Columbia Closings   What's not in Columbia anymore

This location, which I later learned was the final resting place of The Basil Pot, first featured here as Tio's, and then again when it was Which Wich? with that operation leaving in late 2023, and Sub Station II moving in shortly after that.

The State has a story which tells very little more than what is on the door sign. I find it somewhat interesting that at close to two months after the closing, the fixtures are still in place, so apparently the place has not been sold.

(Hat tip to commenter Guy)

Well, that didn't last long.

Taco Mundo replaced Liberty Tap Room (under the same ownership) opening about a year ago. I thought I might stop by eventually as I like Mexican, but in the event what with the hassle of parking downtown, other Mexican options, and frankly totally forgetting about it, I never got around to it.

I'm guessing that might have been a common set of problems, as apparently the new spot wasn't as busy as it needed to be to keep on.

The current plan seems to be for some sort of event (and catering?) space, which sounds even less like a reliable revenue stream to me, but we will see how it works out.

You can read about it in The State here.

(Hat tip to commenter Tom)

Nick's followed Tony O's Pizza into this spot, after that establishment replaced Steak Out.

I know they were open into January of 2026 based on Google StreetView, but they have now been replaced by Deno's Subs & Seafood. I don't know if that has any relation to the Deno's which used to be in Seven Oaks Shopping Center.

I like biscuits, but somehow never seem to end up at a biscuit place.

Rambo's was a Main Street storefront as well as a Soda City Market presence, but either lost or elected not to renew their lease last December. You can read about that at The State or on WIS.

The owners' goodbye and post closing clearance notes are on their Facebook.

(Hat tip to commenter Gypsie)

This Kitty's Corner storefront was the second local location for Sully's Steamers, which was under the same ownership as the Devine location and converted to a Stacked at the same time.

I wasn't really sure what Sully's deal was, but apparently they are a sandwich chain that builds on top of bagels, and steams the result. Commenter Payle calls them "very tasty", and I probably would have liked one, looking at the site.

Both local locations converted to Stacked within the past month, which appears to be another bagel based concept. Perhaps I'll make it to that one sometime.

(Hat tip to commenter Payne)

I had never heard of such a thing, but the Waffle House near the I-20 interchange on Broad River Road has gone delivery only. I enjoy eating at the House every now and then, but I can't even imagine having waffles or hash browns delivered. Given that it's certainly not the standard business model, I wonder how many people it will even occcur to...

(Hat tip to commenter Gypsie)

I'm pretty sure that this Pizza Hut was the same operation which used to be in a little plaza further towards Dentsville more or less across from Columbia Mall. That whole set of buildings was razed and I can't quite recall what was built there afterwards.

Anyway, that was a classic-era Pizza Hut and I had enjoyable meals there many times. I never ate in the new location, and pretty much gave up on Pizza Hut years ago. The owners of the chain just destroyed everything that made it enjoyable and ran it into the ground. I think that owners who knew what they were doing could bring back the red cups, the distinctive buildings, the salad bar, the table cloths, in-house cooking and make a good return on retro stores.

Oh well, that rant aside, I can say that this location closed on the 16th, and has yet to be cleared out. You can read about it in The State and the Post & Courier.

(Hat tip to commenter Andrew)

The Sub Station II slot in the Columbiana food court has already been, well, not boarded-up, but the curtain based equivalent -- That's it behind the black backdrop left of Dragon's Breath.

I've never really warmed to Substation II -- I've tried the Cedar Terrace location several times, and have never been too impressed -- I would rather have Jimmy Johns or Subway amongst the sub shops.

According to The State, this location opened in 2024, so it did not have an especially long run here.

(Hat tip to commenter Dustin)

Friends House (no apostrophe apparently) was the follow-on in this Publix plaza suite to Chen's.

Commenter James R notes that the rent on this place went up and the owners opted not to renew. Currently the storefront is empty.

(Hat tip to commenter James R)