Popular New Orleans eatery Ruby Sunshine sets up second Lowcountry location at The Victory West Ashley
by Lorne Chambers | Editor
Breakfast may well be the most important meal of the day, but brunch is a heck of a lot more fun. That’s the philosophy at West Ashley’s newest eatery Ruby Sunshine, which officially opened its doors last month, just days before Thanksgiving at 835 Savannah Hwy. in the newly renovated The Victory in the Avondale Business District. Traditionally reserved for weekends, West Ashley residents can now have brunch every day of the week beginning at 7:30 a.m.
Born from the undeniable soul of the Big Easy to celebrate the creative, craveable spirit of brunch, Ruby Sunshine offers playful twists on Southern brunch staples along with eye-opening cocktails. Ruby Sunshine is the concept from Ruby Slipper Restaurant Group, the collective behind the acclaimed New Orleans-based eatery Ruby Slipper Café.
“After opening our East Bay restaurant and receiving an overwhelmingly positive response from the Charleston community, we are thrilled to bring brunch to another location in the Lowcountry,” said Peter Gaudreau, CEO of Ruby Slipper Restaurant Group. “Through playful artwork, friendly staff and delicious dishes, Ruby Sunshine Avondale invokes the quintessential southern hospitality that our guests have come to love.”
Before cutting the ribbon on Friday, Nov. 18, Ruby Slipper Café co-founder Jennifer Weishaupt told the crowd who had gathered in anticipation that she and her husband Erich opened the first Ruby Slipper Café in May of 2008 in their hometown of New Orleans in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina with the hope that it might bring comfort and normalcy back to their community. At the time, Jennifer was a chemical engineer and Erich was an electrical engineer.
“We didn’t know anything about restaurants, but we wanted to help rebuild our community in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. And we felt like a little neighborhood restaurant, a place where people could go and get away from the chaos of rebuilding their flooded homes, was something we needed,” she told the crowd. “I love coffee. l love breakfast. We had young kids at the time, so a breakfast/brunch-focused restaurant that closed in the early afternoons was something that was right up our alley.”
According to Weishaupt they never intended it to grow beyond that one, 50-seat restaurant in New Orleans. But it was such a hit that eventually they opened a second location. It too was a hit, so in 2017, they got serious about the company’s growth potential and decided to take their concept outside of Gulf Coast region. She says they started growing and created the Ruby Sunshine brand when they expanded into Tennessee in 2019. The West Ashley location is the 22nd Ruby Slipper/Ruby Sunshine restaurant.
For West Ashley, it is another key component in the region’s revitalization efforts. Not only is it an additional dining option for locals, but it is a proven commodity that seems to have staying power during a time when many businesses, especially restaurants, are struggling to bounce back from the coronavirus pandemic amid rising costs and soaring inflation.
“We’re so excited about the community here and coming into this neighborhood and to continue to grow and partner with the great and supportive folks in the Charleston area,” said Weishaupt.
Tripp Hays of Explore Charleston and the Charleston Area Convention and Visitors Bureau (CVB) echoed Weishaupt’s enthusiasm and emphasized what Ruby Sunshine means to West Ashley. He said when we think about tourism in Charleston we often think of the historic district, but that the CVB now has 48 members in the West Ashley area.
“Before I started in official capacity with the Charleston Area Convention and Visitors Bureau or Explore Charleston I started as a West Ashley resident. I am so glad we have another place for brunch here in West Ashley. It is so amazing, the food here is amazing,” he said. “It’s just a really great asset to our community and an asset to our hospitality community.”
To show their commitment to the area, Ruby Sunshine held a sneak peek charity night before their grand opening, where people could try the food and make a donation to a local charity. Then at the grand opening Weishaupt and her local staff presented the Lowcountry Food Bank with a check for $5,000.
“From the very early days of opening our first restaurant we always focused on giving back to our community and partnering with community organizations and we’ve continued that as we’ve grown and we’ve been able to give back a little bit more which is something that we’re really proud of. In Charleston, both at our East Bay location and here we’ve been very proud to partner with the Lowcountry Food Bank.”
Once the check was presented and the ribbon was officially cut, folks meandered inside the restaurant to check out the new 3,428-square-foot restaurant, adorned with wall-to-wall murals depicting syrup drips, hand-painted by Ruby Sunshine Krewe member Buurbon Mitchell and framed pop-art brunch photography by Noah Fecks. Seating more than 120 people with indoor and outdoor space, the restaurant is an inviting neighborhood destination for families and friends alike to gather around the brunch table.
The menu echoes the original Ruby Slipper Café’s, highlighting award-winning dishes like The Trifecta, featuring Ruby Sunshine’s three most famous benedicts: Eggs Cochon, Chicken St. Charles, and Bayou Shrimp. Popular appetizers include pig-candy bacon bites and French toast bites. These can all be paired with a seasonal mimosa flight or a Bloody Mary or Bloody Maria, crafted with a house-made mix and choice of regular or bacon-infused vodka or tequila. With seasonal mocktails, gluten-free and vegetarian dishes, and a wide variety of pancakes, sandwiches, salads and sides, there are plenty of options to choose from.
Ruby Sunshine is located at 835 Savannah Hwy, Suite A and is open from 7:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday–Friday and 7:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. For more information call (843) 253-8890 or visit www.rubybrunch.com.
