Comments on: Pasta Fresca, 3405 Forest Drive: 5 May 2012 (moved)

By: Dennis

Dennis — Fri, 18 May 2012 01:21:57 +0000

Tom - Richland County says the building was not there until 1970.

By: Tom

Tom — Thu, 17 May 2012 11:20:07 +0000

In the 1960s it was a restaurant, though I do not recall the name. In the 1970s it was a Codgil Salem Carpets, then a hair styling place.

By: Terry

Terry — Thu, 17 May 2012 09:27:12 +0000

Now that badger has brought it up, I recall a lot of things about The Menagerie. It was a well stocked locally owned pet shop. The nice lady that owned it had a whole variety of the large, colorful birds and they were always noisy. Add to that the bubbling of the filter systems in all the aquariums and it was like an event to walk thru the shop.

A place like this in the Vista today might get away with charging admission.

By: Dennis

Dennis — Thu, 17 May 2012 02:37:15 +0000

The first thing I remember being in this building was a men's hairstyling place. Was it Mayfield's? I know Mayfield's was on Devine St. but maybe there were two? It was a pet store in the 80s and maybe some 90s, and they were the same folks who opened further down Forest Drive later. It was called Dee's Wild Things right before it closed but I'm pretty sure it was Menagerie first. Pasta Fresca was a retirement project begun by Ralph Gregory -- the Gregory of the ad agency Newman, Saylor Gregory. He sold it years ago, tho.

By: Mike

Mike — Thu, 17 May 2012 02:04:30 +0000

One of the highlights of any visit to Columbia when I was young was a stop at Richland Mall to visit Pet-o-rama to look at the fish and a stop at Mr. Poppers for some caramel popcorn.

By: Saturday's child

Saturday's child — Wed, 16 May 2012 19:47:33 +0000

Pet-O-Rama was at Richland Mall well into the 70's or maybe the 80's before the old Mall was torn down.

By: badger

badger — Wed, 16 May 2012 15:36:33 +0000

I'm thinking it was called "Menagerie," but it might have been something else before that. Pasta Fresca has been there since @1994, and I think "Menagerie" moved farther up Forest after that. But it still might ahve been called "Pets-A-Rama" at some point.

By: CJBM

CJBM — Wed, 16 May 2012 15:25:45 +0000

Wasn't Pets-A-Rama located in this building at some point in time?

By: Mike

Mike — Wed, 16 May 2012 11:38:00 +0000

IIRC this was also a pet grooming business at one time.