South Carolina Insiders

Let our local, South Carolina experts on Food and Dining favories, Less Traveled locations, Family Travel in SC, Arts and Culture, Outdoor Adventures, and Golf help you have the very best beach vacation in South Carolina!

  • Food

    Gwen Fowler

    As a resident of Myrtle Beach, Gwen Fowler lives minutes away from many of the state’s fun food festivals and great seafood markets and restaurants. She is a good Southern cook, but she’s also lucky to be married to a man who turns out fine meals many nights at home.

    Gwen is a freelance writer and teaches journalism classes at Coastal Carolina University. She was a reporter and editor at daily newspapers for almost 25 years. When you can find Gwen not eating, you might find her running. She runs almost every day and has run six marathons in the past five years. If you’re going to eat a lot, it helps to love an activity that burns a lot of calories.

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Recent Updates
  • Food Farmers markets opening all over the state One of the best things about spring in South Carolina is that farmers markets are opening for the season, giving all of us places to buy directly from farmers who grow delicious foods. Because our spring was chilly this year, some crops are a li… >> More
  • Food Columbia institution Lizard's Thicket celebrates 35 years of great home cooking When Bob and Anna Williams opened the first Lizard’s Thicket in 1977, they saw a need for a place where a family could get home-cooked food for a reasonable price. Today, 35 years later, it’s clear the Williams had the right idea. Fr… >> More
  • Food Cool spring makes for late strawberry season Strawberry season arrived late this year because of the cool spring, but they are plentiful now all across the state. Hunter Farms in Easley started its season at the end of April. “The weather has stalled everything unlike anything we … >> More
  • Food Charleston author’s cookbook wins a James Beard award A cookbook on Southern cooking by Nathalie Dupree of Charleston and Cynthia Graubart of Atlanta has won a 2013 James Beard Foundation award. “Mastering the Art of Southern Cooking” was named the winner of the American Cooking cookboo… >> More
  • Food Sustainable Chefs Showcase filled with delicious bites The Sustainable Chefs Showcase at the Indie Grits Film Festival gives some of Columbia’s outstanding chefs a chance to show how creative they can be using local and sustainable foods. And lucky people like me get to sample those … >> More
  • Food Spend a quiet weekend in Norway I took a trip to Norway recently. Of course, I mean Norway, S.C., and if you’re not familiar with it, it’s right down the road from Denmark. The two small towns are south of Columbia and west of Orangeburg.  My trip to Norway wa… >> More
  • Food Chefs cooking their best for Indie Grits Festival A dozen of Columbia’s finest chefs are serving tastes of their specialties at a sustainable chefs showcase and party 4-7 p.m. Sunday, April 14, at 711 Whaley St. in Columbia.  Part of the seventh annual Indie Grits Festival, Slow Food… >> More