Columbia Closings   What's not in Columbia anymore

Cribb's Bakery was a longtime Five Points landmark and yet another Columbia institution I never got around to visiting. Looking at the ad from the 1997 Bellsouth phonebook, I think I could have gone for some of the bagels or pastries though pound cake I'm not so keen on. I figured I would always have time, but on Sunday 30 March 2003, the place caught fire.

According to The State's archives:

Cribb's Bakery, 1030 Harden Street, was damaged Sunday in a fire that apparently originated in the building's storage room.

Plumes of smoke billowed from the attic of the peach and blue building around 9 p.m., but there was no visible structural damage.

Battalion Chief Cleveland Geter said the fire was contained to the one room, and firefighters had it contained in 10 to 15 minutes.

Despite the story's optimistic take on the scope of the damage, the bakery never reopened, and in September of 2004 the current tenant, Time Warner Cable started work to move in, as The State reported on 9 December 2004:

Time Warner to move to Harden Street site

Time Warner of the Midlands planned to begin renovations this week to the old Cribbs Bakery on Harden Street, converting it into a roomier retail and office space.

I had assumed the old bakery building was torn down for the TWC office, but it would appear from this that it was not.

I have a weakness for mermaids, but Hoof 'n' Finz in Murrells Inlet was not somewhere I ever ate.

What makes this closing notable for me is that it opens up a Murrells Inlet restaurant space for the return of the much missed Rosa Linda's.

This note from the Weekly Surge, along with this one make me hopeful, as the Favata family was involved with the original restaurants. Apparently the current plan is to be open for Cinco de Mayo, though I have to say, after looking over the work going on at the place, that will be pushing it.

This property listing notes some of the plusses and minuses of the location. Apparently the building is "majestic", but Suck-Bang-Blow is right across the street (spun as a positive in the listing "If this restaurant was ran correctly"..). Of course that only makes it difficult to deal with a couple of weeks a year.

Looking forward to it!

(Hat tip to commenter Buddy)

UPDATE 14 May 2011 -- Well, they are open! (And did make their Cinco deadline):

Wine And Dine In Elegance -- The ad is from the 1970 Southern Bell phonebook, and continues the tradition of restaurants being generally open later in those days than now. King Arthur's also continues the theme started here a few weeks about Medieval English themed restaurants in Columbia. The ad doesn't give you much idea what to expect, but surely they must have had round tables and drinking grails..

I have to admit I have absolutely no memory of King Arthur's. That stretch of Broad River road was one we practically never took in the 1970s, and I would have had my nose in a book at any rate. The property is owned by Wray now though the don't seem to use the 725 street number. I'm not sure if they building is King Arthur's or if that was knocked down. The current building doesn't look much like a restaurant to me.

After King Arthur's, the place was at least two other restaurants. Mother Tuckers apparently ran from 1992 to 1995, and I have no information on Pizza Bistro other than one site believes it was a music venue.

UPDATE 6 April 2011 -- Well, from all the comments I found that the above pictures focus on the wrong Wray lot, and that King Arthur's was more on the other side of Riverhill Circle on the lot where the curvy white Wray building now is. The pictured building is 100 Greystone Boulevard and a former Heilig-Meyers furniture store until its closure in 2001. This ad is from the Feb 1997 Bellsouth phonebook:

UPDATE 9 April 2011 -- Commenter Dick sends this yearbook picture posed in front of King Arthur's:

Here's a little 1940s building by the tracks at the start of Huger Street (that's you-gee street for you out-of-towners..), that has been, I'm sure, many more things than this list over the years since it was built.

To be honest, I have to say I can't personally remember any of them. It's a section of street I drive very seldom, and some of the tenants, for instance, a roofer, are pretty invisible until you actually need one. The most recent operation seems to have been The Dog Shack hotdog restaurant, which apparently set up shop in April of 2010, and was definitely open as late as 18 June 2010, when a group of Columbia hotdog aficionadoes visited and gave it a mediocre grade.

While I was taking pictures a train rolled through, backing up traffic on Huger. I imagine working all day in that location would get old pretty quick.

As is the case with most non-national Mexican restaurants, Don Pedro was not the first restaurant operation in this building. To me it has sort of a Howard Johnson look to it, but I could be wrong. At any rate, the building is sited at, though not affiliated with, the Travellers Inn motel at the intersection of Airport Boulevard and I-26. I never made it to Don Pedro since I figured it would be about the same as a number of closer Mexican establishments. (Though the Free Times link below associates it with the Don Pedro on Two Notch which was supposed to be quite good).

I give 2006 as the closing date since it showed up in the Free Times Bites & Sights guide for 2006, but apparently no other year, and was not in the Feb 2007 phonebook.

This little building at the Southeast corner of Two Notch & Covenant Roads is apparently an outbuilding on the L'il Cricket lot, or at least there doesn't seem to be a separate tax record for it. This Administrative Law Court decision (for Li'l Cricket's beer & wine permit) suggests that it was initially a smoke shop, but google says that more recently, it has been Willie's and Biddy's Corner Grill.

I was going to go back some later when I had time to stop and get closeups of the signs in the window and get a longer shot showing where it is in relation to the convenience store, but somehow I never did. At any rate, it is a tiny space, and looking at the windows, seems to have been mainly a walk-up operation.

UPDATE 18 September 2013 -- Here are some pictures of it as Biddy's:

and here it is in operation again as Wright's Eatery:

Here's another quick turn-around story (like Al-Amir). I had only just heard that Conrad's was closed, but when I got around to driving by, it was already open again as Henry's.

I wish them luck, but this building has been ill-starred lately. We've had Tiffany's Bakery, Granville's and now Conrad's in just the space of a few years. Maybe it's the apostrophe.

(Hat tip to someone in the comments -- I can't find the name right now..)

Here's one I have absolutely no memory of, though I would have been driven past it constantly going to and from Richland Mall. The building now at 2120 Beltline (note how it was "Belt Line" in the 1976 ad..) is a medical office next door to Moe's, and is obviously not the original restaurant building.

I have no idea how the theme played out in this restaurant either. Again, as a kid, I would have expected to notice some place with a knights and castles come-on, but am still drawing a complete blank...

(You'll notice I was having a little issue with lens fogging on the first shot here).

The closing for The Devine Street Al-Amir was the first one I ever posted on this blog. I also did one for the Sparkleberry Crossing location, and this one makes three.

It's a shame because I really like the food at Al-Amir -- the Damascus bread, tabouli, hummus and falafel are all very good. Luckily, they still have locations on Main Street by Moe's and at Sandhill in the old Shane's Rib Shack location.

This closing had a very fast turn-around. I know I ate at this Al-Amir sometime in February, and now it is not only closed, but re-opened as a burger and pizza place called Stinger's.

(Hat tip to commenter E.J.)

I first wrote about this building in a closing for The Village Bistro in August 2009. After that operation closed, La Fogata Mexican Restaurant set up shop, lasting at least a year, and apparently closing around the start of March this year.

I never managed to make it to La Fogata though I do like Mexican food. It's just a good ways from Forest Acres, and if I'm not in the mood for Moe's or a Mexican Mexican place like San Jose or Casa Linda, I usually end up at El Chico, headed the other way from town. Commenter Kp who tipped the closing says it was pretty good though.

(Hat tip to commenter Kp)

UPDATE 23 March 2011 -- Well, the signage is down and the place is up for lease again:

UPDATE 26 May 2016 -- As mentioned in the comments, this is now Top Dawg Tavern: