Your opportunities to go out for fun on these warm West Columbia
summer nights have increased. You can catch lunch, too.

Primal Gourmet opened its doors Monday in the former McGee Auction building at 725 Meeting St. Primal Gourmet is a lunch and dinner spot right now, but that is expected to change said Customer Service Relations Manager Easton Jackson.

“Our soft opening was Monday,” she said. “We’re open from 11 a.m. until 8 p.m. for now, but we expect to extend those hours at some point in the future.”

Jackson said Primal Gourmet sells Loveland Coffee, and she anticipates being open in the morning hours so customers can come by and get a cup of coffee before work.

Primal Gourmet offers: a cafe the option to choose items for  your own healthy lunch or dinner. The restaurant also features freshly made gluten free products. The building has been remodeled and there is room for cooking demonstrations  and classes; and community and educational events.

Jackson also touted Primal Gourmet’s market. it includes fresh produce, meats, seafood, dry goods, much of it local. And all of the products in the market are from South Carolina. The local products are used in all of the restaurant’s cooked food, and it’s for sale to take out. 

The coffee is very local, too. In the summer of 2016, Irmo’s Beach Loveland launched his own roastery, where he roasts small batched, single origin, certified fair trade organic coffee. That coffee is sold at Primal Gourmet.

There is an Irmo location of Primal Gourmet, but the West Columbia facility will be the company’s headquarters of sorts.

And there’s more than just a new restaurant. Terra is back open. 
The restaurant at 100 State Street in West Columbia closed for two weeks at the beginning of July to upgrade the dining area. Terra reopened Tuesday.

“We have updated everything,” said Chef and Owner Mike Davis. We’ve  changed the floors, we have new seating, the lighting fixtures were changed. We updated the bar, and the paint. The whole place is updated, but we still have the same delicious food.”

The City of West Columbia is providing free valet and curbside parking while construction is taking place on State Street.

• Chayz Lounge for live music
• If it’s live music you want, Chayz Lounge at 607 Meeting Street in west Columbia is the place to be. 
• The July schedule for Chayz Lounge is: JUL 19 (Friday) – Dwayne Johnson & The Soulfood Jazz Experience – 8 PM – 10 PM
• JUL 20 –  A Night of Soulful Grooves with H Wade Johnson & Pride Ensemble – Saturday at 8 PM – 11 PM
• JUL 26 – A Night of Jazzy Soul with Tre’Sounds Band – at 8 PM – 10 PM
• JUL 27 – Willie Walker & Conversation Piece Band Presents A Night of Jazzy Grooves  at 8 PM – 11 PM

At Bricks and Stones Pizza Company at Woodberry Plaza on Augusta Road it’s all coming together for a July 27, grand opening, said Terry Close, who owns Bricks and Stones with her husband, Bob. 

“We’ve hired two pizza chefs,” she said. The building has been totally fitted for the restaurant and the hiring of staff is being completed.

Bricks and Stones will be training its employees next week to be ready for the grand opening. 

Bricks and Stone will specialize in “old school” brick oven pizza, cooked at 800 degrees. It’s billed as authentic New York (style) pizza. The restaurant’s sauces and dough are made fresh daily, along with Tiramisu made fresh daily.

Space Week at the SC State Museum

Another attraction for West Columbia residents is Space Week. 
In celebration of the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing, the South Carolina State Museum is presenting Space Week, July 20 through 28.

The week-long event will be loaded with space-themed activities for the family. Guests will get to explore the museum’s new Apollo 50: Journey to the Moon exhibit, see the show Fly Me to the Moon 4D, enjoy special documentary screenings of The Smithsonian Channel’s The Day We Walked the Moon, experience planetarium shows and other astronomical activities.

Guests during space week are invited to participate in hands-on, interactive, space-themed fun throughout the museum. There will also be a newly renovated space gallery on the third floor.

Visitors will be able to design and launch their own  rocket, observe a variety of astronomy-focused stations, and learn about forces and friction with hovercraft rides (Mondays through Thursdays only).

Space Week daily activities are included with museum general admission or membership, unless otherwise noted. 4D theater and planetarium shows are an extra $5 each.
More information about Space Week can be found on the South Carolina State Museum’s website:
http://scmuseum.org/

Go get a great dining experience, then catch Space Week. Enjoy West Columbia in the summer.