Coffee & a Walk… Where to Go and What to See Downtown
Downtown Charleston is known for its historic buildings and houses and the stories behind each of them. Such a huge part of my weekly routine is taking long walks downtown and that usually includes grabbing a coffee and a treat from my favorite coffee shops on the peninsula! In this post I am going to give you my top 5 coffee shops downtown and some great walking routes to see all Charleston has to offer!
Starting out strong, my most favorite place to get coffee downtown is the Sorelle Mercato. Sorelle is an upscale and fairly new Italian restaurant, centrally located on Broad Street right by the Four Corners of Law. Attached to the main restaurant, they have a mercato where they have a full coffee bar, incredible pastries, and yummy sandwiches, salads, and even pizza slices. Sorelle’s coffee is so good and they do weekly seasonal special creations such as Candy Cane and chocolate covered strawberry lattes. Their croissants are some of the best in Charleston IMO and their pizza and paninos are to die for. If I’m not trying the social latte of the week, my favorite is a simple Iced Vanilla Latte.
Since Sorelle is so centrally located right between Meeting and King street on Broad, it is the perfect place to grab a coffee and go for a walk, something my friend Mia and I do every week! Starting at Sorelle, I would walk down Broad St. towards East Bay, see the Four Corners of Law (St. Michael’s Church, Town Hall, the County Courthouse, and the Federal Courthouse). Then, turn right on East Bay and walk past Rainbow Row. After Rainbow Row you will approach the Battery, here walk along the water and see Battery Park and some magnificent houses on South Battery. Then walk up and down some quiets streets in the area to see some beautiful Charleston single homes.
Number 2 has been a favorite of mine since my high school days: Harken Cafe! Tucked in a small little space on Queen Street, Harken is home to my favorite Matcha latte and a delicious yogurt parfait.
What to order: you really cannot go wrong! Like I said, I love their Matcha and their yogurt bowl, topped with their homemade granola is amazing. They also have unique homemade pastries and a full kitchen with yummy breakfast and lunch options.
Where to walk after: Queen Street is one of my favorite streets in Charleston! It has such cute houses on it and is relatively quiet. Parallel to Queen, is my all time favorite street: Chalmers. Easy to point out because it still has its original cobblestone street and beautiful trees. The houses on this street are so lovely and makes for the perfect place to take lots of photos! Harken is right around the corner from Sorelle, but from here I would explore the French Quarter neighborhood and check out the Dock Street Theater on Church St!
Next up is Second State Coffee, located on Beaufain Street, right by Colonial Lake. One of their three locations in the Charleston area (other 2 in Mt. Pleasant), I have been a fan of Second State since middle school.
Second State is unique because they have their own brand of coffee beans that they use to brew all their coffees with. A lot of other shops in town actually use their beans too! They are also available to buy and will grind them for you, I love having these on hand at home!
My go to, like anywhere is usually a Vanilla latte, but here I tend to get it hot. Their chai lattes are also amazing, as well as their hot chocolates if you have little ones with you! Additionally, their London Fogs are the best in town because they make all of their syrups homemade as well. Their coffee is on the stronger side, so if you like it lighter or sweeter, this may not be the place for you.
As for walking goes, Second State is located centrally in Harleston Village close to the College of Charleston as well as Colonial Lake. For a walking route I would grab your coffee and make your way down Coming Street where you will pass CofC building as well as some Greek Houses. Then turn onto George Street and explore the beautiful Cistern Yard and walk through Cougar Mall to see the historic campus. Afterwards, make your way back to Beaufain and walk around Colonial Lake for a few extra steps and sights.
Coming in at number 4 is a new favorite for me thanks to my friend Mia: Island Provisions. Located on more of the north end of the peninsula, Island Provisions is on St. Phillip St, just off Spring. Island Provisions is one of the places that uses Second State coffee beans!
While their coffee is excellent, the star of the show is their Bacon Egg & Cheese bagel: “the boss”. What makes it unique is the hot honey they put on it, it is soooo good. I feel like there aren’t too many places that I have discovered with really good bagel sandwiches, and this is one. They also have a great pastry case of yummy treats, and they sell wine and beer too!
As for walking from here, I would make your way all the way down King Street! You will start on Upper King where the stores begin and if you’re up for it, you can walk all the way down King until you hit the battery! If you aren’t going all the way, be sure to make it to Marion Square, and you can also go up to Meeting to see the Charleston Museum!
Finally, another one of my long time favorites: The Daily. The Daily is just around the corner from Island Provisions, located in Union Station on Upper King.
This place is usually slammed so be prepared to wait in line, but it is well worth it! I would not go here without getting something to eat. Their avocado toast in my favorite in town, as well as their breakfast bowls and a great selection of fresh pastries. It is such a great atmosphere with great outdoor seating as well.
Once you finish up breakfast, I would walk down King St. until you hit Ann or John street then cross over to Meeting, passing the Charleston Music Hall and the Visitor’s Center. Then you will dead-end into the Charleston Museum on the corner of Meeting and John. If you have time, take a walk through America’s oldest museum! It has so much cool history and will teach you a ton about the history of Charleston. Across the street, is the Joseph Manigault House, a historic house turned into Museum that you can visit. The gardens here are beautiful. A little further down on Elizabeth Street is the Aiken-Rhett House, another historic Charleston home, turned into a museum!
And those are my top 5 places to grab coffee and go for a scenic and historic walk downtown! Of course there are a million coffee shops downtown, and you really can’t go wrong, these just happen to be my current favorites!
