This prominent building in Columbia’s Five Points will become a new oyster bar
A new restaurant and oyster bar is headed to the heart of Columbia’s Five Points neighborhood.
Slip 53 oyster bar will be at 732 Saluda Ave., not far from the picturesque Five Points fountain. That building was, for more than 50 years, home to Pecknel Music. The music store moved out of that location in 2019.
Renovation work at the Saluda Avenue space has already begun, and Slip 53 is slated to open in spring 2026, according to a release.
The Foundry Hospitality Group is behind the coming oyster bar. That group has been making moves on the Midlands restaurant scene this year. For instance, it opened the high-end steakhouse Ember at 101 W. Main St. in Lexington in June. And in November the group completed its purchase of longtime West Columbia brunch favorite Cafe Strudel.
Steve Cook, the executive vice president of Foundry Hospitality, also separately owns a couple of other Five Points restaurants: fine dining establishment Saluda’s and the taco and tequila spot Arroyo.
“Five Points has been a gathering place that brings people together for a very long time, and we’re honored to build on that legacy,” Cook said in a release. “Slip 53 will bring innovative and modern coastal flavors and a welcoming, laid-back dining experience to the heart of Five Points.”
Slip 53 will be a “modern interpretation of the classic yacht club,” the release noted, and it will have valet service and a “casual-yet-refined” dining space. The spot will have a raw bar as well as hot and cold seafood prep.
The building at 732 Saluda Ave is well-known, as it has the iconic Five Points postcard mural on its eastern exterior. Cook told The State on Tuesday that the mural will remain on that wall.
Casey Peissel, who owns Backstreets Grill, also is among those heading up the Slip 53 project.
“We’re taking everything we love about great seafood and hospitality and giving it a home in Five Points,” Peissel said in the release. “We want Slip 53 to be a laid-back yet refined dining experience that feels fresh, relaxed and easy to enjoy.”
Organizers said the name Slip 53 is a nod to the former Gasque’s Sport Shop, which opened at 732 Saluda Ave. back in 1953.
This story was originally published December 2, 2025 at 1:00 PM.
