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2150 Gold Hill Road · Since 1977

Our Story

Roots that found their way home.

The Building

A Place Tega Cay
Has Always Known

There is a building at 2150 Gold Hill Road that has been part of Tega Cay since 1977. A lot of people have passed through it. A lot of memories live in its walls. For the last few years, it has needed more love than it was getting.

Christine and Karl Schaefer are the people who showed up to give it that love.

We wanted to take a piece of this community’s history and leave it better than we found it.— Karl Schaefer

Christine and Karl have flipped more than one house together, and they have, as Christine puts it, a particular set of skills for bringing old buildings back to new life. They wanted to do that here.

The Founders

A Town Worth
Protecting

Christine and Karl first visited Tega Cay in 2013, when close friends moved here. They fell in love with what they found: a town with a genuine “we’re all in this together” way of thinking, whether that meant being on the boat at the sandbar or getting a neighborhood project done.

They eventually moved here themselves. And like a lot of people who move to Tega Cay, they started to feel something they didn’t want to lose.

Like most communities, to stay strong, we need a third place — not home, not work — where we can connect to each other, sit down, share a meal, share a moment. That’s what makes a thriving, happy community.— Christine G.D. Schaefer

The idea of building that place had been forming for years. In early 2025, when a bid came open to run the city-owned clubhouse, they put in for it. They didn’t win. But the process of going through it helped them get clear on what they actually wanted to build.

When 2150 Gold Hill Road came available, they saw it immediately. From first look to signed lease: two weeks.

The Name & The Dog

A Brae is
a Hillside

The name is not decorative.

Christine’s maiden name is Dawson — an offshoot of the Davidson clan in Scotland. Her father traced their family heritage back to the original Scottish settlers who came over after Mary, Queen of Scots was removed from the throne. Karl has Scottish roots as well. And the Carolinas themselves were significantly shaped by Scottish and Irish settlers, whose influence on the region’s culture and food runs deeper than most people realize.

The Scottish thread in Maisie’s Green Brae is real and earned. It’s in the name, in the word brae, in the menu.

It runs through Maisie, too.

The Schaefers adopted their one-eyed foxhound in 2025, after watching the Puppy Bowl. Her name — chosen by their son — means “little pearl” in Gaelic. She came home already blind in one eye. It doesn’t slow her down.

She caught our hearts with her brave spirit, her silliness, her joyful way of just doing the simple things. Every single person she meets is her new friend.— Christine G.D. Schaefer

That, Christine says, is the spirit they wanted at the center of the restaurant.

What’s Next

The Story
Continues

U-Phonik on the stage. A backyard full of neighbors. Smoke carrying to the parking lot. Maisie at the door.

When we gather together to share good food and good music, we have all created the Good Life together.— Christine G.D. Schaefer

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Good to Know

Frequently Asked Questions

Who founded Maisie’s Green Brae?

Christine and Karl Schaefer. They’re the people who found the building at 2150 Gold Hill Road, fell in love with it, and spent months getting it right before opening. Christine grew up with Scottish roots and a background in hospitality; Karl has a hand for bringing old buildings back to life. Tega Cay is where they chose to put down roots, raise their kids, and open a restaurant that felt like the town deserved.

Why Tega Cay?

Christine and Karl first came to Tega Cay in 2013, when close friends moved here. They fell in love with what they found — a town with a genuine “we’re all in this together” way of thinking, whether that meant the sandbar on the lake or getting a neighborhood project done. They eventually moved here themselves, and the restaurant grew out of a conviction that a community this good deserved a better gathering place.

What does “Maisie’s Green Brae” mean?

Both words come from the same Scottish thread. A brae is a hillside — and the land at 2150 Gold Hill Road rises toward the back, so the name fit before anything was built on it. Maisie is the name of the Schaefer family dog, a one-eyed foxhound rescue whose name means “little pearl” in Gaelic. Put them together and you have the hillside that belongs to Maisie — which is more or less how things work around here.

Who is Maisie?

Maisie is a foxhound rescue. After Christine watched the Puppy Bowl, she started looking at shelter dogs online — and in 2025 took the family’s son, William, to meet a foxhound at the Humane Society of York County. William adopted her on the spot. She came home already blind in one eye, and it hasn’t slowed her down. Christine describes her as brave, silly, and joyful — the kind of dog who treats every person she meets as a new friend. That spirit is what the restaurant is named for.

What’s the Scottish connection?

It’s real and earned. Christine’s maiden name is Dawson — an offshoot of the Davidson clan in Scotland. Her father traced the family heritage back to the original Scottish settlers who came over after Mary, Queen of Scots was removed from the throne. Karl has Scottish roots as well. The Carolinas themselves were significantly shaped by Scottish and Irish settlers, whose influence on the region’s culture and food runs deeper than most people realize. The Scottish thread runs through the name, the word brae, and the menu.

What’s the history of the building at 2150 Gold Hill Road?

The building has been part of Tega Cay since 1977 — one of the original structures in a town that was itself just getting started. A lot of people have passed through it, and a lot of memories live in its walls. When Christine and Karl found it, it needed more love than it was getting. They gave it that love.

When did Maisie’s Green Brae open?

Soft opening began Friday, June 5, 2026, Thursday through Sunday. The grand opening was Saturday, July 4, 2026 — U-Phonik on the stage and the backyard full of neighbors. We’re open now, Wednesday through Sunday.

Is Maisie’s Green Brae part of a chain or group?

No. Maisie’s Green Brae is an independent restaurant, founded by Christine and Karl Schaefer. This is the only one.