Columbia Closings   What's not in Columbia anymore

Staying in the same area as yesterday...

BGR8 dojo was the follow-on in this roundish building to at the corner of Broad River Road and Royal Tower Drive to Ed Robinson cleaners. Judging from the state of construction at the site, it has been at least several months since they moved to 130 Hunter Village Drive, so I am just going to put a late 2023 date on this.

As for that construction, it appears that Brooklyn Express pizza is moving from Friarsgate Plaza into this building:

This tire outfitter in Irmo near Friarsgate Plaza closed down at the end of March. I went by one time and saw they were storing a lot of vehicles there and wasn't sure they were closed, but the second time I actually read the note on the door, which announced the closure.

It's not the easiest lot to get in and out of, but I expect someone will take it up before too long.

(Hat tip to commenter Andrew)

The wonder of Zesto is not that one closed, but that any are still open: Each location is like a step into 50 years ago, and we are lucky to still have such portals.

That said, this location, in Chapin is actually fairly new as such things go, having opened "only" 18 years ago. As for the reasons this one closed, WIS quotes the owner:

It’s just time for me to have a normal life. Same struggles as all mom-and-pop [stores]. Can’t get decent employees, food cost, etc. Times are changing.

There is also a State story here.

(Hat tip to commenter Heath)

This decrepit trailer is on the south side of US-76 (the right side if you are heading to the beach) somewhere in the area of Marion not too far past the intersection with US-301. I found it on Google Maps, and set the map icon below with lat/lon coordinates. I never stopped here when it was in business, which it has not been for some years now, but always wondered what services they offered.

Normally, in this sort of situation, I might get up on the deck and try to get some pictures of the interior, but there was no way I was going to have anything to do with *that* deck. It does appear that people have probably been going in from the back, so I suppose it is all stripped.

Looking at Google Streetview suggests that this trailer replaced a small building hosting a fireworks stand around 2008, and shut down sometime after 2012.

The question of what replaced this location is not entirely clear. It could be here:

here:

or even here:

The first option has a similar "I" logo, but the second location has the "gator" character from the sign in the trailer parking lot. The third option looks a bit more upscale.

This Schlotzsky's looks less "closed" than the Dutch Square location, especially given that they still have their parking lot placards out, but still, given what happened there, I would be surprised to see it open again.

(Hat tip to commenter BrianTR)

I was at East Forest Plaza this evening, and noticed a construction bin in front of Eastern Buffet. Looking online, it appears to have been closed since sometime around February. Apparently there is something happening to the property, at the least all the benches have been pulled out, but to what end is not yet apparent.

When Schlotzsky's was on Parklane I made it a point to eat lunch there once a week. It wasn't that the veggie sandwich was that good in and of itself (it was ok), but the fact that I really liked the sourdough buns, which were always a nice change from other sandwich places.

When that location closed, I noticed that some of the staff had made it to this location abuting Dutch Square, on the corner of Bush River & North Arrowwood Roads. In the event given how far it was from home, this location never made it into my regular rotation, and I probably only ate there a half dozen times over the last ten years. I liked the fact that they had a Cinnabon concession, though I think I only partook once.

Driving by lately, I had noticed that the Cinnabon part of the sign looked to have been painted over, and recent reviews suggest the place was having other problems, but it's still a shame to see them go (though Google marks the closing as temporary, so we'll see).

Looking at the other closings for the chain, it appears that at some point they dropped the word "Deli" from their name, something I just noticed.

(Hat top to commenter BrianTR)

UPDATE 16 September 2024 -- The Schlotzsky's branding is down, and the place is prepping to become Wings Co.:

This is another place I always meant to get to, and I really have no excuse as it is exactly in my area, and I had seen early-on that it had exhibited Sign #1 that it probably wouldn't last too long. In the event however I did not, and if I ever catch them, it will have to be in a Low Country location.

Commenter Jimmy provides their closing message:

Dear Guests,

We're saddened to share the news that Poogan's Southern Kitchen in Forest Acres will be permanently closing its doors after our final brunch and dinner service on Sunday, May 19th.

We want to express our heartfelt thanks to each and every one of you for your patronage and support since our opening in 2022. Your presence has made our journey truly special.

To the people of Forest Acres, your support has been incredible, and we're grateful for the warmth and community you've shown us.

Before we say goodbye, we invite you to join us over the next week, where we can reminisce and share our favorite Southern dishes with you once more.

For those venturing to the Lowcountry, our locations in Charleston and Summerville will continue to serve our signature cuisine with the same hospitality you've come to love.

Thank you for being a part of our story. We hope to see you soon.

Warm regards,

The Poogan’s Southern Kitchen Team

(Hat tip to commenter Larry)

I'm not sure what the issue was here, this location, at the corner of Two Notch & Alpine, seems like a reasonably good one for a gas station, and closing shop leaves all the traffic to the Pitt Stop on the opposite corner. The store does look like it is a little smaller than the current Circle K buildouts, so that could be an issue, or they just could have gotten a good offer for the property, I suppose. At any rate, this circle is squared.

(Hat tip to commenter Sidney)

UPDATE 18 March 2025 -- The place has been sold, though there is no indication yet what is coming:

Well, it's back to Sandhill for this one. I did a closing for Rice's longtime Devine Street home in 2012, and another when they moved from the Sandhill center court in 2020.

Now they have moved one final time from this location to 125 Outlet Pointe Boulevard as part of closing down the business for the owners' retirement. According to their web site they are now selling at 15 to 70 percent off, so if you need a piano, this might be the time to pounce.

UPDATE 12 November 2024 -- Got an interesting circular ad in the mail a few weeks ago:

It looks like perhaps Rice has sold their name & good-will to Steinway.