Columbia Closings   What's not in Columbia anymore

I have seen Hwy 55 operations pop up here and there in the area and on the coast, but I have never gotten around to trying one. Apparently it's a North Carolina outfit that started out as Andy’s Cheesesteaks & Cheeseburgers. Not that I get to Elgin often anyway, but it looks like I won't be trying one here.

The Free Times has a bit on the closing of this location, saying that it is to become a fast-casual Greek operation, Gyromania Grill sometime in February or March.

(Hat tip to commenter Thomas)

I never ate at La Fiesta, though I did eat in the building when it was a Shoney's. It had been here for many years however, before closing on a temporary basis in the Spring of 2022. They came back after that, but have now called it a day.

Here is their Facebook, which pretty much recapitulates the information on the door sign.

(Hat tip to commenter Heath)

This location of The Southern Belly opened in the 2015 timeframe, and apparently ran concurrently with their Rosewood location for a while. There was no media notice of this closing, and google still thinks they are open.

Their Facebook page, however, suggests that they were "Gone With The Wind" as of 11 December 2022.

(Hat tip to commenter Heath)

The Broad River Road location of Philly Pretzel Factory closed in October of 2020, but this location, in the Publix plaza on Rosewood, soldiered on for another two years. As far as I can tell from their final Facebook posting, 30 December was the last day here.

I believe I only went by this store once -- I was expecting a buttery pretzel like Auntie Anne's, and found these a bit dry. Also, the parking was a little sparse on that side of the building.

Here is a very brief State story on the closing.

(Hat tip to commenter MB)

This is a shame as this Baskin-Robbins was my go-to for milkshakes & ice cream. Not that I went that often, but it was pleasant on a summer night to get something cold and hang around in the warm evening outside for a while.

I believe this closing leaves Forest Acres without an ice-cream parlor for the first time in my life. There is still Zesto for a chocolate-dip, but as much as I like soft-serve now and then, it's not really the same thing.

I'm not sure what's up with the construction, but apparently someone jumped the gun a bit.

(Hat tip to commenter Larry)

When Smashburger first opened here, I liked it quite a bit. The burger was really good, and there were lots of bun options, including a chipolte bun that was quite tasty. The booths were much more comfortable than 5 Guys steel chairs, and the ice-tea, which was also quite good, was attractively dispensed from clear plastic tubes which mimicked old-style hand-pump gas dispensers. The only fly in the ointment, and one that kept me from being a regular is that I didn't like the fries. They were well executed for what they were trying to do, but I didn't care for the idea they were executing.

So, I would go every now and then, but probably not more than three or so times a year. All that was before the pandemic. When I went back after the pandemic, everything had changed. All of the bun options were gone, and there were no ice-tea dispensers at all in the dining room. In fact when I asked about tea, the staffer looked at me like I was crazy, and apparently went off to brew one cup. There didn't seem to be much traffic there, and a couple of times when I came to eat at the adjacent Moe's, I thought the place had already closed.

In fact, that didn't happen until late december of 2022 as reported in The Post & Courier. The reason given there was that the rent was due to triple, but I think the business they were doing had to be a factor as well, or I would have expected Moe's to jump ship as well.

Commenter Larry reports that this spot is to become a Dave's Hot Chicken.

(Hat tip to commenter Trevin Montgomery)

UPDATE 27 June 2023 -- Now Dave's Hot Chicken:

This Zoe's Kitchen in the strip mall directly across from Sandhill and also housing The Fresh Market has now completed the conversion and is open as a Cava.

As of this time, I believe the one on Sunset is still converting, and the one on Lake Murray Boulevard is actually still open as a Zoe's.

I tend to hit his place, a follow-on to Pie-Tanza & Embers, around once a year as I forget about it in-between times, but I don't think I have been since the pandemic started.

Anyway, according to their signage and ColaDaily, they are stopping dinner service for the nonce, due to the staffing issues afflicting the whole restaurant sector.

I was not really aware of this restaurant as I go out that way so seldom. Apparently it was rather new, and started just in time to be hit by the pandemic. It probably didn't help either that a San Jose was just around one corner, and El Charro around the other.

According to their Facebook they do still have a location in Swansea.

(Hat tip to commenter Heath)

I noticed this Subway in Beacon Hill Block on Airport Boulevard the other day. There is not exactly a date on the closing note, but apparently it's quite recent, as google still has the closing as temporary, and all the decor and fixtures are still inside.

I'm a bit curious about the name for this plaza. Is "Beacon Hill" a real name for the area? Is it an aviation history thing? Was there a beacon?