A sign with two names written in navy script frames the doorway of a small restaurant in downtown Charleston. Underneath “Gaulart & Maliclet” is the moniker most associate with this Lowcountry institution: Fast and French . Three guests linger outside just after noon on a recent Monday.
More crowd around a wall filled with hats, shirts, French magazines and a Spoleto poster many seasons past. There's a 20-minute wait for a table, one group is told. The lunch rush is alive and well at the café, first opened in 1984 by Gwylene Gallimard and Jean-Marie Mauclet.
Morning, day and night, Fast and French is as busy as it’s ever been 40 years after opening on this once-quiet stretch of Broad Street. After reaching the front of the line, we squeeze past the bar and walk through a tight alley that leads to the back of the restaurant. We’re directed to a pair of seats at a communal high-top, built by hand by Mauclet — like most of the furnishings here.
Taking our seats, we study the menu while stealing glances at the open-faced sandwiches and soups nearby. We place our orders: gazpacho with a turkey and brie croissant for me, and the lamb with black rice special for my dining companion. The food arrives in about 10 minutes, long enough to spark up a conversation with the duo sitting across from us.
The seats are so close that I can smell the broccoli cheddar soup cooling off in front of them. Another 10 minutes passes, and the four of us are still chitchatting away like old .
