Word on the street
What locals are saying
Charleston's oldest tavern carries real weight — founded by Big John Cannady, a former New York Giants player, and closed by fire in 2015 before a 2021 reopening by three Citadel grads who kept the spirit without the bras-on-the-ceiling dive aesthetic. The back bar is built from a salvaged Kingstree barn, the original red chairs were replicated, and signature drinks like the smoked old fashioned signal a gastropub sensibility the original crowd didn't ask for. Those who loved the sweaty, locals-only sanctuary of the original feel the glow-up as a trade-off; those coming fresh tend to find it a rare downtown bar with genuine bones.
oldest tavern in Charleston with real founder lorepost-fire 2021 glow-up — elevated but not unrecognizablesmoked old fashioned and clothesline bacon as signature drawsoriginal dive loyalists mourn the ceiling brastourists vs. locals tension on E Bay Stexposed brick and salvaged barn back bar
In the feed
