Columbia’s first food hall will include a James Beard nominee. See who’s coming
Columbia’s first food hall now has a James Beard Award nominee on its roster of vendors.
Kiki’s Chicken and Waffles, the local soul food favorite that was a semifinalist in 2024 for one of the “Oscars of the food world,” is set to join Gather COLA. The food hall is expected to debut at the BullStreet development later this year, giving the city one of the trendy upscale food courts.
“Get ready for golden-fried chicken, fluffy waffles, and the kind of soulful flavor that’s made Kiki’s a Columbia favorite,” Gather posted to social media. “Fix your palates for Southern hospitality coming straight to the Bull Street courtyard and right onto your plate!”
Kiki’s already has two locations in Columbia. One is at 7001 Parklane Road, just off Two Notch Road on the Columbia Place Mall property. Another is in the Harbison area at the Columbiana Station shopping center, next to the Regal Columbiana Grande movie theater. Kiki’s also added a North Charleston location earlier this year.
The restaurant’s menu is centered around its titular combination of poultry and carbs, offering Belgian and red velvet waffle options. The menu also includes a range of other options that tend toward soul food and breakfast, including smothered pork chops, fish and grits, and barbecue salmon.
Kiki’s hasn’t described its offerings at the food hall yet.
Gather COLA food hall vendors so far
The addition continues Gather’s trend of including already popular local brands among its vendors. Late last month, Spicy Voo-Doo’s Big Easy Seafood became the third prominent Midlands food truck to take a spot, following behind barbecue purveyor Smoke It Up and Mexican mainstay Los Chicanos.
Gather has also announced Bull & Bread, a sandwich shop from the team at North Carolina’s The Half, and Cocobowlz, a smoothie shop emanating from the Upstate and specializing in sweet and elaborate bowl combinations. The food hall has also revealed one of its two planned bars, a cocktail joint named Remedy that is set to overlook an amphitheater.
Gather COLA is being constructed at the corner of Sabal and Freed streets, near the REI outdoor store and Segra Park baseball stadium. It comes from Cason Development, Greenville’s Four Oaks Property Group, and Hughes Development, lead developer for BullStreet. It’s set to include 8,500 square feet of office space on multiple floors and an outdoor area designed for live entertainment, in addition to the two bars, nine food vendor and restaurant spaces and pop-up areas aimed at micro-retailers.
The Columbia concept follows behind Four Oaks’ original Gather in Greenville. That food hall is home to the Greenville Beer Exchange, Mercado Cantina, Palmetto Seafood Co., and Cocobowlz, among others.
This story was originally published August 12, 2025 at 5:00 AM.
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