FARM Bluffton: A Delicious Itinerary
Chef Brandon Carter of FARM found a sense of community in Bluffton, South Carolina and continues to provide locals and tourists with both Lowcountry favorites and flavors from all over the world.
Lake City: A Town Transformed
For decades, when folks in South Carolina got that itch for a change of scenery, few would consider planning an in-state weekend trip. They’d travel to the mountains of North Carolina, the big-city attractions of Atlanta or the artsy streets of Savannah. But that’s beginning to change.
For many people around the state, the name Lake City may not ring a bell as a go-to weekend destination, but this former agricultural town has received a major facelift in the past 10 years thanks to the Darla Moore Foundation and its privatized Convention and Visitors’ Bureau, Visit Lake City. So much so, in fact, that it was named as one of the Best Small Towns for Culture Scene in 2018 by USAToday. But the town’s transition didn’t happen overnight; it came as a result of local visionaries working together.
“Lake City was once a thriving agricultural hub, with tobacco being the main crop, but like a lot of small Southern towns, when agriculture dried up and left, the town just died,” says Seth Kines, executive director of Visit Lake City. But the many residents who remained saw potential for the city as a tourist destination. Native Lake City resident and self-made businesswoman Darla Moore wanted to find a way to give back to her community and elevate Lake City to the charming, quaint destination it has become today. Investing her own time and money into creating the foundation, Moore placed an emphasis on integrating the arts into the city’s culture. Along with a number of stakeholders in the community, Darla Moore and another local Karen Fowler, helped create the Lake City Creative Alliance.
Kines cites this small town’s renaissance as beginning with ArtFields, a local nine-day art festival and competition started by the Lake City Creative Alliance, that is now the largest art event in the Southeast, awarding more than $140,000 in prize money to artists. Just completing its seventh year, the festival attracts upwards of 15,000 to 20,000 people over the course of the event. In 2019, Travel + Leisure even named the city as one of the Top Places to Visit in May thanks to its beloved festival.
And as ArtFields grew, so did Lake City.
“Art has really been the catalyst in our comeback story,” says Kines. “It’s amazing, especially for a small Southern town. You don’t usually think of art when you’re visiting these places.”
But Lake City hasn’t forgotten its roots. The first phase of revitalization focused on making art a permanent part of the city’s culture rather than just an annual event by converting spaces like an old feed-and-seed into art galleries.
With new businesses and attractions bringing people to Lake City, the foundation began to wonder where this influx of visitors could stay during their visit. The answer? The Inn at the Crossroads. This gorgeous boutique hotel is a luxurious inn housed inside a rustic red-brick building with all the accommodations of an upscale hotel, including an onsite fine dining restaurant.
But the team of people working to renovate Lake City didn’t stop there. They realized that revitalizing the city would mean not only offering events and spaces of interest to visitors but also supporting the local community. The Greater Lake City Community Development Office allows local business owners to apply for a program that completely restores the business’s facades, free of charge, preserving the charming small-town look that makes Lake City so memorable.
Anyone looking for a quick weekend getaway this fall should mark their calendars to make it to one of the city’s many festivals.
First up: Rhythm & Q’s, October 18–19. For two days, this event blends two of the South’s favorite things: barbeque and country music. Thirty-three pitmasters from across the South will compete for the largest top prize for barbecue in the state while budding musicians compete for $45,000 and a chance to work with some of the star musical judges. To top off the entire event, Easton Corbin will perform a free concert post-awards ceremony.
On October 24, the city also welcomes four of Nashville’s top songwriters to Writers in the Round. Going into its fifth year, this event gives attendees insight into some of the top 40 country songs we’ve all been singing along to by allowing the songwriters to tell the stories of where these lyrics came from and what inspires them to write.
Next, there’s Lake City’s top-notch culinary event, Cocktails & Cuisine. In the event’s first year, a cocktail hour from Charleston’s Bourbon N’ Bubbles kicked off the night, followed by a four-course meal prepared by Charleston Grill chef Michelle Weaver along with F&B Director at Crossroads on Main John Masters and Culinary Director at Crossroads on Main John Houser, paired with unique wine options presented by sommeliers from Charleston’s Graft Wine Shop. This year’s event, to be held on November 16, promises to be a night of incredible food, drink and new experiences with guest chef Jacques Larson of Charleston’s Obstinate Daughter and Wild Olive. This intimate 80-ticket event welcomes chefs from Charleston and other areas to bring locals and visitors together for a taste of Lake City.
Even if you’re not headed to Lake City for one of the much-anticipated events, there’s plenty to do during a weekend stay. The small-town vibe allows visitors to unwind and enjoy the budding culture of Lake City with a new self-guided public art and mural walk, a selection of delicious restaurants and perhaps the most popular attraction, the Moore Farms Botanical Garden. This world-class nationally recognized botanical garden offers visitors hours of exploration with sectioned areas like the formal gardens, the vegetable garden and the Pine Bay native plant garden. Aside from the garden itself, there is a full calendar of regular events including a beer fest and wine stroll.
“We really want people to be able to live, work, and play in Lake City,” says Kines. And the people are taking notice. “It’s incredible,” he says. “Every single time we bring someone to Lake City for the first time, they’re blown away. They just can’t believe this is here, and it’s really refreshing to know that what we’re doing is working.”
Want to road trip to Lake City? Find more things to do and keep up with their events at www.visitlakecitysc.com.
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