OT: Best eats in and around Columbia

I like Dano's the best for pizza. Pawley's is easily the best for burgers.

Wings: Publick House
Peanuts: Salty Nut

Best Burger: Rockaway's Pimiento Cheese Burger
Best Philly: N/A
Best Pizza: Pizza Man
Best Steak: Oak Table Ribeye
Best Sandwich: Gourmet Shop
Best BBQ: Doc's BBQ
Best Seafood: Terra, maybe, or Blue Marlin
Best Mexican: Tienda Jasmine

Additional categories

Best Fried Chicken: Mac's on Main or Drake's Duck-In
Best Breakfast: Cafe Strudel
Best Wings: 2 Fat 2 Fly
Best Take-Out: Basil
Best Greek: Devine Foods
Best Sushi: Camon
Best Brewery: Hunter-Gatherer
Best Cheap Eats: Taco nite at The Whig
Best Late Nite: Nitecaps bar menu

EDIT: I also couldn't put it in the BBQ category b/c they only serve sandwiches, but The Southern Belly is awesome. Tried it last time I was in town and came away deeply impressed.

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Don't take this as a flame.... Im serious.

I've been to Cola 3 times, and always tailgated with some Carolina friends, but have never been into town there, because the stadium is not in town, and my trips there have always been day trips from Athens.

I've read multiple accounts of how awesome Columbia is and I just haven't seen it, because I've only done the tailgate scene.

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At least you're aware that there's a metropolitan area of nearly 750k that borders the stadium... every other visiting fan seems to think we go to class in the warehouses at the north end of the stadium. I always get great feedback from visiting friends whom I take out in Columbia before and after the games when I'm up there.

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The mayor and the AD should try to market and promote the cool parts of Cola with some kind of trolley or street car system directly connecting WBS, that allows visitors convenient access to both. So you can park in whatever parking spot you were unlucky enough to pay $25 for in the general area of the stadium, and you can trolley back and forth to Cola as a visitor who doesn't necessarily know how to get around, and feel safe and have fun.

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There are some people who have long agitated for a railcar system or at least an extended footbridge of sorts to the stadium from campus. I wouldn't hold my breath. USC and the city don't have great town-gown relations, and that's a project that requires a special sort of dual leadership.

But I wholly agree w/ you.

What about a glorified ski-lift elevated trolley thing, that would be the coolest thing in college football...

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I think the stadium is too far for a footbridge to work (and its uphill to campus from the stadium) and theres nothing going on around the stadium without football to warrant a rail system.

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I'm thinking something along the lines of what connects those two old dorms near Wheeler Hill to campus. It could start somewhere from Rosewood and end at the fairgrounds... perhaps add some parking in a lot near where the bridge begins. Land is relatively cheap in that part of Rosewood.

They also need footbridges over Shop Road. Those are more likely to come to fruition after the stadium grounds renovations next summer.

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I think expanding on the systems that bus students from campus to include non-students/tailgaters from the CLA to include campus as a destination would be smart and feasible.

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This makes too much sense. Will probably take 15 more years to implement.

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I'm thinking something along the lines of what connects those two old dorms near Wheeler Hill to campus. It could start somewhere from Rosewood and end at the fairgrounds... perhaps add some parking in a lot near where the bridge begins. Land is relatively cheap in that part of Rosewood.

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Yea I'm assuming you're talking about Bates and Bates West. I lived in South Quad one year which is just on the other side of the bridge and it was still a hike to get up to Gambrell. Literally, its up hill and I hated it

Ideally if a footbridge was built it would let out around Jones or the Colosseum because there already the underground path under Assembly and from there its a straight shot to the Horseshoe.

When I think about that though the walk from the CLA to campus isn't that bad, especially if you go under Assembly, so really they just need buses picking up from the stadium before the game. Pretty sure its only one way now

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They also need footbridges over Shop Road. Those are more likely to come to fruition after the stadium grounds renovations next summer.

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One over Shop, one over George Rogers and one over Bluff would be awesome. I've seen some sketches of George Rogers being lowered to allow foot traffic to flow from the fair grounds that looked really cool, but that'll never happen

IMO Best Mexican: is Casa Lindas near Richland Mall

Best Chinese: is Miyos

I like the burger choices so far, but if I were to add one, I would go with the chili-cheeseburger from Rush's

Best Restaurant: Mr. Friendly's

Have to change my nomination for best pizza. I'll say Labrasca's has the best pizza (that I've had). If I had to go out to get pizza that's where I would choose.

Thank you for this, this list will be very helpful in a month when I start law school

On a slightly side subject, what are some of the better bars in Columbia / near campus?

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Shealy's BBQ is really good, but it's outside of the Columbia limits.

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Shealy's is for fat people who want to pig-out. The locals don't eat there, they eat at Jackie Hite's. Jackie still does his BBQ over an open hickory fire. Tommy Shealy changed to gas as soon as his Dad died.

Hudson's BBQ in Lexington is very good.

I needed this thread though. I've sort of gotten out-of-touch with the best chow places in Columbia over the years.

We ate at Motor Supply a couple of weeks ago before we went to the beach and I thought it was overrated and over-priced.