National chain Whataburger opening first Columbia restaurant soon. Here’s when and where

Finally, national chain Whataburger will open its first restaurant in Columbia on Monday.

Ashley Adams is the operating partner and 75 people have been employed at the 202 Bridgeberry Lane location. It is just off the Killian Road exit of I-77.

Adams was previously an operating partner for the company in Texas and worked for Walmart and Xerox, according to RocketReach..

The first two guests in the drive-thru lane at 9:30 a.m. Monday and the first in line for the dining room will receive free Whataburger for a year.

The next 100 customers will get Whataburger swag, the company said in a news release.

Veterans and active-duty military in uniform or with ID can get a free 16-ounce hot or iced coffee inside.

A Whataburger opened in Irmo in September.

So far, the Texas-based chain — not to be confused with locally owned What-A-Burger — has opened locations in Greenville, Anderson, Boiling Springs, and Mauldin since July.

Still to come this year is a restaurant at 888 South Lake Drive in Lexington.

The company has announced that in 2025 it will build restaurants at 5648 Calhoun Memorial Parkway, Easley (spring) and 1537 E. Main St., Duncan (summer).

This story was originally published November 8, 2024 at 6:00 AM.