Photo courtesy of Lowcountry Bistro

Riding out of the rain, shins soaked from the wet road, we landed in the “World’s Best City,” Charleston, South Carolina. Historic, beautiful and known for its restaurants, this overnight stop promised everything weary travelers craved.

Luggage loaded on the bellman’s cart, Louise headed inside to check into the Double Tree Suites. I jumped back on the bike and followed the parking valet’s directions around the corner and down the block where I found the entrance to the underground parking garage. The only other option was to park across the street in a public lot. With more rain heading our way, we gladly paid for the valet service, even though I parked the bike myself.

We showered, changed clothes, and headed out to explore Charleston by foot. And here came the rain. We waited under an awning for the shower to pass. Feeling a little road-worn and tired, our patience with the Sunday night crowds was quickly waning. Cocktails in the hotel room before dinner sounded like a better plan, and it gave Louise time to search for a restaurant.

The search paid off. She found a place a block and a half away called Lowcountry Bistro. A quick walk past the busy Charleston City Market, and we were there – just in time for our 8 o’clock reservation. The bistro is in a stand-alone three-story brick-faced building on S. Market St.

The interior is rustic, inviting, and a whole lot bigger than first impressions would indicate. Off of the first floor dining room is an indoor patio with communal window seating – a mirror of the balcony above, which is accessed from the upstairs dining room. The bar is on the first floor. We scored the table by the front window, and the friendly server welcomed us with a warmth that quickly made the wet afternoon a distant memory.

We started with bourbon and moonshine flights. This is where we discovered William Wolf Pecan Bourbon, which was presented along with Bulleit Rye, and Crown Royal. The moonshine offerings were Blueberry, Caramel and Apple Pie. The winner… Caramel Apple. Yeah, we mixed a couple of them.

Now, let’s talk chicken and waffles. I had never tried them, but had always wanted to. This was the place, and I am still addicted. They are so good, even Paula Dean raved about them. Bone-in chicken sitting atop a delicious cornbread waffle, drizzled with a bourbon reduction, and pecan butter. Pecans in the bourbon, pecans in the butter – that’s the Lowcountry for you. Oh… did I mention that there is bacon in the batter? You’d better believe it.

Lowcountry Bistro is Part of the Queen Street Hospitality Group of restaurants in Charleston. Next time we are in town, we will have to give some of the others a shot – and, hopefully, the weather will be a little drier. For now, I am still on the quest for a better Chicken and Waffles. Louise’s are pretty darned good, but nothing compares to those I had at Lowcountry Bistro in Charleston, SC.

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There’s an App for That

I have an app on my phone called MyRadar. Even with all of the weather resources available to the technologically adept, this is one of my favorite realtime tools for tracking storms. As a pilot, I find it invaluable – especially when I use it on one of my other favorite tools: the iPad. The app gives you a 2-dimensional animated view of Doppler radar in your area.

Screen grab from MyRadar on a ride through Pennsylvania

As motorcyclists, Louise and I swear by it when storms are near. We have used the green, yellow and red globs to help us maneuver away from impending weather phenomena. Pro tip: green globs get you wet; yellow globs get you really wet; red globs make you question your life decisions.

 The Freedom of the Road

Louise and I decided to take a day trip to visit with family. Actually, we set out on a very short ride close to home. We just wanted to feel the road rushing under our wheels. As we left Kent Island and checked MyRadar, it became clear that Mother Nature would prefer that we kept heading east. Who are we to argue with Momma N.? Louise texted her cousin and soon we were on our way towards Delaware.

Heading east away from the storm

A couple weather systems were conspiring to drench us, but we were having none of it. Brief glances at the radar gave us an idea which way to head to stay ahead of the downpours. We easily evaded the rain and had a nice visit with the peeps. Then we jumped back on the bike under sunny skies and headed west.

There’s an app that is as good (if not better in some ways) than MyRadar. It’s called My Eyes. As we pointed the front tire towards home, I saw a darkening sky before us. No problem, we got this. And we rode on. Into the storm(s).

Here Comes the Rain

We did our best to coordinate what we saw on the app with what we saw in the sky, and where we were with where we wanted to be. Home wasn’t in the cards right now. Again, converging storms seemed to know where we were supposed to be, so we obliged. And we found ourselves in Harrington, DE, in the parking lot of the Stargate Diner on US Rt. 13 as the first rainfall began. This should provide sufficient shelter from the storm, so we dismounted and made our way inside.

Welcome to the Twilight Zone

First appearances are important. Apparently our first appearance in the Stargate Diner was out of step with the expectations of those people already inside. As we crossed the threshold and entered the main lobby area, all voices quieted and all eyes turned – toward us. We were not soaking wet and and we didn’t have antennae growing from the tops of our heads… or did we? Whatever the reason, we were the center of the universe (their universe, anyway) for a minute. When that minute was over, we no longer mattered.

I was hungry and thankful to be in a dry place. I would have been content with anything at this point – iced tea, fries, soup, time to wait out the storm. Louise still had not come to grips with our ticker tape parade welcoming. So, we made our way to the front of the building, where donned our rain gear. Even though the bulk of the storm wasn’t completely upon us yet, the MyRadar app confirmed the light sprinkles coming down were just the beginning of something much greater. We jumped on the bike as the rain got heavier and we got wetter, minute-by-minute.

Burger Quest

While I had been fiddling with radar on my phone, Louise had been thumbing through TripAdvisor on hers, looking for burgers. A place called Jeff’s Taproom & Grille, 13.5 miles to the south popped up with some good reviews, so off we went. And here came the storm.

Riding in the rain is not only uncomfortable, it’s dangerous. Visibility is severely reduced, traction is limited, breaking distance is increased, you get wet. And along with getting wet, comes the fogging of the goggles. As we rode along at a slower than normal pace, I had to constantly wipe my goggles with a wet-gloved hand to try and clear my view. What normally would be an 18-minute cruise down Rt 13, turned into a half-hour ride from hell.

We Made It

Parked outside of Jeff’s Taproom & Grille

We finally reached our destination, Jeff’s Taproom and Grille. We parked the bike in the parking lot out back, and made our way inside (though a door that was also in the back). The door opened with a creak and we were no longer taking a shower. The entrance is a short hallway that opens up to the bar/restaurant area. Here, we paused and shook the water from our rain gear. The atmosphere seemed to change a bit, and we felt the now-familiar all-eyes-are-on-you feeling. Is this a Delaware thing or are we truly aliens?

From out of the moment of silence came a lone voice: “Is it raining, yet?” We laughed. They laughed. We all laughed. We were welcome here.

Along with a bowl of the richest French onion soup this side of Paris, we decided to split a Grilled Cheeseburger. Quoting the menu: “Why just have an ordinary roll?! Two pieces of Texas Toast and cheese make this burger an overstuffed grilled cheese!” We upgraded to Krinkle-Cut Fries for an extra 2 bucks.

The crowd at Jeff’s was a welcoming, friendly, comedic bunch who were as interested in us as we were in them. We found a friend in a guy named Clay – a wheel-chair-bound veteran who told us about his specially outfitted Sportster. He didn’t ride it today because of the rain. Duh.

By the way, the burger was so good, we made Jeff’s one of our go-to stops on bike rides with friends. We have been back a few more times, and we will be back many more. Rain or shine.

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