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Lost Restaurants of Greenville, SC

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Photo by @southerntide_greenville

Hi Greenville, Grace here. 👋 Greenville has been home to many classic restaurants over the decades, some of them “lost” or seemingly forgotten about. John Nolan, founder of Greenville History Tours, recently released his new book Lost Restaurants of Greenville + as fans of Greenville history, we had to grab a copy.

lost restaurants of greenville

The cover of John Nolan’s book, Lost Restaurants of Greenville

The book is divided into four parts:

1900-45: Early Eateries

1945-70: Diners, Drive-Ins, and Destinations

1970-90: Changes in and out of Downtown

1990-2015: Foundations for a Modern Culinary Cuisine

Each part features a handful of Greenville’s “lost” restaurants that opened up during that particular time period, complete with historical photos, background on the owners, and descriptions of foods served.

Our restaurants are just one of the many things that make Greenville great, and John Nolan uses his book to make sure many of Greenville’s “lost” restaurants are remembered whether you’ve lived in Greenville your whole life and remember/dined at many of them, or if you’re like me + didn’t grow up here but enjoyed the fun history lesson this book provides.

You can grab a copy of John Nolan’s book here or locally at the Pickwick Pharmacy and Soda Fountain. You can also check out Greenville History Tours for more great Greenville history content.

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