The Beacon Drive-In

Last weekend my husband and I took a road trip to the upstate of South Carolina. We rarely take spontaneous road trips, but with a baby on the way I think we are trying to do fun outings while we can. We got all our planned shopping done by 12:30pm and then it was time to eat. I remembered hearing people talk about The Beacon Drive-In, but neither Andy or I had ever been there.

The Beacon was started in 1946 and has been a landmark for the SC upstate for a long time. It has been reviewed a million times and featured on shows like Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives.

The Beacon is the definition of a greasy spoon. They are known for their unique ordering style and boy you better know what you want when you get to the front of the line and they yell "Call it"! Andy ordered a Chili-Cheese-A-Plenty, which is a chili cheeseburger covered in a mix of french fries and onion rings, and I got a M&M Cheeseburger, which is a cheeseburger with mayonnaise and mustard. We had been warned ahead of time that we could easily share one serving of "a-plenty" and I'm glad we held off on a second order, we couldn't finish what we had. Oh, and we order two of the famous sweet teas.

 

(Borrowed from Yelp)

We thought the food was good, but honestly it was more about the experience. Talk about some of the best people watching. You had families with little kids, church youth groups, older couples you know had been coming for decades, every walk of life really. While the ordering process is intimidating everyone was super nice and helpful. Definitely a must experience if you find yourself in Spartanburg, SC area.