With over 100 restaurants in the Greenville area, this town is a Foodie Travelers’ dream come true.
You can find food from five continents and numerous countries around the globe that within one week you could be enjoying flavors of the world and never leave the United States.
There are so many options; it might be overwhelming to choose just one.
The best way to taste various foods in a new town is to take a food tour.
Greenville has plenty of food tours available from BBQ, breakfast, culinary, and dessert tours, with more being added all the time.
Whether you partake in a food tour or explore by yourself, hidden gems are waiting for you to be found.
Here are ten hidden gem restaurants in Greenville, SC, to check out the next time you visit.
10 Hidden Gem Restaurants In Greenville, SC
1. Biscuit Head
Biscuit Head is the perfect breakfast place to stop and get authentic southern biscuits and homemade gravy.
This place is always hopping in the morning with positive vibes.
Bring your whole family and enjoy fluffy biscuits with a vast selection of homemade jams from the jam bar.
Try a few to find your favorite among Strawberry, Sour Cherry, Apple Pie, Sweet Potato Chai, Peach Rosemary, Chili Mango, and my favorite Berry Bomb.
In addition to biscuits and gravy, they offer other variations of breakfast fare.
I tried the Asheville Benedict, a biscuit with smoked tomato cream cheese, fresh tomato, marinated artichokes, kale salad, poached eggs, and hollandaise.
Oh, and don’t forget the mimosa!
They also have soft drinks and a selection of unique lattes like maple bacon or honey lavender latte.
You can guarantee to be stuffed after eating all the fantastic fluffy biscuits.
It is hard to eat only one!
Biscuit Head can be found at 823 S Church St Ste C in downtown Greenville.
2. Bucky’s Bar-B-Q
Bucky’s BBQ is a local and family-owned BBQ restaurant grown to four stores in the Greenville area.
They have their own rules, which are posted on the wall when you walk in.
- Don’t ever leave hungry.
- Never eat Bar-B-Q in a place where all the chairs match.
- Never eat Bar-B-Q cooked by a skinny cook.
- Never leave Bucky’s unhappy.
I visited the main restaurant on a Greenville BBQ food tour that stopped at the 1700 Roper Mountain Road restaurant that cooks for the other stores.
They start at 4:30 every morning to put on 40 racks of ribs and 64 pounds of chicken in their smoker.
The pork shoulder butts, 60 – 80 of them, go in every night to cook overnight.
In addition to the Bar-B-Q you can pick up at the restaurant, they also offer catering services and smoke about 1400 turkeys for Thanksgiving.
You could pick up your entire Thanksgiving dinner from Bucky’s if you didn’t want to cook.
The restaurant is set up as counter-style, where you go up and choose your plate of meat, then pick from the long list of homemade Southern sides like Sweet Baked Beans, Cajun Pinto Beans, Green Beans w/Ham & Onions, Sweet Potato Crunch, and plenty of other choices.
Out of the Barbecue places that we tried in Greenville, Bucky’s had the meatiest ribs with a great smoky flavor which seemed to be a favorite among many of us on the food tour.
If you are interested, Bucky’s even holds classes to learn how to smoke meat, make sauces and rubs, barbecue at the correct temperature, what gadgets to use and where to get them, and the differences between regional barbecue styles.
3. Foxcroft Wine Co.
In a renovated downtown space lined with shelves of wine bottles and a barrel-vaulted ceiling, you can enjoy a fabulous meal and a glass of wine with beautiful views of Falls Park on the Reedy.
This historic building used to be a Ford Model T dealership, and the barrel-vaulted ceiling is from that era.
There is an extensive selection of wines by the glass, a vast tasting menu, and the ability to buy any bottle of wine displayed on their shelves.
Don’t miss trying out their Signature Donuts with Salted Caramel and Chocolate Sauces to dip them in or the house-made chocolates.
I couldn’t stop eating the powdered donuts after dipping them into the salted caramel sauce.
And what a surprise to bite into that rich dark chocolate and find a s’more inside.
So yummy!
Foxcroft Wine Co. is at 631 S Main Street in downtown Greenville.
4. Gather GVL
Gather GVL is a great place to go if you can’t decide on what to eat.
Gather GVL is only a short walk from Flour Field and has thirteen food stalls in shipping containers surrounding a warm and inviting place to hang out and eat.
All the seating is first-come, first-serve, and free of charge unless you want to eat in the reserved VIP section.
With all the choices to choose from like Mike’s Cheesesteak from Philly, authentic German cuisine from Prost!, plant-based smoothies and bowls from Cocobowlz, the infamous HenDough’s fried chicken and doughnut, and so much more, your entire family will find something they want to try.
It won’t matter if one person wants a burger, another pizza, and another pasta; you can get it all at Greenville’s first food hall.
Gather GVL is open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner on Tuesdays through Sundays from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. and stays open until 10 p.m. Thursdays through Saturdays.
You can find Gather GVL at 126 Augusta Street.
5. Husk Barbecue
Husk Barbecue is a newly revamped restaurant that focuses on low and slow-smoked meats such as baby back ribs, house-smoked sausages, brisket, and pulled pork, focusing on locally sourced ingredients.
They also offer one of the region’s most extensive bourbon and whiskey lists so; you can enjoy the ideal Southern duo of smoked meats and bourbon.
This is the only barbecue restaurant that offers smoked sausage, which is my favorite and I was not aware that it isn’t as popular as it is in the north.
The macaroni and cheese side is by far one of my favorites, with the shelled noodles and crispy cheese on top.
But, the highlight of this restaurant has to be their Banana Pudding with its fresh banana, nilla wafers, and creamy toasted brown sugar meringue.
Wow!
It is terrific!
6. Mike & Jeff’s BBQ
Mike & Jeff’s BBQ is a popular small local barbecue joint that fills up quickly every day at lunchtime.
If you want to sit indoors, try coming on off-peak times.
Their meat is slow-cooked over an open hickory wood fire with a multiple-stage cooking process that takes over 16 hours.
Jeff, the owner, has been smoking meat for over 25 years and has perfected it.
And the people coming to Mike & Jeff’s agree as they see many returning customers who refer to Mike & Jeff’s as THE Best place for BBQ in Greenville!
You will find an expansive menu with meal options for ribs, burgers, hot dogs, pulled pork, and chopped chicken.
And don’t forget to try the homemade sauces – mild, mustard-based, or hot, to add to your meal.
I tried the hush puppies, the ribs, pork, mac & cheese, and the sweet potato soufflé (which happened to be my Aunt’s favorite side dish).
When you order, expect huge portions; I tried to eat everything, but it was difficult as there was so much to eat.
I was stuffed when I left.
I also loved that I could smell the smoke on me the entire rest of the day.
It made me crave BBQ long after I left.
Mike & Jeff’s is at 2401 Old Buncombe Road.
7. Papi’s Tacos
Papi’s Tacos offers street tacos with a twist, and you can find them in RiverPlace on the banks of the Reedy.
Jorge “Papi” Baralles whips up authentic tacos, tortas, salsas, and dips using his family’s Tex-Mex recipes.
Papi’s might be a little hard to find, but trust me, it is definitely worth it.
I was introduced to Papi’s Tacos on a Greenville food tour and met Papi and his son.
They let us try their breakfast tacos which I polished off in no time, along with a refreshing Hibiscus tea.
I commented on the menu and asked what a Traveling Taco was; they made me one to try.
I have never heard of a Traveling Taco before, and eating all the taco mixings inside a Frito bag was a new experience for me.
It was savory, and I loved mixing each bite with a Frito to get that crunch with the chicken, salsa, lettuce, and cheese.
So much so, I had to go back later that same week to get another one to munch on while sitting next to the waterfalls.
8. Southern Pressed Juicery
Southern Pressed Juicery offers fresh-pressed organic juices, smoothies, and chef-prepared vegan snacks.
Almost everything is organic, vegan, and healthy; they even sweetened their snacks with natural sugars like honey and bananas.
If you are participating in a juice cleanse, you can pick up various juices fresh-pressed every day.
You can also pick up an energy bowl the night before and have it for breakfast the following day.
The most popular energy bowl is the Bees Knees which is acai berry, banana, coconut water, buckwheat granola, Brazil nut crumble, seasonal fruit, coconut flakes, cacao nibs, and honey.
It is rather fun watching this bowl get made as it is dark purple with all kinds of goodness added to it.
When I stopped in for breakfast, I was treated to a chia seed pudding topped with fresh blueberries and house-made honey granola and a slice of Stecca bread with fresh strawberries and berry jam with almond butter.
The juice was called Southern Summers that had watermelon and rosemary in it.
This was the first time I tried a chia seed pudding, and I have to say it was weird but good.
The consistency of the pudding is a bit hard to get used to as it is really gooey.
However, the pudding taste is sweet, and I loved the granola crunch mixed with the blueberries.
Southern Pressed Juicery is the restaurant to stop into if you are trying to make changes for a healthier lifestyle because these guys will help you do just that.
Southern Pressed Juicery is part of the Table 301 family of restaurants and can be found at 2 West Washington Street.
9. Tandem Creperie And Coffeehouse
Tandem Creperie is a bustling coffee shop in Travelers Rest outside of Greenville that features gourmet coffee drinks & sweet or savory crêpes, and even waffles.
You order from a little yellow VW microbus parked outside the restaurant.
Most mornings, you can find a line waiting to order, and their parking lot packed.
If you show up and can’t find a parking spot, try down the street at the park and walk back to the restaurant, which most people end up doing.
There is a cute patio with outdoor seating and indoor seating to enjoy your Sausage Potato or Banana Nut crêpe.
Located at 2 N Main Street, right by the Swamp Rabbit Trail, there are many bikers, walkers, and runners that stop in here for refreshments before turning around and heading back to Greenville.
10. Vault & Vator
Vault & Vator is the definite hidden gem as it is the only speakeasy in Greenville.
Hidden in the back parking lot of the red brick Westend Dental building in downtown Greenville, Vault & Valor has an iron gated door that doesn’t open until 5 p.m.
Once inside, the intimidation continues as cell phones are not allowed to be used inside the interior of this dimly lit lounge, and don’t forget to follow ALL the house rules.
Exploring the Vault takes you back to the Prohibition era where visiting gin joints was done in secret and everything was hushed, but it also was where you could get the best cocktails.
The unique thing about Vault & Vator is that the cocktails are individually created based on two adjectives you give the bartender.
You could say something like spicy and fizzy, and you would have a drink uniquely made for you.
How creative you get depends on what type of mood you are in when you visit.
Vault & Vator is open seven days a week, and it is a first come – first served atmosphere nightly.
Are you ready to step back into time to the 1920s?
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