The journey between Pensacola and Destin Florida used to be a quiet and desolate ride.  Not any more!  Located just east of the Navarre Beach Bridge is one of Navarre’s newest businesses “The Slippery Mermaid “.  Opened in A ugust 2009 by longtime resident Karen Hineman, this little jewel offers locals as well as travellers along Hwy [...]

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by Karen Harrell
Originally posted January 2009
Just one block off busy Hwy. 98 in downtown Fort Walton Beach, Fla., is a place many longtime Snowbirds proudly call “home” – The Magnolia Grill.
“We have many Snowbirds who bring their friends and family in to ‘their’ restaurant,” said owner Tom Rice. “They go through and tell them all [...]

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by Karen Harrell
Originally posted December 2008

Local, local, local.
In today’s world of never-ending chain stores and restaurants, it’s always a challenge finding quality local businesses, but especially restaurants.
Opened last spring in a
nondescript shopping center on Pensacola Beach, the Native Café is a true local’s (although tourists are encouraged) restaurant.
The restaurant serves only fresh food found from [...]

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by Karen Harrell
Originally posted March 2008
Lucy Buffett, like many people, had a book in her head for many years.
But, finding the time to put words on paper was tough for the busy restaurateur to find.
“I finally got down to business and made it a goal to complete the book by the end of the year,” [...]

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by Joe Culpepper
Originally posted February 2008
In his book “Playing For Pizza,”
best-selling author John Grisham vividly describes Italians’ unabashed appreciation of fine food and wine.
Dining in romantic Italian locales such as Rome, Venice, Sicily or Florence –
or Parma, per Grisham’s novel – is typically reason for celebration; meals often last for hours.
Vinnie R’s, a family-owned New [...]

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Originally posted February 2008
Jim Shirley is well-known in the Pensacola culinary scene as executive chef and part-owner of two thriving downtown eateries – The Fish House and Atlas.
The waterfront restaurants are popular among Pensacola’s business community and draw a loyal customer base.
But today he divides his time with a new venture, Great Southern Café, the [...]

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Originally posted January 2008
Many new restaurants have opened along the Alabama Gulf Coast in the past few years, but Hazel’s Seafood Restaurant in Orange Beach maintains its status as a Snowbird favorite.
Each year, a variety of Alabama Snowbird clubs and small groups of winter visitors gather at the venerable restaurant to reconnect, chat and visit [...]

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You choose to spend your winters on the Gulf Coast. Hawaii, thousands of miles away in the Pacific Ocean, just isn’t a viable alternative.
But Snowbirds visiting Northwest Florida need not book a transcontinental flight or Pacific cruise for the opportunity to experience a taste of native Hawaiian cuisine.

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Originally posted March 2007

A search for a good, quality breakfast restaurant some 10 years ago led engineer Ron Green down a path he never imagined.
When Green couldn’t find the California style restaurant experience he was used to in 1992 when he returned to his roots in Louisiana, he started looking into what it would take to open his own place.

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Originally posted January 2007

The white sands and mild winters of Panama City Beach lured restaurateur Jack Bishop from his home state of Michigan and family when he was just 27 years old.
jack_bishop_breakersToday at age 63, Bishop still runs the Gulf-front restaurant, The Breakers, and its next door neighbor, Harpoon Harry’s, and two others: Captain Jack’s and Bishop’s Family Buffet.

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Originally posted January 2007

At first, I thought it was an illusion.
Jutting out nearly to the water’s edge was what looked like a restaurant.
Convinced that it was an abandoned building from one of the recent storms, I was quickly reassured that, yes, Sea-n-Suds was a fully operational restaurant.

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Originally posted December 2006

Finding a good breakfast spot is like gold to me.

For years I was loyal to one place – the Holiday Inn on Pensacola Beach. This was more than 10 years ago – pre-Hurricane Opal when the hotel was full service. The restaurant there had an amazing Gulf view, the food was good and inexpensive and servers had worked there for 15-20 years each.

When you came in, they knew your name. Ah, how times have changed. That hotel evolved into a limited service Holiday Inn Express which was later destroyed by Hurricane Ivan. So, I’ve been on the lookout for good breakfast joints ever since.

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Originally posted December 2006

Off the Beaten Path
– in this case off Hwy. 98 – can often mean great finds!

One day I was leisurely making my way to Panama City and decided to veer off at Hwy. 30 in South Walton County to find a place to have lunch and browse. I was greeted by the first of several small communities along that stretch called “Gulf Place.”

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Opened in 1996 in a scenic location overlooking Destin’s famous blue-green waters in an area known as “Crab Island,” this McGuire’s Irish Pub won’t disappoint.

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by Karen Harrellmontego_bay_restaurant_0309
Originally posted February 2009

One of my mother’s favorite shows was the sitcom “Cheers.”
Cleverly written, the show featured a camaraderie and “sense of place” that’s just hard to find.
Although the show was based on a bar, there is such a place in Panama City Beach, Fla.

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