RFK Rankings · Charleston
Best Restaurants for Brunch in Charleston (2026)
Weekend brunch · Charleston · 6 rooms ranked · Updated June 2026
Compiled by the Restaurants for Kings editorial team · Published May 12, 2024 · Updated June 8, 2026 · Reviewed by Fredrik Filipsson, Editor-in-Chief · How we rank · Corrections
Poogan's Porch has poured she-crab soup on its Queen Street porch since 1976, and two doors down Husk runs a Saturday cornbread benedict. Charleston treats brunch as a Lowcountry sit-down, biscuits and shrimp over a buffet line. These six, ranked, are where to spend a slow downtown morning.
1.Poogan's Porch
The she-crab soup and biscuits on a 19th-century porch are Charleston's defining weekend plate; book the downstairs room.
Poogan's Porch sits in a restored Victorian house at 72 Queen Street and has served Lowcountry cooking since 1976. The biscuits arrive first, the she-crab soup runs about $13, and the shrimp and grits anchors a brunch that fills both floors on weekends.
The room is all wood floors and shutters, warm and unhurried, and the wraparound porch is the table to ask for. Reserve a weekend slot on Resy rather than walk up, especially during tourist season, and come for the biscuits before the kitchen runs out.
2.Husk
Sean Brock's old flagship runs a sharp Saturday-and-Sunday brunch built on a daily-changing Southern larder; reserve ahead.
Husk has cooked thoughtful Southern food from a converted 1893 home at 76 Queen Street since 2011, the room that built Sean Brock's name. Brunch runs Saturday and Sunday with a cornbread benedict, a pimento-cheese omelet and a board that changes with what the farmers bring, mostly $16 to $26.
The whitewashed dining room is calm and the cocktails are proper, a step up in polish from the porch crowd next door. Book a weekend table and start with whatever the chalkboard names from that morning's delivery.
3.Toast! on Meeting
Chicken and waffles, buttermilk pancakes and a mimosa flight in a central all-day diner; walk in early on a weekday.
Toast! sits at 717 Meeting Street and runs an all-day Southern brunch built around chicken and waffles, fluffy buttermilk pancakes and a mimosa flight. Plates land around $13 to $19, an easy and central stop with no reservation pressure.
The room is bright and casual, good with a table of friends or children in tow. Come early on a weekday for the quiet counter, or expect a wait on weekend mornings when the downtown crowd arrives.
4.Rudy Royale
A lively French Quarter room serving seasonal Lowcountry plates at weekend brunch; reserve the East Bay Street table.
Rudy Royale runs from a handsome room on historic East Bay Street in the French Quarter, with chefs Macready Downer and Landice Simmons cooking a seasonal Lowcountry menu. The weekend brunch leans contemporary, with plates in the $16 to $28 range and a strong cocktail program.
The space is lively and dressed-up without being stiff, a good pick when you want polish over a porch. Book the weekend table ahead and ask what is coming in from the coast that week.
5.Prohibition
Executive chef Greg Garrison plates a brisk Upper King brunch with live jazz and craft cocktails; reserve the weekend room.
Prohibition sits on Upper King Street and runs a weekend brunch under executive chef Greg Garrison, pairing Southern plates with local seafood and proper cocktails. Most dishes land between $14 and $24, and the room turns to live jazz later in the morning.
The space is dim and convivial, built for a long table and a second round. Reserve a weekend slot, especially on Upper King's busy nights, and lean into the cocktail list rather than the coffee.
6.Bistronomy by Nico
Chef Nico Romo runs a Parisian-bistro brunch of steak frites and crudo downtown; book the weekend table.
Bistronomy by Nico brings a French-bistro brunch to downtown Charleston under chef Nico Romo, with escargot, a tuna crudo and steak frites alongside the eggs. Plates sit in the $16 to $30 range in a small, candle-warm room.
It is the dressed-up French option among the city's Southern rooms, good for a slow continental weekend morning. Reserve the table ahead and order broadly across the bistro classics.
Not for everyone
Famous, but not actually brunch
FIG. Mike Lata's James Beard-winning room on Meeting Street is dinner-only and does not run a weekend brunch. It is one of Charleston's best evenings, but do not arrive on a Sunday morning expecting eggs.
The Ordinary. Lata and Adam Nemirow's grand oyster hall in a former bank is a dinner destination, not a brunch room. Save it for an evening of shellfish towers rather than a morning of biscuits.
167 Raw. The beloved Charleston oyster counter is a lunch-and-dinner walk-in for lobster rolls, not a sit-down brunch service. Come for a midday roll, not a weekend Benedict.
How to brunch well in Charleston
Charleston's brunch scene clusters downtown on the peninsula: Queen Street for the historic Southern rooms, Meeting and Upper King for the all-day diners and the cocktail crowd, and the French Quarter for the dressed-up tables. None of it needs a car if you stay south of the Crosstown.
Weekend tables fill fast at the destination rooms, so reserve rather than walk up at Poogan's Porch, Husk and Rudy Royale. For a no-reservation morning, Toast! on Meeting takes the pressure off a late start, especially on a weekday before the tourist rush.
Frequently asked
Where is the best brunch in Charleston?
Poogan's Porch on Queen Street is the marquee pick, a Victorian house serving she-crab soup, biscuits and shrimp and grits since 1976. For a sharper kitchen, Husk two doors down runs a daily-changing Southern brunch on weekends; for a central all-day table, Toast! on Meeting.
Which Charleston brunch is best with kids?
Toast! on Meeting is the easiest with children, a bright all-day diner with chicken and waffles, pancakes and no reservation pressure. Poogan's Porch is the other low-stress option for a relaxed Southern morning with biscuits and a porch table.
Do you need a reservation for brunch in Charleston?
Yes at the destination rooms. Poogan's Porch, Husk and Rudy Royale all fill their weekend tables early, so reserve on Resy or OpenTable rather than walk up. For a no-reservation morning, Toast! on Meeting is the easiest, especially on a weekday.
What is a good upscale brunch in Charleston?
Husk on Queen Street runs the most chef-driven weekend brunch, a daily-changing Southern menu in a polished 1893 dining room. Bistronomy by Nico is the other dressed-up pick, a French-bistro brunch of steak frites and crudo under chef Nico Romo.
Does Husk serve brunch in Charleston?
Yes. Husk runs brunch on Saturday and Sunday, with a cornbread benedict, a pimento-cheese omelet and a board that changes daily with the farm delivery. Reserve the weekend table ahead, as it fills quickly on tourist weekends.
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