To call this a hole in the wall is an understatement. I have spent a lot of time traveling up and…read moredown Hwy 49. Nearly every time I have ventured over the lake into South Carolina I've turned to my wife and commented about the one thing missing on this side of Lake Wylie is a good place to buy craft beer and wine.
Just this past Friday we decided to Stop in at Sweetwater Bar and Grill for their Award-Winning Shrimp and Grits. Sal, their bartender extraordinaire, was introducing us to a new beer when I offhandedly mentioned my displeasure about the lack of a local package store with a decent selection of craft beer. Without skipping a beat, Sal told me to head back towards the lake and just after the Bagel Boat was a great selection of suds at a place called The Market on Wylie.
"Seriously...How long has that been there?" He gave me a semi-mischievous smile like he knew a big secret and wasn't sure if I should be let in on it. "About a year and half," he said. "A year and a half?
"That's right, they've been there a year and half," he continued, "They carry all sorts of specialty foods, Craft beer and of and tons of wine!"
"Shut the Front Door!"
I gobbled down my Grits and practically licked the plate clean. My wife did the same and we skedaddled so we could check it out before they closed. It was just past 7:30PM when we go into the car. We jumped on 49 and went at a snail's pace scanning the roadway as we passed the Bagel Boat. Next we passed the Hunt Fish Paddle Bait shop and before you knew it we were at the Quick Trip gas station. "Where the heck is this place?"
By then it was nearly 7:45PM and I knew that the latest they would possibly be open was 8PM. I almost gave up and headed home, but my wife reminded me that we aren't quitters and we need to make another go at it. As always, she was right, so I doubled back to the Bagel Boat and came back down 49 even slower than before. At this point I was becoming a traffic obstruction, so I turned into the bait shop parking lot to get my barrings.
It was dark and obviously everything was shut tight. When I scanned the building I could tell there was something tucked away just inside the shadows on the left. Just then, my wife turned on the headlights and flooded the whole side of the building with a light as intense as the Sun. It took my eyes a moment to adjust, but as my eyes came into focus, I felt like a Conquistador discovering El Dorado. There before me was a sign that proclaimed: The Market on Wylie! "We made it! We're here!" When I looked back to tell my wife about the discovery she was pointing off to the side at a huge banner that read: Fine Wine and Craft Beer. "Oh...I guess I am oblivious to the obvious. Regardless, we found it!"
Unfortunately, by the time we had arrived the store was closed. During the week they are open from 10AM to 7PM, so we had missed the window of opportunity. "Schucks!"
...Here is the rest of the story.
We had a full day planned out for Saturday, but around 4PM we had an opening and were able to make a pit stop to check out the selection. While the outside of the building looks like weathered driftwood, when you walk into the Market itself, you are immediately teleported halfway 'round the world to a Mediterranean style bistro and marketplace.
Just past the entrance, the store is adorned with wooden shelving and wall-mounted wine racks full of wines from all over the world. The highly imaginative floor is painted and decorated with wine bottle labels, pictures and various other postcards that add greatly to the ambiance which also includes high-backed bistros sets, and a TV. For a moment I could almost make out Vito Corleone sitting in the back eating a bowl of spaghetti with Fredo playing the Godfather Waltz on an accordion. Ah, the smell of Italy!
No Vito this time, but we were greeted by Barbara Jenkins and her husband, who are the proprietors of the establishment. They proceeded to tour us around and show us their very extensive craft beer selection which includes a mix of local favorites as well as some very popular out-of-town varieties. They have some of the beer chilled in a refrigerator, but the vast majority is room temperature grab-n-go.
Their selection of fine foods is impressive as well. Cheeses, meats, soups, sauces, desserts, pasta, jams, teas: the list goes on and on. We spent some time visiting with the happy couple and discussed all sorts of pairing options for beer and wine. I was so close to buying some desserts, but "we" decided to hold-off and just select one of their brews to go.
We have not made it back here since our previous expedition, but I wanted to make sure the rest of the world knows about this pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. The selection is phenomenal, the owners are knowledgeable and entertaining, the prices are spot on, and the ambiance....once you find it, is second to none.
Mucho Kudos!
