Charleston-based restaurant heading to former Harper's location in Five Points
Home Team BBQ, a Charleston-based restaurant with three locations in that city, is moving into the old Harper’s location in Five Points, company officials confirmed Thursday.
The restaurant will feature lunch, dinner and brunch, along with full-service catering and to-go ordering for large parties.
Down the road, the restaurant may offer live music as well, the company said.
The Charleston stores feature casual, open and somewhat rustic dining areas. The downtown Charleston menu features tacos, salads and sandwiches as well as an array of smoked meats from pulled pork, brisket and turkey to chicken and ribs.
A half rack of ribs is advertised for $16.95 per platter, and a full rack for $24.95. A two-meat platter goes for $17.50 and three meat platter for $20.50.
The downtown restaurant advertises itself as “a great dinner spot for families in the evening, and a happening spot for late night drinks and grub as guests enjoy the music stylings of national and regional talent from the shipping container stage outside.”
The Charleston stores are located on West Ashley, Sullivan's Island and downtown. The company also has a restaurant in Aspen, Co.
A store representative said that over the next several months, crews will outfit the space, creating an atmosphere that resembles the chain's other restaurants, while adding some elements that will be unique to the Columbia store.
The restaurant will open this winter.
Home Team is the second announced tenant for the building, owned by Columbia’s John Scarborough. Harper’s left the building at Harden Street in May 2017 after serving steaks, barbecue and other American fare at the location for 27 years.
In December, Florence-based franchisees Jim and Brit Poston announced they would establish a Zaxby’s fast-food chicken restaurant at the site. But they said the restaurant would have required a drive-thru window, which required a special exception from Columbia’s Board of Zoning Appeals.
The exception was opposed by the Five Points Association, a merchants group, and some residents of neighborhoods adjacent to the entertainment district near the University of South Carolina. The board granted the special exception, but the decision was appealed by Five Points landowner and developer Richard Burts.
The Postons, who own 19 Zaxby’s in the Columbia area, later pulled out of the deal, saying they didn’t feel welcome.
Home Team seems like a better fit, based on what Zaxby’s opponents said they wanted. The restaurant will not serve fast food and won't have a drive-thru window, but it will have a certain Charlestonian panache.
"I'll think it will be a great addition to Five Points," Burts said. "They've got a great vibe. It will be a really good fit."
This story was originally published May 17, 2018 at 5:28 PM with the headline "Charleston-based restaurant heading to former Harper's location in Five Points."