Page Mandarins will take center stage at various restaurants and bars this year as the 2017 Citrus Celebration organized by Limehouse Produce officially kicks off. The annual promotion puts attention on citrus that is available during the winter months and this year the focus is on the page mandarin which is a cross between a Minneola Tangelo and a Clementine Mandarin, making it essentially ¾ mandarin and ¼ grapefruit by ancestry. The grapefruit gene gives this sweet and easy-to-peel fruit a more complex flavor that the super sweet clementine, lending itself to tart cocktails, winter salads and palate cleansing pastries.
The public can vote on their favorites on limehouseproduce.com and then go try them firsthand at the participating restaurants. They can then post photos of dishes and drinks with the hashtag #citruscelebration for a chance to win a gift certificate at a winning location.
During the week of February 20, a panel of judges will taste the finalists’ entries in person to determine the Best Drink and Best Dish. Each winner will be promoted on the website, social media outlets, and to the media. The restaurant with the winning dish will be featured on the back page of Charleston City’s Paper’s DIRT and the winning drink will be featured in a ½ page ad in The Local Palate.
FILL Restaurant & Piano Bar
Juan, Paul, George and Ringo
Patrick Ivain and Nick Arbuckle
- 1.5 oz Page Mandarin and Basil Infused Blanco tequila
- 4 oz Fresh Squeezed Page Mandarin Juice
Shake these ingredients and strain over rocks in a Collins glass. Finish drink with .5 oz floater of Peppered Beet Infused vodka.
The Macintosh
Avery’s Demise
- Tabasco chili infused Reposado Tequila
- page mandarin
- citromelo juice
- simple syrup
- cilantro
Zero George
Page Mandarin Cordial
Kendall Moore, bartender
- 1 oz chamomile- infused Pisco
- 1 oz blanco Tequila
- .75 oz Page Mandarin cordial
- .75 lime
- Barspoon agave nectar
- 4 drops Celery Shrub
Bar at Husk
Turn The Page
Justin Simko, bartender
- Cat Head Vodka
- House Made Hibiscous Tea infused with vanilla and spices
- Fresh Page Mandarin Juice
Shaken and double stained into a chilled Old Fashion Glass, garnished with a Page Mandarin Twist.
Cannon Green
The Final Page
Justin Edgar, bartender
- 2 oz Casamigos Tequilla
- 3/4 oz Imbue Vermouth
- Juice of one Paige Mandarin
- 1/2 oz Honey Syrup
- Beet Salt Rim
- Orange twist to Garnish
Combine tequila, imbue, honey syrup and juice and shake well. Coupe is then rimmed with beet salt, drink is poured in and a logo’d ice cube is placed in the middle of the coupe with an orange twist.
Pier 41
Page Thai-Zu
Eric Bickelhaupt, bartender
- 1 1/4 oz Charleston distilling tolerance
- 3 Thai basil leaves
- 1 oz lychee sake
- 2 oz page mandarin juice
- 1 oz ginger simple
- 1/2 oz yuzu
- Splash club soda
Indaco
31 Years of Pizza
Jared Chafin, head bartender
- Teeling single malt Irish whiskey
- Plantation Original Dark rum
- Vicario Sorcerors Song
- page mandarin
- red wine/espresso/toasted rosemary syrup
- lemon
- angostura bitters
Scarecrow & Feathertop
The Loddy Lo
Jeremiah Schenzel, bar manager
- 2 ounces cognac
- 1 ounce Page Mandarin vanilla syrup
- 1/4 ounce Suze
- peel of one page mandarin
Combine all the spirits into a cocktail shaker and shake vigorously until proper chill and dilution are reached. Double strain into a large rocks glass with a large ice cube. Garnish with a very long Page Mandarin twist.
Victor Social Club
Mandarin Granita
- page mandarin
- grapefruit
- orange
- local blackberries
- Cointreau
- topped with red harbor rum, champagne, meyer lemon simple syrup, garnished with mint and orange slice
Victor Social Club
Lobster Ceviche
Chef De Cuisine Michael Greene and Executive Chef Aaron Lemieux from Victor Social
- lobster
- bell peppers
- jalapeno
- cilantro
- cumin
- local honey
- sweet bay greens
- fried shoestring potatoes
The Gin Joint
Henchman
James Bolt, bartender
- 2 Copper and kings brandy
- 1 Page Mandarin Oleo
- ½ smith and cross
- ½ malort
- 4 dash orange bitters
- muddle mint
Place mint into a julep tin and muddle lightly, add rest of ingredients to the julep tin and add crushed ice, mint sprig and a mandarin slice.
Prohibition
The Capricorn
Jim McCourt
- 4 segments Page Mandarin
- 1.5 oz Black Bush Irish whiskey
- Fresh ginger
- .75 oz fresh lemon juice
- .75 oz honey syrup
- Connemara peated Irish whiskey
- Candied ginger garnish
The Park Cafe
Page Turner
Xan McLaughlin
- 1.5 ounces Bulleit Bourbon
- 1 page mandarin juice
- 0.5 lemon juice
- 0.5 Art in the Age of Snap
- 0.5 Southern Twist Ginger Jalapeño Syrup
Shaken hard and strained into fresh ice in old fashion glass.
Garnished with 12 drops of Angostura Bitters.
Minero
The Zane Spritz
Henry Lewis, bartender
- 1/2oz of Pierre Ferrand Dry Curaçao
- 1/2oz House made hibiscus tea
- 3/4oz Page Mandarin Juice
- 1/4oz fresh lime juice
- 1/4oz agave
- 3 drops of Bittermens Burlesque bitters
Shake and double strain into a coupe glass, then top with 4oz of sparkling wine.
Garnish- Rehydrated Hibiscus flower and Page Mandarin segment.
Lewis BBQ
Señorita, Rose Marie Pahina
RH Weaver, beverage director
- 1 Barspoon Agave
- 2.75 oz Mandarin Juice
- .25oz JAM Grapefruit Shrub
- .5oz Damiana
- 1.25oz Blanco Tequila
Build in tin over ice, hard shake.
Strain over crushed ice and garnish with fresh sprig rosemary.
Edmund’s Oast
The Lee Roy Selmon
Ian Atwood, bartender
- 2oz Plantation O F.T.D. Overproof rum
- .5oz lemon juice
- .5oz simple syrup
- 2 bar spoons of homemade Page orange marmalade
- 1 dash Fee Brothers Orange bitters
- Egg white
Dry shake all ingredients together. Add ice and shake vigorously for 10-15 seconds. Double strain into 4oz coupe. Page orange peel for garnish.
High Cotton
Sheepshead with citrus
Shawn Kelly, executive chef
- pumpkinseed encrusted sheepshead
- Kennerty Farms broccoli rabe
- local turnip puree
- citrus segments
Congress
Scallop Aguachile
Mark Ciaburri, executive chef
- Scallop Aguachile
- page mandarin, lime, serrano broth
- page mandarin supremes
- avocado
- cucumber
- watermelon radishes
- cilantro oil
Warehouse
Dish Name
Emily Hahn, Executive Chef
Profiteroles with burnt orange caramel ice cream, rum + orange creme anglaise, toasted Brazil nuts.
Coast Bar and Grill
Traditional Ceviche
Executive Chef David Pell, Coast
- page mandarins
- shrimp
- sea scallops
- red onion
- scallions
- lemon juice
- lime juice
- mandarin juice
- jalapeno
- honey
- olive oil
Served over a bed of romaine lettuce and garnished with cilantro and fried plantain chips.