First Look at the Menu for Cantonese/Sichuan Restaurant XO Brasserie

Highly anticipated restaurant XO Brasserie (1090 Morrison Drive, Charleston) will open this evening, March 12, at 5 p.m. The newcomer is the first restaurant from Herman Ng, a former manager at spots like Oak Steakhouse and Royal Tern. Ng grew up working in his family’s Chinese restaurant in Columbia, South Carolina. While he consulted his mother on the food, XO Brasserie is a modern take on Cantonese and Sichuan fare.

Ng hired executive chef Michael Chanthavong to help with the menu. Chanthavong also worked with Indigo Road Hospitality (the group behind Oak Steakhouse) at O-ku and Mizu in Charlotte, North Carolina.

The menu starts with classics like wonton soup but also features a burrata with Chinese crullers. Dumplings have their own section, ranging from shu mai to crab rangoon. Chef specialties include XO lobster, Xinjiang lamb lollipops, mapo tofu, and garlic pepper beef.

When the project was announced last May, Ng told Eater, “I want people to be able to come in and grab some noodles or dumplings or stay for larger format family-style dining because that’s how I ate growing up. I don’t think there’s anything like it in Charleston right now.”

Take a look through the menus here before the opening tonight.