NORTH MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. — JUNE 24, 2026

BY THOMAS BEACH VACATIONS

From a cozy independent coffee café expanding into Forestbrook to a 40,000-square-foot moonshine and craft beer destination at Broadway at the Beach, a wave of new dining options is reshaping the Grand Strand heading into summer 2026 — and not all of them are chasing tourists.

The Grand Strand has never had a quiet offseason when it comes to restaurant openings, but the stretch from late 2025 into this summer has been particularly active. New concepts are arriving from Tennessee, from within the local restaurant community, and from corners of the coast that have long needed more options. The range is striking: a neighborhood coffee shop that knows its regulars by order, a distillery-brewery hybrid that required three years of planning, a kosher Mediterranean counter on Kings Highway, and a celebrity chef’s entertainment compound taking over a former department store. Each one tells a slightly different story about where the Grand Strand is headed.

What runs through nearly all of them is something local business owners have been noticing for a few years now: the market here is changing. More people are moving to the beach permanently. Year-round residents want year-round places to eat — not just seasonal seafood shacks that close in November. The tourist economy remains the backbone of the Strand, but it no longer tells the whole story.

Milk & Honey Coffee Café Grows Into Forestbrook

Milk & Honey Coffee Café began at 351 Hwy. 17 Business in Surfside Beach, where it built a loyal following on the strength of signature coffees, fresh-baked pastries, and what regulars describe as a genuinely unhurried morning atmosphere. Rebecca Dechir, who had been a regular at the original café before stepping in to take over its operation in November 2025, has now expanded the concept north into the Forestbrook area — a corridor that has seen significant residential growth over the past several years but had little in the way of an independent local coffee option.

Dechir describes the Forestbrook shop as something built around the neighborhood rather than around foot traffic. She recognizes her regulars by name, knows their orders before they reach the counter, and has started thinking ahead to what a third location might eventually look like — one built from the ground up as a fully dedicated gluten-free facility, a response to the growing prevalence of celiac disease and the cross-contamination concerns that come with it.

The shift she describes — away from the idea that coastal businesses survive only on tourist dollars — matches what is happening across much of the Grand Strand. January and February still dip. But the slow months are less dramatic than they used to be, and the shoulder season feels less like a cliff and more like a gradual step down. The locals keep coming.

Ole Smoky Distillery and Yee-Haw Brewing Open at Broadway at the Beach

On the other end of the spectrum — deliberately, strategically, and at considerable scale — is Ole Smoky Distillery and Yee-Haw Brewing Co., which opened its doors at Broadway at the Beach in May 2026. The address is 1214 Celebrity Circle, and the venue is hard to miss: a 40,000-square-foot space that functions simultaneously as a working distillery, a craft brewery, a full-service restaurant, a live music venue, and a gathering place built around one of the largest screens in the Myrtle Beach area.

Both brands come out of Tennessee. Ole Smoky, founded in Gatlinburg in 2010 as the first federally licensed distillery in East Tennessee, is recognized as the leading producer of premium moonshine in the United States and the most visited distillery in the world. Yee-Haw Brewing Co., based out of a historic railroad depot in Johnson City, has grown quickly across the Southeast with locations in Gatlinburg, Pigeon Forge, Nashville, Knoxville, and Greenville, SC. The Myrtle Beach address is their first joint location outside of Tennessee.

The decision to land at Broadway at the Beach was deliberate. General Manager Chris Sobota has described the property as having the space and energy the concept required, and the brand has been transparent that it came here specifically to reach the tourism market — while building toward fall promotions and repeat local customers as a longer-term foundation. Guests can expect moonshine and whiskey flights alongside Yee-Haw craft beers, guided distillery tours, shareable food, and an outdoor beer garden with lake views. The design is family-friendly, the layout can accommodate private events and concerts, and the ambition is to become a fixture of the Myrtle Beach experience rather than just a season-opening novelty.

South Coast Beer Project Brings Carolina Forest Its First Brewery

At 5020 Carolina Forest Blvd., Chris Evans and Susan Heryadi of Coastal Concepts Hospitality have opened South Coast Beer Project — the first brewery to come to Carolina Forest, one of the fastest-growing residential corridors on the Grand Strand. Evans and Heryadi know the market well: they also operate three Grumpy Monk locations, Hop N Wich in Conway, and The Sneaky Beagle, which sits directly adjacent to the new brewery with a 1,000-foot walking path connecting the two properties across a retention pond.

The concept is built from the ground up — the first time the Coastal Concepts team has constructed a building rather than rehabilitating an existing one. The interior runs roughly 9,000 square feet with seating for 150 to 175; the outdoor space expands that capacity dramatically, with a beer garden that can hold upward of 250 guests. A fountain shaped like a giant beer mug pours continuously into a pool outside. An 18-foot outdoor screen is planned for movie nights. The décor leans coastal: palm trees rising through the floor, slat walls with greenery, painted surfboards, and enough natural light that the brewery side — visible through a glass wall from the dining room — reads as part of the atmosphere rather than a back-of-house operation.

Head brewer Brock Kurtzman, well known in local craft beer circles from his tenures at New South Brewing and Southern Hops Brewing Company, is guiding a lineup of house beers with names that lean into Carolinas identity: a blonde ale, a raspberry wheat, a mocha white stout named after Blackbeard’s ship Queen Anne’s Revenge, and an American brown called Board Meeting. The food program focuses on Detroit-style pizza and wings alongside sandwiches, salads, and full appetizers — all prepared in-house. Hours run 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and until 11 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays. For guests staying in North Myrtle Beach oceanfront homes or oceanfront condos along Ocean Drive or Crescent Beach, it’s a straightforward inland drive — the kind of evening outing that doesn’t require a reservation or a plan.

Guy Fieri’s Downtown Flavortown Opens at Myrtle Beach Mall

The most visible single opening of the season may be Guy Fieri’s Downtown Flavortown, which opened June 10, 2026, inside Myrtle Beach Mall at 10177 N. Kings Highway. Developed in partnership with FACE Amusement Group — the same company behind the flagship Downtown Flavortown in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee — the Myrtle Beach location takes what was a former anchor retail space and converts it into a 50,000-square-foot dining and entertainment operation unlike anything currently on the Grand Strand.

The numbers are hard to ignore: seating for 400 in the restaurant, over 100 arcade games, duckpin bowling, a Freaky Tiki bar, private party rooms, and more than 60 televisions spread across the space. The menu leads with the dishes Fieri made famous through years of television — his Bacon Mac-N-Cheeseburger, Cajun Chicken Alfredo, and the World Famous Trash Can Nachos, where a literal pile of chips and toppings lands at the table. All food is scratch-made. The atmosphere is designed for families as much as adults, and the event infrastructure makes it a viable option for group gatherings that need both a meal and an activity under the same roof. FACE Amusement has positioned Downtown Flavortown as a year-round anchor for the Myrtle Beach Mall’s ongoing revitalization effort.

More New Openings Across the Strand

Beyond those four marquee openings, several other concepts have quietly joined the Grand Strand dining scene this season. In Surfside Beach, Hakaya Café has opened its doors, adding to the area’s dining options south of Myrtle Beach proper. In Myrtle Beach, Pita Bar Kosher is now open at the corner of 31st Avenue and Kings Highway — a notable addition for visitors observing kosher dietary practices, a food category the Strand has historically underserved. Not far down the highway, the Chocolate Bar and Grill has also opened, offering a different kind of dining occasion. And in the Cherry Grove area of North Myrtle Beach, The Grove House has arrived as a new dining option for residents and visitors at the northern end of the Strand — adding to a neighborhood that already includes long-standing local favorites like The Shack, Snooky’s Oceanfront Restaurant, and Duffy Street Seafood Shack. Guests staying near Windy Hill now have another option within easy reach as well.

Taken together, the summer 2026 class of Grand Strand restaurant openings reflects a market that is growing in both directions — expanding to serve a rising year-round resident population while simultaneously rolling out experiences ambitious enough to become destinations in their own right. The independent coffee shop in Forestbrook and the 40,000-square-foot moonshine hall at Broadway at the Beach are, in that sense, two answers to the same question: what does the Grand Strand want to eat next?

New Grand Strand Restaurant Openings at a Glance

Frequently Asked Questions

Ole Smoky Distillery and Yee-Haw Brewing Co. Are Coming to Broadway at the Beach

There is a particular kind of excitement that settles over Myrtle Beach in the months before something genuinely new arrives. The buzz travels through the restaurants along Restaurant Row, through the conversations on the piers, through the group chats of locals who follow every construction permit and every ribbon-cutting rumor. The kind of buzz that says: this one is different. That is exactly the feeling surrounding the upcoming opening of Ole Smoky Distillery and Yee-Haw Brewing Co. at Broadway at the Beach — and it is a feeling well worth paying attention to.

Ole Smoky is not a brand that needs much of an introduction to anyone who has spent time in the Tennessee mountains. Since its founding in 2010, it became the first federally licensed distillery in Tennessee state history, and it has since grown into the leading producer of premium moonshine in the world. Yee-Haw Brewing Co. earned its own devoted following across the Southeast with award-winning craft beers that taste like they were brewed by people who actually love what they are doing. Together, the two brands have already proven the concept works — their joint Nashville location on 6th and Peabody has been drawing crowds and racking up reviews since it opened. Now, that same energy is coming to the South Carolina coast.

The Myrtle Beach location is slated to open in May 2026 inside Broadway at the Beach. At 30,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor space, it will be one of the most substantial new attractions to land on the Grand Strand in recent memory. For anyone planning a vacation to the area this spring or summer, this is the kind of addition that earns a permanent spot on the itinerary.

Tennessee Roots, Myrtle Beach Bound

Ole Smoky Distillery was born in Gatlinburg, Tennessee, where it operates the beloved Holler location that has introduced millions of visitors to real Appalachian moonshine culture. Over the years the brand expanded — The Barrelhouse just across the street in Gatlinburg, The Barn in Pigeon Forge, and the flagship 6th & Peabody campus in Nashville. The moonshine has won fans worldwide, with varieties ranging from classic White Lightnin and apple pie to blue flame and peanut butter whiskey, the latter taking a Master medal at a major American Whiskey blind tasting competition.

Yee-Haw Brewing Co. grew up alongside Ole Smoky in Tennessee and now has taprooms in Johnson City, Pigeon Forge, Gatlinburg, Nashville, Knoxville, and Greenville, South Carolina. Myrtle Beach will mark Yee-Haw’s second South Carolina location and the first joint Ole Smoky and Yee-Haw venue outside the state entirely. The decision to come here was not accidental — Myrtle Beach draws millions of visitors each year, and Broadway at the Beach is consistently ranked as South Carolina’s number one travel destination. When Joe Baker, founder of both Ole Smoky and Yee-Haw, called Myrtle Beach the perfect place to share their traditions and craft, he was not speaking in marketing abstractions. The numbers back him up completely.

Construction on the property is being led by Monteith Construction, a locally based company, with LSP3 serving as the lead architect. The design incorporates waterfront views and draws on the heritage of both brands while reflecting the modern, high-energy spirit that defines the Myrtle Beach experience.

What to Expect Inside

The venue is designed around the idea of spending time, not just stopping in. At 30,000 square feet, the space has room to breathe — and room to linger. Multiple bars are spread across the property so there is never a long walk between you and your next drink. The indoor-outdoor beer garden opens up into fresh air, while patio seating overlooks the Broadway at the Beach lake, giving the whole place a relaxed, lakeside quality that feels distinctly unlike anything else in the area.

One of the anchors of the space — and one of the more talked-about details — is what Ole Smoky’s vice president of marketing Will Ensign described as one of the area’s biggest TV screens. It is the kind of detail that matters when you are watching a game, catching a live broadcast, or simply soaking in the atmosphere of a venue that knows how to hold a crowd. Tasting rooms give guests an up-close look at the craft behind the product, and guided tours walk visitors through the full distillery experience, from raw grain to the finished spirit in the glass.

The family-friendly vibe is intentional. This is a place designed to welcome everyone — the group of adults on a weekend trip, the family with kids in tow who want to explore a working distillery and sample a root beer flight, the couple looking for a lakeside patio with good music and shareable plates. Ole Smoky has made a point of building venues that feel welcoming rather than exclusive, and the Myrtle Beach location follows that same philosophy.

Moonshine, Craft Beer, and More

The drinks menu at the Ole Smoky side of the house reads like a tour through Tennessee’s most celebrated spirits. Moonshine flights let guests work their way through the full flavor range — the classic White Lightnin that tastes exactly like it sounds, the dessert sweetness of apple pie moonshine, the electric blue flame, and the seasonal and specialty varieties that Ole Smoky rotates through with the kind of frequency that gives regulars a reason to keep coming back. Whiskey offerings round out the spirits side, including the award-winning peanut butter whiskey that has earned its own devoted following.

On the Yee-Haw side, the brewery brings its lineup of well-crafted core beers alongside rotating seasonal offerings. Expect the Kolsch, IPA, and pilsner that anchored Yee-Haw’s reputation across Tennessee and South Carolina, along with the Vol Lager and whatever specialty the brewers have been working on. Yee-Haw’s approach has always been to let the local market shape the tap list, so the Myrtle Beach location will likely develop its own personality over time — one that reflects what Grand Strand visitors and locals actually want to drink on a warm evening by the water.

The food program is built around shareable plates designed for groups — the kind of menu that works equally well for a first round of drinks or a full evening out. Details on the full food offering have not yet been released, but the philosophy matches the rest of the venue: generous, relaxed, and built for sharing.

Events, Live Music, and Private Spaces

Ole Smoky’s Tennessee venues have built a reputation not just for their spirits, but for the atmosphere they create around live music and community events. The Myrtle Beach location carries that tradition forward. Dedicated event spaces and private rooms are built into the property’s design, sized and equipped to host everything from birthday parties and rehearsal dinners to festival programming and live concert nights.

Will Ensign’s vision for the venue is clear: a Myrtle Beach go-to destination for good times, great music, and fantastic drinks. For a stretch of coastline that already knows how to throw a party — from the shag dancing legacy of Ocean Drive to the annual festivals that bring hundreds of thousands of visitors to the Grand Strand — this kind of addition fits naturally into the existing entertainment culture rather than trying to reinvent it.

Groups looking for private event options in the Myrtle Beach area now have a genuinely distinctive choice — one that comes with a built-in story, a branded experience, and a setting that most people in the room have not seen before. That novelty factor, combined with Ole Smoky’s track record at similar venues, suggests the private event calendar will fill up quickly once the doors open.

Broadway at the Beach: Already a Grand Strand Institution

Broadway at the Beach stretches across 350 acres around a central lake off U.S. 17 Bypass in Myrtle Beach. It houses more than a hundred shops, restaurants, and attractions — everything from Ripley’s Aquarium of Myrtle Beach and WonderWorks to steakhouses, seafood spots, and ice cream parlors that have been pulling in repeat visitors for decades. It is the kind of place where an afternoon can quietly become an evening without anyone noticing the time.

The Ole Smoky and Yee-Haw venue will occupy a lakefront position within the complex, adding a destination anchor that complements what Broadway at the Beach already does well. April Martin, Senior Vice President of Leasing and Design at Burroughs & Chapin — the real estate investment trust behind Broadway at the Beach — noted that the addition enhances the guest experience with unique craft beverages and lively events, calling it a fresh and vibrant spot for locals and visitors alike.

For anyone planning a day at Broadway, the Ole Smoky and Yee-Haw venue will be a natural anchor point — a place to start the evening, cap it off, or return to after a loop through the rest of the complex. The combination of waterfront seating, a working distillery, live entertainment potential, and a full bar program makes it the kind of stop that earns repeat visits on a single trip.

Staying in North Myrtle Beach for the Trip

Broadway at the Beach sits comfortably within reach of North Myrtle Beach — close enough to make a day trip feel effortless, far enough that the two areas maintain their own distinct personalities. North Myrtle Beach, with its quieter neighborhoods, wide beaches, and deep-rooted shag dancing heritage, serves as the ideal home base for visitors who want to explore the full length of the Grand Strand without being in the thick of it every night.

The four beach communities of North Myrtle Beach each carry their own flavor. Cherry Grove Beach is known for its fishing pier and unhurried pace, while Ocean Drive carries the legacy of the shag and the kind of boardwalk character that never really goes out of style. Crescent Beach sits in the center of it all with a relaxed, residential feel, and Windy Hill offers a quieter southern end of the strip for those who want ocean views without the foot traffic.

Whether you are looking for a sprawling oceanfront home rental big enough to hold the whole family or a sleek oceanfront condo for a couple’s getaway, North Myrtle Beach puts you within easy reach of everything the Grand Strand has to offer — including whatever Ole Smoky and Yee-Haw Brewing decide to bring through those doors in May.

Frequently Asked Questions

Spring and summer on the Grand Strand are filling up fast, and an opening of this magnitude only adds to the reasons to make the trip. If you are thinking about planning a vacation around the North Myrtle Beach and Myrtle Beach area — for the beach, the food, the music, and now a world-class distillery and brewery experience steps from the water — Thomas Beach Vacations has the properties to make it happen. Browse oceanfront homes and condos at northmyrtlebeachvacations.com or call the team directly at (866) 249-2100 to find your perfect spot on the South Carolina coast.