Michael Pressley
Giving Beaufort a Great Steakhouse
story by JENNIFER BROWN-CARPENTER photos by CHARLOTTE BERKELEY
You will often meet people in Beaufort who have called our sweet southern town “home” for their entire lives. They can tell you the best restaurants, the quickest way to get from point A to point B, and the best spot in Beaufort County to see the Milky Way or the sunset. What does not typically happen is meeting someone who, at one point, called Hunting Island State Park, the crown jewel of our coast and town, home. That is just one of Michael Pressley’s claims to fame.
Michael’s dad was a state park superintendent for 30 years. They lived on the island in the 1960s for ten years. Michael attended the very first Beaufort Academy as a child while his family lived here. His family moved away in 1969 to Edisto Beach, where his dad worked to reopen that state park. From a young age, Michael’s people skills were being honed: he flipped burgers at the state park grills, cut grass, collected camper fees, and even did some lifeguarding.
As a child, Michael attended Edisto Elementary, the last two-room schoolhouse in SC. He was a student at Robert E. Lee Academy in Bishopville, SC, during his high school years. Michael went to the University of South Carolina for a year but didn’t know what his goals were for the future, so he decided to pull out of school. He started working in the hotel industry shortly afterwards.
Michael began employment at Sheraton Hotels and did everything from a waiter, bartender, Food and Beverage Controller, Banquet Manager, Food and Beverage Director, Assistant General Manager, and Lounge Manager of the largest Sheraton nightclub in North America. He’s spent a lifetime working in the food and beverage industry. He’s worked at several large resorts, including Sheraton PGA National in Palm Beach, Sheraton Music City in Nashville, Sheraton Bal Harbor in Miami, and the Sheraton and Omni in Charleston. He’s been to a lot of places and made a lot of friends. He has connections all over the country. “When you go to work for a hotel, you don’t just join a company—you join a family,” Michael says. You make great friends that you can keep for the rest of your life. Sheraton was an excellent backdrop for learning. Michael was sent to all kinds of seminars and learning institutions to develop and further his skills. Sheraton helped mold the hotel and restaurant industry as we know it. And they molded him in the process. “I got moldy,” Michael jokes.
Back in 2005, Michael was living in Myrtle Beach, SC. He and his wife, Leslie, made the trip back home to Beaufort so he could show her the place he spent some of his childhood. They saw a little bar for sale in a Charleston newspaper ad and were able to check the bar out while visiting. After the visit, they decided it was time to start writing their own paycheck.
In 2005, they purchased Rosie O’Grady’s Irish American Pub in the Beaufort Town Center. Michael worked in the kitchen while his wife was working behind the bar. It has grown by leaps and bounds since then.
This past December, they decided to open The Black Dog Grill in Port Royal. Michael and Leslie wanted to open the Black Dog because they wanted to provide the community with a place to get a great meal. Their ultimate goal was to see a good steakhouse in Beaufort, which they saw as something the town was lacking. They provided our town with just that.
From the beginning their food was delicious, and the atmosphere was welcoming and easygoing. And then Covid-19 hit Michael and his restaurants, just like it did every other business in Beaufort.
The Black Dog had to close down for two months and then was able to reopen for a short period of time. That is until several people got sick. Michael had Covid-19 back in March, right around St. Patrick’s Day.
Now they’re back open and ready to start the process over again.
Amy Matlock and Bobby Reck are the masterminds in the kitchen. Amy is the head chef and her background is extensive. She was a private chef in New York for ten years as well as a culinary editor for Food Stylist, a downtown magazine. She graduated from the College of Charleston and the International Culinary Center in New York. She knows her stuff when it comes to good food.
Bobby is Amy’s assistant. He was most recently with Mezes Mediterranean Grill and Bar as the bar manager. He was also a cook for Shenanigans in Georgia. He has ten years of food and beverage experience and hails from Kennesaw, Georgia.
The Black Dog menu boasts premium, quality cuts of meat: filets, rib eyes, and chicken. They also serve pasta dishes and locally sourced fish and seafood. They will be doing prime rib on Fridays and Saturdays. The restaurant hopes to grow into outside catering and will bring gourmet meals to you, packaged and ready to eat. They will also be catering with oyster roasts and Frogmore stew, and Michael has a draft wagon full of beer. They have a lot of ideas to continue to serve the community.
Michael and Leslie have two sons and four grandchildren. When asked what fuels his passion for business, Michael jokes, “Surviving!”
The Black Dog provides gourmet delivery and pickup throughout the week, Wednesday through Saturday. The dining room is open Wednesday through Saturday evenings from 5-9 pm, reservations are recommended especially on Fridays and Saturdays.
There are many great restaurants in Beaufort County, and The Black Dog Grill can be counted as one of them. Visit The Black Dog Grill for Take Out, Delivery or Dine In and tell them we sent you.
And if you aren’t able to dine in, visit our website at www.blackdoggrillpr.com or place a pickup order at 843-379-3664.
You won’t regret it, guaranteed.
