 12 years has been working in clinical research for new drug development for everything from glaucoma to HIV. When she was laid off, she went through some soul searching and "a lot of bubble baths" and came up with the idea of launching Charleston Chemist. All the recipes are Cate's, but she's now joined forces with a small manufacturer who is helping expedite the process of adding certified organic ingredients to the mix. Naturally, she wanted to shun man-made oils, synthetic colors, and petroleum waxes that are so often found in beauty products.
www.charlestonchemist.com
FOOD AND DRINK
Fat Hen
John's Island, minutes from downtown, is the perfect spot for Fred Neuville's sweet farmhouse restaurant, Fat Hen. The neighborhood joint is known for its French-inspired dishes referencing the Low Country, like classic steamed mussels with garlic, fresh herbs, and white wine sauce; tomato roasted corn salad with boiled peanuts and corn; and steamed grouper with local butter beans. Neuville is just as passionate about organics as he is about cooking. Shortly after the restaurant opened, he joined forces with the island's Makin' Butterflies Montessori school. Here, children are pursuing certification as Junior Master Gardeners, producing organically grown produce on soil that gets fertilized via their own campus horse. Since Montessori kids are taught to give back to their communities, they strive to do this by giving the veggies and herbs they grow to the restaurant. Neuville couldn't be happier showcasing them. "It's important for the next generation of kids to understand that the most beautiful vegetables are the ones that are grown without pesticides, and that beauty and size don't always equal taste," he says.
3140 Maybank Highway, John's Island, 843-559-9090, www.thefathen.com
Carolina's
Carolina's, tucked away on a quiet downtown street in an old Revolutionary War-era building, is known for its classic Southern cuisine (think divine shrimp and grits with an andouille gravy.) However, executive chef Jeremiah Bacon keeps things fresh, both in terms of preparation and in the choice ingredients he uses. Bacon, who you just might run into at the Charleston Farmers Market, actively seeks out local producers and uses produce grown at nearby Boone Hall and Kensington Plantations. At Carolina's, the connection to history is especially profound, celebrating a Plantation to Plate initiative. North of Charleston, off the Cooper River, the Kensington Plantation is a stunning ancestral site known for its lush gardens. It is here that heirloom vegetables and herbs—and soon, original Carolina Gold rice—are grown exclusively for the restaurant, as well as for the other culinary ventures under the Crew Carolina umbrella.
10 Exchange Street, 843-724-3800,
www.carolinasrestaurant.com
EVO
Within the footprint of the green Noisette project, EVO naturally embraces sustainable principles. Chef and owners Matt McIntosh and Ricky Hacker serve thin-crusted gourmet pizzas in their happy yellow-walled space. A favorite is the pistacho-pesto pizza with home-made mozzarella, crème fraiche, and sea salt, baked in a wood-fired oven. The artisanal pies are dressed with local in-season produce, including spring onions and basil from Wadamalaw Island and Bibb lettuce and tomatoes from a hydroponic farm from nearby Moncks Corner.
1075 East Montague Street, North Charleston, 843-225-1796, www.evopizza.com
FIG
Seasonally-minded FIG is a downtown neighborhood bistro known for its use of locally grown vegetables. In fact, veggies that would be mere sides at other establishments, come to life here as "Vegetables for the Table" with items like pan-roasted cauliflower with mustard butter and sautéed collards with garlic that get passed around the table. Executive Chef and co-owner Mike Lata has been a champion of using local produce before it was trendy to befriend farmers, and he uses organic ingredients whenever possible. Look for dishes like a frisée salad with garlic, bacon, and poached Sea Island egg, and sautéed local flounder with littleneck clams, new potatoes and leeks.
232 Meeting Street, 843-805-5900, www.eatatfig.com
Gary's Organic
Those who can't make it to the farmers market to separate the bruised melons from the perfectly ripe ones, depend on Gary Frank and his white van to supply them with their fruits and vegetables. His produce delivery business, Gary's Organic, features seasonal, custom-made organic Go Boxes for clients so they're never stuck with, say, bell peppers. The Grab & Go, for example, is designed for busy people who want to eat on the run healthfully, packed with the likes of easy-to-eat bananas and grapes. Go Boxes are more diverse, featuring exotic fruits like kiwi and mango. In addition to these nutritious goods, now customers can also tack on an order of organic green lentils and long-grain basmati brown rice to arrive straight at their door.
www.garysorganic.com
Tristan
Tristan, long a favorite among tourists (no doubt because of its central location across from Charleston's City Market) is a much-worthy stop for locals, as well. The dramatic dining room features an open kitchen where guests can watch Chef Aaron Deal and his team in action. Deal, who has a special affinity for seasonal cooking, uses a large number of organic vegetables from The Chef's Garden in Ohio, and works with local purveyors like nearby Keegan Filion Farms to serve its hormone- and pesticide-free, free-range chickens. Even simple greens, tossed in blossom honey vinaigrette with cranberries, spiced walnuts and Point Reyes blue cheese are an organic beginning. "It isn't as if I have to serve organic foods; I do it because they really present a noticeable difference in flavor and quality. Nothing against chemicals, I just prefer nutrients," explains Deal.
55 S. Market Street, 843-534-2155,
www.tristandining.com
Charleston Tea Plantation
Out on Wadmalaw Island, tea aficionados have the unique experience of visiting North America's only tea gardens. Charleston Tea Plantation, now aligned with Bigelow Tea, is known for its line of American Classic black teas. While you can spend time in the gift shop stocking up on one of the line's Charleston-inspired loose teas, like Governor Gray, the real fun here is the tour. First, visitors watch the tea making process in the "Tourway," (televisions stand in for the live show off-season) and then hop on a trolley for a tour of the fields and the pesticide-free tea plants. Of course, samples of American Classic iced tea in the gift shop are on hand for sipping.
www.bigelowtea.com/act/
Alia Akkam is a New York City-based lifestyle writer whose work has appeared in Bon Appetit, Delta Sky, and Time Out New York, among other publications.