We began with an evening “Southurn Rose” buggy tour of Beaufort’s historic district. We re-lived the glory days in a horse-drawn carriage narrated by a friendly and knowledgeable guide. We learned about the many trials that Beaufort has endured and overcome over the last 300 years. Each of the Civil-War era antebellum homes has its own wild tales of conflict, danger, rivalry, and adventure. It was a truly fascinating experience! We also loved seeing gorgeous gardens, ancient churches, Hollywood movie sites, and the old armory built in 1798. Our guide and Jake (the horse) were an amazing team and really made us feel like we had traveled back in time 100 years ago.

The last tour of the day leaves at 5:00 sharp, so since we were planning a dinner date, we made our carriage tour the first item on the agenda. We started out from the parking lot by the marina downtown. The tour office is located specifically at 1002 Bay Street on the corner of Charles and Bay St. You can’t miss the blue building though! Tours take approximately one hour, so we made reservations for dinner at 6:30 to allow us plenty of time to finish up the tour and get to the restaurant.

After asking local Beaufortonians for their thoughts and input, we decided upon Emily’s Restaurant & Tapas Bar for dinner. Only one block over from Bay Street, located at 906 Port Republic Street downtown, it was easy to reach from the marina parking lot.  They recommend making reservations at least 24 hours in advance.

Choosing Emily’s turned out to be the best decision we could have made.  Dining on truly phenomenal food, we enjoyed an array of tapas, an incredible drink selection, and succulent entrees, sure to please even the pickiest of pallets. As an appetizer, we chose an amazing oyster trio, followed by the French-cut lamb chops which were probably my favorite tapas selection, (although that is hard to say because they were all so good!) Next, we had a delicious grilled European quail served with a béarnaise sauce. Finally, after hearing the suggestions from our very helpful waitress as well as the other patrons of Emily’s, we decided to split the 12 oz Steak Au Poivre. Emily’s is famous for this beef filet, seared in butter, broiled to temperature, and served with a green peppercorn, cream, and cognac reduction; it’s easy to see why. It was out-of- this-world amazing! I’ve enjoyed a lot of good steaks in my life but this one topped the charts. With our bellies overfull, we decided to get the key lime pie to go. There wasn’t one item on the menu that I wouldn’t highly recommend to anyone. As one of Beaufort’s favorites for over 25 years, Emily’s is a “must” on any visitor’s list.

All in all, we had a wonderfully enchanting evening. From the carriage tour, to the ambient atmosphere, to our superb beaufort dining experience, it could not have been better. It was such fun being a tourist in our own town and we got to check Emily’s off the list. However, we want to go back again as soon as possible. So do what we did and make your reservations today!