Return of the Mack’s: Longtime Columbia restaurant wins The State’s Hot Dog Bracket
There is a time machine at 1809 Laurel St. in Columbia.
It’s called Mack’s Cash Grocery.
Stepping into the unassuming restaurant during the lunch rush on a weekday is like entering a Columbia that once was, a place where firefighters and lawyers and hospital orderlies and lobbyists and utility linemen and people young and old line up, together, and pass over a few dollars in exchange for a meal fresh off a sizzling flattop grill.
It’s the kind off place that has those ancient Coca-Cola menu boards, the ones with the little black letters and numbers that fit in the slots, that have been hanging up for decades. Along the wood-paneled walls there are photos of NASCAR heroes — your daddy’s NASCAR, not today’s version — and a painting of University of South Carolina quarterback Mike Hold taunting Clemson’s William Perry in the 1984 rivalry game.
The strip of floor in front of the cash register has worn through three layers of tile, as so many customers have lined up there for onion rings, fried chicken sandwiches and other goodies in the nearly 50 years since Mack’s has been in its current building.
But Mack’s is more than a humble greasy spoon across the street from the city’s main fire station. For the last two years, it also has been a hall of champions for readers of The State.
Mack’s Cash Grocery recently captured the crown in The State’s 2022 Hot Dog Bracket, outlasting 15 other Midlands hot dog spots for the win. Mack’s demonstrably won the final round of voting, grabbing 70% of readers’ votes in a showdown with second-place finisher Zesto.
It’s the second time in less than a year that Mack’s has won a bracket contest from The State. Last August, readers declared Mack’s had the best burgers in the capital city.
Mack’s manager Susan Looney, who has been with the restaurant for 27 years, said she was appreciative that readers voted Mack’s to the top of the hot dog mountain.
“It is really exciting,” she said. “It means a lot when people think of us that way. ... It’s very touching.”
Mack’s serves the classic version of a Southern hot dog: warm, soft bun, a beef and pork wienie, chili, mustard and onions. Some people add coleslaw. (Be sure to grab a few extra napkins.) The chili is made fresh in-house, and the same recipe has been used for more than 50 years. Looney said Mack’s head cook, April Iriel, is responsible for making the chili, and Looney makes the coleslaw herself.
Looney said the consistency the restaurant offers — its menu has been basically the same since the earth cooled — is part of what keeps customers coming back.
“We try so hard, even with COVID and everything going on, not to change anything,” the manager said.
Customer Carol Salguero recently grabbed a to-go lunch order at Mack’s and said she visits the restaurant often after her husband recommended it as one of his favorites. She admitted the burgers are her preferred offering at the Laurel Street joint, but she had high praise for the hot dogs, as well.
“It’s amazing,” Salguero said, echoing the votes of State readers across bracket contests for the last two years.
As it turns out, there’s a reason all those customers have worn out three layers of flooring at Mack’s as they’ve lined up for dogs and burgers for decades.
Some things are worth waiting for.
This story was originally published May 26, 2022 at 5:00 AM.
