Old Stone Inn & Tavern closes its doors

The Old Stone Inn & Tavern has closed its doors.

The Simpsonville restaurant announced the closure on its Facebook page on Thursday, but with hints that there may yet be a rebirth of some sort.

“It is with great disappointment that we must announce the Old Stone Inn & Tavern has ceased operations in its current restaurant format. We would like to thank all of our loyal supporters and the amazing staff and investors who worked so hard to make the restaurant work.”

Owner and chef David Danielson, formerly chef at Churchill Downs, shared the post on his personal Facebook page, commenting, “Very sad to have to post this, however as always, I am not deterred, by these setbacks and look forward to cooking for you all again.”

The little restaurant spent its life in a small building that was built in the early 1800s and was constructed with stones sourced from a nearby quarry, brought to the site using ox carts. Originally known as the Fleming P. Rogers house, it had served as a private home, a tavern and a stagecoach stop. It first became a restaurant in 1922. The home was built by the original owner with two-feet-deep stone walls to help ward off attacks from Native Americans.

The restaurant was known for comfort food like pan roasted chicken, shrimp and grits, and whole hog fried bologna.

The Facebook announcement continued, “At the end of the day, this is a tough business and in today’s market restaurants must come out the gate and become wildly successful or prepared to withstand a long challenging road. We have worked to place our staff in new positions, and continue to work to find a solution to return the Old Stone to a prosperous gathering place in our community.”