Caviar & Bananas to offer tasty treats for every palate

Market to kick off opening with Spoleto event sponsoring

Perhaps that's why husband and wife team Kris and Margaret Furniss named their new gourmet market and cafe in downtown Charleston — drumroll, please — Caviar & Bananas.

With a projected opening date of May 19, this Dean & Deluca-esque market runs the gamut with its selections, offering lobster medallions and black truffle macaroni and cheese alongside chicken salad and a sandwich bar.

Sourced locally and from around the globe, other offerings include a gourmet coffee and tea bar; sushi; a salad bar; charcuterie and artisan cheeses; various prepared foods; bread, pastries and baked goods; and imported and domestic wines, beers and sakes by the bottle or glass.

Services include personal shopping, delivery and pick-up; catering and events; personal accounts and validated parking for the first 30 minutes in the connecting garage.

Located at 51 George St., at the new student housing and retail space development on the College of Charleston campus, Caviar & Bananas is a 3,300-square-foot space with an upscale corner-store feel (think Bull Street Gourmet) that Margaret Furniss, a College of Charleston alumna, says will appeal to college students and locals.

"It's higher end but also accessible for everyone," she said.

College students can pop in for a quick coffee between classes or a six-pack of beer before the weekend. Residents can attend wine tastings and cooking demonstrations.

"We're going to be very involved with the community," she said.

And they're starting with Spoleto Festival USA.

Caviar & Bananas is a sponsor of the Jazz Under the Stars event and will be hosting two wine tastings, one on May 24 and one on May 31, led by Italian wine makers and featuring several of the official wines of Spoleto Festival.

On the radar

--Quiznos Subs: The restaurant at 6541 Rivers Ave. in North Charleston is now the first area Quiznos to offer delivery from phone, fax or online orders.

--Goin' Postal: Phil Hemingway and Chris Jones have opened their second neighborhood shipping center in The Market at Oakland on S.C. Highway 17 North in Mount Pleasant. Their first location is in the Mount Pleasant Square Shopping Center on Ben Sawyer Boulevard.

Reach Abi Nicholas at 937-5524 or anicholas@postandcourier.com.