On Everglades Avenue, Smithey Ironware Co. closes its doors at 4 p.m. on weekdays. About a block of Noisette Boulevard away, Riva Mare starts seating guests at 4 p.m. This fall, the stretch of North Charleston between East Montague Avenue and the Cooper River works the same way. The Navy Yard runs mostly on business hours with one dinner anchor. Park Circle covers the evenings and weekends. Thursdays and Fridays are the only days of the week when the two schedules overlap, so those are the days to plan a trip down Noisette.
The Navy Yard keeps business hours
Most of what has opened in the Charleston Design District, inside the larger Navy Yard redevelopment, keeps the hours of a trade showroom. The Navy Yard directory lists these current hours:
| Business | Address | Listed hours |
|---|---|---|
| Smithey Ironware Co. | 1061 Everglades Ave. | Mon–Fri, 9 a.m.–4 p.m. |
| Textures | 2154 Noisette Blvd., Suite 110 | Mon–Fri, 8 a.m.–4 p.m. |
| The Shade Store | 2154 Noisette Blvd., Suite 122 | Mon–Fri, 9 a.m.–5 p.m. |
| Schumacher | 2158 Noisette Blvd., Suite 101 | Mon–Fri, 9 a.m.–5 p.m. |
| Phillip Jeffries | 2158 Noisette Blvd., Suite 121 | Mon–Fri, 9 a.m.–5 p.m. |
| Middleton Made Knives | 2154 Noisette Blvd., Suite 131 | Thu–Sat, 11 a.m.–6 p.m. |
| Floral Studies | 2154 Noisette Blvd., Suite 141 | By appointment |
| Riva Mare | 2154 Noisette Blvd., Suite 500 | Mon–Thu 4–9 p.m.; Fri–Sat 4–10 p.m. |
On a typical weekday, five of these eight close by 5 p.m., and none of those five open on Saturday. Smithey describes itself as a cast iron and carbon steel cookware brand that is manufactured at the historic Naval Base, so its weekday schedule follows the workshop. If you want to see the cookware where it is made, plan a weekday lunch break. A Saturday morning won't work.
Second State Coffee, which opened in May, is listed at 2156 Noisette Blvd., right beside the showroom buildings. Its directory page doesn't post hours, so check with the shop before you build a morning around it. Zuma Imports, which carries handwoven Turkish rugs and vintage pottery, has a directory listing at Suite 105 but is still labeled "Coming Fall 2026" on the Navy Yard retail page.
Riva Mare is what keeps the lights on after five
The Navy Yard didn't have an evening reason to visit until August 21. That's the day The Indigo Road Hospitality Group opened Riva Mare, a coastal Italian rooftop restaurant atop Storehouse Nine at 2154 Noisette Blvd. According to Holy City Sinner, the menu looks to Italy's Amalfi and Ligurian coasts. Expect dishes built on olive oil, locally sourced seafood, and seasonal vegetables, along with limoncellos, spritzes, and a raw bar beside an open kitchen. David Thompson designed the space, drawing on the Italian port city of Genoa and on Charleston's maritime history. That's where the red-and-white striped accents come from.
In the same Holy City Sinner piece, Indigo Road founder Steve Palmer said, "Like many Charlestonians, we've spent years looking at Navy Yard and imagining its potential." The restaurant's hours fit that role. It opens at 4 p.m. every night it operates, Monday through Saturday, and stays open until 10 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays. It doesn't serve lunch, so the restaurant takes over from the showrooms at about the hour they close.
Parking follows the same pattern. The Navy Yard campus map shows free street parking along Noisette Boulevard, a surface lot across from Storehouses 8 through 10, accessible parking in front of Storehouse 8, and a paid event lot across from the Three Sisters. After 5 p.m., street spaces that weekday showroom visitors were using start to open up just as dinner guests arrive.
Thursday and Friday are when both schedules line up
Middleton Made Knives is the only Design District shop open on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Put that next to Smithey's weekday hours and Riva Mare's 4 p.m. opening, and Thursday and Friday are the only days with an unbroken afternoon on Noisette. You can see Smithey before 4, browse the knife showroom until 6, and sit down for dinner on the roof whenever you're ready. Saturday drops Smithey and every trade showroom, which leaves Middleton Made Knives and Riva Mare.
Thursday has one more draw in Park Circle. The North Charleston Farmers Market runs on Thursdays from 3 to 7 p.m. at the Park Circle Pavilion, 4800 Park Circle, and its season goes from May 7 through October 29. That makes Thursday, October 29, the last market of 2026. The market and Riva Mare overlap from 4 to 7 p.m., so you can shop the pavilion first and drive to the river for dinner later.
Park Circle keeps the weekend, with a new name on an old corner
Park Circle's biggest change this fall happened at a familiar address. DIG in the Park opened in 2011 in the former Zocalo space at 1049 E. Montague Ave. Over more than a decade it became known for its patio, its many TVs, and its happy hour, which the Charleston City Paper's Best of Charleston awards recognized. As Charleston Daily reported in September, the business was sold and replaced by Rocko's, which opened in late August. Holy City Sinner's 2026 opening tracker gives the opening date as August 24.
Rocko's kept the bar-and-grill basics, including burgers, wings, sports, and outdoor seating. It added a country-Western look and a bigger drink program with cocktails, wine, craft beer, and specialty drinks. Charleston Daily noted that the change "has already generated plenty of conversation among Park Circle residents." Some longtime DIG regulars welcomed the renovation, while others wondered how the new concept would fit in. Rocko's kept the corner's role as a place to eat, drink, and watch a game on a Saturday, which is exactly when the Navy Yard's showrooms are dark.
Across the street, Off Track Ice Cream's second shop at 1054 E. Montague Ave. is still listed as planned for fall 2026. When Holy City Sinner first reported the plan in November 2025, the expected opening was summer 2026. The timeline has already moved back once, so count it as coming soon and follow the shop for an opening date.
The calendar alternates between the river and the Circle
From here to early December, the public events move back and forth between the two ends of the drive. The weekends make it easy to plan.
- Thursday, October 29: final farmers market of the season. 3 to 7 p.m. at the Park Circle Pavilion, 4800 Park Circle.
- Saturday, November 14: Holy Smokes BBQ Festival. 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Riverfront Park, 1061 Everglades Ave. It's a Saturday, so Smithey and the trade showrooms will be closed. Middleton Made Knives is open until 6, and Riva Mare opens at 4, the same hour the festival ends.
- Friday, December 4: Cookies & Cocoa with Santa, then the Christmas Tree Lighting. Cookies and cocoa run from 4 to 6 p.m., and the lighting follows from 6 to 7 p.m., both at the Park Circle Community Building, 4800 Park Circle.
- Saturday, December 5: Christmas Festival and Parade. 2 to 6 p.m. on the Park Circle Community Building grounds. The city's Christmas activities page says the parade starts at 3 p.m., but the recreation department's events page lists 5 p.m. Check with the city closer to the date before you pick a curbside spot.
On days without a festival, Riverfront Park is still there. The City of North Charleston describes it as a passive park on the Cooper River that is open to the public year-round and hosts events and concerts. The park is open on weekends, when the showrooms next door are closed.
If you're showing visiting family the Navy Yard this season or deciding which Park Circle corner suits a Saturday, I'm happy to share what I know about this part of North Charleston. Reach out to Carrie Hutto anytime. Let's Connect.
