During Columbia's Restaurant Week, local café Mr. Friendly’s had a chance to show off a new vision for old traditions.
Founded in the early 1980s, Mr. Friendly’s turned from a sandwich and cookie shop to a local comfort food staple. Located in Five Points, Mr. Friendly’s has evolved with the culture of the area. The café offers a sophisticated twist on Southern cuisine, while maintaining a casual atmosphere.
“Mr. Friendly's is the original, you know, it's kind of like the grandma of the bunch,” said owner Ricky Mollohan.
Mollohan waited tables at Mr. Friendly's before buying the restaurant. He graduated from USC with the Class of ’99 with a dual bachelor’s degree in political science and history, but after college he knew his place was at Mr. Friendly's.
“I got there as they were starting to kinda pick up speed, and I started managing and getting more involved with food,” said Mollohan. “By the time I was a month out of college, I was running it and I bought in a few months later."
Mollohan was drawn to Mr. Friendly's by it's atmosphere. Like the name suggests, the gaol at Mr. Friendly's is to get to know guests. Everyone who works at the restaurant is encouraged to be approachable and affectionate.
Mollohan said he wanted Mr. Friendly's to have “the Waffle House mentality, when you walk in and everybody stops what they’re doing and says ‘hi,’ and everybody thanks you on the way out.”
With that goal in mind, Mr. Friendly’s wants customers to feel free to come casually dressed and not feel intimidated. They want customers to enjoy being out and to have a great time.
Mollohan believes the key to good hospitality is knowing who they are serving and believes that “the ability to adapt to the customer’s needs, especially these days” is important.
Mr. Friendly's also prides itself on being able to provide a wide range of people with a wide range of tastes. Some come in looking for seafood, others for filet mignon. Mr. Friendly's caters to both.
The menu transitions from day to night meals and the café has up to four daily specials on the day and night menus. Some specials you can usually find are fish specials, sandwich creations, specialty salads and the chef’s special.
Keeping the ingredients local is a major factor in Mr. Friendly's recipes. The restaurant gets its core ingredients while they're in season from local farmers in South Carolina and North Carolina.
As the landscape of Five Points changes, however, Mollohan believes Mr. Friendly's needs to change with it. One of the first plans for the restaurant is to expand the bar in order to keep with the trends. Mollohan wants customers to be able to watch the bartenders perform and wants the bartenders to communicate better.
Additions to the menu are also in the works. The café wants to add larger dishes to accommodate new shareable platters and to provide more vegetarian offers, while maintaining the Mr. Friendly’s experience.
Mollhon said providing a menu and experience for such a diverse customer base can be complicated, but Mr. Friendly's is used to providing the kind of atmosphere that all people can enjoy.
"There's a lot of basics involved. Having good manners, but also I think it's the ability to adapt to meet the customers needs, especially these days," Mollohon said. "Hospitality ... I think that's the key to it."