Columbia Closings   What's not in Columbia anymore

I posted on The Mouse Trap in the spring of 2018 when they closed for remodeling, and again in early 2019 when I noted that they were open again.

Now it seems that, unfortunately, that didn't last. I did finally make it over there for lunch one day last year, and had a good burger. Although it didn't impact my experience as I was the only one in the place, my impression was that they were a bit understaffed at the time.

Commenter Mr. BO sends this link to their 13 January Facebook page announcing the closing and mentions that The Mouse Trap took over from a place I was unaware of, Picasso's in the early 1980s. (Or 1979 as the Facebook mentions).

The State has home more details.

(Hat tip to commenter Mr. BO)

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This storefront on Patterson off of Garners Ferry has been a number of things over the years, including Peppers House Of Pizza, Ye Old Fashioned Ice Cream & Sandwich Shop, Anthony's Old Fashioned Burger & Fry Co, and possibly Ma's House of Pizza.

Mobay 2 seems to be getting some good Yelp reviews, but is currently closed for renovations. Hopefully they will come back soon.

Well, this is an unpleasant surprise!

I had been going to Pastaria 811 since they opened in the Litchfield Exchange (replacing some sort of deli) back in the 90s. Actually I would have guessed it was longer ago than that, but their sign claims 25 years so..

They had the second best pizza in South Carolina, great bread, and good general Italian dishes. They moved to this, more visible, location several years ago after Austin's closed up shop, and always seemed to be doing a good business as far as I could tell. I think I was last there in early August, and had the usual good experience.

We tried to go by last week, and found it closed, but thought Well, the holidays.. as there was no indication of a permanent closure, but looking it up online found the website gone, and reports on Yelp that the place was no more.

As you can see, there are still no visible indications. The celebratory 25 years banner is still up, there is no sign on the door, and the rockers are still on the porch. The windows are so heavily tinted that I could not see inside, so I'm not sure what the status of the interior is.

Daggone it.

Commenter Lone Wolf called this back in August:

Might want to keep and eye on Flying Saucer. They've just implemented some "changes", allegedly at the mandate of the Home Office in TX. From the "Signs Your Favorite Restaurant is About to Close", one will note several bad signs.

Saucer just hacked their menu from 1 page (front and back) to five items. Monday thru Thursday, they're no longer open for lunch. If you sit on the deck, all food and beverage orders must be placed inside, at the bar. As no one will be waiting on you on the deck, waitstaff has been reduced, or quit because their hours were cut.

I *do* hope they can right their ship. But, I don't agree with these changes.

Unfortunately, even with that warning, I didn't manage to get pictures before the closing, a combination of being both busy and absent minded. I finally did get by the other day, but the signage is already down and the place is listed for rent. The building seems to be thriving otherwise, so I expect something will move in before too long.

The State has the story here.

(Hat tip to commenter Lone Wolf)

I admit to having been completely underwhelmed the two (I believe) times I visited a Fatz. In theory I wanted to like a local chain made good, but in the event I just was not impressed. This location, on Broad River Road past Lake Murray Boulevard, was not one I had been to, though I was aware it was there. As commenter Heath (who provided some of these pictures, including the one showing that the power meter has been pulled) noted, there was no sign on the door, or any indication that the store was closed except for a makeshift barricade at the front, and the total lack of cars.

On the side of the lot there is a real estate sign, but it appears to pertain to the property behind Fatz, and as commenter Tom notes, the Fatz web site still lists this location, so I am not sure what is going on.

(Hat tip to commenter Heath for heads-up & pix)

UPDATE 31 August 2020: Update tags.

UPDATE 24 April 2024: Now an Konnichiwa Japanese restaurant:

I was actually in this Bojangles earlier this year when I had a hankering for a sausage biscuit, and I was perfectly happy with it. The restaurant is in a decent spot with plenty of drive-by traffic on Two Notch, so I'm not sure what the story here was.

At some point, I hope to get a shot of the whole building in brighter light, but for now this will have to do.

(Hat tip to commenter John)

UPDATE 7 February 2020 -- As mentioned in the comments, this building has been razed and will be rebuilt (still as a Bojangles):

UPDATE 14 May 2020 -- The new building is going up:

UPDATE 18 May 2002 -- Still coming along:

UPDATE 23 February 2024: Updating tags.

I've been in this building at least once, back when it was Doc's Gumbo Grille, but as I view Sushi as Superman views Kryptonite, it never even occurred to me to visit TakoSushi. I see from the various writeups on the closing that they had a Southwest component, which I might have guessed from the Tako, except that sounds very like a Japanese word when spelled that way. While I have not been inside, I have admired the very visible and shiny ventilator for years. I also notice that the Yin/Yang mural is a Blue Sky creation.

According to the Takosushi website and statements to the press, the restaurant considered the building to be unsafe. The State says the owner disputes that, and says that any interior damage would be the tenant's responsibility to fix. Here are two more takes from ColaDaily and WLTX

In a sign of the times, I could not get close enough to the front door to get a good picture of the posted notice (though you can probably read it on the click-through) because there is already someone sleeping in the doorway.

(Hat tip to commenter Beth)

UPDATE 12 November 2020 -- Now Crabby's Cajun:

UPDATE 23 October 2025: Update tags.

Boeshreen is the follow-on operation to Northeast Market & Coffee House in this much restauranted storefront on Decker. I ate there once, and found the food to be good though the layout was a bit confusing, and I couldn't make it a regular stop because there was no fresh-brewed ice tea.

I noticed recently that they have added Sammi's Deli branding to their operation (after also adding a sno-cone setup). It may be time to stop in again.

UPDATE 22 July 2020 -- Here are some better pictures I just ran across:

However, based on a more recent drive-by, I think they may have dropped the Sammi's branding at this point.

I went to Nonnah's several times years ago, hoping for something like Kamanski's in Charleston. In the event, I decided they liked cake way more than I did -- I prefer pie, cheesecake, custard and other non-cake desserts. I guess it's been more than ten years since I was in -- at any rate they were still on the other side of Gervais at the time.

The State has the story, and I particularly like the Behind Our Reporting postscript. Welcome to the club, guys!

(Hat tip to commenters Dustin & Sidney)

UPDATE 24 November 2019: Added commenter Dustin, who I had missed, to the hat tip.