"After 9 years and 5 months today is our last day of service at Taylors Mill." That's how 13 Stripes Brewery said goodbye on social media on Oct. 17, according to the Upstate Business Journal. The brewery is moving to Hampton Station at 1320 Hampton Ave. in Greenville's Water Tower District, and it plans to reopen there before the end of the year.
That change shifts more than one storefront at 250 Mill St. Two holiday plans have firm dates at the Mill so far this season. One is a Santa visit that starts at 9 a.m. The other is a model train display due to be running by Thanksgiving, inside an attraction that closes at 5 p.m. This year, the holiday season at Taylors Mill runs mostly in daylight.
Nine Years of Taps, Now Headed to Hampton Avenue
13 Stripes spent almost a decade as the Mill's craft beer stop. The send-off on Oct. 17 included a celebration of its years at 250 Mill St. The crew planned to start moving everything to the new Hampton Station location the following week. Nobody has announced a new tenant for the space yet. The Mill's leasing page lists spaces from 100 to 100,000 square feet but doesn't say what's next for the old brewery.
One practical tip for anyone planning a visit: the Taylors Mill tenant directory still shows 13 Stripes as open. If you want to keep drinking their beer, go to Hampton Avenue once they reopen, not Mill Street.
With the brewery gone, the hours of the remaining tenants set the Mill's schedule.
When Each Door Opens and Closes
Here's the posted schedule for the Mill's public-facing tenants.
| Tenant | What it is | Posted hours |
|---|---|---|
| Sip & Play Café | Coffee and indoor play for kids 0 to 8 | Mon–Fri 10 a.m.–4 p.m., Sat 9 a.m.–noon, as of August 2026 |
| Model Trains Station | Nonprofit model railroad attraction | Wed–Sat 11 a.m.–5 p.m., Sun 1–5 p.m., closed Mon and Tue |
| The Farehouse | Southern restaurant and full bar | Tue–Fri 11:30 a.m.–9 p.m., Sat noon–9 p.m., Sun 11 a.m.–8 p.m. |
| The Mad Smash | Rage room | By appointment |
| Pinky's Revenge | Arcade and game lounge with a bar | Check before you go |
Read the table by time of day. Two of the newest or growing draws at the Mill are closed by 5 p.m. every day they're open. Sip & Play's Saturday hours end at noon. The Farehouse is the only tenant here posting regular evening hours. So the Mill's holiday plans so far sit in the morning and early afternoon.
The Trains Are Racing Toward Thanksgiving
Model Trains Station has been at Taylors Mill longer than most people realize. It's part of the Mini World of Trains nonprofit family, run by volunteers. It started near Falls Park in downtown Greenville and then moved to Wade Hampton Boulevard. It found a long-term home at the Mill after an ownership change there in October 2016. The grand opening came in December 2017 with two train displays. Today there are more than a dozen, in G, O, S, HO, N, Z and T scales, plus an electrified Lionel Thomas the Train table for the youngest visitors.
The big project this season is the "legacy" display. Its first phase measures 20 feet by 60 feet. On its About page, the station says it "will have several trains running by Thanksgiving 2026." The layout recreates places Upstate residents know well: the BMW business, the Inland Port, Pretty Place, Chimney Rock, the Swift RR Station and Sassafras Mountain. Thanksgiving is Nov. 26 this year. Between now and then, the station invites visitors to come see the progress alongside its 14 other running train displays.
Posted admission is $10 for adults, $9 for seniors 62 and up and for military, $7 for kids ages 2 to 12, and free for children under 2. The station is in Suite 1250 at 250 Mill St. It's a short walk from the café that has given the Mill a new morning crowd.
Santa Arrives at 9 a.m.
Sip & Play Café held its grand opening on Sept. 10. Cory and Kristen Bruner started it. Kidding Around Greenville describes a real espresso setup with house-made syrups, two separate play areas behind waist-high walls, and a mural by local artist Brushed Magnolia on the exposed brick. Drop-in play starts at $13 per child, and parking on-site is free.
The café's first holiday event is "Santa Minis at Sip & Play!" on Saturday, Nov. 21, from 9 to 11 a.m. It includes time with Santa, professional photos, two drinks and open play. Those two hours line up with Sip & Play's usual Saturday window, which ends at noon. The Model Trains Station opens at 11 a.m. on Saturdays. That means one Saturday morning at the Mill can include Santa photos, then several trains running across a miniature Upstate, all before lunch. The legacy display is targeted for Thanksgiving, so Santa Minis lands the weekend before that target.
After 5 p.m., Three Tenants Keep the Lights On
Evenings at the Mill now fall to a smaller group, and each one draws a different crowd.
The Farehouse has served Southern-style food at the Mill since 2018. Its Taylors location was the original, and a Fountain Inn location followed in 2023. It's the one tenant posting dinner hours six days a week, with a full bar. For the last week of October, its specials page listed $10 burgers and $2 domestic beers on Tuesday, half-off pizza and $20 wine bottles on Wednesday, and meatloaf night from 5 to 9 p.m. on Thursday. Its events page says the schedule is being updated, so check back for holiday plans.
Pinky's Revenge is listed on the Mill's site as an arcade and game lounge with more than 60 games, a bar, live music and events. For a night out at the Mill now that the taproom is gone, Pinky's is the closest fit.
The Mad Smash is a rage room where guests break glass and other breakables. It also offers car-smash and splatter-paint options, and smashing is open to ages 8 and up. Every visit is by appointment. On its booking page, smash packs and splatter painting start at $27 per person, and party packs start at $350 for an hour. Since you have to book anyway, it works well for a group outing during the holidays.
Two Weekend Markets Off the Mill Fill In the Calendar
Two nearby Taylors markets, both held during daytime hours, fit around the Mill's calendar. Here's the season in order, starting this Saturday:
- Saturday, Nov. 7, 10 a.m.–3 p.m. The Unity of Greenville Holiday Market at 207 E. Belvue Road, Taylors.
- Saturday, Nov. 21, 9–11 a.m. Santa Minis at Sip & Play Café, 250 Mill St.
- By Thursday, Nov. 26 The Model Trains Station's target for having several trains running on the first phase of its legacy display.
- Sunday, Dec. 13, 11 a.m.–3 p.m. The free Merry Little Market at Aurora Farms, 1045 Milford Church Road, Taylors, with more than 40 local vendors, food trucks, warm drinks and Santa. A wedding-vendor open house runs at the same time.
- Before Dec. 31 13 Stripes' target for reopening at Hampton Station, 1320 Hampton Ave.
Dec. 13 falls on a Sunday this year, which makes the Merry Little Market the only Sunday event on the list. Everything else either starts before noon or depends on hours that end at 5 p.m.
If you're trying to figure out how the next tenant at 250 Mill St. might change the Mill, or what all this activity means for the homes near it, I'm glad to talk it through over coffee at Sip & Play. Reach out to Patrick Toates to Schedule a Free Consultation.
