Bourdain is in Charleston. Repeat: Anthony Bourdain is in Charleston. Thanks to some Instagram photos from McCrady’s Chef de Cuisine Daniel Heinze, The Griffon, and NewtonianBev (a.k.a. Gram Howle, a local small batch bitters creator), we know that last night the host of Parts Unknown spent the wee hours hanging with Sean Brock at The Griffon and Waffle House. And by the looks of Howle’s photo (which is private), some filming was going on at the the dive bar (Perhaps our favorite sarcastic TV host is in Charleston to film his Holy City redemption episode following his very staged 2007 visit on No Reservations when Bourdain overlooked Brock — he later apologized. We can hope.)
Local tour guide and founding member of Charleston Brown Water Society Greg “Bear” Barrow was at the bar and says he joined Bourdain and Brock in an Irish Car Bomb race. “Sean won,” Barrow says. “Bourdain lost and bought the round.”
Karee Keefer White, the wife of Waffle House’s district manager, also witnessed filming last night at the WaHo. “Sean was telling Anthony about the rich history of Waffle House and it’s deep-seated roots in Southern culture and cuisine,” White writes in an email. “He said that you can tell a lot about a person by how they order their hash-browns.”
So there you have it. It appears Bourdain’s latest trip to Charleston, thanks to his stop at The Griffon, will at least be more authentic than his last visit when he watched an uncomfortable Civil War reenactment and sipped Champagne in mason jars at an oyster roast with the Lee Bros. If you spot Bourdain in the city, let us know.
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