Zero Café + Bar

Amazing, great service, and the «small» portions from our 3 course meal were definitely filling. Some reviewers said they left hungry but I think they’re used to those American sized portions. I am American and I think a lot of restaurants get a little out of hand. We will be back!

This place has a romantic ambiance. We started off with some wonderful cocktails on the porch upstairs. Then we had dinner outside. We loved our appetizers! Tuna tartar was delicious… The octopus was phenomenal. The deviled eggs were incredible. So different and tasty. The tomato was good but not great. Then we had our entrees… I had the duck which was cooked perfectly and was delicious… My wife had the wreck fish which was scrumptious and local as well. I had a tasty Cabernet with my duck. Perfect pairing. We finished with the passion fruit. Good but not great. Our waiters name was JJ and he was top notch. Very nice and recommended several things for us to do while in town. The service was great. I will recommend this place to everyone… And will definitely be back next time I’m in town!

Cocktails were fantastic but tasting menu was way overpriced for the portion size. 2.5 hrs for 5 tiny courses.

Go early and have a delicious custom cocktail on the porch. The location and ambience are fantastic. I wish we had stayed at the hotel — next time. For dinner, we did the tasting menu with wine pairing, sitting at a table for two on the patio. The servers were delightful people and very knowledgeable about each dish and pairing. The chef’s choices and execution were second to none. I still have dreams of the Beef Wellington and I’m not even an every day meat eater. If you’re looking for an unforgettable, special meal, this is the place to go.

This hotel/​restaurant/​bar are amazing!!! Kincaid (the bartender) is absolutely awesome as is all of the staff are AMAZING!!! Such an incredible experience!!!

This was, by far, the best meal I’ve ever eaten for restaurant week, and probably one of the best meals I’ve ever had in Charleston. The space is super cozy and romantic, and I love the little open kitchen where you can watch Chef Vinson Petrillo do his magic.
We tried the deviled eggs 4 ways, which were really yummy, but the true magic happened when we ordered cocktails. They were all amazing, but I recommend The Red Scare made with Tequila, Grenadine, Habanero Simple Syrup, and Cilantro, which is one of the most interesting, delicious, and complex drinks I’ve ever had.
If you’ve got the time (and the cash), go for the 9-​course Chef’s Tasting Menu, because IT WILL CHANGE YOUR LIFE. Seriously. Treat. Yo. Self. Chef Petrillo is a magical genius.

What a beautiful spot! We had the chance to dine here on a Saturday night. This is a very quaint spot that I found romantic. We had the opportunity to sit outside and it was perfect! The ONLY «bad» thing I have to say it that the tables are pretty small. We started with the Roasted Yellow-​tail Collar and the House Made Ravioli with Crab. What a treat! The collar was roasted perfectly but it wasn’t the easiest I’ve had to eat. And the ravioli was great, it is ink ravioli so check your teeth after. We split and entrée, as not to get too full to the rest of our night out. We had the Beef Wellington. The beef so perfectly cooked, the best we have ever had! I can not wait to go back. I will make sure I am prepared and order the Chef’s tasting menu.

We chose Zero Café and Bar, located inside the beautiful Zero George Hotel for a casual business meeting over dinner. It was a beautiful evening, so we decided to sit in the courtyard that adjoins the dining area. The ambiance was understated perfection. All three of us decided on the five course tasting menu with included beverage pairings. ($ 115 a person). One of the diners in our group is a pescatarian, which was handled easily with a phone call to the restaurant the day before.
On to the food. As a «thank you» ordering the tasting menu, the chef complimented us with a order of the best deviled eggs I have ever eaten. Perfectly executed, with four eggs each presenting their own unique flavor profile. We then started with Local Oysters on the half shell topped with a frozen melon mignonette, caviar, and wait for it… GOLD LEAF. Perfect. We then moved onto a yakatori style Hamachi Collar. Perfectly grilled, presented with a miso truffle emulsion. Quite simply the best seafood dish I have ever eaten. We then had a crispy skinned Stripped Bass, served with Chanterelle Mushrooms, pork shoulder, and a delicious broth consisting of ham, and summer peas, which were flash frozen at the height of the summer to maintain the perfect pea flavor. We then moved on to our main course, which was a 50 day dry aged sirloin steak, accompanied by squash purée, and squid ink potatoes. The squid ink was not at all fishy and added a perfect salinity that elevated the already superior flavor that the beef possessed. Now desert. I am usually a bit put off by pairings of ingredients that don’t make a lot of sense at first, (they usually don’t make sense at second or third either) but the chef’s pairing of chocolate and caraway seeds truly illustrated an understanding of flavor and the finesse to be able to execute it flawlessly.
In short, that was the best dining experience I have had in Charleston, and I encourage all those food curious out there to enjoy it while it is still relatively under the radar.

This place is just lovely. It’s cozy and off the beaten path. The wait staff were absolute pros and attended to our every need. (At one point one of them overheard my wife saying she just got a mosquito bite, and he rushed to grab some bug spray they kept in the back.). The cocktails were phenomenal, especially if you’re a bourbon drinker. The plates were light, so not ideal for sharing, but a lot of care was put into the preparation and presentation. Pricey but worth it.

I don’t frequent fine dining establishments all that often, so when I do drop the cash I want it to be (a) delicious and (b) special. I visited for dinner with my S.O. on Labor Day weekend and we were blown away.
The exposed kitchen was very neat. We were seated in a back room that was delightfully intimate. We opted for the five-​course tasting menu, which also included drink pairings. I’ll probably forget something or get the order wrong, but I’ll do my best, so here goes. Courses were as follows: house deviled eggs, scallop tartare, hamachi fish, duck breast, and tres leches cake for dessert. Drink pairings were: Spanish cava, a Sauvignon blanc, a craft cream ale, a red wine (but I can’t remember the variety), and a coffee cocktail with dessert. Being the vulgar person I am, I described the tres leches cake as «sex on a spoon,» which I think the chef got a kick out of.
The chef’s little flourishes to each dish were fun and unexpected (corn foam!). The aesthetic of the whole thing felt unique and adventurous without being stuffy or pretentious.
Our server, Kailee, was wonderful and very engaged throughout the whole meal. She answered our questions, described each course, and made every effort to ensure that our experience was top-​notch.
I can’t even go into all the accompaniments with the dishes, because they were numerous and all out of this world. Flavors spanned the entire spectrum, everything delicately assembled so no individual characteristics were lost. The ambiance is also great because the restaurant is in a converted house, I think, and I’ve read that the place is also a cooking school — everyone working there WANTS to be there and is actually glad you’re dining with them.
Spoil yourself, or someone else, or get major gold stars for an anniversary/​birthday, and make a reservation here!

Off the chart good. One of the top 5 meals my wife and I ever had. We are foodies and have high expectations. Zero George far exceeded them. It is a quaint and charming place. You start by walking in past the kitchen where Chef Vinson P is preparing your meal. The bar keep is a real craftsman and you should try the house specials «the Money Penny» and the award winning «Red Scare» (warning it is spicy). We started meal with the Hamachi collar and the pressure cooked Octopus. Our mains were the Snapper and the Duck. Dessert was the Tres Leche cake. Everything was wonderful. Top 5 for sure. Service and atmosphere was excellent. We went to Husk on the previous night and Zero George is way better.

Nestled in the bottom level of Zero George Street Boutique Hotel’s original circa 1804 carriage house and spilling out onto an open-​air patio is Zero Café + Bar. Once a bit of a sleeper in the Charleston restaurant scene it was recently voted one of the Top 5 Foodie Hotels in the World — the lion awakes.
I was fortunate to have personally interviewed Chef Vinson Petrillo a few months ago. He was fresh off his Top Chef win, but more importantly still beaming from the arrival of his daughter, Sawyer.
When I asked him to describe his menu he said that it was, «Contemporary awesome and unexpected ingredients.» Not having yet had the pleasure of dining there we decided to meet friends for dinner this past weekend.
At the corner of George and East Bay Streets is the Zero George Street Hotel. Although it is a collection of five historic buildings both the signage and the property itself is so subtle that you can easily miss it.
And although already quite an award winner on many fronts, it is this subtleness that makes both the hotel and restaurant stand out.
In case you get a bit confused, as we did, the entrance to the restaurant is in the courtyard of the hotel and marked only with a small sign. We missed the sign and ended up on the patio where a kind server showed us the way.
The restaurant is small with interior seating for about 35 – 40. The «décor» reflects the low ceilings, restored heart pine floors, original brick and stucco walls, again, simple, but lovely.
Our friends quickly arrived and we ordered some beverages. Our server explained the layout of the menu, «snacks», «appetizers» and «entrées» and then left us to visit. It took some time before we were ready to order our appetizers as we caught up on our family’s activities throughout the summer. Our server was more than patient.
Our appetizers arrived quickly and were impressive from the start. Our friends ordered the «Deviled Eggs», each with a different flavor profile — Poached Black Truffle, Pickled Mustard, Bacon & Egg, and Caviar.
Light and delicate, these could have easily been the «Faberge» of deviled eggs. When Faberge created his eggs for the Imperial Family they were regarded as his greatest and most enduring achievement. These were both beautiful and delicious.
My husband ordered the Cantaloupe Gazpacho, which was also an exquisite presentation. The tiniest of cantaloupe ribbons, pickled onions, Sicilian Pistachios awaited as a Greek yogurt based cantaloupe «broth» served tableside, fell upon the dish. The Shiso Asian herb garnish added to the flavor in the smallest of ways.
For my appetizer I chose the Pan Roasted Octopus. Chef Petrillo won Top Chef with a pressure cooked octopus dish and also used octopus in the San Pellegrino World Young Chef Competition in Milan. I thought that I had a chance of selecting the «dish of the evening» and very well might have.
The octopus was served with roasted Ambrose Farms Beets, Seasoned Octopus and topped with an Ink Squid Emulsion. Various «leaves» topped both the beets and octopus and their slight bitterness enhanced the flavors even more.
I have never had octopus before and will now be the first one to raise my hand if it’s ever offered. It was similar to calamari but each bite was melt-​in-​you-​mouth tender. The hazelnut/​beet accompaniments were a wonderful, unexpected flavor match.
We then ordered each of the three Entrée selections offered. You should know that the menu is small — 3 snacks, 4 appetizers and 3 entrees. These change weekly and are determined by «what inspires» the chef. He appeared to be truly inspired this week!
The Pan Roasted Snapper was served similar to the Cantaloupe Gazpacho, with the Bouillabaisse poured from a mini carafe when the entrée was served. Underneath the snapper lay caramelized fennel, Shisito peppers, mussels and squid, a different texture and taste in each bite.
The East Coast Halibut was described as having «Elements of New England Clam Chowder» and contained Combahee clams, and poached black truffles. The interesting twist to this dish was that it was served on a 15″ round «slice» from a tree that doubled as a plate. An element also featured in the Milan competition. This dish was delicious.
The last entrée was the 30-​Day Dry Aged Duck Breast, a confit cooked leg, corn and chanterelles. The delicate, flavorful, tender duck was sliced thin and its accompaniments again, were winners. Though the dish was a tad overcooked it was still very good.
It’s hard to summarize our incredible experience at Zero Café + Bar. Chef Pertrillo described it best when he said — «Contemporary awesome with unexpected ingredients.»

Zero Bar and Café is simply one of the best restaurants in Charleston which is a dining mecca. We went there last time we were in Charleston and had to return this year. We had very high expectations and these expectations were surpassed. This restaurant has it all — great food, great service and great ambiance. Just a quick not about our server whom we had a nice conversation with about wine and food and our mutual home town of Tucson, Airzona and the wineries there (although I have lived in Georgia now for over 20 years). But the star is Chef Vinson Petrillo’s great culinary creations. Now normally you get bread with the meal, but here you get the most unusual and tasty crackers. These go well alone, with the butter provides or as an accompaniment with the tastes or small plates. We started with a wonderful burrata with a flavorful mozzarella wrapping filled with mozzarella and cream (and I think some butter) mixed to form a creamy mix. It was surrounded by a variety of heirloom tomatoes. Then there was a pasta carbonara. Now I like my pasta a bit al dente and this was cooked perfectly. It had a wonderfully fresh sauce with peas and of course a perfectly cooked egg that when broken added to the richness of the sauce. However the meal did spawn a disagreement between my wife and I over which main course was the best (we always share so we an compare). Despite not liking white fish very well, she choose the flounder at the recommendation of the server (whose description of dishes can be very insightful) and she absolutely loved it. It was a delightful combinations of flavors and textures with perfectly cooked vegetables (again al dente with a nice crunch) and nice breading crust on the fish and a wonderful sauce. However in my mind the lamb took top honors. It was perfectly cooked (medium rare) and had a deconstructed ratatouille which was called «elements of ratatouille» on the menu. This is a definite must go to restaurant.
By the way you should review a restaurant for its food not its cooking classes. And the food and ambiance here is spectacular.

*Disclosure: I was in Charleston for Southern Living/​Travel & Leisure’s Charleston Insider Weekend. This meant I did not eat a full meal at this establishment.*
I so wanted to fall in love with Zero Café. The reviews from fellow Unilocalers and the write up in Southern Living were just glowing. Unfortunately, my experience here was so very far from anything akin to a 5 star review.
First, my mother and I were seated away from everyone; I mean EVERYONE. The courtyard we were shown to was absolutely lovely with oyster shells serving as the patio and plenty of shade trees. The downside of being placed here is that we were completely forgotten about. No one came by to ask how we were, if we needed anything, why were just sitting there as opposed to eating. It took almost 20 minutes before a man walked by, doubled back and asked if we were waiting for someone. When we told him why we were there, he acted like we were the first people ever from this event to stop at Zero (we weren’t, the event was sold out). He returned 10 minutes later with a drink and a frog lollipop. Since I don’t drink, I just had a sip but there was so much ground up parsley floating about that it was not tasty at all. The frog lollipop was okay but not worth sitting around half an hour for.
Overall, the B&B is lovely (as this was the only part I saw) but the service was poor. I can’t say much for the food because we were given a very small amount. Also, do not count on your phone’s GPS to give you the correct address. My iPhone (liePhone), led to a street corner on George Street several blocks to the west. Just walk eastward down the street and you’ll find the correct location instead.

There’s a reason why Zero George was named one of the «Top 5 Foodie Hotels in America» by Conde Nast Traveler. Chef Vinson Petrillo and his team are always refreshing their menu with expertly executed dishes featured local, gourmet ingredients. If you are like most people and can’t afford to stay at the magical hotel, heading there for drinks or dinner is the next best thing. Make sure to wander around the outside porches and upstairs fireplace before or after your meal. The place truly is enchanting. As far as the cuisine, the menu changes daily and definitely has the term «gourmet foodie» written all over it, featuring ingredients that come at a high price point (like foie gras, caviar and black truffles). The plates also all look like they just got photographed for the cover of Bön Appetit and are just as gorgeous as they are palate pleasing. All that being said, I personally prefer to visit Zero George for a drink and usually split an appetizer or the charcuterie board with a friend.
Must-​order items:
Pan Roasted Octopus
Charcuterie Board
Any of their pasta dishes for entrees

Loved the cocktails, salad and dessert. We were a lil underwhelmed by our vegaterian entrée option. Would go back anyway

Best meal I have had in Charleston in two years! Attention to detail and sauces with each dish were well noted. Make it your next stop.

A true hidden gem! A beautiful property with great service and fine cuisine… and their cocktails are to die for!

I had a wonderful dinner experience here with friends over a week ago, and I’m still thinking about how much I enjoyed it.
It’s not often that I ever want to feel like I’m away from Charleston (love this place!), but it felt a bit like stepping into a whole new city when entering the quiet, serene courtyard for dinner here. You’re away from all the congestion of Upper King or East Bay, there are only a few well-​spaced-​out tables, beautiful lighting and foliage, and I even made friends with the neighboring tables’ border terrier. It was great for friends, but I’d say even better for a date.
The wine list is not huge but definitely adequate, and I liked the rosé (by the glass) I chose after being offered a small taste. The menu is smaller, well crafted and thought out. And, extremely well executed. I had the wreckfish with a red pepper sauce and loved it. Wish I had room for dessert!
I’ll definitely go back and selfishly hope that this place remains the quiet, serene escape that it was during this visit!

I’m usually hesitant to write a review after just one visit, but in this case, I would almost feel guilty trying to keep this place a secret.
I came here with two girlfriends on a Saturday night and we had a lovely time. This restaurant/​café is in the bottom level of the main carriage house of Zero George, which is a boutique hotel comprised of several houses at the corner of East Bay Street and George. It’s really easy to drive/​walk right past this place without realizing what it is. It can even be a little confusing trying to find the entrance to the restaurant. However, when we stepped into the courtyard and started to walk around a bit confused, a young woman quickly came out from the main carriage house to greet/​rescue us. We had reservations (recommended) and decided to sit outside in their patio area, which was the way to go although the inside looked really inviting as well. It was a bit hot outside (I mean, it’s August after all), but it’s so beautiful out there, it was a no brainer. The whole place has a great ambience — charming, quaint and intimate with really dim lighting. The atmosphere here is quintessential Charleston, but the nice, more relaxed, quiet, unassuming side of Charleston. Though I was here with girlfriends, I quickly added this to the top of my list for great date night spots.
This is a really small set up here, which I loved. We first walked through the kitchen (it’s completely open, which was strange but really cool at the same time), where there were maybe two people there cooking. And then I’m pretty sure there may have only been one server for everyone. Possibly two but still, just know that while the service is excellent, you’re in for a long, leisurely dinner. The whole menu, while pretty small, all sounded amazing. There were only three main entrees, so we thought the best way to go was for us to each get one of them and share bites. While I usually don’t go for chicken when I see it on the menu, my friends had called the other two so I sort of got it by default. Any disappointment I might had had about getting «stuck» with the chicken went out the door when it was put in front of me. The chicken was unbelievable. It had a farro salad that had figs and various summer vegetables in a sour cream type sauce. I’m not sure what exactly it was but it was amazing and unique. The bites of scallops and wreckfish that I got from my friends’ plates were equally delicious. Great cocktails, too. Which reminds me that they have a cute little bar inside that I will definitely be stopping by in the near future. Loved everything about this place! There is zero reason (haha, see what I did there?) for you not to try this place.