Hi,John Weber in the Lowcountry. I’m with Charter One Realty – I’m a Broker Associate. I’m down here to talk about Bluffton and things to do in Bluffton. There’s all kinds of things to do in Bluffton, this is just a short post to show you some pretty cool things that you can do in Bluffton. I get a lot of questions about this cute, little town. It wasn’t even really here 10, 15 years ago but they’ve combined the architectural standards – they’ve brought in the old and combined it with the new. They’ve got great restaurants down here, boutiques, all kinds of cool things! So Charter One has a real estate office down here, which is great.
You start your day off here at the Corner Perk. Have a great cup of coffee, it’s right on the corner – duh, “Corner” Perk – and start your day off here. You can walk around the promenade in downtown Bluffton, and stick with me as we’re gonna walk the streets, look at some art galleries, different things to do. I’ll save the best for last (meet the wife – Miss Lynn) and welcome to the Lowcountry!
So you’ll see these shells and oysters are the big signature thing around here all throughout Bluffton, just little landmarks that are kind of cool. First up,Cocoon- my wife’s favorite store. It’s closed on Sundays, but a great little boutique that a lot of women really like and if you are fashion conscious I would consider going in here and doing little shopping. It is one of the better boutiques in the entire area of Hilton Head and Bluffton. Right across the street they have the storeJ McLaughlinwhich is a national brand store and you know with those big stores it’s all numbers. So, if the retail numbers are supporting it, that means more nicer stores will come down here.
Maybe you can hear some music and we’re gonna go check it out! So this isCalhoun’s- this little town rocks actually! I’ll tell you what, there’s another bar/restaurant on top ofCaptain Woody’sbut this isCalhoun’s. They have live entertainment, a cute little bar/restaurant with live entertainment and the food is good. Some of my favorite restaurants are theBluffton Room, Farm, The Pearl, Captain Woody’sis very good for casual food. Great little spot.
Bluffton is really a cool area. I don’t know the exact law, but if you’re within three miles of Downtown Bluffton and the speed limit is less than 30 miles per hour on the road, you can take a golf cart anywhere you want within those confines. Notexactlysure, but it’s close enough to that. So you’ll be down here in the evening having dinner and you’ll see a lot of golf carts in Old Town Bluffton.
Captain Woody’sis over here,Local Piewe call on a Sunday night get some pizza,Agaveover here, and right next to that is Bluffton Barbecue. It’s neat because they only are open during certain times but they have such good southern barbecue! So, the barbecue the Mexican,Local Pie, Captain Woody’s,and this is the promenade. Super popular in the evening, people love walking around down here.
You see the wax myrtles are all out and blooming. This isThe Bluffton Roomright here with the orange umbrellas – very trendy restaurant, really cool. Great place to walk, come down here toBen and Jerry’s, get yourself an ice cream cone, it’s an awesome part of the promenade magic. Music, restaurants, shops – people love this stuff and it is really, really cute (everybody says that)! Here’s a colorful shell and oyster, all of this right here at theCorner Perk, they always have these types of things out here and they’re pretty cool.
Okay, moving ontoFarm -one of my favorite restaurants. It is farm-to-table, great chef, and they have very unique meals. During the COVID they’ve opened up the upstairs of this so you can sit outside. I’ve eaten here many, many times and I’ve never been disappointed! It’s always really good, so this is a definite must.
I’ve put clients before in this great hotel, the Old Town Bluffton Inn. I think there’s only 14 rooms. They’ve all said great things about it – a really small, boutique hotel right here in Downtown Bluffton. I actually have a family member who’s overly critical about everything because he’s picky. He stayed here and gave it a thumbs up, he loved it! Now that we’ve gotten passed the Weber test, I know we’re good to go. Feel free to call these guys, great hotel to stay in if you want to get the real flavor of Bluffton. Afterwards, have dinner down atFarm,that’s probably 50 yards from here. You could stumble home and fall right in bed and it’s all good!
Okay, another thing to do in Downtown Bluffton. I’m not very far from the promenade, actually maybe a couple of blocks, but they have all these eclectic art studios that have been here for years and years. This is one of the more better known – Pluff Mud. You can go and get really original artwork by local artists, it’s pretty neat. By the way, pluff mud is the mud in the marsh area. When the tide comes in and goes out, the mud that’s left – that’s pluff mud. You hear the clicking of the mud, the birds come, it’s a whole ecosystem. But when the pluff mud gets in your soul… that’s when you don’t leave. So that’s the saying around here! This is a very colorful art studio, there are a bunch of them going all the way down the street. “Once again voted #1 art gallery” – pretty neat things if you want to get something authentic from Old Town, this is the place.
By the way, every Thursday they have a farmers market year round. All the local farmers with organic produce and items like that come down and set up shop. Now, during COVID-19 not so many people milling around in the middle of the street. It’s more like the vendors are off to the side. For example, my wife buys the organic vegetables from a particular vendor and she meets them on Thursdays and gets the goods. Pretty cool area!
All right, May River Excursions right here on Calhoun Street. The promenade is maybe eight or ten blocks away. May River Excursions: this is a typical Bluffton sign right here, but they offer the river excursions, dolphin watching, sunset cruises, ecology cruises, historic river cruises down the May River, and all kinds of backwater adventures. This is a pretty neat little place to talk to them and they can steer you in the right direction. We’re going to go to another area and show you where you can get some kayaks and go on the May River, but May River Excursions is a good one.
You know, I just noticed this house with a metal roof. This is really a typical house you might see in Bluffton with the southern charm there. The metal roof and the big porches combined with the spanish moss and the oaks make it really, really attractive. By the way, today is the last part of June and it’s really hot, but in the shade it is a-okay and nice.
I wanted to get the dates straight here since I’m having trouble remembering anything these days. The Church of the Cross was established in 1767 and built in 1854. The union troops did come here and use this as their base. They burned pretty much everything in Bluffton in Sherman’s March to the Sea, but people did come here for the resort area from the inland area. They would catch the ferry, go north to Beaufort, and then go south to Savannah. This was one of the stopping points right here and that’s how they got back and forth! So some real history here. On Easter morning every year we would have church services out here on the grass. Six o’clock in the morning as the sun would come up there, and I mean you talk about a special event! It was really neat. This is just kind of a neat place where people can come, put a chair down, think about life, think about where they’re going – the big picture. We see a boat going across the water right now. Very photogenic, very popular. Come to The Church of The Cross, absorb a little history, and enjoy an amazing view of the May River.
I’m giving you inside information now. This is on the q.t. – the best shrimp around, unbelievable, great fish is in here as well. Follow me intoBluffton Oyster Companyand I’ll show you why it’s the best shrimp around! We do have good shrimp in the Lowcountry. They have their shrimp boats right next to the store! You go in there and pick out your shrimp or other fish, put it on ice, and go back to your hotel (or VRBO) to cook it yourself – whatever you want to do. It’s fantastic. The original “oyster shuckers” are in there and you are not permitted to take a picture of them because they may lose a life, or something like that, with the Gullah tradition around here. But that’s the real deal in there. Shrimp boat to store! Also, you can callMarsh Grass Adventuresand they will meet you at this point and put your kayak in the water for you. You can go right down the May River and they’ll go with you or you can go by yourself, whatever you want to do. It’s a great, great day to go kayaking on the May River so you’ll love it.
Okay, I started you off inCorner Perkhaving a cup of coffee in Downtown Bluffton – that’s for all you civilized people. But if you really want a taste of the Lowcountry, right there:Alljoy. I’m not a donut guy, but their donuts here are unbelievable. It’s kind of nice to sit out here, have a nice cup of coffee, and have one of their famous Bluffton donuts (I mean, they’re great). That’s the real deal right there so if you really want a donut, that’s the place.
All right, once again we’re off the beaten path here.Alljoydonuts is right down that street. You gotta have breakfast atSquat and Gobble! Check this out: “Genuine happiness.” That’s what we’re selling here in Bluffton right there – genuine happiness;Alljoydonuts andSquat and Gobble- Lowcountry.
That’s it from the Lowcountry, finishing our video on things to do in Bluffton. We’ve decided to retire to have dinner atThe Pearl Kitchen and Barrestaurant in Downtown Bluffton. We sit outside because that makes us more comfortable with plenty of social distancing in the restaurant. I’d like you to meet my wife, Lynn, of 38 years. Chief camera operator and the brains behind the entire operation. Lynn, do you have anything to say? Lynn: “We’d love to have you join us here Lowcountry.” So, that said, come on down to Lowcountry. Great beachesandwe have very strong internet so you can work from anywhere while enjoying this lifestyle. Come on down and find your dream home.