CHARLESTON RESTAURANT WEEK

Part Three:

CYPRESS

Located at 167 E. Bay St., Cypress Restaurant is a unique dining experience.  The dining room is on two levels and features comfortable banquette and upholstered chair seating, white table cloths, an open kitchen and a multi-story wall of fine wine.  Colored accent lighting in the ceiling gradually fades and changes color, creating a peaceful setting for a meal fit for the most discerning gourmet.

Our servers, Greg and Jon, were skilled, efficient, and best of all, very nice.  While we chose to order from the three course Restaurant Week menu, Jon welcomed us to Cypress by offering us a treat from the Chef, a tasting portion of Sashimi Tuna topped Oysters, with a dot of wasabi sauce.  It's hard to believe, but I had never tasted oysters before and I absolutely loved them.  Thank you so much, Jon, for adding me to the list of oyster-loving Lowcountry residents!

On to our first course, Charcuterie and a bowl of Lobster Bisque.  The charcuterie, presented on a wooden board, was an aromatic mix of braunschweiger (a type of smoked liverwurst), picante salami, pork pate, Tuscan beef salami, pickled vegetables and mini biscuits.  All of the meats are made in-house, and this was my dining partner's favorite appetizer during Restaurant Week.

My first course, the Lobster Bisque, was a creamy, tomato-based soup, redolent of seafood and chervil, topped with three Carolina shrimp.  Delicious.
We both chose the Diver Scallops and Pork Belly for our main course.  Pork Belly was another first for me.  It was tender and flavorful, served beside three large scallops atop sweet potatoes whipped with chile oil and marscapone cheese.  The dish was garnished with curried raisins, bacon and sweet sauteed onions.  The flavors in the meat and fish were subtle, smoky, and complimented each other perfectly.

The last course, our dessert, was the Trio of Chocolates; deconstructed cake and ice cream.  The plate held chunks of dark, moist chocolate cake, a small scoop of white chocolate ice cream, and a bitter-sweet triangle of chocolate bark.  All around this trio were dots of caramel and milk chocolate sauce.  The portion did not look large as served, but we were unable to finish it; not, I assure you, due to the flavor, which was excellent.  

Our server, Greg, was attentive to our needs during the entire meal, checking on us often and even refilling our after-dinner coffees whenever they became half full.  Again, many thanks to Greg and Jon.  

Cypress is a favorite, due to perfect service, food that is flavorful and creatively prepared and a softly lit, romantic dining room.