Chubby Fish holds about 40 guests, so large parties are limited as well as timing for each party.   Founded in 2018 by Charleston native, Chef James London, they offer small plates of Lowcountry food with a spotlight on seafood.  The daily changing menu is on a board above the bar in back by the kitchen.  There is no printed menu so take a photo to look at if you need to.  This place is extremely popular and takes no reservations so people start lining up about an hour before opening to secure a space and to reserve one for later in the evening.  You can choose between tables, counter, or standing tables.   They offer beer and wine but not a full bar.  (However next door is a bar Seahorse where you can wait).  Music was in the background and service was friendly, helpful and efficient.  We had read that they will ask you to leave after an hour as they turn the tables but we were never told that we couldn’t order more as our time was up.   Nevertheless diners need to be mindful that someone is waiting for your seat.  It’s definitely worth the effort and is a solid recommendation for your next meal in Charleston.

Set-up

Food

There was a good variety of raw oysters and we chose 2 from each of the Carolina locations.  The long one was my favorite but they were all good.  They came with a smokey red mignonette.

 

The grilled oysters are seasoned with crab fat, curry, cashews, lime leaf, cilantro and puffed rice.  They were made with the local Steamboat Creek oysters and totally delicious.   Tons of texture and fabulous flavor is a winning combination.

 

Caviar Sammich’ is on a tater roll and filled with caviar and creme fraiche.  The locally made roll was so fresh and soft and then nicely toasted to a buttery crisp finish.  Spread heavily with good caviar and a bit of creme fraiche, these were not split-able.  You need to have your own.  Yum.

 

The curry was smoked tilefish mixed with chili, peanuts, turnips and rice then seasoned with a squeeze of lime.  The seasoned rice was perfect with the textural and tasty elements and great mixed with the herb salad that was on the side.  A bit of grapefruit was hidden in there too.  Very good.

 

The bone marrow was topped with shrimp tempura and spicy mayo and sitting on toasted thick cut slices of bread.  These were large marrow bones and the dripping fat from the roasting pan was poured over the dish.  Heavy doesn’t describe this – more deadly.  It was good but oh so rich.  The idea was to take a piece of bread from underneath, smear it with marrow and then a small shrimp, mayo and pepper slice.  That was divine but I also found I liked eating the components separately.  Another great one.

 

The gnudi were mixed with chanterelles and miso butter.  This one was a favorite of one of the line cooks in front of us so we added it in but after the bone marrow it was hard to eat.  The thin cut mushrooms were great and the cheesey miso butter was perfect for the gnocchi-like dumplings.

 

Not-fried chicken was waffle ice cream covered with corn flakes.  According to our server there is a place in town that make lots of faux desserts – that imitate another item.  This did look just like a piece of fried chicken but inside was ice cream and a chocolate stick that served as a bone.  The crunchy corn flakes were delightful with the ice cream making this a successful end to a fabulous meal.