Savannah
Guided tour · 3 hours
Savannah: Historic District Foodie Walking Tour
Discover historic Savannah on a guided foodie tour. Learn about the city's fascinating history, elegant architecture, and unique culture, with food...
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History
Shrimp and grits originated in the Lowcountry of South Carolina and Georgia in the late 1800s as a fisherman's breakfast and migrated west into Alabama through the 20th century. Birmingham fine-dining chefs adopted the dish in the 1990s and 2000s as a tasting-menu Southern signature. Hot and Hot Fish Club runs a Chris Hastings version with Alabama Gulf shrimp; Automatic Seafood runs Adam Evans's Gulf-anchored version; OvenBird does a wood-fired riff with paprika butter.
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Charleston
Guided tour · 2.5 hours
Charleston: Small Group Food Tour, Savor the Flavors
Experience the flavors of Charleston with the help of local guides. Delve into over 300 years of culinary history as you taste your way through the...
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Orlando
1 hour
Orlando: Moonshine Mixology Class with Tasting Flight
Shake things up with a moonshine mixology class at the Caribbean Moonshine Distillery! Learn how to make two tropical cocktails with our mixologist &...
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Charlotte
Guided tour · 2 hours
Charlotte: Markets, Museums, and Parks 2-Hour Segway Tour
Tour the lively city of Charlotte on a fun and pioneering Segway. The ideal way to explore North Carolina’s “Queen City,” the 2-hour guided tour will...
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Common allergens: Shellfish, Dairy
Make it at home
Ingredients
- 200g stone-ground white grits
- 750ml chicken stock
- 200ml whole milk
- 60g butter
- 60g sharp cheddar, grated
- 500g large Gulf shrimp, peeled and deveined
- 100g andouille sausage, diced
- 100g bacon, diced
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- Juice of 1 lemon
- Hot sauce, salt and black pepper to taste
- Chopped chives to garnish
Method
- Bring the chicken stock to a boil, whisk in the grits and reduce to a simmer. Cook 30 to 40 minutes, stirring often, until tender.
- Stir in the milk, butter and cheddar at the end. Season with salt and black pepper.
- Render the bacon in a heavy skillet until crisp. Remove bacon, leave the fat.
- Add the andouille to the bacon fat and brown 3 minutes. Add garlic, cook 30 seconds.
- Add the shrimp and saute 2 minutes per side until just pink and cooked through.
- Squeeze lemon juice, add hot sauce. Spoon grits into wide bowls, top with shrimp, andouille and crisp bacon. Garnish with chives.
Tip from the editors. Use stone-ground grits, not instant; the canonical texture needs slow-cooked corn. Add a splash of stock if the grits stiffen up before serving.
Where to eat shrimp and grits
Shrimp and grits in Birmingham
Hot and Hot Fish Club ★ 4.5
Hot and Hot Fish Club at Pepper Place is the Chris Hastings flagship since 1995, with the chef-counter tomato salad that became a Birmingham signature.
Book2 weeks ahead
Automatic Seafood and Oysters ★ 4.8
Automatic Seafood and Oysters in Lakeview earned Adam Evans the 2022 James Beard Best Chef South, with a Gulf-anchored menu in a renovated industrial space.
Book3 weeks ahead
OvenBird ★ 4.3
OvenBird at Pepper Place Birmingham is Chris Hastings's live-fire sibling concept to Hot and Hot, with Spanish, Portuguese, Uruguayan and Argentine grills.
Book1 week ahead
Shrimp and grits in Charleston
Slightly North of Broad ★ 4.6
Slightly North of Broad in Charleston has run on East Bay Street since 1993. Brunch and lunch are easier seats than dinner. Bar seats are walk-in only.
OrderThe shrimp and grits with stone-ground grits and house kielbasa, on the menu since the 90s.
TipBrunch and lunch are easier seats than dinner. Bar seats are walk-in only.
Poogan's Porch ★ 4.6
Poogan's Porch on Queen Street in Charleston has plated Lowcountry brunch since 1976 from a converted 1891 home. Located in Downtown. Open daily 09:00-15:00.
OrderButtermilk biscuits with sausage gravy, she-crab soup, shrimp and grits
TipBook on Resy at least 5 days ahead for weekend brunch. Request a porch table; the inside rooms run small and warm.
Husk ★ 4.9
Husk in Charleston opened in 2010 under Sean Brock and rebuilt Southern fine dining on heritage grains and hyper-local produce. Located in Downtown.
OrderThe cast-iron cornbread, plus whatever the wood grill is running.
Book3 weeks ahead
TipBook on the website. Bar seats walk-in at 17:00 and serve the full menu.
Page's Okra Grill ★ 4.3
Page's Okra Grill in Mount Pleasant has run family-owned Southern cooking on Coleman Boulevard since 2008. Kitchen leans southern, lowcountry.
OrderAshleigh's shrimp and grits with andouille and tomato gravy.
TipNo reservations. Walk-ins only; cash and card both accepted.
Shrimp and grits in Charlotte
Haberdish ★ 4.7
Haberdish on N Davidson runs the NoDa Southern brunch programme Tuesday to Sunday in Charlotte, with biscuits and gravy, fried chicken plates and a strong.
OrderButtermilk biscuits with sausage gravy and the brunch fried chicken plate.
TipWeekend brunch fills early. Walk in at 11 on Saturday for the easiest seat.
The Goodyear House ★ 4.6
The Goodyear House on N Davidson runs a NoDa Southern brunch on weekends from Chris Coleman's kitchen, with hush puppies, biscuits and chicken plates inside.
OrderHot-honey chicken with biscuits and a brunch cocktail.
TipThe patio is the seat in spring and autumn. Reserve via OpenTable.
Shrimp and grits in Greenville
Soby's New South Cuisine ★ 4.6
Soby's anchors the Main Street dining scene in Greenville: Carl Sobocinski's 1997 New Southern flagship in a former dry-goods store, with she-crab soup.
SignatureShe-crab soup, Spicy pimento cheese, Fried green tomato Benedict
Stella's Southern Brasserie ★ 4.8
Stella's Southern Brasserie runs French-influenced Southern from a Rocky Slope Road storefront: shrimp and grits, fried green tomatoes, bourbon-pecan tart.
SignatureShrimp and grits, Fried green tomatoes, Bourbon-pecan tart
Halls Chophouse Greenville ★ 4.5
Halls Chophouse runs prime steaks, seafood and a 600-bottle wine list on South Main. The Sunday gospel brunch is the booking that fills first downtown.
Book2-3 weeks ahead
Shrimp and grits in Orlando
SoCo Restaurant ★ 4.5
SoCo on East Central Boulevard in Thornton Park runs a modern Southern menu with shrimp and grits, fried chicken and a covered weekend brunch patio.
SignatureShrimp and grits, Fried chicken
The Ravenous Pig ★ 4.6
The Ravenous Pig on West Fairbanks in Winter Park is the James and Julie Petrakis gastropub, with a seasonal Southern menu and on-site brewery.
Book2 weeks ahead
Shrimp and grits in Savannah
Husk Savannah ★ 4.8
Heritage-grain Lowcountry on Oglethorpe, opened January 2018 as the fourth Husk from Sean Brock's group. Wood-grilled coastal Georgia fish, Anson Mills grits.
Book2 weeks ahead
Vic's on the River ★ 4.3
Vic's runs in a restored 1859 cotton warehouse on Bay Street, river views from the upstairs dining room. Classic Lowcountry with white-tablecloth service.
OrderShrimp and grits with the Carolina shrimp sauce, plus a she-crab soup to share.
TipAsk for an upstairs window seat at reservation time for the Savannah River view.
Elizabeth on 37th ★ 4.7
Classical Lowcountry tasting in a 1900s Victorian mansion opened by Elizabeth Terry in 1981; Terry won James Beard Best Chef Southeast 1995. Special-occasion.
Book2 weeks ahead
B. Matthew's Eatery ★ 4.3
B. Matthew's daily brunch board runs from breakfast classics to fried-green-tomato Benedicts and shrimp and grits in a brick-walled 1850s East Bay room.
OrderFried green tomato and crab cake benny
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