Columbia Closings   What's not in Columbia anymore

I went ahead and bit the bullet this weekend to do the upgrade from WordPress 2.3.1 to WordPress 2.5.1. Supposedly it has some security fixes, and I'm hoping it will be easier to manage comment-spam. There were a few moments of panic when I could no longer log in, but hopefully that's behind me now.

While I was at it, I decided I might as well try a new theme. Unless Ihave decided to revert by the time you read this, I am using "Siverlight" by "Bob" now. I'm not totally sold on it yet, but it seems to display the pictures better. You can still click for the larger pictures, but the picture you click on is itself rendered a bit larger. It also shows the most recent comments in the right sidebar. It's not as clean as the old "default" theme, and it seems to me the post text may be a bit small, but I think I'll give it a few days at least.

Well, I'm heading off for "Phase I" of summer vacation, so posting will be light, if any, for the next week or so.

If you've never gotten to Spoleto in Charleston, I recommend it. I had always thought of that as something I would do one day until a few years ago it occurred to me that I'm not getting any younger and if not now, when? Actually, I find the main festival a bit stodgy (and I can hear classical music any time), but the Piccolo Spoleto festival, and particularly the Piccolo Fringe run by Charleston's national quality comedy troupe The Have Nots is a good bit more interesting.

I've updated a few posts in the last couple of days, most notably, the one on WIS Radio where I have located the old studio and taken a number of new pictures.

Well today for the first time, the blog has started getting spam comments. I suppose that says something. So far the filters are catching them, but don't be surprised if some get through before I have a chance to cancel them.

I'll be out of town for a few weeks. I may be able to make a few posts on older closings if I am not kept too busy, but if something interesting closes while I'm gone, you can note it here in the comments...

I put an ad for columbiaclosings.com on the Free Times site today, and I see it's already brought a number of people in.

Welcome!

This is a blog about businesses (mostly in Columbia) which are no longer around. You can take a look at the Mission Statement or the Alphabetical List of Closings or just browse the archives.

In general, there will be no explicit advance warning that your favorite place is about to close. There are however, some warning signs you can watch for:

The Hours Change

This is a big one. If the place was formerly open on Sunday, but now isn't, if they used to do lunch and supper but now do only lunch, if they used to be open until 10pm, but now close at 8, these are all bad signs.

They are Out of Something Mundane

If you go and they are out of something completely mundane and off the wall, like napkins, or salt, that is a very bad sign.

The Staffing Level Drops

If your favorite waitress is gone, and she has not been replaced, that is a bad sign. If there was a hostess and now there is not, that is a bad sign.

The Owner is Waiting Tables

If the owner just used to circulate occasionally checking to see that everything was OK, but then starts meeting you at the door, seating you and taking your order, that is a very bad sign.

They Drop the Sanitation Service for the Restrooms

If the restroom used to be Sanitized by Swisher, but now has a grocery store bottle of liquid soap, that is a bad sign. It's not that it isn't clean, it still is, but you know they can no longer pay to have it cleaned.

The Menu Changes

If the items that take more work to prepare, or which fewer people order vanish from the menu, that is another bad sign.

If your favorite place starts to exhibit one or more of these signs, well, enjoy it while you can.

I eat out a lot, and I've come to see that there are a number of rules for running a restaurant that are honored in the breach more often than the reverse. None of these are rocket science, but I thought I would write some of them down because a lot of restauranteers really need to read them.

1) Honor Your Posted Hours

I can't over-emphasize this item. Your posted hours are part of your contract with the public. Nobody forced you to post a particular set of hours on your door, but having posted them, you need to honor them. If I have made myself work until 9:30 with the lure of a nice supper based on your promise to be open until 10:30 and I show up to hear "Well, it wasn't very busy, so we closed the kitchen at 9, it's too late for me to go elsewhere. You have ruined my evening.

I try not to be a jerk. I will not waltz in at 5 minutes before closing and order an elaborate meal, but if I show up at least half an hour before posted closing, I expect to find your establishment in full operation.

2) Make More Tea

This is a related point. If I come in at least half an hour before closing, and you are out of tea, I expect you to make more. Yes, some of it will go to waste, but it is on your menu and only costs you pennies to make. Besides, if your staff weren't so hellbent on closing before you are supposed to, they wouldn't have dumped the urn.

3) If My Glass is Empty, Fill it Up

Really what more can I say? Is this so hard to do?

4) Don't Bring the Bill While I am Still Eating

If you bring the check before I have finished my meal, it implies that you want to get rid of me, and is somewhat rude. It also implies that you are washing your hands of me, and that I can expect no further refills. It is also not in your best interests. If I have been contemplating dessert, having a finalized bill pretty much kills the chance that I will ask for anything else.

5) Don't Let the Bill Sit

This is the inverse of the last rule. If I am not ready to go, I will not put cash or a credit card on the check you brought me. When I am ready, and do place my payment, I don't want it to take twenty minutes before you pick it up.

6) Never Ask: Do You Need Change?

If I have a check for $8.21 and hand you a $20 bill and you say "Do you need any change?", it implies you are angling for a $11.79 tip. It's even worse if what I would be getting back is close to (but more than) what I would be leaving you for a tip. In that case it makes me feel stingy for begrudging you an extra eighty cents.

The correct phrase is "I'll be right back with your change". This gives me the opening to say "That's OK" if I intend you to keep everything.

7) Make Sure the Staff Instructions Agree with the Menu

If your menu describes an item of food in one way, make sure the instructions given to the kitchen and wait staff agree with the written description.

For years, the menu at Shoney's described the spaghetti as coming with mushrooms. So I would order spaghetti, and it would invariably come without mushrooms, leading to the following exchange:

I didn't get any mushrooms with my spahgetti

You didn't say you wanted mushrooms

Well, the menu says it comes with them..

The same goes for El Chico, and the guacamole that is supposed to come with the beef burrito..

8) Don't Let the Waitresses set the Thermostat

They are walking around and carrying stuff. It's a hard job, and they are working. I am not, I'm just sitting there gradually freezing to death.

9) If You Must have a TV, Mute It

Sports bars are excluded, I suppose, but if I walk into a general restaurant, I either want to talk with the rest of my party, or if I'm alone, think my own thoughts. I don't want to hear about the news, a soap opera, an infomercial or even the weather I just came in from. On most modern TVs, you can activate a close-caption mode that lets the staff follow their programs without annoying the patrons.

10) Don't Argue

It amazes me that I feel I have to list this one, but it has happened, and flabbergasts me every time.

If I say I need a new fork, don't ask me "What's wrong with that one?". Just get me the fork.

I'm sure you have your own rules that are violated all the time. Leave me a comment, and if I agree, I'll add it to the list!

Here's the deal: This blog is (mostly) about businesses in Columbia, SC which have closed.

How often have you gone to a favorite store or restaurant and found the doors locked and all the tables and chairs stacked against the back wall? Did you wish there was a place to vent about it, say how you saw it coming, or give the inside scoop on what happened? I'd like this to be that place.

As I notice businesses that have closed, I'll post entries on them. If I was a patron, I'll post a few thoughts, if I wasn't, I'll just note the passing. I hope that you, should anyone actually find this blog, can fill in the details with your comments.

In general, this blog will deal, as the title suggests, with Columbia SC. However, I also spend a good deal of time on the Grand Strand, so I won't hesitate to mention closings there, if it strikes my fancy. I also won't hesitate to make "remember when?" posts about places that closed years ago.

Update: I have closed comments on this post because I have moved the text to a "page", which will stay visible for the long term rather than scrolling off. Please leave any additional comments there.