Restaurants and bars in Columbia

[HowardRoarke]

These are places in or near downtown:

Miyo's for Thai/Asian (I think there's one on Forest Dr.), Dano's Pizza for NY style pizza on Rosewood (Pizza Man over there is pretty good, too, even Pop's in 5 Points is good), Yesterday's in 5 Points, Mac's on Main (Thur, Fri, and Sat nights-they have live blues and jazz, too), Wild Wings in The Vista is OK (regional chain), the Whig is a dive with decent food across from the state house (it's in the basement of an old bank building/now Ch. 19), not sure if ___ Mike's in the Vista is still open (next to Flying Saucer; they have/had great Philly food and pizza), Monterrey's Mexican food is pretty good (by Flying Saucer), and the Carolina Ale House in the Vista.

One gem in The Vista is the Mellow Mushroom on Gervais. There are 3 down here in this part of the South (small chain based out of Atlanta), and the one here is a great place. We hang out upstairs, usually, as there's a separate bar and two dining areas up there, in fact it's fairly quiet towards the back. I run with the Wed. night run club at Riverfront Park, and we head over to the Mushroom after a run once in a while (when folks can afford it). Food is outstanding (100% fresh ingredients), and most of their business is in specialty pizzas. Great beer selection, too, plus a full bar.

Another great dive with great food not far from downtown and near to the big stadium is the End Zone Grill on Rosewood.
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