What to Eat in Charleston: She-Crab Soup, Creek Shrimp & Grits, Oyster Roasts & Carolina BBQ

Charleston has won more James Beard Foundation Awards per capita than almost any US city. Its cuisine, South Carolina Lowcountry cooking, was forged over 300 years by West African and Gullah Geechee cooks blending Carolina Gold Rice, stone-ground corn grits, benne seeds and okra with Charleston's tidal-creek shrimp, blue crabs and cluster oysters.

1. Four Landmark Charleston Dishes & Where to Order Them

1. Charleston 'She-Crab Soup': invented in the early 1900s by master chef William Deas at the John Rutledge House for President William Howard Taft. This velvety bisque of blue-crab meat, crab stock, cream and mace is finished tableside with dry pale Sherry and orange crab roe. Order a bowl at 82 Queen (82 Queen St), Victorian Poogan's Porch (72 Queen St), 167 Raw, Hank's Seafood or Magnolias (185 E Bay St).
2. Local Creek 'Shrimp & Grits' & Crispy Flounder: order it at SNOB (Slightly North of Broad, 192 E Bay St), Fleet Landing (on a 1940s Navy pier over the harbour water), or Acme Lowcountry Kitchen on Isle of Palms.
3. Charleston 'Cluster Oysters' & Fried Chicken at 'Leon's Oyster Shop': local tidal oysters grow in clusters in the pluff mud and are steamed under wet burlap sacks at winter Oyster Roasts from September to April. Head to Leon's Fine Poultry & Oyster Shop (698 King St) for Char-Grilled Oysters and Crispy Fried Chicken, or queue before opening at Chubby Fish (252 Coming St) or The Darling Oyster Bar.
4. Whole-Hog Wood-Smoked Carolina BBQ: in the Upper Peninsula sit two barbecue legends: James Beard winner Rodney Scott's Whole Hog BBQ (1082 King St, slow-smoked over oak coals with vinegar-pepper sauce) and Lewis Barbecue (464 N Nassau St).

2. Booking Fine-Dining Icons: 'FIG', 'Husk' & 'Hall's Chophouse'

Reservations for James Beard winner FIG (232 Meeting St, famed for Ricotta Gnocchi with Lamb Bolognese), Husk (76 Queen St) and Hall's Chophouse (434 King St) open online 28 to 30 days in advance. If tables are booked out, arrive at FIG shortly before evening doors open for walk-in seats at the full-menu Bar, or visit The Bar at Husk next door, which requires no reservation.