Family Restaurants in Charleston, SC

“Smoky Yolk is the current trading name of this restaurant on the site which was once the Smoky Oak tavern. That current name cleverly echoes what was a popular predecessor business and skips over what seems to be its current registered business name (which is not easy to interpret.) This is a popular local spot for good breakfast/brunch and lunch options, and those options still include the smoked meats of the earlier business. Indoors, there are booths, bar seating and a few standard tables, some in a separate room; there is now an extended covered verandah with good sized circular tables some of which can easily accommodate parties of six. On our latest visit, our party of 6 slotted comfortably into a booth, although we would have selected a verandah table if one had been free. We had chosen this destination for an early brunch on Mothers' Day and it was already crowded by 9.30. It was well staffed, at a time when many local restaurants are struggling for staff. The menu offered plenty of choice for standard breakfast items as well as good lunch options. Our server, working his first day, had some difficulty interpreting which lunch options were available for brunch service, an issue which is less than clear on the current printed menu so the confusion was not the fault of the new server. Once that issue was resolved after a couple of false starts, we enjoyed our outing with three generations all finding something appealing and enjoying it when it arrived. Smoky Yolk occupies a good site in a large but currently underused retail area, so there is ample parking. For larger groups it's worth trying to make a reservation but they are apparently not taken on Sundays.“