This summer I read an article in the August/September issue of Garden and Gun magazine about a new project headed up by Craig Diehl, the executive chef at Cypress here in downtown Charleston. As a means of cutting down on waste in the Cypress kitchen he began making charcuterie with the left over scraps from whole hogs butchered in the kitchen, leading to the creation of The Artisan Meat Share as a subscription service which started five years ago.
Much like the farm share programs that we've become so familiar with hearing about, Diehl offered an annual subscription that allowed people to pick up quarterly packages of anything from ground beef to salami, bacon and plenty of other meat-based treats, all made and stored in the Cypress kitchen.
Fast forward to September 24, 2014 and The Artisan Meat Share is now it's own shop, located at 33 Spring St, which means that for all of us food-obsessed, yet also consistently broke, college students, artisan cured meats, made right here in Charleston, are within reach.
With all this in mind, I was finally able to go try a meal there this past Sunday, and I have to say I'm kind of ashamed I waited so long to go. Walking in I knew I had found somewhere special, with a set up like an old diner, including counter seats and two large wooden booths. When you come through the door, you're greeted by a chalkboard of specials and a cooler displaying pre-packaged condiments and sides. Anything from their pea and peanut salad to bread and butter pickles all the way to Kimchi. Keep wandering back for the best view: a cooler stocked with all sorts of cured meats, salami, bratwurst, breakfast sausage, and some of my favorites: landjager (a german semi-dried sausage, think jerky but so much better) and pate. For a carnivore like me, I was in heaven just looking at that cooler. I also knew I had to back away slowly before I went broke getting "just a taste" of everything I could.
Instead I decided to ask for a recommendation for a sandwich, and ended up with the buckboard BLT with a side of pea and peanut salad with radish and green goddess dressing (pictured below) and a Boylan's cream soda to drink. If you're of age, you could also opt for a Pluff Mud Porter or a draft beer from Holy City Brewing. At one point I even got caught eating the bacon straight out of the sandwich, and received a nod of approval for it.
I spent the next hour munching on my salad and sandwich and soaking up the atmosphere. I got sucked into a conversation about using local ingredients to make a difference in our communities, as well as doing something good for ourselves and environment, and realized that this was starting off as one of those rare places that the people who are truly passionate about food are likely to be found...which should tell you all you need to know. I even learned about where their products come from, like hogs from Carolina Heritage in the Pee Dee region of South Carolina and produce from Ambrose Farms on Wadmalaw Island.
Now that I know how great this place is, there's a pate melt with mustard and swiss cheese calling my name that I can't wait to go back and try, and you can bet that the next time someone asks me where to go for lunch, I'll be directing them here.
