By Johanna Wilson Jones

Chive Blossom Restaurant & Bar is a peculiar anomaly on the Grand Strand.

It is one of the few places here that consistently and deliciously presents inspired global dishes seared with Southern character and culture.

It is also among the best places to get top-tier cocktails and mocktails, including the fresh basil jalapeno cucumber cooler, remembered long after consumption.

When folks peruse the menu, they should not be surprised if they have difficulty deciding what to eat.

Unlike Las Vegas, they can bet on whatever they want here and have good food fortune.

Paul Kelly Renault makes sure of that.

He is a high-strung, energetic, genuine dynamo of a chef who thinks thoughtfully and intensely about food.

“My mother was a gourmet cook,’’ he said. “As an only child, we would find ourselves in the kitchen together cooking.”

That explains a lot.

In this instance, being an only child undeniably served him well.

Siblings were not jostling for her attention, and he could absorb every bit of culinary wisdom needed to woo people as he does now with delectable and refined Monet meals.

If you indulge in the culinary treasure that is Chive Blossom, you will unearth dishes detailed in taste, finessed in presentation, and in the same class of food in highfalutin haunts hailed for greatness in Charleston and New York.

Renault, a 1988 graduate of the inaugural class of the French Culinary Institute in New York, has 43 years in the business and counting.

So, he knows how to bring flavors to the forefront and let them. Chive Blossom is where people find their culinary yellow-brick road and meet a real culinary whiz.

“The restaurant has a beautiful setting for a romantic and delicious dinner,’’ Kelly Hunter said in a fresh Google review. “Sit outside around the beautiful…oak trees with moss.”

His mother, Elizabeth Jeanette Renault, was the one who blazed trails in their kitchen and sparked what would become a fire in his soul.

Their kitchen was a master class for his mother to display her talent of making everything taste magnificent, including classic veal piccata and what her son says is “the best four meat Bolognese.”

She made tremendous salads, creating meals that could be in the culinary hall of fame if such a thing existed.

“My mother cooked food from all around the world,’’ said Renault, who uses seasonal vegetables from the garden at Chive Blossom to include in his tailored offerings of startling starters and delectable dishes. “She is an exceptional baker also. We always had a starch, two vegetables, and a salad."

His dad, William Allen Renault, made stellar steaks.

Renault began working in the restaurant industry when countless kids were outside playing.

“I started at 13 years old grating cheese and rolling pizza dough in my hometown of Manhasset, N.Y.,’’ he said of his first job at Manhasset Deli, a traditional German delicatessen.

In his early years as a rookie, Renault acquired valuable knowledge.

“(I learned to) never to be late, always be early, never talk back to the chef, (and) always set your station like a pro,’’ he said.

In the longevity that still is his career, he has learned more valuable lessons.

“The customer is always right, even when they are wrong,’’ Renault said. “(And) focus is the most important aspect of being a line cook.’’

His talent and wisdom have served him well and gained him powerful praises from regulars and newbies alike who are fans of Chive Blossom. Side note: If you ask him, he will tell you he is not the best cook in his family. His mother and wife, Trina, outrank him.

There is much to love on the menus. Favorites for lunch include the okra pancakes featuring whole okra graced with a yummy Lowcountry stew of tomato and shrimp stew, a definitive nod to Gullah Geechee cuisine.  Other comebacks for customers arethe wild salmon, charred octopus, and the fried seafood platter.

“I absolutely loved our experience here!” said Mark McKitrick, a local guide, in his 5-star Google review. “It exceeded 5 stars.”

After applauding the excellent staff, he brags about the house-made pimento cheese and claims it is the best anywhere.

Next, he boasted about the entree of his wife's: the wild-caught salmon that was light, unlike dense salmon served elsewhere.

Then, he went all over the happy diner moon and proclaimed the chef must have caught every piece of seafood on his plate just before serving him the fresh grouper, shrimp, scallops, and oysters.

“This place rocked my world, and I will be back again, again, again and again,’’ McKitrick said. “The chef is my hero, (whoever) you are!”

Renault, who goes by “Chef PK’’ in the kitchen, is without a cape.

He does, however, have chef coats and jackets.

Therefore, he isn’t technically a hero.

He is a husband, hunter, and fisherman.

He is peculiar and may have a tad too much punch in his personality for some.

Still, this chef prepares food worthy of putting your bottom in one of his seats.

“(I think) my love of pain and suffering, drive and determination (makes me stand out from other chefs),’’ Renault said. “(I) want to give my clients the best experience possible.”

Camouflaged off Ocean Highway at 85 Causeway Rd. in Pawleys Island, Chive Blossom seems alone in its little world.

The outdoor seating area takes advantage of the nature around it.

Tables are under the shade and branches of live oak trees.

Potted plants add to the attractiveness of the scene.

Tiny globes of light fixtures illuminate the space when evening approaches.

Once you enter the restaurant, white linen tablecloths adorn tables in a place where natural light and an assortment of light fixtures give Chive Blossom an ethereal glow.

Oyster shells are integrated into hanging lamp swag lights and help illuminate a restaurant that is classy but feels homey.

The vibe is beachy, uptown, and farmhouse-country-cool mixed to create an invigorating ambiance.

Renault has worked in various major cities, including Boston, Boulder, Denver, and Miami.

He and his wife, Trina, a fierce chef and baker in her own right, opened Chive Blossom on Sept. 16, 2001.

“We first met Paul Kelly through his wife Trina,’’ said Jo Ann Hall, a friend and Chive Blossom patron in Pawleys Island. “We had known Trina for 7 years at her restaurant in Myrtle Beach before she moved to Pawleys and married Paul Kelly.”

Hall said Renault is gregarious and does a great job working the front of the house, but she also likes his skills in the back of the house.

“My favorite dish he makes is his beef short ribs,’’ Hall said. “His beef short ribs recipe is a secret.”

What is public knowledge is Renault consistently serving fine, fresh food.

Rob Bunn, a Pawleys Island native, has long been a fan of Chive Blossom, loving what Renault creates in his endearing town.

“Any seafood dish he creates is my favorite only because he uses the freshest ingredients and (takes pride in) serving only local seafood, especially local shrimp,’’ Bunn said. “He has worked very hard to establish his name, not just in Pawleys, but throughout the state of the South.”

Arduous toil will not bother Renault at all. He may become irritated if someone fails to show up for work, but he stands ready to do whatever is necessary during the 50 to 70 hours he generally works each week. He relishes being a small, independent business owner whose food has power.

“A beautiful table with gorgeous food brings people together,’’ Renault said. “Food is love.”