Peninsula Grill

The romantic and upscale Peninsula Grill opened inside Charleston’s 1844 Planters Inn on the day before Valentine’s Day in 1997. The following night, they served their now-legendary Ultimate Coconut Cake®, refined by pastry chef Claire Chapman, for the first time. With 12 towering layers of Southern perfection, infused with fresh vanilla and plenty of coconut, the cake caused an immediate sensation, and praise from locals, tourists, and publications including Bon Appétit, Saveur, Martha Stewart Living, The New York Times, TODAY Show, and Vogue soon followed.

Demand for whole cakes – an increasingly popular choice for wedding receptions – came pouring in, and a booming mail order business began. In 2012, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office certified the cake's national popularity when it awarded a trademark to the Peninsula Grill Ultimate Coconut Cake™. The beloved restaurant – the only Relais & Châteaux restaurant in Charleston – serves slices of the now-iconic dessert to Peninsula Grill guests nightly, and they also ship this masterpiece nationwide!