Southside 17 expands into neighboring space, adds a trendy soda bar and arcade
by Lorne Chambers | Editor
The interior of Southside 17 is reminiscent of the sportsbook inside a Vegas casino. There are score tickers streaming underneath a wall of TVs, and even the bar’s logo is a riff on the iconic “Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas” sign. There’s the Bellagio Burger and a Lucky 17 sandwich on the menu. So, it should not be surprising that owner Doug Allison is not averse to risks or taking a gamble on a new concept. For the last 15 years, Allison has opened some of West Ashley’s most innovative bars and restaurants.
“No risk, no reward. I live my life that way,” says Allison, reflecting on the last two decades, which took him from his home in the Washington D.C. area to the Lowcountry, where he launched a successful juice and energy drink distribution company and a string of popular restaurants and bars. Allison has never been afraid to take a leap of faith in business or in life. In addition to Southside 17, he owns 17 Prime, West Ashley’s first upscale steakhouse. He also started Ireland’s Own/Jägerhaus Pub before selling it in 2024, as well as CHS Golf, which he just recently sold.
In just the last year or two, Allison has sold three of his businesses, opened an upscale restaurant, gotten married, sold his house, and moved to a new house in Avondale. Now, he’s rolling the dice again in taking over the space next to Southside 17 that formerly housed GNC in the Riverland Market Shopping Center on the corner of Main Road and Savannah Highway.
The new spot will be an extension of Southside 17 but will have a completely different feel and concept from the rest of the already popular bar and restaurant. While Southside 17 is draped in muted tones and dark wood, the new space has a lighter, brighter feel, with pinks, blues, and pastels. It will soon be home to West Ashley’s first “Dirty Soda” bar.
If you’re unfamiliar with dirty soda, it’s a lot more wholesome than it sounds. It’s essentially soda, but louder. Dirty sodas layer cream, flavored syrups, and candy-colored aesthetics onto classic fountain drinks. Part nostalgia, part modern social-media buzz, the dirty soda trend is bringing back the old-school soda fountain while swapping traditional floats for highly customizable concoctions.
Allison says he was visiting his daughter and grandson in Florida recently when he went to Swig, a national chain of soda shops specializing in dirty sodas, when he got the idea to bring the concept back home to West Ashley.
The new soda bar at Southside 17 will also have a small accompanying menu geared towards kids who might want to use the space for birthday parties or just hang with some friends. In addition to ordering anything from the regular Southside 17 menu, there will also be a special menu for kids’ parties that includes snow cones, personal pizzas, chicken nuggets, French fries, hot dogs, cotton candy, and other kid-friendly options. Patrons on the bar side of the restaurant will also be able to order dirty sodas anytime and, if they so desire, add a spirit of their choice or a High Rise CBD seltzer to their concoction.
According to Allison, they’re still working out some of the dirty soda menu, but that many of them will have locally-inspired names, like the Palmetto Punch, which is grape soda with coconut syrup and fresh lime; the Lowcountry Sunset, which is sparkling water and lemonade with mango syrup, and fresh lime; The Sweet Caroline is Sprite with coconut and blue raspberry syrup; or the Pineapple Fountain, which is Diet Coke with pineapple syrup and vanilla cream. There’s also a Folly Fizz, Coastal Coop, and Kiawah Kicker. Customers are also encouraged to create their own concoctions.
At Prime 17, Allison says they sell a lot of zero-proof cocktails, and this now gives Southside 17 a zero-proof option for customers who are maybe not drinking alcohol.
“It’s offering another thing to the customer, because of the growth of this side of West Ashley, Hollywood, Ravenel, and this part of Johns Island, there really isn’t anywhere doing an arcade or a place to have a birthday party. There are lots of families in these neighborhoods: Hunt Club, Grand Oaks in West Ashley, or even Gift Plantation and Grimball Gates here on Johns Island.
“I thought there was a need for a kids’ play area. And dirty sodas are hot right,” says Allison. “Will I be selling dirty sodas in five years? Who knows. But I do know that we have a place for kids to come and for parents to bring their kids that safe and clean and something that’s different and unique.”
The grand opening of the new Southside 17 Dirty Soda bar and arcade will be held Sunday, March 15, from 1-5 p.m. at 3632 Savannah Hwy. For more information, call (843) 641-7043 or visit www.southside17.com.
