Eagles Nest Restaurant at 507 N Main St in Clover, SC began as a tin firecracker stand. Julie Preston’s father sold fireworks there when, as she remembers, “We were the only ones selling fireworks back then.” He used the profits to build the first section of the building.
It was meant as a game room for local kids, with a basketball goal and horseshoes out back. In 1975 it became a full restaurant. The name honors the Clover High School Blue Eagles. Julie’s father worked the chain crew at Friday night football games. The restaurant closed on game nights, then fed the team and the town afterward.
Julie moved to Arizona as a young adult and came home in 1994 when her father’s health declined. She and her husband, John, have owned and run Eagles Nest since then. They refreshed the menu and updated the space.
The food is Southern comfort: hand-pattied burgers, homemade chili, fresh slaw, chicken salad, pimento cheese and baked desserts. Julie’s mother still bakes the cakes each morning. Regulars plan around the rotation: lemon pound on Tuesday, coconut on Thursday, pineapple on Saturday.
Many staff have worked there for more than 20 years, and some of their children work there now. Fifth-generation customers are coming in.
Come for a burger, and save room for the day’s cake.
