It doesn’t get more quintessential Charleston than sitting at a sun-soaked bar, listening to the scrape and shuffle of oysters being shucked over a glass of Fish House Punch while watching the action of bustling King Street unfold. That’s the scene at Charleston’s newest oyster bar, The Darling Oyster Bar, which also brings top-notch cocktails into the mix. Open since February and located in a 1900s-era building that formerly housed Union Provisions, the space combines weathered wood tables and a worn zinc bar, paired with furniture from antique shops, hand-blown light fixtures and a color scheme resembling the interior of an oyster shell. “It’s a fanciful take on a Southern seafood place,” says designer Smith Hanes. “With architectural references to oyster bars from another era and banquettes inspired by Dad’s favorite motorboat, the place inspires guests to dream of being on the water or the beach.”
