Celeste Coastal Cuisine - Hilton Head Island, South Carolina

Morgan B.

Go here! We wanted to treat my parents, who live on the island, to a nice dinner while we were staying with them. This would be a perfect spot for a fancy date or an anniversary dinner or other special event.

Tash, our server, was fantastic! You could really tell she understood the menu, including the specials, and we ended up ordering not only the special cocktail, but entree as well. We never waited for anything, and she managed that perfect balance of unobtrusive, while also showing up exactly when we needed something. She did not steer us wrong, up to and including the bread pudding we ordered for desert. (We almost never order desert!)

Celeste has a clearly New Orleans-inspired menu, and while food snobs (an epithet some might aim at me) love to hate on restaurants that try to replicate the classics outside of the Big Easy, (the same way people say you can't get a good bagel outside of NYC), if you teleported this place into the heart of the French Quarter, I think they'd get rave reviews. I was instantly homesick for NOLA, and not at all disappointed by our meal.

The char-grilled oysters, the gumbo, the jambalaya, and the étouffée were all wonderful. The sides and accompanying dishes were every bit as good as the main dish. I particularly like the deep fried polenta that had a wonderful crispy shell while being soft as butter inside. Likewise the gouda grits were a perfect match for the blackened grouper. I got the porchetta, the special that day. Even though this is an Italian dish, it had a Cajun spin on it that was amazing. Even though the portions were generous we ended up needing only a very small box for our leftovers. Oh, and I can't leave out that the bread was excellent.

If I had to offer any constructive criticism at all, it would have to be on the cocktails. The pear martini, that day's special, was perfect. However, the Cajun Sour (a riff on a New York sour), and the milk punch (cousin to a coquito or maybe a white Russian) were both served over crushed ice. They were balanced, mixed well and beautifully presented, but, and this may just be my own personal preference, I'm not a huge fan of crushed ice in my cocktails because they too quickly get watered down. This might have been more appropriate for the punch (although I'm not a fan of watery milk), but I prefer my sours to be served up, particularly when there's a red wine float that makes for such a striking appearance. To be clear, though, I enjoyed them and this didn't detract at all from the overall experience.

In summary, absolutely go here. Restaurants that really, really care about their food need our love, now more than ever, and I want to see this gem survive for many more visits to the island.

Rudolph J.

We had a fabulous meal. A very creative take on the trinity wedge and my gumbo soup was the best I ever had. My wife had the delicious diver scallops with lemon risotto and crabmeat salad and I enjoyed the savory blackened red fish with crab etouffee with gouda stone ground grits. The desserts, chocolate mouse pie and key lime pie were fresh and delectable. Our server Nadia was excellent and we were very impressed with the very warm and attractive restaurant ambiance and the very comfortable soft leather chairs. This was our first visit and now on our list of must do HHI restaurants.
Rudy & Susan Jones

Ashley K.

Very Elegant white table cloth and menu:food mind blown ! They are very gluten safe and even have vegetarian and dessert GF options !! The raw oysters and lobster boil were the best we have ever had. Excellent service made it a truly memorable night (thank you Tash!)

MICHAEL R.

The six of us had great meals. For starters, the gumbo was delicious and the calamari was so fresh, tender and flavorful. The jambalaya was superbly cooked with tender shrimp and the andouille sausage was perfect. The special of the evening, the ahi tuna, cooked to perfection and so well presented. Dolan the bartender makes an exceptional dirty martini and our waiter, Miles, was attentive and explained all of the dishes. We topped it off by sharing the beignets and the bread pudding which was so tasty. We always enjoy Celeste and it's one of the best restaurants on the island.

Lo V.

This is one of those places that draw a smile on my face every time I visit HH.

The service from Kara was phenomenal since the first interaction. She gave us space without forgetting us. Super attentive. The restaurant has a nice vibe and it has beautiful decor.

For drinks, my spouse ordered the Citrus Mint Julep and Damn!! It was really good! I ordered the house red margarita and it was really balanced.

For appetizers, we ordered the Tuna Stack, and the Salmon Eggroll. I would not recommend the egg-rolls as they were bit greasy and nothing special about it. But the Tuna Stack felt refreshing in every bite.

For entree I ordered the Pan Seared Cajun Grouper and it came with the most delicious Dirty Rice I’ve ever tasted. I could eat a whole bowl of it. Fish was tasty too. My spouse had a Scallop Special, which was scallops wrapped in bacon over a bed of risotto and topped with crab salad. Delicious!!!

For dessert, we ordered a bread pudding that easily positions in my top 3 of that category. PLEASE DO YOURSELF A FAVOR AND ORDER IT! also ordered the Chocolate Mousse Pie and it was good but jot as special as the other.

Definitely, I recommend this place! Treat yourself!

Craig E.

Food was wonderful, the restaurant was beautiful and inviting and the gentleman at the front was warm and welcoming. Service was just bad. I would have rather ordered from one of those McDonald's kiosks. They completely forgot my salad, our server never asked if we wanted another round of drinks and she brought us bread after our appetizers came out.

The fried green tomatoes were excellent and my steak was perfect. Props to the chef. Minus 2 stars due to the service alone.

David S.

New Orleans style is well seen throughout their menus... And excellent on all levels, a special place, nicely decorated w/table clothes, upscale atmosphere, upbeat music, food presentation a big plus on its plate, many cool choices too. Service a bitbLots of apps. to choose from, surely something for everyone. Yes Calamari was skimpy but the crispy tasty tempura flavor was so good you must try anyway (I guess?) The broiled oysters were delish!
We loved the pork chop, and the blackened red fish entrees. Oh yeah nothing better than to finish off a great meal with the banana foster, and you can't beat the fresh donuts.

Tod C.

Wonderful experience. Beat salad was very large and very tasty. I had the blackened red fish which was excellent, and my wife had the scallops with risotto, also excellent. We ate in the bar with Dolan providing great recommendations and fantastic service. The only thing we didn’t enjoy was the temperature in the bar area. It seemed like something wasn’t functioning properly. We would have stayed longer and had after dinner drinks and dessert, but it was too uncomfortable. Even Dolan was sweating behind the bar.