Columbia’s original No Name Deli is moving locations. Here’s where it’s headed
Earlier this year, owners of Columbia’s No Name Deli, which has been a downtown fixture on Marion Street for nearly four decades, said they were exploring the possibility of moving amid plans for a major new apartment development in the Bull Street, Elmwood Avenue and Marion Street area where the restaurant is located.
Those plans for the deli to move are now going forward.
No Name Deli, which has been located at 2042 Marion St. for decades, will move to 1301 Laurel St., at the corner of Laurel and Sumter streets, co-owner Jon Sears told The State. Sears is hopeful that the move will happen before the end of the year. Mashburn Construction is already working on transforming the Laurel Street property for No Name, Sears said.
The original No Name location remains open, Sears noted, and will continue operating on Marion Street until the property on Laurel Street is ready.
“The plan is to get open [on Laurel Street] by the end of the year, if not a little later,” he said. “We are hoping for a pretty seamless transition. The goal would be, ideally, to close Marion Street on a Friday and open up on Monday at Laurel. Maybe it won’t be that simple; there might be a week of downtime, because we will be taking some of the old equipment and moving it over.”
The distance from the current Marion Street No Name Deli to the coming spot on Laurel Street is a half-mile. Sears said the staff from Marion Street will come over to the new Laurel Street digs.
Sears and business partner Chris Davis own No Name Deli, both the location in downtown Columbia and a location that opened last year in Forest Acres. Davis and Sears are familiar to observers of the Columbia restaurant scene, as they also own Hendrix on Main Street and Jake’s in Five Points, among other spots. The partners have purchased the Laurel Street property where No Name is moving, with the sale having closed last week, Sears said.
The deal also includes the properties addressed at 1905 Laurel St. and 1812 Sumter St., Sears said, with the Sumter Street parcel allowing for plentiful parking for the coming No Name location.
No Name Deli’s move comes as New York’s Astral Development is planning a large mixed-use apartment development at the corner of Elmwood and Bull. It would include 288 residential units and 25,000 square feet of retail space, as well as a pool, a dog park, a parking garage and other amenities. Astral Development purchased the current Marion Street property where No Name is back in September 2024, Richland County property records show.
There were talks that No Name Deli could have been a part of the retail component of the planned apartment development, Sears noted. However, he said the timing and logistics on the construction of the apartment project would have been a heavy lift as far as the deli was concerned.
Nevertheless, the restaurateur is supportive of the apartment development plans.
“I think the Astral Development plans are great for the neighborhood,” Sears said. “Getting hundreds of market-rate apartments in the area is great. I think it is going to be good and it will help out all the businesses around the Main Street area.”
No Name Deli has long been known for its sandwich menu, including its famous chicken salad and pimento cheese, as well as burgers, hot dogs, fries, BLTs and more. Sears was clear that the menu of the coming No Name at Laurel and Sumter will be the same as always.
“We might even just take that sandwich board [menu] and move it over,” Sears said, with a laugh. “We are not planning on making any changes to the menu.”
This story was originally published June 30, 2025 at 11:16 AM.
