Greenville is located halfway between Atlanta, GA and Charlotte, NC, 45 minutes from the Blue Ridge Mountain Range of the Appalachians, and a few hours from the Atlantic ocean.
C lose your eyes and envision a riverside city with a historic downtown, twinkling lights, quirky boutiques, outdoor cafes on tree lined streets, art galleries, bike trails, urban green space, a public art collection, nine small bronze mouse sculptures, an innovative, exciting & a little Quirky food scene, low key culture and high wattage Southern Charm. Now open them, you’re in Greenville, South Carolina.
Home to 70,000, this secret Waterfall Oasis has a gigantic waterfall cascading right through the middle of its historic downtown and a 32 acres park with manicured lawns and gardens, trails, a 345 foot long cantilevered pedestrian bridge connecting downtown to the West End and host to food festivals, art shows, concerts, outdoor movies, races and the summer-long upstate Shakespeare in the park festival. Keep reading to find out why Greenville was named “Top 20 America’s Favorite Cities for Food by Travel + Leisure. This city may not be very big but it has a lot to offer!
The culinary explosion is credited to the James Beard award winning innovative southern cuisine, unique and exciting talents and the amazing quality of the food throughout the city. It doesn’t hurt that Bon Appetit recognized Greenville’s Farmers Market as being 1 of the “13 Farmers’ Markets Worth Traveling for” and with over 100 restaurant choices, casual to formal and everything in between just in the downtown area, this culinary destination has been said to be the fastest rising city in the southeast with a big city vibe and small town feel.
Let’s explore a few of Greenville's unique and exciting talents throughout the city shall we. The three owners of Methodical Coffee, located downtown, may take a laid-back approach on life; however, coffee is serious business to them. David, Will and Marco believe that any successful business is built upon three pillars” exceptional product, customer service and experience and it shows right down to their blue willow coffee mugs.
If dairy is your thing then come along as we check out these next two places. Molly and Myles Ice Cream on North Pleasantburg Drive is what cereal dreams are made of, if that is even a thing. This cereal lover, kid eccentric, unique and quirky ice cream shop was named after the owners, Nicole & Steve O’Brien’s two children. Selected as one of the best ice cream shops in America by the Today Show, their absurdly amazing cereal cones, over 600 fidget spinners, a fair number of toilet seats, super heroes, Star Wars and kids art splashed on the walls throughout the shop should be high on your “things to experience" while you’re here. Sticking with the dairy theme, Luna Rosa Gelato Café is the place to go if you want the best gelato in town. This cool café prides itself on having the feel of a FAMIGLIA kitchen with food prepared from recipes collected through the years.
Now if you’re thirsty you'll want to head to Greenville’s West End Water Tower District for an old-world Farmhouse or Saison craft beer. The owners, Lindsay and Shawn Johnson of Birds Fly South Ale Project believes the best beer takes on a combination of time-tested brewing/blending methods and modern practices. With so many culinary delights in this walkable city to mention we will leave you with one more before we take you 10 miles north to the tiny town of Travelers Rest. The Neat Bourbon Bar is the Utopia of Bourbons & Whiskeys, located under Main Street, this intimate prohibition feel bar has over 120 bourbon & Whisky options, several craft cocktails and Poppington’s savory bacon popcorn with sea salt and cracked pepper, another one of Greenville’s culinary treats, to munch on while you’re there.
Ranked one of the Best Southern Small Towns by USA Today, the tiny town of Travelers Rest with a population of only 4,576 has been getting its own share of culinary buzz.
Places like The Tasting Room Wine Shop + Bar, a boutique wine shop and event venue that specializes in small production vineyard wines and craft beers from across the globe, Hand Crafted. Locally. Sourced. Made with Love is what you will find at Farmhouse Tacos and the Topsoil Kitchen & Market, a A trendy new take on farm to table fare are just a few examples as to why this buzz worthy charming destination should be on your culinary bucket list!
Experience - April's Roast & Toast Annual Event brings with it Music, Oysters, BBQ, Cocktails, Wine and Beer
Experience - September's Euphoria shines a spotlight on culinary excellence and the charm of Greenville
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