The Macintosh

Amazing food, service (Brooke was the best) and dirty vodka martinis!
I went with friends who recently moved to SC and we all were more than
satisfied with every course including dessert. Although it was a little loud,
I would highly recommend the Macintosh to anyone in the Charleston area.

We had an enjoyable meal at Mackintosh before the Symphony. We enjoyed the creativity of the menu items. Our server was very knowledgeable about the food and gave us excellent service. They have an adequate wine list. I had golden tilefish and my husband had the local triggerfish. Both were excellent. But dessert was amazing — moon pie ice cream on Chocolate cake — so yummy.
The only thing not to our liking is how small and close the tables for 2 are. Difficult for person sitting on back bench to get out. And no way to have a private conversation — you are inches from other people on each side. I personally like a little more separation from other dinners.

My husband made a reservation based on Unilocal reviews and it did not disappoint. We started off with a cocktail — I had the Mac-​hatten, which was worth the trip alone. Anything with dried cherries soaking up whiskey is delicious. The drink was not too sweet. We ordered the rabbit appetizer — I am pretty sure my eyeballs rolled back in my head. Rabbit on a fried mashed potato pancake and a sauce that tied it all together. It went well with the cocktail.
I got the tile fish entrée with golden beets and pickled quinoa. I am a fan of good sides. Nothing can wreck a meal like a bad side. This went perfectly with the fish and the only complaint is I wish there had been more It did have enough to match up bites with the fish. The dollop of beet purée also added to the fish. The fish was nicely crunchy without being over battered.
I got the house made spice chai ice cream for dessert. A perfect end to a yummy meal.
Our waiter, Jerry, did a great job of explaining and being present, but not overly present. He also steered me to a lovely wine to pair with the fish (okay I can’t remember the name, but it was a rose color, but not a rose.
I would go back, but we must try other places on this trip.

Wait… did I leave Williamsburg? Am I still in Brooklyn? Nope — definitely in Charleston, I guess I just gravitate to places with cask cocktails and french press personal coffee’s.
Place is very well appointed. I think they googled ‘hipster’ and ran with it but it works for me. Saddled up to the bar for brunch on a Saturday and ordered delicious cask Manhattan and coffee. Turns out they give you an individual french press — nice touch and the coffee was great.
For food I went with ‘The Duke’. The duke was f***ing awesome. Fried chicken, jalapeño gravy and a sunny side up egg on a biscuit. All cooked to perfection. Also went with a side of grits, since if I am in the south I eat grits with everything. Yes, they were great.
Really enjoyed this spot and would come back in a hipster heartbeat.

I dined at The Macintosh for dinner last night. King Street was pretty quiet, as is typical for a Sunday in January. However, The Macintosh was hopping, because on Sunday, their menu is a collection of the past week’s biggest hits (they change their menu daily, with an emphasis on locally sourced, in season ingredients). I wanted fish, and knew as soon as I walked in that The Macintosh wouldn’t disappoint.
First of all, when you walk in, the atmosphere is overwhelmingly warm and intimate, but with the signature southern casual style. There’s a semi-​open kitchen, so you can watch the chefs as they prepare the meal you’re about to enjoy.
I started off with a beautifully prepared kale caesar. The kale was finely shredded, and mixed with a light, homemade caesar dressing. Mixed in with the kale was a lightly «fried» (more sautéed, I’d say) cauliflower, which was a nice touch, and it was topped off with a sliced, pickled hard boiled egg. Also for the appetizer course, a pork ravioli was recommended by our server. The pork was confit style, and it was absolutely melt-​in-​your-​mouth. The pillows are served on top of a light fare of spinach and thick cut bacon (diced), with a drizzle of a butter cream sauce to tie it all back together.
The only thing keeping The Macintosh from earning a full five stars is the entrée round. Don’t get me wrong – the snowy grouper was great. But, it wasn’t exceptional… It was perfectly cooked, with a light crust on top where it was sautéed, and served on a bed of peas with Parisian gnocchi. However, it felt exactly that… like three separate parts of a dish, served together, but not really blended. I loved the lightness of the dish, and it definitely didn’t need a heavy cream sauce or anything to ruin that aspect, but I needed something like a red pepper aioli, and perhaps a more substantive bed of seasonal vegetables (or a starch) to complement the peas.
My dining companion and I were too full to entertain dessert, but I’m sure it would have been fabulous. Overall, I highly recommend The Macintosh, and will certainly be back in the future. Also, when you go, definitely try the cocktails. I’m disappointed that I didn’t get to this go around, but they had some libations that piqued my curiosity, no doubt.

Chef Bacon is hands down the best chef I know. Begin your evening with a laid back ambiance. Next you are greeted by the most attentive staff. Then prepare yourself for epic meal time. If the are sweetbreads then just say yes. Always have the bone marrow bread pudding. Scallops, always say Yes. Everything is great and the deckle will never disappoint.

Referred to the restaurant by a local.
I was excited to visit. Decided to stop in for a drink… Around 8 PM… busy but found seats at the bar… No one acknowledged us, including the manager who walked by several times. Finally ¹⁵⁄₂₀ mins later, we got a drink. My boyfriend who is way more patient than me was irritated. Disregarded a few reviews that said this place was pretentious. Maybe I shouldn’t have.

I really enjoyed eating at The Macintosh. We happen to be in SC for the tail end of restaurant week so we booked a last minute reservation and got a chance to try it out. The Macintosh’s restaurant week deal was pretty great because instead of making a different resto week menu or only allowing a few items to try, they opened their whole menu up to try for restaurant week. We had the brussels and kale, scallops, deckle, pork shoulder, and bone marrow bread pudding. It was all delicious and our server was awesome. She was very helpful and friendly and gave us honest recommendations. I would strongly suggest checking it out if you’re ever in Charleston.

The Macintosh appears to be a downtown staple on upper King Street. By the looks of their menu, which sounds amazing, they have an exceptional happy hour, contemporary American fare and a world-​class chef to go along with it.
The dwelling, itself, draws one in with its high ceilings, modern setting and Fonzie-​cool crowd. This is a place to be seen. As far as the cocktails go, both of us were satisfied with our nightcaps. The girlfriend went with her usual whiskey ginger. I landed on the classic Moscow Mule, which was fantastic! Crisp, refreshing, and served in a stunning copper mug. The way it should be prepared.
The service was a little spotty at times. I think this may have been because the bar was missing a bartender or barback. For a Friday night full house, things were a bit hectic. But, I would absolutely return for dinner and drinks my next time in Charleston.

Absolutely outstanding meal complimented by one of the best waiters I have ever had. His name was Zack. My wife and another member of our party have unusual food allergies and we have never had any server as friendly and attentive to their unique needs as Zack. Seriously. The food absolutely speaks for itself but Zacks presence seriously enhanced the entire experience.
I would make recommendations but they change the menu daily and we basically ordered everything. We are serious eaters from NYC and this restaurant fits right along side of manhattans finest. Kudos to all. Oh and Give Zack a raise.
Good day.

Delicious food and great décor. The staff was polite. No menu items screamed «unique» but everything tasted wonderful. A solid brunch option. Poutine was great.

Started off at Proof on my first day journey of Charleston and ended up getting a recommendation to Macintosh from the bartender at Proof. He told me it had a big emphasis on pork so it’s one of the things I’m not allergic to, Score!
Walked a few ways down and found it looking like an apple store (not really) but all the windows were made of glass and it looked really good. It was dim lit and had a half full bar and pulled up a chair. The attentive bartender gave me a menu, cocktail menu, and a food menu.
The menu look delicious but I didn’t wanna barge in with my I’m allergic attitude so I just ordered some Lettuce Wraps and Truffle Frites, accompanied by a Junglebird cocktail which was a concoction of pineapple juice, some aged rum, and I think bitters. This drink gives you a kick and having two of them I was good to go.
The lettuce wraps were excellent and the presentation of both dishes was on point. The lettuce was bulb looking and green and washed well, combine the pork, lettuce, some onions it came with, and put a splash of this hot sauce it’s also served with and bite down NOMNOMNOM so darn good. Also if your like me throw in a frite fry in that phenomenal bite and it takes it to the next level.
Gluten-​Free Approved (No Adverse Reactions)
Get the lettuce wraps, junglebird, and truffle frites and you will be happy.

Oh dear. Probably deserves a solid 3.5 but I’m just inclined to round down.
I sincerely do not feel like I have an aversion to The Macintosh, but I’m seemingly less impressed than my Unilocal cohorts. Repeatedly.
The service was good – I did feel like our college age server had memorized her «schpeal» more than was educated about her suggested wine pairings, but informative nontheless.
Being an omnivore who loves gnudi, I especially requested a non-​red meat version of chef’s housemade ricotta gnudi that is usually served with duck confit; I dare say I felt a bit judged to consider duck red but despite the judgment I was served a proteinless dish for the same price. My previous experiences tell me that chefs often enjoy the challenge that diners’ dietary restrictions require of them, but it was just the same dish with the duck 86’d. Nbd I guess.
The take home is that the portions were small and pricey… and pickled blackberries are not good. Go to see and be seen at this pretentious place if that’s your thing but I’ll likely not join them for dinner again.

I felt so not cool enough to eat dinner here. It’s the kind of hip place where you go to be seen and I’m not that kind of gal. Plus it was loud. And crowded. But the food is fantastic!
I had a reservation here for 6:30 and arrived right on time only to have to wait over 30 minutes for a table. There was zero room at the bar so my mom and I had to wait outside. Not the greatest start to our dining experience. We were finally shown to a table with zero an apology and were greeted by a lovely waitress who more than made up for the snotty hostess.
The one item that really stood out to me was the gnocchi with carrots and pork. It was amazing. The carrots were just sweet enough to play off the savoriness of the pork and the gnocchi was pillow soft. I wanted a huge bowl of this! It was recommended by our waitress and I cannot thank her enough for that as it was a winner.
When I’m back in Charleston, I won’t return to The Macintosh; it’s not my scene as I hate pretentious establishments, which this very much came off as being. Which is a crying shame as the food shines through it all.