Last year's Taste-of-All in Charleston was so much fun that I wanted a repeat performance. I lucked out and won $5 worth of tickets on a Facebook contest, and I bought $5 more for the event. Armed with 20 tickets, Karie and I headed in to scope out our plan of attack.

There were so many great places. Lots of repeats you see at festivals, like Mardi Gras Casino & Resort, Ridge View BBQ, Kona Ice, Huskey's Dairy Bar. A few new ones, like Mi Cocina de Amor, Black Sheep Burrito & Brew, Grano. I've tried a few of these here and there, so I was aiming for ones that were mostly new or new dishes, at least.

BrickSalt Bar + Kitchen - Macaroni and cheese with prosciutto ham (4 tix) They didn't make it to last year's event - or at least weren't there by the time I arrived - so I had wanted to scope them out. This was my favorite dish of the event. The breading gave a nice crunch while the noodles and sauce were creamy.

Grano - Veggi Sampler (8 tix) Grano is a new restaurant I've been wanting to try. Can't say this was super exciting. Yes, it gave me an idea as to what the restaurant is like. But I just wasn't impressed. Falafel was super dry. Hummus was kind of eh. Tabouleh was good but would've benefitted from some lemon zest.


5 Corners Cafe - Spicy sweet macaroni salad (1 ticket) The real reason I got this was because I only had one ticket left and didn't know where to go! But it was not bad.

Huskey's Dairy Bar - Ice cream cone (3 tix) Um, you can't go wrong with ice cream. This was lovely.

Plus I got a water for 4 tickets.

For people who actually know what they're talking about - go here. Full list of awards are here, and here are the people's choice awards:

Appetizer:
1st – Adelphia, Deep Fried Feta
2nd – B&D Gastropub, Dragon Bites
3rd – Four Brothers Coffee and Tea House, Lobster Bisque Soup

Entree:
1st – Quarry Manor Senior Living, Fried Green Tomato BLT Slider
2nd – Black Sheep Burrito & Brew, Chicken & Waffle
3rd  – Black Sheep Burrito & Brew, Pan-seared Ahi Tuna

Dessert:
1st – Distinctive Gourmet, WV Beignet w/ Vanilla Moonshine Sauce
2nd – 5 Corners Cafe, Bread Pudding
3rd  – Ellen’s Homemade Ice Cream, Ice Cream

Drinks:
1st – Four Brothers Coffee and Tea House, Four Brothers Blended Coffee
2nd – Sweet Spoon Bubble Tea
3rd  – Huskey’s Dairy Bar, Milkshake