Tropical Toast at Diana's

Location:

155 Meeting Street

Charleston, SC 29401

Type:

Caribbean Diner

Website:

www.tropicaltoast.com

Experience:

We actually liked this place enough to have breakfast here two mornings in a row. Although, admittedly, the second morning was only because we went somewhere else which had an hour wait to get in. So instead we decided that our breakfast the morning before at Tropical Toast was good enough to be repeated. This was great for me as it let me make up for a terrible mistake I had made the previous morning:

I had ordered the wrong thing.

Being that we were a large group and it was generally difficult to make decisions and the round everyone up to go places, a small number of us had set out the first morning for breakfast. My sister recommended that we go to this place. However, we wound up parking on the wrong side of downtown and then had about a 12 block hike to the restaurant. Being accustomed to hikes for food on vacation (notoriously was the one in Tulsa) I was up for it. But not really being accustomed to my sister making decisions about restaurants, I can't help but say I was nervous.

When we finally arrived, I was kind of in shock. This place looks like Jimmy Buffet on some severe happy pills went NUTS. It's bright. VERY bright. Which I can't say I enjoyed first thing in the morning. But they do serve booze at breakfast and that I approved of. A few mimosas later and I have to say I was a fan.

The waitress was really nice and remembered us the next morning (even to the point of remembering which of us had regular and which had decaf). Food was brought to us quick, which was a little surprising as busy as they were, but it was hot and fresh and tasted damn good.

Now I do have to admit, the first morning, in spite of being told that I should order the "famous" Eggs Meeting Street, I instead ordered an Irish Omelet which was an omelet with cornbeef and hash. Served with a choice of home fries or grits and toast or english muffin, there is definitely enough food to feed even the hungriest breakfast goer. The omelet wasn't bad. But when I saw the Eggs Meeting Street I was ashamed that I hadn't ordered it. This was something I remedied the following morning.

Two fried green tomatoes, on top of which they place two crab cakes, on top of which they place two poached eggs and then top the whole thing off with Remoulade sauce. This was not something I could have come up with in my wildest culinary dreams. And it was SO good. Even those in the party who are normally opposed to fried green tomatoes were impressed by this dish devised by some Charlestonian genius chef. Like seriously, this guy (or gal) needs a medal.

On top of this, the coffee was strong and fresh. And the greeter at the door was hilarious and kept us entertained as we waited for seating. Very hard to find fault with this place as a breakfast must if you are in town. I just wish I could have sampled their lunch or dinner menus. But alas, we only had so much time.

Overall:

Prices were not too bad considering the size of the meals. It might be a little high for breakfast being somewhere in the $8-12 range plus mimosas. But really, where can you eat for less than that these days? Service was nice and the decor was... well it was. But don't let the decor put you off. The food is better than that scared feeling you get when you open the door and it is brighter inside than out (even on a clear day with the sun shining). Thinking back on the Eggs Meeting Street and mimosas, I would highly recommend this place for breakfast.

4 Carats