The Charleston Draper
Elevated dining in the heart of Draper.
What: The Charleston Draper
Where: Draper, Utah
How Much: ~$100/person
Rating: 4 out of 5
Good For: Lunch/Brunch/Dinner — the patio is fantastic.
TL;DR: Get the lamb.
Review: Every time I drive by The Charleston Draper (let’s call it TCD for short) I tell myself I’ve got to make a reservation and try it out. It’s the kind of place that looks so good on the outside, it makes you want to eat there. Subconsciously, you know that if they take such good care of the property, then they probably put as much attention to detail in the kitchen. Last week, I finally made that reservation.
If you don’t mind dropping a few bills on good food, then you’ve got to check out TCD. For those of you who aren’t so sure about the price tag, well, I say consider saving up and treating yourself. It’s worth it. You see, fine food ain’t cheap, and it shouldn’t be. TCD is a perfect example of why fine dining costs more than fast food (nope, it’s not just the ingredients). When you come to a place like TCD, you get a full spectrum experience. The sights, the smells, the tastes, the sounds, the feeling all blend together for an experience. You don’t go to In-N-Out for the experience. You go there for the Double Double Protein Style, and you get it from the drive-thu so you can GTFO once that oil stained bag is in your hand (you’ve got shows to binge back at the homestead as you devour your delicious burger, I get it). You go to TCD for the experience.
Located off the beaten path in Draper, TCD offers cozy indoor and outdoor seating, depending on your mood and the level of effort you want to put into dressing yourself. TCD, being a fancy joint, has a fancy dresscode that may be a turn off for some, but it doesn’t hurt my feelings in the slightest. The dress code is about the ambiance, the mood, and there’s something about dressing well to eat fine food that just feels good. Here’s what they ask:
Indoor dress code: Business casual (no shorts, torn-jeans, hats, T-shirts, or sandals allowed).
Outdoor dress code: Nice Casual.
Not much of an ask, right?
We sat outside because the spring afternoon was just too damned gorgeous to miss out on. A dusting of clouds kept the sun out of our eyes, and the slight breeze brought a hint of greenery that amplified our fresh-out-of-winter urge to be outdoors.
Upon arrival, we were seated promptly and our waiter was right out to help us get started.
I won’t belabor the menus (you can find them here), but it’s worth mentioning that the dinner and drink menus offered a little something for everyone.
THE APPETIZER
We kicked off our meal with the Baked Crab Shell. As described on the menu: “Sautéed Crab meat, red bell peppers, parsley, coriander, cream, finished with panko, parsley, parmesan cheese, lime.”
It was delicious and smooth. The creaminess of the crab meat mixture blew me away. Each of the ingredients played off one another to form a smooth symphony where no one thing stood out. I took a cue from the chef and made use of the citrus wedge, and I’m happy I did. The freshly squeezed lime’s acid gave the dish a hint of freshness that complimented the afternoon weather.
THE ENTREE
I have a love-hate releationship with menus like TCD’s. It’s the kind of menu where everything sounds delicious. From the Brazilian Fish Stew, to the Beef Bourguignon, to the Lobster Mac & Cheese. TCD’s menu offered something for everyone. After waffling over the Braised Halibut or the Gaucho Steak, I settled on the steak.
Of course, no plan survives first contact with the enemy, or in my case, the chef’s specials. Our waiter dropped a bomb on us with the chef’s specials, completely upending our selections from the menu.
The chef’s specials were:
Seven-ounces of pan seared halibut topped with blue crab and served with asparagus.
Or
Fourteen-ounces of Mediterranean grilled lamb served with truffle pave and a yogurt mint sauce.
Although I wanted both specials (and everything else on the menu), I went with the halibut, and luckily for me, my wife went with the lamb, so my taste buds got the best of both worlds.
Each bite of halibut was perfectly cooked, simple, and buttery. A prime dish for someone wanting fish without the fishiness. Unfortunately, the crab topping seemed to be the same crab we’d gotten for our appetizer, so, while it tasted great and its creaminess went well with the halibut’s butteriness, it wasn’t anything new, so it was a bit of a let down, and completely my own fault. I should have put more thought into it before I ordered my entree. Like the rest of the dish, the asparagus was perfectly cooked, neither firm nor flabby.
Now the lamb. Holy smokes, the lamb. Was. Delicious. And the pave. Delicious. The mint yogurt sauce. Delicious. I really screwed up by ordering the halibut. I only got a few bites of the lamb, and its savoriness paired with the mint yogurt sauce blew my halibut out of the water. Same for the truffle pave. It was firm and rich, with the truffle accenting, not overpowering the dish.
If I had one unfulfilled desire during my time at TCD, it was that I wish the waiter knew more about their wine list. I never got a warmy fuzzy that they knew what they were talking about when I asked about specific wines. To start it off, as happens too often, the two wines they suggested right off the bat were the most expensive on the list, not the most appropriate for the dishes. This immediately made me feel like they were trying to upsell me, which crushed my confidence in them. And then they described a dry red wine as “sweet.” Mon ami, this is not good. Ahh well, you can’t win them all. If I were really serious about the wine list, then I should have asked to talk to their sommelier (if they have one), which I’ll do next time I’m there. If I didn’t know a thing about wine, then the wine experience would have been fine.
In the end, both of our entrees were top-notch, and I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend either, depending on one’s tastes. For me that day, my tastes were clearly more for lamb than halibut. Either way, The Charleston Draper is a worthy destination for anyone looking for a fine meal and wicked good ambiance.
