When I was putting together my first book, Savannah Food Crawls, a few years ago, I thought briefly about where to start this journey through Savannah. There was only one logical place, and that was at the Savannah River. The first chapter of this book is called Savannah’s modern theme park. The original title–Savannah’s Waterfront Disney World – took all of 10 minutes after I realized that if I had continued with it, if it had even made it past the publisher, I probably would have heard from someone representing the Mouse House. Not good. It was a theme park.
I’m revisiting that sentiment in 2024 for the simple reason that it was exactly the feeling my family and I had during a recent stay at the JW Marriott, the hotel in the Plant Riverside District. There’s certainly no shortage of things to do at Plant Riverside at any time of year. There are activities for families all year round and, of course, there’s a surplus of food and drink. That’s why I was there. The task was simple. Over three days in the Plant Riverside District, I would eat and/or drink at each of the 13 dining establishments. Yes, thirteen. If you think that’s a lot of food, you’re right.
To be fair, this includes the ice cream parlor, the Starbucks café and other smaller establishments of this kind, but also the seafood and barbecue shacks on the water, the burger shop, the pizzeria, the pasta shop and all the others. The last time I did something like this, Plant Riverside had just opened. It was maybe a few weeks old. Many of the outlets that exist today weren’t open then. Honestly, there were a few things I didn’t like so much this time around, but I was very surprised by how much of it I really liked. The majority, by far. Other than that… a few great hits to consider on your next trip to the coast.
Fried shrimp at District Seafood
After a quick interview with Chef Kendall Carlos, I asked him, “Show me what you have? What are you most excited about?” Of course he mentioned a few things, including his crab cakes, but he insisted I indulge in some of their fried shrimp. Oh well, everyone loves them. To be honest, the last time I had them was over a year ago and I wasn’t exactly thrilled then.
Since then, Chef Kendall has taken over and worked to perfect everything his restaurants offer (seafood and grilled dishes). I wish I could describe my natural reaction when I tried them. There was a camera rolling, but that’s for another time. The chef stood off to the side and watched.
“You season the cornmeal, don’t you?” I asked. “Yes, sir.” He didn’t tell me with what, but he admitted there was a little cayenne pepper in the breading. They weren’t spicy at all. They were wonderfully seasoned. I liked them so much that I came back for lunch the next day and had more. There are some great varieties, but these are some of the best in Savannah, and you know, I wouldn’t say that if I didn’t believe it.
Grilled pulled pork with cheese and beef brisket at District Smokehouse
The brisket at PRD has been very good almost from day one. I have always enjoyed it. Today it is better than ever. Fact. The other must-try is one of their most popular dishes on the menu. The grilled pulled pork Cheese was added to the menu as a specialty a few St. Patrick’s Days ago and has been a staple ever since. Pulled pork, barbecue sauce, pimento cheese on toasted sourdough bread. It’s popular because it’s fabulous and is one of the best sandwiches on the Savannah River.
Red Lentil Hummus at Baobab
There was a lot of good food at Baobab that night. The maaf beef and sweet plantain stew with peanut butter and white rice!!!!! So delicious. But the dish I’ve been meaning to come back for since I got home was the red lentil hummus. Crispy chickpeas, pita, za’atar, olive oil, lemon balm. There are some great hummus in Savannah these days (Lost Square and Shuk on this list), but this was special. Unlike anything I’ve ever had before. You have to try this next time you’re in the building. Of course there were more. These are just a few. “State of the Grub” gave an assessment. I’ll tell you more another time.
The entire weekend was documented for a future episode of our television show, Eat It and Like It with Jesse Blanco, which you can catch on Sundays at 12:30 p.m. on WJCL-TV.
