Beyond The Plate: Working Together to Create Something Special with Off Track and Red Clay

It all started with a love for ice cream.

While living in New York, Marc and Alissa, co-owners of Off Track, loved going out for ice cream whenever they could. It happened often enough that they eventually decided it was worth trying to make it at home as a hobby. As they experimented over time creating the ice cream they loved going out for in their own kitchen, they realized that it was possible to do so with ingredients available at the grocery store- more importantly without many of the preservatives and other artificial ingredients not essential in creating great ice cream. They felt that more people needed to experience this, thus the idea of Off Track was born.

Since they opened last year on Beaufain Street, Off Track has had a commitment to using local ingredients and supporting purveyors in the Lowcountry as much as possible. It began by working with GrowFood Carolina to see what they could get locally from relationships they have with purveyors and branching out from there over the past few months.

Much of the Off Track story focuses on these relationships: going to the farms to see the hens that in turn produce the egg yolks used in their ice cream, knowing local purveyors on a first name basis, and being able to collaborate with others who are just as passionate about their craft as Marc and Alissa are about ice cream. Their latest flavor? Wildflower Honey: a collaboration with Red Clay using their Barrel Aged Southern Honey.

I joined Marc and Alissa of Off Track, with Pippa and Riley from Red Clay over two days to hear all about how this collaboration came to be and to see the the first batch of this collaboration come to life.

Charlotte: A Night at Dot Dot Dot.

Crafting a great cocktail is truly an artform. I personally have been a fan of all things hops for a while, but have quickly grown to love and appreciate visiting a cocktail bar and meeting the people behind the bar talk passionately about the cocktails they create. I recently spent a weekend in Charlotte, North Carolina (a city that I spent a lot of time in during college) to experience some of the new spots i’ve heard about in this quickly growing city. Dot Dot Dot was a suggestion from the folks behind one of my favorites in Charleston, The Gin Joint, and is worth a visit if you ever find yourself in the Queen City. This members-only speakeasy has an incredible and creative cocktail menu (with an impressive food menu as well) that is truly memorable.

NICO Oyster Education Class

When you think of Charleston and food, oysters are likely one of the first things that come to mind. Here in the Lowcountry we love oysters- later in the year, oyster roasts are a common occurrence, and thought the year they are always a go to way to start a great meal at many establishments in town.

Once you become an oyster fan, there’s so much more to learn about this bivalve mollusk than you can even imagine. With the sheer variety of oysters available from the local Beaufort Lady Island to Rappahannock in Topping, VA, each variety has really unique characteristics that set it apart from the others. I recently went to NICO Shem Creek for their new Oyster Education Class with one of the most knowledgeable people I know about the topic, Chef Nico himself, behind the bar.

Post and Courier Feature- Lowcountry ’Grammer: Jai Jones of @JaiEats

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Really enjoyed chatting with the Post and Courier recently all about how Jai Eats came to be, what inspires me within the local food scene and more in this feature. The original piece can be found here, or read along for the full feature.

Welcome to Lowcountry ’Grammer, a new column designed to showcase the most well-composed, innovative and delicious culinary photography by Lowcountry Instagram “influencers” (i.e., people who run accounts that make you hungry/thirsty, sometimes in exchange for meals or money from the featured restaurant.) Go ahead, throw them a follow, and don’t forget to follow @postandcourier while you’re at it!

Jai Jones lives on James Island, works as a creative director, and runs @jaieats.

Launched account: January 2015
Posting frequency: 3 per week
How to get in touch: Direct message on Instagram, or his website jaieats.com

I moved back to Charleston in 2010 after college, which was an interesting time in the city. The culinary scene in Charleston was quickly gaining more national attention at that point. Husk was just opened by Sean Brock and Mike Lata was doing incredible work at FIG.

For me, the passion of the people behind the food really inspires me. Talking to a chef who is truly passionate about the dishes they create is invigorating for me as a creative, and it makes me want to help tell that story.

I see creating a beautiful cocktail or a dish as an art form. The flavors, colors, textures and shapes in food inspire me in the same way that more traditional subjects do, and every time I see a beautiful dish, my mind starts racing on how to best capture it. In the end, it really is me conveying my experience through a photo.

I usually am eating with friends or family when I go out, so family-style meals are usually normal to really get an understanding of a menu, and helps me have more of a balance.

It can sometimes be a challenge finding the right environment to capture food within a restaurant, and usually much easier during the day for lunch/brunch where there is natural light than dinner (although I tend to get pretty creative when light proves to be an issue — table candles can be your friend sometimes.)

The biggest challenge is really just keeping up with the latest while also making sure to visit some of my favorites I’ve been going to for years, like Hannibal’s Kitchen and Cru Cafe.

CHSWFF 2019: Truffle Shuffle

This morning was one of the most memorable experiences I’ve had at Charleston Wine & Food so far. Truffle Shuffle was an excursion showcasing Urbani Truffles in dishes from Babas on Cannon, The Darling Oyster Bar and Edmunds Oast. Paired with wines from Italy’s Piedmont region, this tuber was used in everything from an incredible Chocolate Cake with truffle ice cream (topped with shaved truffle) to a Crab and Asparagus Risotto where we were taught proper techniques to shaving truffles.

CHSWFF 2019: Opening Night

Cheers to the beginning of Charleston Wine & Food! If Opening Night was any indication, this years festival is going to be absolutely amazing.