Get your baskets ready: the Easter Bunny has come early. Friday through Sunday, Charleston will be celebrating Easter with festivals, egg hunts, and brunches galore.
On Friday, while the kids are asleep dreaming of the Easter Bunny, there’s the adult-oriented Adult Easter Egg Hunt Bar Crawl. Participants will be given a basket upon check-in and will hunt for eggs in various bars, with drink specials at every location.
Saturday, choose from a number of free Easter egg hunts and festivals, both in and outside the city. At Easter EGGstravaganza in Hampton Park, you’ll get a visit from the Easter Bunny himself. Other activities include a magic show, egg hunt, jump castles, and more. At Freshfields Village Easter Festival, you’ll find all kinds of Easter crafts and family fun. You’ll also get to sing, dance, and play instruments along with John Cusatis, who will form his interactive band from members of the audience. Kiawah & Seabrook Artists Guilds will be there too, hosting an art show during the event. IOP’s largest Easter Egg Hunt begins Saturday at 10 a.m. sharp. There will be live entertainment and plenty for the kids to do. The Easter bunny will be there, too, so remember to bring a camera. For a serious hunt, check out the Egg Drop, where 14,000 plastic eggs will fall from a helicopter, littering an open field with tiny, pastel-colored treasures. Kids 12 and under are welcome.
If you’ve had enough of candy-filled eggs, head to Middleton Place for their Easter Eggstravanza on Saturday. Starting at 10:30 a.m., they’ll be leading hunts for hard-boiled and special “prize” eggs. Natural egg dyeing, eco-friendly activities, and period games will also be held in the Stableyards. Stick around afterwards for their lunch buffet.
If you opt to stay downtown on Saturday, don’t be alarmed by the hoards of ladies parading around in hats — it’s the Hat Ladies’ Easter promenade. Bask in the shade and watch as these women stroll elegantly down Meeting Street decked out in their Easter finery.
If you’re not in the mood to spend your Easter Sunday slaving away in the kitchen over delicate tea sandwiches and deviled eggs, hop to one of the city’s upscale restaurants for special brunch menus offering stress-free and memorable meals with family and friends.
High Cotton on East Bay Street offers a special menu this Easter Sunday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. The $22 appetizer and entrée special features choices such as she-crab soup and house-made doughnuts for starters, and banana nut bread French toast, BBQ duck hash, and other more traditional breakfast staples for entrees. Add a dessert like High Cotton’s Grand Marnier crème brulee with candied orange and fresh berries for just $5 extra.
Right across the street, Slightly North of Broad, is offering a similar deal with a $23 special two-course menu available from 11 a.m.-2:30 p.m. Start your brunch off with a Spring Berry Sangria, a mix of Maverick Very Berry vodka, Triple Sec, white wine, and fresh fruit ($9). The special menu offers several salads, soups, salmon tartar, and a seasonal fruit and yogurt parfait as appetizer choices. For main courses, choose from options like grilled N.Y. strip steak and eggs, Maverick shrimp and grits, brioche French toast, or the crab cake benedict, among others. Add a slice of strawberry shortcake with vanilla ice cream or banana cream pie with rum caramel for $5.
Easter brunch at Husk will be held from 10 a.m.-2:30 p.m. on Sunday, with dinner following from 5:30 p.m.-10 p.m. As chef Sean Brock’s menu changes daily depending on the availability and seasonality of local produce, it’s hard to say what the Easter table will be laden with, but it’s sure to be a Southern treat. Brock may have a busy morning at Husk on Sunday, but he plans to open his other culinary gem McCrady’s at 4 p.m. that night for an early Easter dinner.
Anson Restaurant will be serving a special brunch menu from 11 a.m.-3 p.m. at $21.50 a person, which includes drinks like coffee, Bloody Marys, and mimosas. Choose from entrees like a spinach quiche, croque monsieur, and Anson’s take on “bacon and eggs” combining roasted pork belly, slow poached eggs, creamy polenta, and hollandaise sauce. Dessert is also included with choices like pecan pie, mini almond baskets with vanilla ice cream, and a chocolate oblivion torte.
If you plan on spending your Easter in Mt. Pleasant, find a table at the Old Village Post House where they are offering a special brunch menu from 10 a.m.- 2 p.m. Start with a mimosa or peach bellini ($5) as you mull over the choices on the $21 appetizer and entrée deal. Starters range from a crab and avocado salad, crispy friend oysters, and strawberry and nutella crepes. A soft shell crab BLT, bread pudding French toast, and fried quail with waffles stand out among the entrée options. For $4 extra, choose from desserts like lemon passion fruit mousse and a chocolate tart with melted Peeps, a classic Easter staple.
Calling it a “Festa di Pasqua,” Bacco of Mt. Pleasant is also offering a special menu of traditional Italian holiday dishes for Easter from 11:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Break away from the traditional Easter ham and enjoy lamb and pasta dishes, staples of the Italian holiday.
Or pend your Easter Sunday on the beach after an indulgent brunch at Blu from 11 a.m.-3 p.m. A lavish brunch buffet is offered to adults for $28.95 and kids for $14.95. Eat out on the deck and enjoy live music and drink specials as you make your way back and forth from the all you can eat buffet.
Happy hunting. Stay cool. Support City Paper. City Paper has been bringing the best news, food, arts, music and event coverage to the Holy City since 1997. Support our continued efforts to highlight the best of Charleston with a one-time donation or become a member of the City Paper Club.