"There was nothing here, a lot of through traffic that was driving through but there was not a lot of people stopping." Robert Justice described the Cayce Crossing Shopping Center that way when he talked to WLTX about the four years he has run a tattoo shop there.
Through traffic is the right description for most of the last decade. The same WLTX story noted that several spaces in the center sat empty for years. One of them was the old Piggly Wiggly, which the Post and Courier reported had been derelict for more than ten years. That building is now where much of Cayce's weeknight calendar happens. With the city's own festival schedule quiet until December, the Charleston Highway and Knox Abbott Drive side of town has more on it this fall than at any point in recent memory.
The Grocery Store That Became a Weeknight Plan
WesCo Brew and Bowl held its grand opening the weekend of June 26–28, 2026, at 3040 Charleston Highway. Cayce's economic development office describes the building as a 44,000-square-foot mix of bowling, arcade, restaurant, event space and beer garden.
The scale of the bet stands out. Owner Satish Patel told the Post and Courier that the WesCo team put more than $14 million of its own money into the renovation and hired 140 employees to staff the bars, restaurant, arcade, lanes, outdoor seating and private event rooms. In the same paper, Patel said residents west of Columbia had been asking for a restaurant that could also be a fun place to take their kids.
Pal Patel, WesCo's office manager, gave WLTX the company's view of the site: "We knew that this was an area that always had the potential to be more than what it was."
Inside, WesCo's own site lists 12 bowling lanes, Krazy Darts, the Valo Arena, billiards, an arcade and outdoor games, plus food and drink service throughout. Its holiday-events page puts the arcade at more than 50 games with prize redemption. The Post and Courier noted the lanes are set up for both children and serious bowlers.
What a Week Looks Like There Now
The opening-weekend coverage described WesCo as a destination. By September it was set up as a place to go on an ordinary weeknight. On September 17, WesCo posted a weekly deals schedule that gives each weeknight its own reason to stop in.
| Night | What's posted |
|---|---|
| Monday | Burger-and-beer deal |
| Tuesday | Tacos and trivia |
| Wednesday | Half-price arcade and discounted pizza |
| Thursday | Late-night bites and karaoke |
| Weekdays | Happy hour 4–7 p.m., lunch combos until 2 p.m. |
The lunch combos matter for anyone who works nearby. Before June, a midday stop in Cayce Crossing was not much of an option. WesCo also says it now delivers through DoorDash and handles catering. Its catering menu covers fajita and taco packages, barbecue, sliders, wings, tenders, egg rolls, salads, desserts and 16-inch pizzas.
At opening, the hours were 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 11 a.m. to midnight Friday and Saturday, according to a June 17 WestMetroNews report. A lot of programming has been added since then, so check with WesCo before planning a late night around those times.
The Dates Between Now and December
What makes this side of town matter this fall is a gap on the city calendar. The City of Cayce's festivals page lists its next events in December. Between now and then, the dated events on Charleston Highway and Knox Abbott fill most of the stretch:
- Saturday, October 24, 6–9 p.m. TNT Martial Arts & Fitness and Cayce's Best After School and Summer Camp hold their ninth annual Halloween Party and Trunk or Treat at 1330 Knox Abbott Drive. According to the Kidding Around Columbia listing, it's free and includes a bounce house, food trucks, games, a costume contest and trunk-or-treating.
- Tuesdays through December 15. WesCo's trivia series has weekly prizes and a themed night on each date left after this week: October 27, November 3, 10, 17 and 24, and December 1, 8 and 15.
- Game days through November 28. WesCo's Gamecocks watch parties started September 5 and run through November 28, with game-day platters, wings and beer-bucket deals.
- Holiday parties, any date you book. Since late September, WesCo has been taking holiday event inquiries for groups of 10 to 1,000, with online party booking.
There's one more thing to watch for. In August, WesCo put out a call for local musicians and bands to play future live shows. No performance dates have been announced.
Knox Abbott Is Getting the Same Treatment, Block by Block
WesCo is the biggest change on this side of town, but it isn't the only one. Closer to the river, the Knox Abbott Drive corridor has been fixing up the buildings it already has.
Near Ninth Street, Trinity Partners renovated commercial buildings at 902–906, 910–912, 930–932 and 986 Knox Abbott Drive. The firm chose to reinvest in the existing buildings instead of tearing them down. Cayce's economic development office, writing on choosecaycesc.com in September, said the city awarded four façade grants for the work. The project produced modernized storefronts, a redesigned parking lot, landscaping throughout, a masonry wall between the commercial lot and the homes behind it, and a new dumpster enclosure. The same article said several businesses stayed open through construction. Trinity Partners told the city its goal is "service-oriented tenants that the local community could benefit from." The developer called the site "the best redevelopment location in Cayce," citing how close it sits to the Congaree River and downtown.
Farther up the same road, Wing Shack held its ribbon-cutting and grand opening at 1305 Knox Abbott Drive in January, WestMetroNews reported. The TNT trunk or treat at 1330 Knox Abbott is just down the street, so a family could make an evening of the two on October 24.
Why This Side of Town Was Harder to Fill
City leaders have been open about why the Charleston Highway side took longer than State Street. Speaking to WLTX, Parton credited an earlier effort with turning State Street into today's River Arts District, where storefronts that go vacant tend to fill again quickly. Buildings that have sat empty for years are harder. "Really decade and a half buildings that have stayed vacant, and that is hard on these small businesses that are here because they don't benefit from the cross pollination of customers," Parton said.
That explains why the Piggly Wiggly mattered so much. In a strip center, one large empty anchor keeps shoppers from stopping at the smaller shops beside it. A 44,000-square-foot space with trivia on Tuesdays and watch parties on Saturdays gives people a reason to park, and Justice has watched that happen from his own storefront. WLTX also reported that Cayce leaders hope the next wave of development reaches Frink Street and other stretches of Charleston Highway.
Until the city's December festivals start, the next dates on Cayce's calendar are the October 24 trunk or treat at 1330 Knox Abbott Drive and the October 27 trivia night at 3040 Charleston Highway.
If you've been watching Charleston Highway and Knox Abbott fill in and wondering what it means for your own street, I'm always glad to talk it through. That goes for curious neighbors and for anyone thinking about a move in the next year. Alivia Cavanaugh follows these Cayce corridors closely. Let's Connect.
