Indoors and out, by foot or by bike, Greenville is full of surprises
Eat
American Grocery Restaurant Ditching big-city careers in Hollywood and the Big Apple, Joe and Darlene Clarke returned home to South Carolina to open this cozy restaurant, where Joe helms the kitchen and Darlene runs the wine program. The menu changes weekly (even daily), depending on what the Clarkes’ army of farmers bring in, but rabbit and mapleglazed pork belly are sure bets and nearly always on hand. Don’t miss the Pig on the Porch, a craft cocktail made with house-infused bacon bourbon and Blenheim ginger ale and garnished with a homemade pork rind. 732 S. Main St.
The Bohemian After a Saturday night on the town, the Bohemian, in Greenville’s hip North Main neighborhood, is a favorite for its leisurely Sunday brunch. The food is hearty, from hand-battered French toast made with fresh ciabatta to the greasy-good Trucker’s Special (with made from-scratch biscuits and gravy). The build-your-own Bloody Mary bar is the best hangover balm in town. 2B W. Stone Ave.
The Lazy Goat Weather permitting, it’s a good bet the riverfront patio at this Mediterranean-style eatery will be packed. But not to worry: Chef Vicky Moore’s tapas are just as enjoyable inside. House specialties include Moroccan lamb, pistachio-dusted fried goat cheese, truffled pommesfrites with chipotle ketchup, and superb sangria. 170 River Place
OJ’s Diner The lunch line of regulars clues you in that this soul-food institution isn’t your average meat-and-three. The fried chicken is hard to top, but diners in the know save room for sweet potato cobbler. The only downside? It’s closed on weekends. 907 Pendleton St.; 864-235-2539
Smokin’ Stokes As at any self-respecting barbecue joint, there are no paper menus here, just chalkboards above the cash register. Though the original owners sold the place a few years back, the legendary Cheerwine BBQ sauce remains. You can’t go wrong with the pork platter, but he barbecue-smothered spuds are like a whole new food group. 1622 Augusta St.
Soby’s When Carl Sobocinski opened his eatery in 1997 in a onetime shoe store, nobody gave it much of a shot. Main Street was still more drive-through than destination. But residents have since learned not to underestimate Sobocinski, who now has a stake in five area restaurants, and Soby’s has become the nexus of Greenville’s burgeoning food scene. Chef Shaun Garcia serves contemporary Southern cuisine, such as his spicy New Orleans–meets–Charleston version of shrimp and grits, and the buttermilk drop biscuits are downright addictive. 207 S. Main St.
Drink
Addy’s Dutch Café If you’re after a quiet spot to enjoy drinks with friends, you can’t do better than Addy’s. Amsterdam native Addy Sulley serves stout foreign brews and flavorful Dutch fare at his laid-back bar and restaurant off Main. House specials include Wednesday-night schnitzel and way-better-than-it-sounds mustard soup. 17 E. Coffee St; 864-232-2339
Smiley’s Acoustic Café At this West End watering hole, you can find everyone from college students to the doctor-lawyer set enjoying nightly live shows, which offer plenty of good bluegrass, jazz, and blues. Stop in on a Thursday night for one of Smiley’s parking-lot pig pickin’s. 111 Augusta St.
Trappe Door Australian snowboarder turned Greenville restaurateur Josh Beeby opened this Belgian-inspired pub in the basement under his first venture, Barley’s Taproom & Pizzeria. Exposed-wood ceilings, warm red walls, and comfortable booths invite patrons to linger over classic moules frites and a pint (or two) of roughly 160 different Belgian brews. If you’re feeling adventurous, try a sour lambic from the Brussels-based brewery Cantillon. 23 W. Washington St.
Sleep
Hampton Inn & Suites at RiverPlace The boutique hotel craze has yet to hit Greenville, but the Hampton Inn makes a more-than-adequate substitute, with comfortably appointed rooms and a friendly staff, and it’s an easy walk from downtown attractions. Request a studio suite with a balcony for killer views of the Reedy River. 171 RiverPlace
Westin Poinsett For years, the Upstate’s only four-diamond hotel sat vacant. But it reopened in 2000 following a multimillion-dollar face-lift that restored it to its 1920s grandeur, right down to the ornate ballrooms and marbled lobby. Years later, it played host to then-candidate Barack Obama. 120 S. Main St.
Shop
The Community Tap Greenville transplants Ed Buffington and Mike Okupinski were just a couple of enthusiastic beer drinkers before chucking their nine-to-fives to open this boutique beer and wine emporium. Although their initial focus was American craft beer (they carry more than 300 labels), after a visit from California vintner Dan Donahoe, the duo became unlikely national trendsetters with the first retail space in the country to offer wine by the growler. 205 Wade Hampton Blvd.
Horizon Records Say you’re looking for “Cissy Strut” by the iconic New Orleans funk band the Meters on vinyl. Chances are Gene Berger has it. Berger opened his independent record shop in 1975, and even in the era of digital music he has managed to thrive, thanks to a carefully curated inventory and the kind of personal attention you don’t find on iTunes. There’s even a classical room, and for serious crate diggers, the Vinyl Vault (housed in unused office space) is the place to uncover all kinds of obscure gems. 2A W. Stone Ave.
Knack Littered with paint cans, sanding blocks, brushes, bits of hardware, and colorful furniture in various stages of completion, Barb Blair’s design studio has orders pouring in from across the country. Blair rescues furniture destined for the trash heap and gives the vintage pieces sleek modern makeovers. Schedule an appointment to commission a custom creation, or browse her inventory locally at Antiques on Augusta. 1288 Pendleton St.
Pedal Chic Greenville is known as a bicycling town (it’s home to the USA Cycling Pro Championships), so no surprise it has more than a few great bike shops. But Pedal Chic is the only female-focused bike boutique in the Southeast. Owner Robin Bylenga stocks athletic apparel you won’t find in big-box stores and high-end bicycle brands like the Britainbased Pashley—the Bentley of bikes. And yes, she’s got models for guys, too. 651B S. Main St.
Pendleton Street Arts District A relic from the city’s textile past, this four-block district in West Greenville was once a crumbling mill village. It’s now home to more than thirty local artists and a slew of galleries. Sculptors, painters, photographers, and potters fill formerly vacant storefronts, where you can pick up everything from wearable works of art from Lily Pottery (think one-of-a-kind ceramic rings, pendants, and earrings) to vivid acrylics by painter Dabney Mahanes.
Rush Wilson Ltd. This family-run menswear shop has outfitted four generations of well-dressed Greenville businessmen, and its old-school customer service hasn’t changed a lick. The shop still does in-home and in-office fittings for custom suits and shirts, and stocks local brands like Southern Tide and F. A. MacCluer, the 155-year-old shirt company headquartered in nearby Belton. 23 W. North St.
Saturday Market From May through October, neat rows of white tents overflowing with seasonal bounty line Main Street on Saturday mornings. Devotees arrive early to ensure their favorite vendors don’t sell out. But the market is more than a onestop shop for farm-fresh fruits and veggies. Shoppers swap recipes, exchange gardening tips, and take in cooking demos by local chefs.
See & Do
BMW Performance Driving School This isn’t some glorified car lot. At BMW’s North American manufacturing headquarters, just outside Greenville, you can channel your inner NASCAR driver and hit the track. Learn to slalom, drift, andbrake from racing pros, and you don’t even have to own a BMW to sign up. Did we mention you get to drive really fast? 1155 Hwy. 101 S., Greer
Bob Jones University Museum & Gallery A small fundamentalist Christian university in the foothills of South Carolina may not exactly be where you’d expect to find one of the country’s preeminent collections of European Old Master paintings. But from the late 1940s to the early ’80s, the museum’s founder, Bob Jones, Jr., traveled the globe amassing a collection of more than 400 works by artists such as Rubens, Botticelli, and Tintoretto. 1700 Wade Hampton Blvd.
Falls Park on the Reedy River Not many cities can claim a natural fifty-foot waterfall smack in the middle of downtown, but less than a decade ago many residents didn’t even know it existed. A push toremove the eyesore of a bridge that obscured the falls and clean up the surrounding green space became a symbol for downtown Greenville's revival. Today, the resulting park is an outdoor gym, a picnic spot, an open-air performance venue, an art studio, and a point of pride for locals. Stroll the new Liberty Bridge, the only single-suspension bridge in the United States, for unbeatable views of the falls. 601 S. Main St.
The Handlebar Musically, Greenville has a way to go before rivaling nearby meccas Athens and Asheville, but you wouldn’t know it at the Handlebar. Housed in a revamped auto-body shop on the edge of downtown, the intimate venue has developed
a reputation as an incubator for bands on the brink. National acts such as Sugarland and the Zac Brown Band played here just before making it big. 304 E. Stone Ave.
The Peace Center Since its first curtain call in 1990, the Peace Center has anchored downtown’s revitalization. The theater regularly pulls in first-run Broadway shows, and as a testament to Greenville’s dynamic arts community, programmers aren’t afraid to take a few risks. Last year, the controversial coming-of-age musical Spring Awakening debuted to a packed house. 300 S. Main St.
Swamp Rabbit Tram Trail Get outside and experience Greenville like a native—on a bike. The Swamp Rabbit is a brand-new 13.5-mile biking/walking trail that follows the Reedy River from downtown to Travelers Rest. The terrain is fairly mild, but newbies can check out Reedy Rides for guided tours. At the end of the trail, refuel and talk shop with other bikers on the deck at the Café @ Williams Hardware Store.
by ELIZABETH HUTCHINSON for Garden & Gun Magazine for the Aug/Sept. 2011 issue
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