Tim Gardner: Lula Drake Wine Parlor (Columbia, SC)

Columbia, SC’s Main Street architecture still has much of the charm of a mid-century movie set. There are jewelry stores, restaurants, hotels, and gift shops in buildings that range from the turn of the 20th Century to modern day. Tucked in among the hustle and bustle is Lula Drake Wine Parlor, which eight plus years ago was just another dusty building awaiting renovation. Now it is a gilded lily that comes alive at night like the culinary theater it is. Sommelier Tim Gardner knows his role as the lead actor, greeting guests in a well-tailored sport coat or sliding behind the bar to offer a taste of champagne with a twinkle in his eye. The crowd fills all available seats as plates of pasta roll out of the kitchen and dusk tucks in the windows at the front of this long, narrow space. In a city that still often struggles to know its own culinary personality, Lula Drake is a self-assured wine parlor with a true welcoming air. In 2023, it was nominated for Outstanding Hospitality by the James Beard Foundation, and this year, not only was it named one of the “Friendliest Places in the South” by Southern Living, Lula Drake won the James Beard Award for Outstanding Wine Program. It all comes back to Tim’s love of wine and interest in inviting more people to love it too, and that goes way beyond the liquids in the bottles behind the bar.