Wedding & Event Venue near Mt. Pleasant, SC

Local diners clamoring for a greater variety of Italian restaurants in the Lowcountry can now rejoice with the recent opening of Abbracci in Upper Mount Pleasant, an upscale eatery featuring a warm and hospitable atmosphere.

"The thing here is that people want to feel part of it. They want to feel like they're in a place where they're welcome, a place where they're not rushed out the door," said Don Migliori (MEE-YOR-EE), who owns and operates Abbracci along with his wife Joanna.

If the surname sounds familiar, it's because Don and Joanna previously opened Migliori's Pizzeria, which continues to thrive five years later as a go-to destination for pizza, pasta, salads and meat entrées on SC Highway 41.

The Miglioris celebrated the opening of their new dining establishment by hosting a Feb. 25 ribbon-cutting ceremony attended by members of Town Council and the Mount Pleasant Chamber of Commerce.

The inspiration to open the new business, according to Don, was to share his family's love of quality Italian food with sixth-generation Charlestonians, as well as recent COVID transplants.

"It's a beautiful community with lots of people with lots of good food tastes," said the restauranteur and longtime Motley Rice attorney.

Unlike traditional checkered table cloth Italian restaurants, Abbracci's assortment of offerings aren't your run-of-the- mill parmesan dishes dripping in marinara sauce and mozzarella. Instead, patrons are treated to a choice of authentic appetizers (i.e. grilled octopus with almond pesto) and main entrées, such as ricotta gnocchi or pollo al mattone (roasted chicken cooked under a brick).

Spearheading the food preparation is renowned executive chef Devin Sansone of Fig and Coda del Pesce fame. The Virginia-born culinary artist and his team only use DOP-certified Italian cheeses, balsamics and olive oil in their kitchen, along with fish and shellfish from nearby Tarvin Seafood and mushrooms bought right up the street off US Highway 17.

"There's no frills, no gimmicks. We buy the best ingredients," assured Sansone. "They spare no expense when it comes to ingredients. And when you have good ingredients, you really don't have to do a whole lot to them — it's going to shine by itself."

Giving customers the real Italian experience comes from Don's old world heritage that began with his grandfather Giuseppe Migliori emigrating from Frosinone, Italy in 1907 to Ellis Island in New York City. As the last of Giulio and Gloria Migliori's six children, Don took great pleasure in feasting on traditional fare while growing up in Cranston, Rhode Island.

"My dad went to medical school in Bologna, Italy. My two oldest brothers were born there. So, I grew up in a very Italian community," recalled the restaurant impresario. "Food, culture, family, community are a huge part of the Northeast Italian experience."

Although Abbracci is large enough to seat 100 people indoors and an additional 50 individuals outside, the Miglioris are currently in the process of adding a third section consisting of event space for 50-80 patrons. Outdoor fire pits and weekend music, moreover, are features that are emblematic of Abbracci's charm and old country ambiance.

The tight-knit family concept extends to restaurant employees, according to Don, who are all afforded medical coverage, which is far from common in food service.

"And so, I think, again, feeling that you're part of something, feeling like something that's giving back, making a difference. Just having good quality food and good service, that's our recipe, and hopefully it's working."

For more information on Abbracci's of Upper Mount Pleasant, visit https://abbraccichs.com/.

MOUNT PLEASANT, S.C. (WCSC) - The Park West Recreation Complex will soon be home to the new Mount Pleasant Makers Mart.

It will be a weekly gathering that will celebrate local talent and community. It is planned to debut on May 2.

The mart will run every Friday from 3:30 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. from May through October.

“This market complements the current farmers market which is on Tuesdays, April through October. But the Friday market will offer farmers food products, artisans and lots of fun things that the community has been asking for,” Town of Mount Pleasant Event Coordinator for Mount Pleasant Recreation Department, Tracy Richter, said.

The Mount Pleasant Recreation Department Community Affairs & Marketing Division is working with a local event planner to organize the new weekly market.

Marianne Stavale Benkoski, Mount Pleasant Makers Market manager, has run markets in the area for several years. She has organized small businesses and holiday markets in Carolina Park. She has a passion for supporting local businesses and connecting with her community.

She started her own market 8 and a half years ago with 20 vendors. It grew to 85 vendors last year. Now she is focusing all her attention on this one. Benkoski said the potential is endless.

“This area could go up to, oh my gosh, you could have 50, 60 vendors, all the food trucks you can imagine, music galore. I mean it’s just endless things that could happen right here on this ground,” Benkoski said.

Benkoski added it’s about more than just shopping, it’s about the community and loving where you live.

All artisans will hand-make their items and all food will be South Carolina-based.

“This community needs the Friday night life and Friday night, like the football games that we have in the schools, just more of that. Almost like a Hallmark movie, where you meet on a Friday night here, for music for fun, children’s activities, and buy things,” Benkoski said.

If you want to attend the debut on May 2, you can stay up to date on the Mount Pleasant Recreation Department’s Facebook page or by signing up for their newsletter.

If you want to review the market guidelines, click here.

Applications are now open for vendors. You can email makersmart@tompsc.com if you’re interested.

Copyright 2025 WCSC. All rights reserved.

This streamlined Lowcountry home is set off Shem Creek in Mount Pleasant, SC. See how the family of 6 made it a perfect fit for them.

Shrimp boats, kayaking outfitters, and lively bars and restaurants line the commercial side of Shem Creek, the gem of Mount Pleasant, South Carolina's Old Village Historic District. But north of the Shem Creek bridge, the waterway winds through quiet neighborhoods where children roam on bikes and go crabbing off backyard docks. "My husband dreamed of being on the water, and we fell in love with this lot. We're drawn to older areas where kids can run around," says owner Maggie Bullwinkel. She and husband George, a Charleston native, had two young children when they began renovating this 3,200-square-foot house that was built in the 1970s. Their third child was 9 months old when they moved in. Maggie refers to her then-infant sidekick as "my design assistant."

While the Bullwinkels had renovated and sold houses before, this one would be a keeper. "It had great bones. We loved the back porch and knew this could be our forever home," Maggie says. Working with architect Hunter Kennedy and designer Sidney Wagner, they spearheaded family-friendly changes to the four-bedroom abode that have definitely paid off. Today, the Bullwinkels have four kids under age 10 and plenty of yard, a great porch, and a frequently used outdoor kitchen to accommodate their active lifestyle.

"Overall, the footprint didn't change much," says Sidney, who squared off the kitchen to make it more functional. As the home's command center, it now opens up to a bright eating nook, which is one of Maggie's favorite spots. "Family dinners are a priority," she says. What was previously a formal dining room, adjacent to the kitchen, became the kids' playroom. They removed an attached garage to make way for a new mudroom/laundry area off the kitchen. "It's basically where I live," quips Maggie. They also elevated and enlarged the back porch to be a seamless open-air extension of the family room, ground zero for entertaining during Clemson University football season. "I love that we really do live in each space," Maggie says. "We use it all."

Brighten It Up

A monochrome kitchen keeps Maggie happy. "It helps to have a clean look in a busy room," she says. Streamlined light fixtures by Cedar & Moss and vintage Lucite barstools scooped up at a local antiques mall add to the airy feel in the room.

Remember That Simplicity Rules

"With four kids, there is plenty of chaos," says Maggie. Namibia marble countertops and Benjamin Moore's Simply White (OC-117) paint make her kitchen a calming space. Plus, they allow the Hampton Faucet by Waterstone to shine as the statement piece.

Let the Landscape Lead

Reorienting the kitchen to open into a family dining area was Maggie's top priority. Hunter bumped out the eating nook to add windows on all sides, inviting in sunlight and creek views. A mid-century modern table and slipcovered chairs keep lines simple, and Roost's whimsical light fixture "softens all the hard surfaces," says Sidney. The fabric used for the curtains (Katana by Kelly Wearstler) is also on the barstools, where it's laminated to be indestructible.

Choose Flexible Design

"We needed comfortable pieces that are easy to rearrange," says Sidney, who was mindful of not blocking the French doors that open to the porch. "I love how the vintage-reproduction chairs are movable and sculpturally interesting from whatever angle." A sofa slipcovered in Crypton fabric is ultrapractical, and bare windows keep things light and airy while connecting well with the porch, she says.

Lean On A Natural Palette

Sidney painted the porch floor in Benjamin Moore's Kennebunkport Green (HC-123), the same color that's used on the exterior trim, and added soothing blue accents to complement the surrounding outdoor hues. "We didn't want to distract from the view," she says. Wicker chairs from CB2 add natural texture, and a fun Annie Selke rug anchors the blue tones. Floor-to-ceiling screens and a vaulted ceiling help the porch feel cool in summer.

Prioritize All-Purpose, All-Season

Two years after moving in, the Bullwinkels worked with architect Chris Heinlen of Heinlen Design to add a backyard shed with a full attic to supplement the home's limited storage. Adjacent to that, they created an outdoor kitchen and entertaining area. "This is our favorite spot for birthday parties, neighborhood suppers, or sometimes sunset sips after the kids have gone to bed," says Maggie. A metal roof, green trim, and white siding tie the shed to the main house.

Stretch Family Space

"I love the playroom right off the kitchen. It's our cuddle area," says Maggie. A big barn door can be closed to contain toys and messes. Commissioned pieces by local artist Michelle Owenby add grown-up flair to the room, designed to one day transform into a family hangout space.

Control Clutter

Maggie believes that tidiness is key, even in the playroom. Each child has (and uses!) a designated toy-and-book basket, and a rotating gallery helps solve the what-to-do-with-endless-kids'-art dilemma.

Invite Some Drama

" 'Are you sure about going this showy?' my husband asked about the paint color, and I was—including covering the ceiling," says Maggie of the vibrant Benjamin Moore Slate Teal (2088-20) she chose for the laundry room. "I love how the boldness brings you in." Custom cabinets add extra pantry space.

PHOTO: Hector Manuel Sanchez; Styling: Page Mullins PHOTO: Hector Manuel Sanchez; Styling: Page Mullins

Be Bold And Functional

Next to the laundry room, the bold color continues in the mudroom with an added touch of graphic wallpaper. Each kid has their own space for coats and bags in the blue storage wall.

MOUNT PLEASANT – The ban on condos, apartments and townhomes that was in place for more than seven years has expired. Now, developers will have access, albeit limited, to a finite number of building permits for the first time since 2017.

Originally proposed as a temporary 180-day halt to any new multifamily developments to update infrastructure, town leaders moved to extend the life of the moratorium four times, with the final extension approved in March last year.

"The moratorium … was initially intended as a short-term measure, aimed at allowing time for necessary infrastructure improvements and updates to the zoning code. Though it was supposed to last only a few months, it extended far beyond that, reaching over seven years," Councilman John Iacofano said.

According to the Municipal Association of South Carolina, moratoriums are generally temporary measures to implement changes to zoning codes or slow development for a short period of time.

Mount Pleasant’s moratorium sought to do both.

Growth rates slowed, road improvements made

The language of the moratorium ordinance stated that "significant growth negatively impacts the overall character of the Town, causes undue traffic congestion, causes urban sprawl and leads to inadequate public services."

The moratorium would give the town time to get ahead of these issues, as well as complete an update to the town's comprehensive plan and zoning code rewrite.

"It was not just reactionary," Mount Pleasant Mayor Will Haynie said. "There was a method to it, which involved the new comprehensive plan and the new zoning code. That's why I voted that once we had those two in place, we could lift that moratorium."

In some areas, they were successful.

A handful of transportation projects that sought to calm traffic were completed in the span of the seven-year moratorium.

The town spent roughly $9.6 million to widen Park West Boulevard from two lanes to four, another $18 million on Coleman Boulevard improvements, and last year completed intersection upgrades at U.S. Highway 17 and Mathis Ferry Road.

The $10.6 million Vaughn Ed Kee Parkway, a connector road between Highway 17 and Billy Swails Boulevard, was completed in 2023.

Minor progress at U.S. Highway 41 has been made. Charleston County reconfigured intersections and changed signal timing at the intersection of U.S. Highway 17 and 41.

Mount Pleasant's growth rates have slowed down, too.

From 2012 to 2017, the population grew by nearly 20 percent. In the first five years of the moratorium, from 2017 to 2023, that growth rate declined to just under nine percent.

According to data from the U.S. Census Bureau, the town's population grew by roughly 8,000 between 2017 and 2023, compared to the 15,202 jump from 2012 to 2017.

The comprehensive plan update was completed in 2019, and the zoning code rewrite, which was the reason for extending the moratorium in 2021, was completed in January 2025.

The zoning code update took more than three years. It was the first time the ordinance that regulates construction and building guidelines was overhauled since 1979.

When it came time to consider extending the ban again or letting it expire, leaders chose to let it expire at the end of 2024.

"It was really to try to put some more long-term measures in place to manage the growth," said Mount Pleasant Planning Director Michele Reed. "I think it definitely served its purpose."

Moratorium impact on housing prices

Critics of the stop-growth measure say the moratorium actually added to the issues it was designed to solve.

Though growth rates slowed in town and some large-scale road projects were completed, the measure likely drove up the cost of housing and put a strain on the markets of surrounding communities, Josh Dix, the vice president of advocacy for the Charleston Trident Association of Realtors.

He called the moratorium a "short-sighted" solution unable to successfully address the core of Mount Pleasant's growth issues.

The lack of new apartments, townhomes and condos have driven up the price of existing housing stock. This trend can mostly be seen in single-family homes, Dix said.

"When you limit townhomes, condos, apartments, that puts pressure on all the other housing sectors. In Mount Pleasant, in particular, you've seen housing prices for single families more than double because you're limiting options," Dix said.

Since 2017, median sales prices for single-family have doubled in both upper and lower Mount Pleasant, according to market reports compiled by the Charleston Trident Association of Realtors.

In upper Mount Pleasant, the median sales price in 2017 was $485,000. By the end of 2024, median sales prices grew by 101 percent, to $975,000.

Sales in lower Mount Pleasant surpassed the million-dollar mark last year at $1,125,000 — a 118 percent jump from 2017's $516,000.

High prices can limit residents' abilities to stay in Mount Pleasant, with young homebuyers unable to afford their first home and seniors unable to age in place, Dix said.

"We are cutting off future generations of Mount Pleasant folks living in Mount Pleasant, and that's kind of sad, because that's how you lose cultures and the dynamics that make our community so great," Dix said.

Limits still in place

The building permit allocation system was put in place in 2019, and extended for another five years in 2024. Permits for residential buildings are capped, another method of controlling growth in town.

"These measures are designed to carefully manage our town’s growth, ensuring that development is sustainable and aligns with our community’s capacity and needs," Iacofano said.

With a ban on apartments, townhomes and condos no longer active, developers will now have access to the 500 building permits allocated for multifamily developments until 2029.

Attainable and workforce housing developments were exempt from the moratorium and the permit allocation system, as were a handful of planned developments like Carolina Park.

Only one attainable housing development came online during the span of the ban. Gregorie Ferry Towns was completed in 2022. The development featured townhomes that were listed for under $300,000 off of Highway 41 and quickly sold out.

It's unlikely the town will see any more large apartment or townhome developments, Reed said. There's been little interest in the available permits, too.

"There's really no multifamily zoning available. Everything's developed," Reed said.

Mixed-use developments, properties that are zoned for commercial uses but have a mix of retail and residential units, are more likely to take advantage of the permits now available, she said.

"With something like that, we're talking about 10 units, 15 units, if even that," Reed said. "Nothing really big is out there that we've heard of or that we're aware of."

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The intersection of the I-526 interchange and Johnnie Dodds Boulevard was filled with cars and sledding Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2025, in Mount Pleasant.

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Jonathan Bennett, 16, uses a boogie board as a sled Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2025, in Mount Pleasant.

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Ice drips from tree branches Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2025, in Mount Pleasant.

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Kevin Holler pushes his daughters Harper Holler,12, and Hayden Holler,10,down the snow covered hill at Johnny Dodds Boulevard and the I-526 interchange Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2025, in Mount Pleasant.

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Ethan Willis treks up the hill at Johnnie Dodds Boulevard and the I-526 interchange with his cardboard box to try sledding for the first time Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2025, in Mount Pleasant.

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Few cars drive Highway 17 as snow covers the roadway Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2025, in Mount Pleasant.

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Johnnie Dodds Boulevard is covered by snow early Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2025 morning in Mount Pleasant.

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Sledders speed down the hills on the Johnnie Dodds Boulevard and the I-526 interchange Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2025, in Mount Pleasant.

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Will Silcox skis down the hill at I-526 interchange near Johnnie Dodds Boulevard Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2025, in Mount Pleasant.

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Johnnie Dodds Boulevard and the I-526 interchange Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2025, in Mount Pleasant.

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Johnnie Dodds Boulevard and the I-526 interchange Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2025, in Mount Pleasant.

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Michael Spellman plays in the snow with his grandson Wells Spellman,6, at the I-526 interchange at Highway 17 Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2025, in Mount Pleasant. Michael Spellman, born and raised in Charleston, said he was just as excited as his grandson to be sledding on the hill.

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The hill at the intersection of Johnnie Dodds Boulevard and the I-526 was full of sledding on boogie boards Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2025, in Mount Pleasant.

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Austin Yokeum relaxes at the top of the Johnnie Dodds Boulevard and I-526 interchange after early morning ski trips down the slope Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2025, in Mount Pleasant.

Snow covers Highway 17 seen from the 526 overpass in Mount Pleasant on Wednesday, January 22, 2025.

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A tiny bird jumps on top of snow Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2025, in Mount Pleasant.

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Charleston native Sarah Simmonite bundles for warmth to venture out in the snow Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2025, in Mount Pleasant.

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Boogie boards, surf boards and cardboard boxes were used as sleds for the snow Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2025, in Mount Pleasant.

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TJ Harris and his mom Shanna Harris sled Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2025, in Mount Pleasant.