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  • January-February 2012

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Best of Columbia 2012

Photography by Jeff Amberg

Columbians have spoken and once again picked the best businesses in our city! Readers have voted on everything from the best places to eat pizza and fried chicken to the best locations to find children’s shoes or to see a movie. The next few pages will serve as a guide to the city from those who know it best – people like you.

This is your city, your magazine, and these are your choices for the best of Columbia. See who won in this year’s categories and help us celebrate these wonderful businesses that make Columbia a great place to live!  Names with a * are members of our Hall of Fame, meaning that they’ve been named the Best of Columbia for five or more years.

FOOD

Best Appetizer
Bonefish Grill*

Best Bakery
Tiffany’s*

Best Barbecue
Hudson’s Smokehouse*

Best Biscuits
Bojangles’*

Best Boiled Peanuts
Cromer’s P-Nuts, Inc.*

Best Chicken Salad
The Gourmet Shop*

Best Cookie
Insomnia Cookies

Best Dessert
Nonnah’s*

Best Doughnuts
Krispy Kreme*

Best French Fries
Five Guys Burgers and Fries*

Best Fried Chicken
Zesto*

Best Grits
Blue Marlin*

Best Hamburger
Five Guys Burgers and Fries*

Best Ice Cream
Marble Slab Creamery*

Best Iced Tea
Bojangles’*

Best Milkshake
Rush’s*

Best Pizza
Za’s*

Best Ribs
Hudson’s Smokehouse*

Best Salad
California Dreaming*

Best Sandwich
Groucho’s*

Best Steak
Ruth’s Chris Steak House

Best Wings
Wild Wing Café

RESTAURANTS

Best Bang for the Buck
Moe’s

Best Business Lunch
Motor Supply Company

Best Chinese Restaurant
Miyo’s*

Best Coffee House
Starbucks*

Best Family Restaurant
Lizard’s Thicket*

Best Fast Food
Rush’s*

Best Fine Dining Restaurant
Dianne’s on Devine*

Best Greek Restaurant
Devine Foods

Best Healthy Restaurant
Zoe’s Kitchen

Best Italian Restaurant
Villa Tronco*

Best Japanese Restaurant
Miyabi Japanese Steakhouse

Best Mexican Restaurant
Eric’s San José*

Best New Restaurant
Rosso Trattoria Italia

Best Outdoor Dining
Carolina Ale House

Best Restaurant in Columbia
Mr. Friendly’s*

Best Restaurant in Irmo
Catch 22*

Best Restaurant in Lexington
Travinia Italian Kitchen*

Best Restaurant in the Northeast
Solstice

Best Restaurant in West Columbia/Cayce
Terra

Best Romantic Dinner
Al’s Upstairs Italian Restaurant*

Best Seafood Restaurant
Blue Marlin*

Best Sunday Brunch
DiPrato’s

Best Sushi Restaurant
Inakaya

Best Thai Restaurant
Mai Thai Cuisine

Best Wait Staff
Mr. Friendly’s*

Best Wine Menu
Gervais & Vine*

 

Emma Marie Rowland, 6, daughter of Bumble Boutique owners Melissa and Aaron Rowland, is stuffed with pride over her parents’ store winning Best Children’s Clothing Store. Photography by Jeff Amberg.

RETAIL

Best Antique Store
Meeting Street Interiors*

Best Appliance Store
Jeffers McGill*

Best Athletic Wear Store
Todd & Moore*

Best Bicycle Specialty Store
Outspokin’*

Best Bookstore
Barnes & Noble*

Best Bridal Wear Store
Jo-Lin’s Bridal

Best Children’s Clothing Store
Bumble Boutique

Best Children’s Shoe Store
Tootsies*

Best Clothing Consignment Shop
Revente*

Best Fashion Accessory Store
Just the Thing*

Best Flooring/Floor Covering Store
Redd Flooring and Design Center

Best Florist
Rosewood Florist*

Best Frame Shop
The Frame Shop

Best Furniture Consignment Shop
Consignment 1st

Best Gamecock Store
Jewelry Warehouse

Best Gardening Store
Woodley’s Garden Center*

Best Gift Store
Gibson’s on Devine

Best Glass Store
Ace Glass*

Best Home Furnishings Store
Strobler Home Furnishings

Best Jewelry Store
Sylvan and DuBose

Best Kitchen Store
Mary & Martha’s

Best Lighting Store
The Lite House*

Best Local Art Store
City Art*

Best Mattress Store
Best Mattress*

Best Men’s Clothing Store
Brittons

Best Men’s Formal Wear Store
Granger Owings

Best Men’s Shoe Store
Granger Owings

Best Office Furnishings Store
McWaters

Best Office Supplies
Staples*

Best Outdoor Store
The Backpacker

Best Pet Boutique
Pupcakes Pet Boutique

Best Running Specialty Store
Strictly Running

Best Shopping Venue
Columbiana Centre*

Best Sporting Goods Store
Todd & Moore*

Best Supermarket
Publix*

Best Toy Store
Be Beep A Toy Store*

Best Vision Wear
20/20 Vision

Best Wallpaper/ Wall Covering Store
Wallpaper Additions*

Best Wine Shop
Total Wine & More*

Best Women’s Clothing Store
Round Robin*

Best Women’s Evening Wear Store
Coplon’s*

Best Women’s Shoe Store
Kicks*

HOME

Best Apartment Complex
Hampton Greene

Best Assisted Living Facility
Still Hopes Episcopal Retirement Community*

Best Condominiums
Adesso

Best Home Remodeler
Remodeling Services Unlimited

Best Home Builder
Vesta Builders

Best New Home Community
Saluda River Club

Best Retirement Community
Still Hopes Episcopal Retirement Community*

RECREATION

Best Boat Dealer
Mid-Carolina Marine*

Best Exercise Facility
YMCA

Best Golf Course
Oak Hills Golf Club

Best Place for a Kid’s Birthday Party
Monkey Joe’s

Heyward Brabham, owner of Brabham Fence Company, will go to any extreme to announce his win for Best Fence Company. Photography by Jeff Amberg.

SERVICE

Best Auto Repair Company
Bob Andrews Motors

Best Car Rental Agency
Enterprise Rent-A-Car*

Best Car Wash
Frank’s Car Wash*

Best Carpet Cleaner
Whitehall Carpet Cleaners

Best Caterer
Southern Way Catering*

Best Chimney Sweep
Top Hat Sweepers*

Best Commercial Interior Designer
Pulliam-Morris Interiors

Best Commercial Real Estate Company
Grubb & Ellis / Wilson Kibler

Best Doggie Day Care
Westcott Acres Luxury Pet Resort

Best Dry Cleaner
Tripp’s Fine Cleaners*

Best Embroiderer
South Carolina Embroidery*

Best Event Venue
701 Whaley

Best Facial
Urban Nirvana*

Best Fence Company
Brabham Fence Company*

Best Furniture Refinisher
Colonial Woodworks*

Best Hair Salon
Shear Xpectations

Best Hardscape Company
Ducksback

Best Heating/Air Service
2nd Wind HVAC*

Best Insurance Agency
State Farm*

Best Insurance Agent
John Brigman

Best Landscape Company
Hay Hill Services

Best Limo Company
Imperial Transportation Services

Best Lodging
Hampton Inn on Gervais

Best Massage
Urban Nirvana*

Best Modeling Agency
Millie Lewis*

Best Moving Company
Two Men and A Truck*

Best Nail Salon
Soak

Best Pest Control Service
Home Pest Control

Best Pet Grooming
Westcott Acres Luxury Pet Resort

Best Plumbing Company
Meetze Plumbing

Best Pool Company
Griffin Pools & Spa

Best Real Estate Agent
Jimmy Derrick, Coldwell Banker United, Realtors®

Best Residential Interior Designer
Ford Boyd Interiors*

Best Residential Real Estate Agency
Coldwell Banker United, Realtors®*

Best Staffing Agency
Roper Staffing

Best Tanning Salon
Beaches Tanning Salon

Best Travel Agency
Forest Lake Travel*

Best Wedding Venue
Millstone at Adam’s Pond

MEDIA AND ENTERTAINMENT

Best Art Gallery
Columbia Museum of Art*

Best Live Theatre
Trustus Theatre*

Best Movie Theater
Columbiana Grande*

Best Museum
EdVenture

Best Radio Personality
Jonathon Rush*

Best Radio Station
97.5 WCOS

Best TV Personality
Ben Tanner

Best TV Station
WIS-TV*

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