South Augusta’s T’s restaurant will be adding a new, smaller location in downtown North Augusta while work continues to bring the original location back on line.
Social media has erupted with people speculating over the fate of the 75-year-old establishment that is famous for its fried catfish and hushpuppies. The location on Mike Padgett Highway has been closed due to a fire that occurred Labor Day of 2020.
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“The thought of never having another T’s hushpuppy makes me sad,” one fan wrote on Facebook.
According to Garrett Fulcher, owner of the South Augusta location, the iconic restaurant will reopen, he just cannot speculate on when that will occur.
“We are trying our best, but our current plan is going to take at least six to eight months,” Fulcher said.
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A combination of the pandemic and a teetering economy are to blame for the delay, according to Fulcher.
“We’re going through the same thing as everybody else,” Fulcher said.
Meanwhile, Fulcher’s daughter, Tiffany Hagerty, is moving ahead with plans to open T’s Downtown. The location is just over the 13th Street Bridge across the street from the Highlander Pub in North Augusta.
According to Hagerty, the North Augusta location will be a smaller version of the South Augusta location.
“We will have a 40-seat dining room, with a slimmed down menu. We really want to focus this location on take out and catering,” Hagerty said, adding, “The menu will feature all of T’s favorites.”
T’s Downtown is slated to open sometime in October 2021.
The original business opened in 1946 on Miller’s Pond in McBean, Ga. and moved to the Mike Padgett Highway address in 1952 where it immediately attracted a loyal following. T’s has remained in the Fulcher family since its inception.
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Zack Hartman, a commercial realtor with Sherman and Hemstreet Real Estate Co., helped Hagerty secure the location in North Augusta and said he is excited for the family.
“I love T’s. It was my grandparents’ favorite restaurant and I was glad to be able to help them out. They’re great people,” Hartman said.
Scott Hudson is the Senior Reporter for The Augusta Press. Reach him at scott@theaugustapress.com.
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