Restaurant Spotlight: The Obstinate Daughter
If you’ve been around Charleston for a while, you know The Obstinate Daughter, or OD, has been a local (and tourist) favorite for years! Obstinate Daughter is home of the two time nominated James Beard award chef Jacques Larson and his incredible team. OD has been one of my favorite spots since I was in high school. I love to come here for brunch, lunch and dinner and typically gravitate towards my few favorite items on the menu!
Beginning with drinks, I always go for their seasonal tequila cocktail! Right now it’s the beach bum which is a strawberry, cucumber and key lime cocktail making it the perfection transition into summer. Another favorite is the sweater weather, which they have during the fall and winter months.
Onto food, if you are here for brunch you must try their sweet roll (not pictured). It is a massive cinnamon roll covered in a homemade cream cheese frosting. We went here for Easter brunch this year and got two for the table and not a bite was left!
Also for starters, their fresh oysters are always a great choice, they have local options when in season and great selections from along the coast. Their flatbread served with a butterbean puree is to die for and I make everyone I go with try it because it is that good.
As for main meals I topically rotate between two pasta dishes and then the Miss Carolina pizza if I am in a pizza mood or don’t want something super heavy. The Radiatore pasta is their vodka pasta served with a heaped scoop of ricotta cheese. In my humble opinion, I make some of the best vodka pasta out there, so I don’t really order it when I see it on a menu out. This is the only vodka pasta I will order out at a restaurant. It runs circles around mine. It is perfectly creamy, has the right amount of spice, the color is incredible and the serving is enough to share or for tomorrow’s leftovers.
My other go-to is their short rib ragu gnocchi. The flavors in this dish are out of this world. The homemade gnocchi paired with the short rib ragu is insane and melts in your mouth. I quite literally dream of this pasta. Also a generous portion size, enough to share or take home for later.
Finally, the Miss Carolina pizza, OD’s take on a classic Margherita pizza - topped with fresh heirloom tomatoes, mozzarella cheese, basil, wood oven baked on homemade pizza dough this is some of the best pizza in Charleston.
While OD is not technically an Italian restaurant, I think it is by far some of the best Italian food we have to offer in Charleston. With some of the best staff (shoutout Frank!), most creative, consistent food and drinks, there is a reason the wait is long, the reservations are always full, and the customers are always happy. OD is a must try Charleston staple!
