Making DI Delicious: Island Chef Insider

Whisenant Bringing Fall Forward with Flavor at "The Islander'

In the three years that have passed since The Islander first opened its doors to Daniel Island in 2013, much has changed. On the island, in the community, and at the restaurant itself, says executive head chef John Whisenant, change has been an ever-present part of life. And that’s something Whisenant for one, can live with, as The Islander is a restaurant with a culinary soul.

Whisenant and his team have built an ever-evolving menu at The Islander around that soul, that of a French-inspired seafood restaurant with a distinct Caribbean influence. Food at The Islander would be, has been, and continues to be, made with soul, or “love” as Whisenant calls it.

The ownership group that manages The Islander, Holy City Hospitality (HCH, owners of 39 Rue de Jean and Coast Bar and Grill, amongst other restaurants) has for their part implemented their core beliefs about what the restaurant should be to great effect. After all, surviving three years in Charleston’s competitive culinary scene, on Daniel Island or not, is no easy feat. But with the island’s look, population, and tastes evolving, the restaurant too had to evolve.

“That’s where the streamlining process comes in, we’ve dropped some dishes from the menu to concentrate on our staples along with specials that will run daily,” Whisenant says. Gone are some items from what had become a fattened menu - items such as their homemade hot sauce sampler - but staying on the menu are Holy City Hospitality staples she crab soup and shrimp and grits.

On top of that, beginning this fall Whisenant will focus on building the menu seasonally. Daily specials will be a focus moving forward, adds the chef, but everything will continue to be prepared the HCH way.

“We have made quite a few changes since the restaurant opened. What we’re doing now is trying to be more streamlined and offer food that is seasonally fresh as part of a menu that’s constantly changing,” begins the 38-year-old Whisenant. “We’re trying to offer better quality food that still has value, which requires that we put a lot more thought into each of our dishes. We’re serving each dish with a little bit more purpose now.”

In addition, the restaurant is about to come out with some fall dishes, such as a Caribbean-style cassoulet.

“We’re doing that dish with a little Caribbean flair, kind of taking a traditional French dish and putting a twist on it. And we make everything from scratch, we even make our own bacon. We make our own sauces, deli meats, everything else. With every dish we have, we try to put a tremendous amount of love it. And that’s the way it has to be, given that we make literally everything in house, and some of the things take three days to make.”

Whisenant, who originally moved to Charleston back in the mid-1990’s to enter the culinary program at Trident Tech, says as a chef he tries to get people to live a little outside the box. For evidence of this, look no further than the many tables, booths and patio spaces laid out for lunch or dinner customers at The Islander: there’s not a salt or pepper shaker in sight. That’s no coincidence, explains Whisenant, who since its inception has built The Islander around, first and foremost, flavorful food. For the chef, the omission of the table-side staples is in effect asking diners to trust him.

“It’s because we serve well-seasoned food,” begins Whisenant on the topic of salt and pepper. “I don’t want to have guests to have to worry about anything, I don’t want them to have to worry about the salt and pepper in their food. We’ll certainly provide ground sea salt and or cracked, ground pepper if they want it, but I want our guests to try each dish first before they add anything to it.”

As to where the Hendersonville, North Carolina-born Whisenant acquired his fervor for flavor, it was so to speak, one part nature and one part nurture.

“In my early life, I didn’t really have any culinary influences other than my Southern roots and my grandmother,” Whisenant says. “She was a big-time cook and she was straight off the boat from Hungary. She would actually make these cabbage rolls and things and all the neighbors would line up to buy them from her. She would sell food out of her house, out of her kitchen to the neighborhood and have people lined up. I think that’s where a lot of my passion and a lot of my love came from.”

And while his grandmother’s influence is undeniable in Whisenant’s appreciation for good food, his appreciation for flavor began after graduating from Trident in 1999, when he embarked on what would be an extended apprenticeship under renowned Charleston Chef Fred Neuville, first at downtown French restaurant 39 Rue de Jean.

“One of my friends worked there and he was really into French cuisine. That’s what really sparked my interest. He told me they were looking to bring people in to work the new sushi bar and I said, ‘that sounds awesome I love sushi and I want to learn how to do it.’”

Eight years and a handful of restaurants later, including three years Whisenant spent under Neuville as the executive head chef of the Fat Hen, and the mentorship has been cemented. Eventually, Whisenant and Neuville went their separate ways.

Whisenant and his former, longtime employer Holy City Hospitality however, were soon to be reunited, as after a stint opening up Grill 225 and the Market Pavilion Hotel, two years at the Country Club of Charleston, and a year at the Daniel Island Club, the restaurant group rehired the then experienced Whisenant to serve as The Islander’s first and as yet, only executive head chef. “I said that sounds perfect for me, I’m going to go after that job, and here I am. I’ve been here for all three years, all the way since the building’s construction. I’ve seen the concept grow from the ground up, and I’m happy we’re in the place we’re in entering the fall,” says Whisenant, who reminds that above all, dishes served at the restaurant will continue to be served with “a lot of love.”

The Islander is located at 160 Fairchild St. on Daniel Island. The restaurant is open every day of the week from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. You can reach The Islander by phone at (843) 388-6366. You can also find them online at holycityhospitality.com/the-islander/.

Daniel Island Publishing

225 Seven Farms Drive
Unit 108
Daniel Island, SC 29492 

Office Number: 843-856-1999
Fax Number: 843-856-8555

 

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