“Nose Dive” Dining in Downtown Greenville, South Carolina
Fountain Statue of Il Porcellino outside Nose Dive
I was on my way to a favorite funky little lunch spot in Greenville, South Carolina’s Historic West End. I hadn’t been to Chicora Alley in years and wondered if it still had a fun, eclectic menu with casual, artsy ambiance. But my mom and I stopped short in front of a new discovery a little farther up Main Street called Nose Dive.
Diners at the sidewalk tables looked happily ensconced. The posted menus looked promising. We decided to try it. We asked for an indoor table as a retreat from the summer heat.
The Saturday Market going on in the background on Main Street Greenville. Stage area for live music seen to the left.
Turns out Nose Dive is the newest in noted Greenville restaurateur Carl Sobocinski’s portfolio. I have been a fan of his original Soby’s for years and visited Devereaux’s and The Lazy Goat. But his Restaurant O, which previously occupied the Nose Dive space, lived a short life. Though it was a beautiful space with a good upscale menu, it was perhaps a little too cosmopolitan for the hip, southern urbanites in the lively and artsy Greenville. Restaurants here benefit from some warmth and character. Enter: Nose Dive, a Gastropub.
Nose Dive can’t be accused of taking itself too seriously. It offers a relaxed but stylish ambiance complete with cool chalkboard art.
Cool Chalkboard Art
The definition on one board perfectly describes what many of today’s diners seem to be looking for, though most of us probably never thought of ourselves as seeking out a “dive.”
A “Grits Bar” in the corner leaves no doubt that you are dining in The South. Many patrons made a bee line for the grits, heaping on all the accompaniments.
Grits bar, gotta love The South
Nose Dive chefs have no qualms about mixing ingredients to form unfamiliar but no less appealing combinations. There is a definite sense of adventure about the menu, which is true of my palate as well. Only the brunch menu was offered at noon on Saturday, so I had a peek at the lunch and dinner menus.
I’m totally going back for the oxtail cheese fries (which were on the brunch menu as well).
Mom started with a Bloody Mary, which of course I had to sample so I could write about it. It was truly one of the best, most authentic that I have tasted. I had to resist the urge to order one for myself after I finished my mimosa. But we had shopping to do, and I didn’t want to deny my endorphins the full, sober pleasure of it.
One of the best Bloody Marys ever
There were oysters on the brunch menu. Forget that they were fried and I’m trying to be healthy. If it’s oysters, I’m doing it.
Soft Cooked Eggs, Fried Oysters, House Made Bacon, Spinach, Spicy Aioli
This dish was good, but I didn’t eat the egg on bottom. When reading the description I had envisioned the runny-yolk, sunny-side-up kind that appear on so many menus in unexpected combinations these days (yes, I was actually going to eat fried oysters topped with runny eggs). It’s not that the egg was bad. But it was just plain eggs with no seasoning which I can make at home. And I was trying to save room for dessert.
Cheeseburger with delicious skinny fries.
Mom loved her cheeseburger. So did I. Which means I did not, in fact, save room for dessert. But I enjoyed it vicariously from the menu.
I mentally devoured the Nutella 4 Layer Cake. However our server was adamant that the Dark Chocolate Candied Bacon Brownie with American Honey Bourbon Ice Cream would make you scream for more. I had no doubt. And, really, that would have been the more southern way to go.
Part of the appeal of Nose Dive is the adventure of being in downtown Greenville, SC, which has shaped itself over the past couple of decades into one of the most acclaimed and awarded downtowns in America.
Just wander outside the restaurant for evidence of that, where there is a new (at least since I’ve been there) addition of the statue-fountain of the wild boar of Il Porcellino.
Italy, here I come.
Piggies have so much personality, even when cast in bronze and living on a sidewalk in Greenville, SC.
The sidewalk in that area of downtown also features large bronze plaques incorporated into the paving squares with quotes from famous people of the past, making a trip to Nose Dive in downtown Greenville an even more fun and enriching southern excursion.
The Craveable South 
One Response to ““Nose Dive” Dining in Downtown Greenville, South Carolina”
Sign me up for dives everywhere!