After seven years in business, Charleston donut truck turned café turned retail store The Vandalia Co. will close its West Side restaurant on Dec. 28, with the adjoining retail shop shuttering its doors in January.
“From the bottom of our hearts, thank you, Charleston! You’ve been more than just customers — you’ve become friends, neighbors and a source of endless support and generosity,” the restaurant said in a Facebook post announcing the news. “We’ve been honored to serve you and we truly can’t say enough about the warmth and kindness that defines this city.”
Owned by Josh and Stephanie Woody, the café serves a variety of fresh scratch-made food and beverages, including baked goods, wraps, sandwiches, salads, coffee drinks and more in a charming, cozy storefront space at 611 Tennessee Ave.
Everything I ever sampled from The Vandalia Co. was delicious. Their scones and soups really stood out, but the delicious Harvest Grain Bowl was always my favorite.
Featuring a bed of kale, baby greens and mixed grains topped with sausage, apples, white beans, sweet potatoes, dried cranberries, feta cheese, toasted walnuts, pumpkin seeds and house-made cinnamon maple vinaigrette, it was a fall flavor bomb from start to finish.
The story of how the Woody’s built their café from – literally – the ashes is equally satisfying.
After buying, gutting and transforming an old camper into a tiny food truck, they rolled it out at The Vandalia Donut Co. in 2017 with a simple concept. They mastered the art of making one perfect buttermilk cake donut, but offer just it topped in a variety of different and decadent ways.
The called the donut “No. 42,” because that’s how many recipes it took to perfect it, and you could get it plain and still warm from the fryer or bedazzled into creations like German chocolate stout with pecan frosting, caramel popcorn apple topped with homemade pumpkin pie filling, espresso Oreo, peach-blackberry cobbler and more.
The truck was an instant hit, but two years later it was unexpectedly shut down by the state fire marshal due to fire suppression issues. Looking back, Stephanie Woody once told me, it was that roadblock that became a blessing in disguise, prompting them to open their own brick and mortar café and bakery, making a longtime dream come true.
But not without another few nightmares first. During renovations of the space they’re not in on Tennessee Ave., a contractor walked away with five figures of their cash without doing the promised work, plus a fire in the new kitchen delayed their opening even more.
The new space finally opened in April 2021, serving only donuts and coffee at first, but eventually adding more food service and The Vandalia Market next door, selling a variety of handmade home décor, art, candles, food items, textiles and more. The retail space will remain open through January, although an exact closing date hasn’t been announced.
“The sense of community and collaboration here in Charleston is unlike anywhere else and we’re so proud to be part of it,” the post continued. “While this marks the end of a chapter, it’s by no means a goodbye. This next season will create space for rest, creativity, and thoughtful planning for what comes next.”
IF YOU GO: The Vandalia Co. café at 611 Tennessee Ave. in Charleston is open from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday until Dec. 28. The retail market is open through the holidays from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday-Saturday. (Please note both will be closed on Dec. 24-25.) For more information, call 304-825-3145, visit www.thevandaliaco.com or check out the café’s Facebook page.
Downtown Graziano’s brings back Saturday hours
In better local restaurant news, downtown Charleston’s Graziano’s Pizza (which recently reopened with great fanfare after a brief closure that was supposed to be permanent) has readded Saturday hours to its operating schedule.
The popular pizzeria is now open from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Saturday.
IF YOU GO: Graziano’s Pizza at 243 Capitol St. in Charleston is open from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday-Thursday and 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Friday-Saturday. For more information, call 304-342-8554 or check out the restaurant’s Facebook page.
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Steven Keith is a food writer and restaurant critic known as “The Food Guy” who writes a weekly column for the Charleston Gazette-Mail and has appeared in several state, regional and national culinary publications. Follow him online at www.wvfoodguy.com or on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest. He can be reached at 304-380-6096 or at wvfoodguy@aol.com.