A Legacy of Southern Hospitality

In Charleston’s vibrant and competitive food scene, there's a handful of legacy restaurants keeping the story of the city's southern food roots alive. Now in its 26th year, Circa 1886 is among them, celebrating the Lowcountry seasons with contemporary dishes crafted by Executive Chef and Co-Owner Marc Collins. Ensconced in the original carriage house of the Wentworth Mansion, the AAA Four Diamond restaurant is one of five Charleston properties in the Charming Inns portfolio.

The idea for Circa 1886 came from a desire to offer guests a complete experience during their stay at the Wentworth Mansion, a luxury historic inn. The carriage house—tucked within a garden a short walk across a centuries-old brick courtyard—set the right tone for a dining space. “We wanted to create a memorable and immersive experience,” Charming Inns founders Rick Widman and Linn Lesesne explain. Sharing their vision, Collins joined the team and has led the culinary program for over two decades.

“I came to Charleston in 2001 to grow my cuisine,” explains Collins, a 2019 South Carolina Chef Ambassador and Charleston Wine & Food Festival co-founder. “The ownership has entrusted me with the menus, and what the culinary vision is going to be.”

As a teen, Collins recognized his affinity for cooking and pursued a culinary degree at the Pennsylvania Institute of Culinary Arts. He studied under chef David Spadafore, a gold medalist at the Culinary Olympics in Frankfurt, Germany, learning fine dining from the bottom up.

Over the decades, Circa 1886 has gone through several iterations, initially, a quintessential southern restaurant, and later, offering a refined, romantic experience in an intimate dining room steeped in history. In 2023, a duo of multi-course tasting menus was added to the restaurant's offerings. “Our chefs want to showcase a lot of flavors—present ingredients in a lot of different ways, not just à la carte” notes Collins. “It's fun for us, it challenges us. We get to paint creatively with our culinary tools.”

Executive Sous Chef Christian Zehntner and Sous Chef Kevin Campbell help fuel the kitchen's collaborative spirit with an eye toward constantly improving the menu. Certified sommelier Anne Hampton, who leads a wine program of over 300 bottles, also plays a key part in the evolution of the menu.

“The wine list kicks off the menu,” explains Collins. “Anne writes her dinner pairings from white to red, so I craft my dishes with complementary ingredients, from lighter proteins like fish and chicken to heavier proteins like steak. I love the collaboration.”

I was treated to a “behind the scenes” dinner to see those collaborative efforts at work. Hosted by Collins, the event was held to introduce the new seasonal menus. Joining me at table were Collins and executive pastry chef Ashley Cardona. Hampton stood by, making pairing recommendations for each course.

The evening unfolded, amid convivial conversation, with Collins providing insights on the vision and process driving the creation and execution of each six-course menu—dubbed Ashley and Cooper—as plates arrived from the kitchen. Collins explained that his team designs the new menus one dish at a time, introducing them over a period of weeks, not all at once. Local and global ingredients are combined inventively to surprise and offer elevated comfort—with each dish telling a story.

I chose the Ashley menu for my culinary adventure because it featured duck, a longtime favorite. Prepared Sichuan style, it reflected hints of Asian influence the kitchen enjoys incorporating with Collins' very French core. The tender duck was boldly seasoned and presented in a rich demiglace with smoked leeks offsetting the sweetness of the sauce.

“We thought duck worked beautifully with the sweet flavors of raspberries and port,” Collins says. “Adding Sichuan peppercorns brought in that unique tingle you don’t get from black pepper.”

Cardona created an elevated bread service featuring Anadama bread that was in step with the fall season. Based on a traditional recipe blending corn porridge, flour and molasses, it was served with a roasted butternut squash butter with a hint of heat.

The ubiquitous South Carolina palm was given a playful nod with the (Hawaii-sourced) heart of palm lemongrass soup. A stuffed pasta, girasole, made with Anson Mills grits, floated in the rich, creamy base, finished with crispy bits of guanciale.

The humble veal cheek was showcased in a veal blanquette, what Collins describes as reminiscent of a rustic dish, elevated with a flavorful fennel mushroom tart and enhanced with a shower of celeriac, clementine and chervil. He noted it pairs well with a lighter red wine such as Aroja Alta 2019—a vintage from Spain, whose wines sommelier Hampton confesses being partial to.

In an attempt to change perceptions about eating wild game, Collins singled out the antelope dish from the à la carte menu for the table to sample, promising a clean flavor profile due to the process of field harvesting the animals. Sourced from Broken Arrow Ranch in Texas, the tender filet was well seasoned; the dish, beautifully composed, with polenta, figs, and Meredith Farm cheese, in a robust Romesco sauce. It delivered as promised—a must-have.

Wanting to put a fresh spin on the “death by chocolate” dessert concept, Cardona created A Study of Vanilla, building myriad layers of vanilla: a custard, a Valrhona Opalys mousse, vanilla wafers, and finally, tricking the eye with a stem of tempered dark chocolate shaped like a vanilla bean. “That's the artist in her,” notes Collins.

With typical style and professionalism, our Circa 1886 hosts served an innovative slice of Southern hospitality, immersed in a Michelin-worthy experience. Bravo!

Circa 1886

149 Wentworth Street, Charleston

(843) 853-7828

circa1886.com