Butcher and Bee is a gourmet sandwich shop, but it is by no means conventional. It’s open for lunch from 11am to 3 pm daily and late night from 11 pm to 3 am Thursday through Saturday, so this is where chefs hang out after their shifts on weekends. It’s a hip and casual joint serving some very serious grub. The menu changes daily and everything that possibly can be is made in-house. Everything from the brioche bun of my burger to the pimento cheese, pickles, mayo and ketchup were all homemade. The focus is of course on the freshness of the ingredients. I was able to snag the last order of field peas, simply dressed in a refreshing mint vinaigrette, but those peas spoke for themselves. The brightness of flavor was explosive and made me realize how good fresh peas can taste. Maybe it’s the peas in the South? It must be the seeds… If Charleston were my hometown, Butcher and Bee is where I’d be hanging out. Oh, and did I mention it’s BYOB?

Photo credit for burger: Andrew Cebulka Photography