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    What's Cookin' Downtown

    4.2 (87 reviews)
    Closed Closed
    Updated over 3 months ago

    What's Cookin' Downtown Photos

    Business Info

    WHAT'S COOKIN' DOWNTOWN ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Casual
    Quiet
    Outdoor seating
    Good for groups

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    Spinach and Bacon Salad
    Kim W.

    Food: Very good. We tried the spinach and bacon salad and a fish sandwich. Good portions, prices reasonable. Ambiance: Cute place. A couple hours before closing and half of the seating area was closed. Service: Fast food type order, self serve drinks and condiments. Our order was delivered, then we were on our own. We weren't greeted or asked if everything was to our liking. Our takeaway was if you're in a hurry, don't want to drive through and want to grab a quick bite and go, this is the place for you.

    Kylie A.

    We came here for breakfast and left with full bellies. The atmosphere made you feel right at home and warm on a cold rainy day. I ordered the small grits bowl with an over medium egg, cheese, and bacon. It hit the spot for a hearty breakfast meal. The employees greeted you with a smile and were extremely helpful when I could not make up my mind as to what to order. We will definitely be making this a regular breakfast spot. In the side room, you can order different takeout and to go casseroles which we hope to try soon!

    Fried fish fillet sandwich

    This was the best fish sandwich in a longtime. Haddock fillet in a batter that was extra tasty. Highly recommend this sandwich. Service was very good.

    The Shealy!
    Shelby B.

    This is the most unassuming little hidden gem in Aiken. From the storefront, and to some degree even the inside, you'd never know this was a place where you can find what might be the best burger in Aiken. I wouldn't say it's the nicest looking place to eat, but it gets the job done and the outdoor seating is very nice! They have a variety of different breakfast and lunch foods, but the burger, and specifically the Shelly burger, is where they really shine in my opinion. This is a huge burger, packed with pimento cheese and flavour that you can't miss out on. Prices are really good for the food and being downtown. Service is classic southern hospitality level kindness.

    Half sandwich with soup. $11
    Moshi M.

    Ambience. B Service. A Food. A Price. A Found on main avenue Lauren's street. Has huge dining area in back and also lots of takeout premade options. Order at counter. And they serve at table. Get your own silverware and condiments. Dining room ultra quiet. Needed music Also serve breakfast. Had curry chicken very light curry but tasty. And friend has Reuben with chunk slices of corned beefi. In toasted rye. Overall, I would come back I'm a FaN!

    Angel M.

    The food came so quickly. It is a large room with a lot of seating. They made a mistake with one of our orders but did not say sorry and seemed annoyed they had to fix the issue.

    French toast with cream cheese and orange marmalade
    Katie R.

    Quick to get our order, quick to get our food out. It was hot and delicious. Eggs cooked right. French toast tasted with just the perfect hint of the orange. Ambience was nice and cozy. Would love to go back and try more. If I had to pick one thing to change possibly, have juice made or bought for refills. But other wise it's not a big deal to buy a container.

    Strawberry cheesecake Cake
    Tanzy M.

    This strawberry cheese cake was creamy moist and oh so delicious! All I can say is go and hope they have it still available!!! Oh did I mention the graham cracker crust oh my!

    Fish sandwich with chips and coleslaw and grilled cheese in the background.
    Brian A.

    Wife and I happened upon this place while exploring the Aiken area. I ordered a fish sandwich with potato chips and coleslaw and she had a grilled cheese on wheat bread and chips. Service was fast and very friendly! It is a very casual place with lots of local memorabilia. Comfortable atmosphere and not too crowded. We'll definitely be back!

    Breakfast plate with turkey and hash browns

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    5 months ago

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    6 months ago

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    2 months ago

    Business owner information

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    Mac P.

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    8 months ago

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    3 years ago

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    10 months ago

    Food, services and personnel was great. Time and preparation was quick and the food was hot

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    1 year ago

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    3 years ago

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    5 years ago

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    10 months ago

    Solid lunch option in Downtown Aiken. Affordable, good seating options. Consider the Reuben or the Margaret, with hash rounds!

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    3 years ago

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    3 years ago

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    2 years ago

    Sausage patties were over cooked as were the hash browns. Service time was slow. Overall disappointed. Won't be back soon.

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    2 years ago

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    5 years ago

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    6 years ago

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    3 years ago

    Okay food! Ordering your food was not organized and slow. Eggs overcooked .American Breakfast

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    3 years ago

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    7 years ago

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    2 years ago

    Breakfast is great and lunch menus change frequently. Take home casseroles are outstanding

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    6 years ago

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    4 years ago

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    3 years ago

    Food and service were good. It's a consistent spot for lunch and easy to get in and out.

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    4 years ago

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    4 years ago

    Good food, great atmosphere. Nice place. We were passing through and saw reviews. Glad we did.

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    Page 1 of 3

    Ask the Community - What's Cookin' Downtown

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    Neon Fig

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    Huge fan of Neon Fig! We visited during our Masters weekend trip and LOVED the food, cocktails and…read moreambiance. Dawn was an excellent server and pointed us in all of the right directions for our night out in Aiken, SC. Get the polenta fries and Brussels! The menu was a bit different than the one online but it was BETTER! We are so glad we stopped in and will certainly be back and will send all of our friends who take a turn visiting the area for The Masters Tournament.

    It was our first time visiting, and overall the experience started off fine. We ordered Bloody…read moreMarys, which were just average--not bad, but nothing memorable. My husband ordered the brisket grilled cheese, which was absolutely delicious, and I ordered the shrimp and grits, which were phenomenal at first. Unfortunately, a few bites in, I found a black hair in my food. Our server did apologize and immediately took the dish back to be remade, which I appreciated. However, I was honestly too grossed out to want to eat it again, and I wasn't given any option--whether to remake it or have it removed from the bill. What was more disappointing was how the situation was handled afterward. No manager came over to apologize, and nothing was comped or discounted on the bill. It was clear the staff was aware of the situation, as several employees came out and repeatedly stared at us, which made us feel uncomfortable. I understand that mistakes happen, but it's how they're handled that matters. With better service recovery, this could have been a completely different experience. As it stands, it left a bad impression. I would consider giving them another chance, but only if situations like this are handled more professionally in the future.

    Photos
    Neon Fig
    Fried oysters - caramelized onion, smoked béarnaise, trout roe
    Fried oysters - caramelized onion, smoked béarnaise, trout roe
    Cocktail perfection

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    Cocktail perfection
    The Willcox Hotel

    The Willcox Hotel

    4.3
    (84 reviews)
    0.4 mi
    $$

    This is absolutely one of the finest hotels I have ever stayed at. The turn down service is fresh…read morecookies, fruit infused ice water and classical music on the tv. They are absolutely spectacular.

    VERY disappointed in afternoon tea at The Willcox Inn in Aiken, SC. Why? Because I didn't have it!…read more I was extremely disappointed in restaurant management when I was told today that afternoon tea was only served after 3pm. I had booked online reservations 7 days in advance, clicking on the 'Book A Table' button on the Afternoon tea link on the Willcox Inn website which took me to Resy Open Table page. The times showing supposedly for afternoon tea was 12, 12:30 and 12:45, so I chose 12:45 and typed in the note box specifying that this is for Afternoon Tea. It gave me the reservation time and sent an email confirming. I then CALLED Willcox Inn to confirm the date, time, number in party for AFTERNOON TEA, telling the lady who took my call that I was calling to confirm afternoon tea time for 4. The lady confirmed she had me down and repeated the details. So two sources confirmed an afternoon tea request, online and human. When I arrived at the dining room of the Willcox today at 12:05pm, early, I was told they only serve tea after 3pm. I was very upset, especially when it was the restaurant's fault for NOT specifying on the afternoon tea page that tea was only available after 3pm. We were told there was nothing they could do and they apologized. My friends and I had traveled from Evans, GA, forty-five minutes away to be told 'sorry, no tea', after I had confirmation from two sources. To make matters worse, we were told there were no tea foods, no scones, no tea sandwiches that could be served to us at 12:30 when everything would be available a few hours later at 3pm. The chef even came to our table to coldly state she could not prepare any scones as she had to feed other diners. The very least a manager could have offered to guests who had traveled distance and were denied what they were given confirmation for, was to comp a meal, and provide an explanation of errors on their website. I will never return to this establishment because they simply do not care about their customers. With today's use of social media, everyone is a reviewer. And this restaurant failed in providing good customer service, and failed in attempting to correct inaccuracies due to their negligence in advertising correct times for afternoon tea. Anyone who booked afternoon tea through this page should have their reservations honored, despite the restaurant's negligence. I do not recommend this restaurant.

    Photos
    The Willcox Hotel
    The truffle fries. Nice
    The truffle fries. Nice
    Exterior

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    Exterior

    What's Cookin' Downtown - tradamerican - Updated July 2026

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