Columbia Closings   What's not in Columbia anymore

It appears that the Zaxby's out past Aldi on Garners Ferry Road is closed for some sort of remodeling. There are no details on the sign, but the sign is still branded Zaxby's, so I guess they plan to re-open in due course.

(Hat tip to commenter Badger)

The Post & Courier reports that Jay's liquor, beer & wine licenses were revoked on 6 May, so I'm using that date for the closing.

This place had apparently been on the edge for a while as there had been a number of incidents, such as a shooting on 29 March as reported on WIS.

Lots of businesses have come and gone in this long depot building, but I don't see that I have specifically done any postings on Suite D, and I can't recall was was here before. Anyway, its the Vista so I'm sure something new will be in before long.

(Hat tip to commenter badger)

I actually thought this place was closed several months ago because I never saw any cars there, and I had to ride around the parking lot to verify it was open. That was then & this is now, I guess...

Since I rarely watch TV or listen to the radio anymore, I don't have any idea what the distinguishing feature for this chain was, or why I would pick it over Five Guys on the high-end or McDonalds on the low end. In the event, perhaps I was not alone.

Certainly all in all, I would much rather still have Pizzeria Uno on this spot.

The State has the story.

(Hat tip to commenter Brian)

This Lizard's Thicket, in a former Shoney's building on Forest Drive is closed for renovations. The chain just redid one in Lexington as well, so perhaps they are looking to freshen up several sites. Of course, to my memory, the one on Beltline was updated and nonetheless closed.

I last at at this one on my niece's birthday last December, and it was fine: Your typical Lizard's experience. I don't recall noticing anything particularly wrong with the physical plant, but who knows what kind of issues there might be behind the counters.

I believe I ate at Uncle Mikey's once several years ago, possibly after Pastaria 811 closed and I was looking for a new second go-to at the beach. In the event, I thought it was just OK, perhaps because there was live entertainment that night which I hadn't expected, and the place was a bit noisy. After the owner retired and sold the place, it was set to drop the "Uncle" and just become Mikey's Pizzeria, something I am unsure ever actually happened: I see some "coming soon" posts, but no actual reviews. At any rate, if it did happen, it didn't last too long and the building is now for sale.

In the meantime, it appears there is a possibility that the original owner will come out of retirement and open a spot by Smuggler's Deli on the bypass.

WBTW had the closing story:

I had my goto Starbucks coffee: The Grande Latte many times at Harbison Court during my peak coffee years, but not at this store. Once upon a time, the plaza was home to Barnes & Noble, and I would get my fix hanging out there in that long vanished era where closing time was 11pm.

This particular Starbucks I think I only stopped at once, some years ago. As commenter, Mitch notes, the parking lot here is not well designed and the front area where the store was is a particular hassle as I found once more taking these pictures.

The closure does not leave Harbison 'buckless, as I believe there is still one in the Target down the road, and there are alternate options such as Panera. You can read the story in The State or Post & Courier

(Hat tip to commenter Andrew)

UPDATE 4 May 2026: Fix tag typo.

This little building on Shakespeare Road has been a number of restaurants over the years, several of which have featured here (some as 6301 Shakespeare, as there seems to be some confusion about the street address). This particular one had not, and seems to have gone in around 2011, and was gone by November of 2014 by which time it was Shakespeare Fish Market, which itself was gone by 2015.

Currently the building hosts a used car lot.

As I recall, there was some drama in starting up this place, Brunches had been on Knox Abbott Drive in the old Shrimper location, and there was some sort of ownership split, with the Knox Abbott location becoming Just Us Cafe and some of the team establishing The Original Brunches in the Terry's Diner location on Leaphart Road.

From Google reviews, it appears that The Original Brunches closed sometime in 2024.

UPDATE 21 April 2026: Found two more pictures.

Well here's an interesting case: The Island Bar & Grill closed while I was avoiding it, and a new place opened, and closed all before I noticed it due to staying away...

This corner slot in Village Shops has been a number of places over the years. One I recall specifically is Villa Katrina, a Mexican eatery which, I believe, still has a location in Myrtle Beach. Anyway, the Island Bar & Grill had been there a number of years, and was an OK local option for the most part with decent burgers and other bar food, and a nice deck when the weather wasn't sweltering. That gradually started to change in recent years, leading to a number of sub-par dining experiences to the point the the place finally got taken off the list when I went there with my college room-mate & his wife and they lacked half the ingredients for her order without ever mentioning that fact until plopping it, basically inedible, on the table in front of her. After a previous visit with esentially no service, that was the final straw. You can see similar experiences in the Google reviews.

Anyway, while I was avoiding it like the plague, the place apparently closed around Spring of 2025 (Hey Google! -- You obviously know the exact date for every review, what's with this "A Year Ago" stuff?), and re-opened as Pawleys Back Deck, something I did not know until I wondered about the lack of cars in the parking lot and went to take a look. The reviews for that operation are somewhat better, but they seem to have left business in an involuntary fashion at the end of March.

By the way, if you are looking at the plaza sign, Tuscany Bistro closed at least a year ago if not more and was replaced with a Fish Camp.

This place does not have a lot of google reviews, so it's hard to say when it closed, but judging by Google Streetview, probably around 2015. The building itself seemes to have been razed around 2020, and the lot is now empty, so it's too late to get your salmon fix.

These pictures come from April 2010.