Columbia native brings location of his Southern buffet back to his hometown

Columbia native Bart McKinney moved to Waycross, Georgia years ago for a job with Walmart. That’s where he later opened B Mac’s, his Southern buffet restaurant.

He’s coming back to his hometown to open a second B Mac’s location at the Columbiana Station shopping center in Harbison, which he expects to open in July.

McKinney is looking forward to bringing his buffet concept home to the city where much of his family still lives. The new location at 1230 Bower Parkway is not far from the Bi-Lo where he once worked.

The restaurant joins a variety of locally rooted eateries in the shopping center anchored by the Regal Columbiana Grande cinema. The stretch of the sprawling complex that sits along Bower Parkway is already home to Tsunami, Brothers & Beer, Kiki’s Chicken and Waffles, and the British Bulldog Pub, in addition to an outpost of the Bonefish Grill chain.

Harbison has long been one of the Columbia area’s most popular shopping destinations. The stretch of Harbison Boulevard near its intersection with Bower Parkway sees an average of 19,600 vehicles per day, according to state Department of Transportation data.

A few items planned to be on the buffet menu at the new B Mac’s are fried and baked chicken, mashed potatoes, mac and cheese, ice cream and cobbler. While some items are consistent, each day has a different menu. Friday, for example, will have a selection of seafood including crab, fried fish and oysters, which are not available other days in the week.

Unlike the Waycross location, the Columbia B Mac’s will also have menu items that can be ordered to the table, including hand-cut steaks and burgers. The new kitchen is much larger than the original restaurant’s, allowing for more variety in service, McKinney said.

He previously tried to expand his buffet into northern Florida, opening locations in Callahan and northern Jacksonville. Both of those restaurants have since closed.

Staffing issues plagued both expansion locations. After going through six managers in four months, McKinney decided not to renew the lease for the Callahan location. The Jacksonville location had both poor management and issues with the building, McKinney said.

On the other hand, the Waycross location has more long-term employees, including some who have been with the restaurant since it opened. As a result, it has attracted more consistent customers, McKinney said.

“Whenever they come in, they know who’s waiting on them. They know what they get. They know what the food’s gonna be like,” McKinney said. “And nine times out of 10, they’re gonna deal with the same server at nighttime that they dealt with in the morning.”

Learning from the unsuccessful Florida locations, McKinney says he will work full-time at the new restaurant for the first three months, and he will make sure to go with his gut when hiring new employees.

“If I have to work multiple positions until I get the right person, that’s what I need to do,” McKinney said.

Additionally, an assistant manager from B Mac’s Waycross restaurant is moving to Columbia to become the kitchen manager at the new location.

B Mac’s could expand more in the future, but for the moment, McKinney said he’s focused on ensuring the Columbia location is successful.

“I’m gonna take it slow,” McKinney said. “Because of the issues that I had in North Florida and Callahan, I want to make sure that this one is running right.”

Other new additions for the Columbia location will include hosting parties and offering catering and online ordering.

McKinney said he expects much higher demand in Columbia, compared to the much smaller town of Waycross. He noted that, while there are buffets around Columbia, there are not many serving Southern cuisine. The food at B Mac’s is comparable to Carolina Buffet, near the Columbia Metropolitan Airport, or Lizard’s Thicket, if the restaurant had a buffet, McKinney said.

The restaurant is set to be open every day except Sunday, and the buffet menu will change daily. Hours will be 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Monday-Thursday, and 7 a.m.-10 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays.

This story was originally published June 27, 2025 at 5:00 AM.