The Archer’s website states the restaurant’s “philosophy is simple: all bullseye, no BS.” And it practices what it preaches. Since opening in August 2024, this American tavern has amassed a legion of fans among locals, visitors and Charleston food and beverage pros.
The menu takes comfort food to a refined yet still approachable level and pairs it with creative cocktails, eclectic wines and a vibe that is somehow both relaxed and energizing at the same time.
Making a name in a crowded city
The Archer’s menu might have familiar ingredients like crab, steak, pork belly and trout, but each is prepared in refreshing ways. To start, chilled crab dip comes with pepita chili crunch and house-made potato chips. Steak tartare is served with sourdough, horseradish, pickled things and peppercorn aioli. Crispy pork belly has miso apple sauce and kohlrabi slaw while crispy fried eggplant is paired with whipped buttermilk, herbs, lime, fish sauce and Thai chili.
Large plates include braised short rib served with black garlic jus, potato purée and bourbon glazed cipollini onions, and roasted trout is accompanied by charred cabbage, apple mustard, toum (a Lebanese garlic sauce) and brown butter almonds.
“If you had told me before we opened, that our most ordered cocktail would be a goat cheese-infused gin cocktail, I would assume you were out of your mind,” said Chris Higgins-Johnson, director of operations. “Same with food. If you had told me an eggplant small plate would be the dish that most people come back for, I would be incredibly surprised.”
Surprising flavors that blend perfectly are the name of the game with the cocktail menu. That goat cheese-infused cocktail, created by Damien Edens, pairs gin with blackberry, grapefruit, thyme and lemon. The Magic Dance has bourbon, Spanish brandy, apple, sage, lemon and egg white. Cheese shows up in another cocktail, the Say Cheese, which is a mix of Manchego rind gin, vermouth, apple and black pepper.
The Archer also may have one of the best happy hours in town.
“In an effort to be an affordable and approachable restaurant downtown for the people that live here, we have a happy hour every day until 6 p.m.,” said Higgins-Johnson. The happy hour menu has a $12 featured daily cocktail, select cocktails and snacks for $10, $8 house wines, $6 draft beers and $5 oyster sliders.
The Archer also has a one-hour late-night menu at 10 p.m. nightly, aimed at hospitality workers for when they get off work. It features loaded fries with short rib, Manchego cheese and yum yum sauce as well as the restaurant’s signature burger — served with parmesan cream, fancy sauce, shaved red onion and shoestring fries — that is $10 with the purchase of a cocktail or spirit-free cocktail. And yes, these deals really are available every day, even on the weekend.
Looking ahead: the nightcap series and more
Over the past year, the Archer team has collaborated frequently with brands and people like Beyond Distilling, a book-signing and cocktail pop-up with Heaven Hill and Danny Childs, author of Slow Drinks as well as several events with Chef Nikko Cagalanan.
Cagalanan most recently was at the Archer for the inaugural event in the nightcap series.
“Vern’s has ‘volumes,’ Tutti has ‘pass the peel’ and we wanted to do our own series where we could bring interesting collaborators into our space and show them what we’re capable of behind the bar at the Archer,” said Higgins-Johnson. “I really believe we have some of the most talented and hospitable staff in all of Charleston.”
The second installment in the series will see a breakfast-for-dinner collaboration with Daps Breakfast and Imbibe in February (date TBD). The menus for future nightcap events will vary depending on the nature of the pop-up.
“[For] our pop-up with Chef Nikko Cagalanan’s new dumpling concept Bareo, he fully took over the kitchen to provide a sneak preview of the menu,” Higgins-Johnson shared. The Archer team used the Bareo food and concept as the cocktail inspiration.
“I’m excited to watch the Archer continue to cement its place among the city’s best restaurants and bar programs,” said Higgins-Johnson. “Our style of hospitality is fun, familiar and intentional. I want our staff to be exactly who they are and make our guests feel welcome.
“Our newly promoted Executive Chef Taylor Pedfort has so many new dishes in store. I’m really excited for him to step into the role and shine like we all know he can. Our bar team continues to push boundaries on making really nuanced, delicious cocktails. I’m just really proud of the whole team, and I am the most excited about watching them continue to get better. They deserve all the recognition as some of the best Charleston has to offer.”
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