Columbia Closings   What's not in Columbia anymore

To the best of my memory, I never ate at this Shoney's. Our go-to was always the Two Notch location where I had many a plate of spaghetti and hot-fudge cakes.

The chain struggled after dropping the Big Boy branding, and dug themselves further into a hole with a disasterous side-trip into the hotel business. (Does anyone know if they ever owned any of the nearby Airport Boulevard motels?).

This building is their original 1970s style and has probably been around at least that long. The newer stores such as Manning & Aiken have a completely different look. That store (Aiken) may have actually closed as well, as the Post & Courier story on the closing lists only Myrtle Beach, Sumter, Manning, Hartsville & Florence as the remaining South Carolina locations.

So what next? Mexican, or Asian buffett?

(There seems to be some confusion about exactly when this location closed, but I believe it's a hat tip to commenter george011210.)

Here's a Fatz I missed back during the chain closing as it's in a place I rarely drive by at the first I-26 exit for Clinton. I noticed it a few times while it was empty, but was always past the exit by the time I saw it, and now it has been repurposed as a Mexican restaurant, El Poblano.

The approach is a bit odd in that you basically have to go through a gas/convenience store's parking lot to get back to the restaurant and hotel. I did not try the restaurant, but it has generally good reviews (as always with a few one-star ones thrown in).

Commenter Tom mentioned that this hotel on Bush River Road at I-26 behind Cracker Barrel had a blank nameplate on the Market Pointe marquee. He thought it had been a Travelodge, and that looks correct, but that was some years ago. Most recently it was a Quality Inn & Suites. I can see from Google Streetview that that lasted at least into June 2023, so I'm guessing the latest reflagging was this year, and the place is now operating as Suburban Studios.

(Hat tip to commenter Tom)

Commenter Gypsie points out that electrical products distributer Wesco is no longer operating at this I-26 frontage road of which I was unaware, and commenter Matt supplies the information that they have moved several of their locations to 2500 Leaphart Road, possibly related to their recent merger with Anixter.

LoopNet has a nice picture of the building and says it sports 9600 sq feet of warehouse space and 3700 sq feet of offices. Interestingly it doesn't say how big the lot is, but it's not small.

(Hat tip to commenter Gypsie)

This Red Roof Inn was kind of at the corner of Berryhill Road, Saint Andrews Road and I-26. Technically the old Steak & Ale is more exactly at the corner, but anyway it was convienient to all of those.

I don't know if this closure is due to the ongoing I-26 roadwork, but that did take down the adjacent nightclub building at 14 Berryhill Road.

I have seen a number of motels torn down now, and it seems at some point, you're always going to see a lot of mattresses about, but I think this is the first time I've seen that many toilets.

(Hat tip to commenter Arthur P)

UPDATE 24 May 2024 -- Gone!

In keeping with yesterday's theme, here's another Pitt Stop closing. This one is at I-26 exit 119 at the intersection with US-176. This whole strip is closed now, but over the years has acted as a mini-travel-plaza, with gas, a convenience store (possibly with trucker showers), and attached restaurants. The restaurants have included Maggie May's and Nathan's, and the gas pumps have been branded first as Exxon and in the end as Shell.

There appears to be some road-work ongoing on Rolling Meadows Lane, as you can see from several of the pictures. I'm not sure if that's what drove this closing, or it is just coincidental (certainly the location was not robust, at least for restaurants).

UPDATE 21 February 2024 -- In fact the roadwork is taking over this space, and Rolling Meadows Lane is now completely closed:

Pretty much placeholder pictures, as I just did a drive-by when I should have stopped, but this Waffle House is apparently undergoing the same upfit as a number of other midlands locations. It should be back in a few months, still looking like a Waffle House...

(Hat tip to commenter Tom)

UPDATE 9 October 2023 -- Still in progress:

UPDATE 26 June 2024 -- Open again:

I think I had only a vague idea that this Quincy's location existed while it was open, even though I really liked the chain -- in fact I used to keep a promo brochure with all of their locations in my glove compartment so I would have a sure thing on business travel. Generally though, we went to the one on Two Notch, and rarely got to this part of town.

I'm not sure when it closed and became a San Jose, but it was presumably while I was living out of town, so I've just guessed "1990s" in the title. They haven't changed the distinctive look of the building, though the murals are nice.

This building, a former Lawyer Lisa office (she moved in 2022), and several other things (click the address tag below) is not long for the world now. I presume it will go as part of the I-26 construction project, but for whatever reason, it is already half torn down internally. What I can't speculate about is why anyone would would have tacked up U-Haul Storage sliding doors on the left side, or what the white board notations on the front mean.

Lawyer Lisa continues in business at several other locations, most notably 5175 Sunset Boulevard.

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Here's another Jamil Road vacancy due to the ongoing/upcoming/never-ending Interstate work on I-26.

Lanier has moved to 267 Riverchase way in Lexington on what appears to be an I-20 frontage road west of the river and before the US-378 exit.

(Hat tip to commenter Gypsie)