Columbia restaurants, shops adorn downtown with Christmas decorations
With the swirl of controversy surrounding Penn State, the “Occupy Wall Street” movement reaching national levels and uncharacteristically high temperatures hitting the 80-degree mark this week, it certainly hasn’t been easy to get into the holiday spirit.
But Thursday night, Columbia’s own Vista Guild nudged the community just a little bit further into the spirit of the season, brightening up the downtown streets with its annual holiday kickoff, Vista Lights.
Strolling down Gervais Street on a chilly Thursday night, it immediately becomes clear why this celebration, now in its 26th year, has become such a local favorite.
Not only are the majority of restaurant and storefronts lit up with a variety of twinkling, colorful Christmas lights, but there is also a wide range of delicious food, live entertainment and activities to suit just about any taste.
While some businesses chose to go a more subtle route with their decorating, a la the simple red and green lights illuminating the windows of Pearlz, Blue Marlin, which outfitted its palm trees with an eye-catching display of blue and green.
Even Liberty Tap Room and Grill got in on the festivities, lining its entranceway with flickering Christmas stars. This was, of course, all in efforts to win the award of best window decoration, an annual contest that Vista Lights patrons vote on as they wind their way through the downtown area.
However, holiday lights weren’t the only attraction at the evening’s celebration. Local restaurant vendors also served up some of their unique menu items at booths located throughout the Vista, pairing these warm eats with choice beer, wine and spirits. While Blue Marlin doled out their signature shrimp and grits to an eager line of visitors, Mojitos Tropical Café offered delicious Cuban sandwiches and empanadas, and the Vista’s newest establishment, Salsaritas, handed out bags of warm chips.
Other featured food items included Mellow Mushroom’s Kosmic Karma pizza, LongHorn Steakhouse lobster-stuffed fillets and beer-steamed brats from Liberty. Ales and wine were also provided to the 21-and-up crowd, with anything from Shock Top to SweetWater available to quench Thursday night thirsts.
Tutti Frutti frozen yogurt also held its grand opening at the event, pitching half-price yogurts to all new guests.
Several Vista art galleries and retail shops also opened their doors for the evening, many of which provided light refreshments, warm cider or hot chocolate to patrons trying to beat the evening chill.
Lewis and Clark was one such gallery, inviting locals into its uncommon studio to catch a glimpse of an impressive collection of handmade robots, furniture and lighting. Also open to the public was the Carol Saunders Gallery, featuring a dazzling assortment of artwork, jewelry, glassware and accessories.
Some retailers even provided special deals to shoppers: local outdoors outfitter The Backpacker ran a special 10-percent-off deal for the entire day and Eye on Gervais offered 20 percent off any frames or lenses.
Vista Lights also has a reputation for being a family-friendly event, and this year’s celebration did not disappoint, supplying a medley of activities specifically tailored for the younger visitors.
Liberty Tap Room set up a stand for children (and a few adults) to decorate sugar cookies in a green and red holiday-themed icing. There was also a fire pit burning brightly to roast marshmallows and handcraft one of the most well-known kid favorite snacks: s’mores.
Kid-friendly indie rockers Lunch Money also kicked off the live entertainment for the evening, running through a set list of family favorite songs on a stage set up next to Blue Marlin. Santa Claus himself was even on hand at the Marble Slab Creamery to visit with the little ones and start taking early Christmas requests.
Other Vista Lights entertainment was also on tap for the evening, including a fashion show put on by Bella Vista Bridal on Gervais as well as cover band rockers Bandkamp.
And although the traditional tree lighting, usually done by Columbia Mayor Steve Benjamin, was originally scheduled to be held in the middle of the night’s festivities, the lighting of the Statehouse tree will instead be held after the Thanksgiving holidays.
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