Typical Destin Week

We are finally starting to dry out in Destin after almost 5 days of rain. Destin ended up with almost 10 inches of rain total over that time. That’s a lot for this time of the year.

Fun at Sago Sports Bar

Tuesday Sunshine Cindy and I stopped in at Sago Sports Bar. We wanted a bite to eat and to talk about Crab Island Mambo stuff. A good crowd was there. There was a big party going on. A girls basketball team was having an awards dinner. The beer was cold and the food hot so we were happy!

Wednesday I stopped at Landshark Pizza on the way home to meet Alan and Jackie. I had some Crab Island Mambo stuff to give them for an upcoming charity event they are having. I think I knew almost everyone in the place. Matt, Paige and Stephanie were working that night. It was wing night and almost everyone was eating wings including me!!! It was a fun night.

Landshark Pizza Party

Every day I drive by the old Fish Bar restaurant on the Destin harbor. It was sold and is being remodeled. Actually rebuilt is a better way to describe it. The new place will be called Boshamps Oyster House. They started the construction last fall. The amount of work going on there is amazing. Lumber and pilings are stacked up everywhere. They are putting in a big covered patio type area. A boardwalk is also being built. I can see from the road parts of the building was torn down and bigger spaces are now there. I can’t wait for this place to open to see what it’s going to be like.

New construction at Boshamps from their web site

Monday we will have a full report on our trip to Tampa and “Music on the Bay” this weekend. It will be a fun Trop Rock weekend! See ya then…

Rainy weekend in Destin

This was a weekend to keep the umbrella and raincoat handy. It poured off and on all weekend. Oh well, at least there is no drought to worry about. Friday night was a Parrothead phlocking at Howl at the Moon. Despite the weather there was a good turnout. It is always fun there with the dueling piano show. After leaving Howl at the Moon we headed home and called it a night.

View from Crab Island Cantina

Saturday we were busy during the day running some errands. Saturday afternoon we stopped in at Landshark Pizza. Julie joined us there. Renee and Stephanie were working. We tried some of their new Smoked Gouda Mac & Cheese bites. They were fantastic. We will get those again. Alan and Jackie stopped in for a while. It was fun chatting with them. Brian also came in and sat next to us. Finally Wayne joined us. We had a fun time. We left Landshark and stopped in at McGuire’s. We sat at the bar and watched the people coming and going. This place is always busy.

Cajun Mike

Sunday we had a brief break in the rain. With the nice weather, Sunshine Cindy and I went to Crab Island Cantina to hang out on the harbor for a while. The Daytona 500 was getting ready to start. Dave and Marilyn were there so we joined them at the bar. Alan and Jackie also came in and joined us. The bar was actually full and there was a good crowd of people walking through the village. The Cantina had a good crowd too. It was great to see. Carlos the owner also joined us and Julie also stopped in. We watched the entire race and had a blast.

We left there and went to the Rotten Apple. They were having a free crawfish boil. Scott, Mike, Terry and Michele were all there. Rose was behind the bar and Matt and Mindy were playing music. There was a good crowd of locals there too. We ended the night at Rotolo’s Pizza having some food and winding down the day. We managed to not get any rain all day but it came down hard during the night.

Mindy and Matt

The ECPHC and Harborwalk Village is sponsoring a Chili Cook-Off on March 9th. This is a big fund raiser for Relay for Life. The cook-off will be from 3-7 pm. At 7 pm the Sauce Boss will be performing on the big stage at Harborwalk Village. There will also be a big announcement about a new tenant moving into Harborwalk Village. Could this be the day they finally announce Margaritaville??? We shall see. To enter the cook-off or if you just want to come and sample, click the link for all the details. http://ecparrotheads.org/news-updates/

Have a great week! See ya Thursday!!!

Southern Drawl Band visits Destin

It has been a pretty busy week for the middle of winter. Monday was spent at home. Sunshine Cindy has been busy around the house while I did more Mambo work. Tuesday we went to Crab Island Cantina. We thought the Trop Rock band Southern Drawl was going to make it there to talk to Carlos about possibly playing there in the future. The band was on its way to Destin from New Orleans and were stopping at places along the Gulf Coast dropping off press kits. They were staying in Wayne’s condo on the island.

Part of the band (Tommy, Mike and I don't remember the other name. Sorry)

They were running late as musicians are prone to do. We decided to wait till Wednesday for the meeting. In the meantime Sunshine Cindy and I still talked to Carlos about some other musicians we might get to play. We are planning a Crab Island Mambo party for March. Musician to be announced soon! It will be fun.

From there we stopped in at Landshark Pizza. Barry was there as was Brian and Jerry. A decent crowd was in the place. Sue and Stephanie were working. We had some $2.50 Corona’s and ordered some food. It is always such a good vibe in Landshark. We got to talk to Sue about her recently concluded cruise. She and Brian had a great time and were able to recharge their batteries. It also looks like they might try to expand the restaurant. As busy as they are that would be good. We even talked about doing another Crab Island Mambo party there since the last one was so much fun!

Sunshine Cindy with the group

Wednesday we were able to Southern Drawl and Carlos together. We got to the Cantina before them. Dave and Marilyn were at the bar enjoying Wednesday’s drink specials. Marilyn was having the “Judy” Margarita named after one of the managers who created it. The band got there and they spent a lot of time with Carlos. Shurl is their manager and she was impressed with Carlos and the whole set up. They are trying to set up some dates in April. If they can make it work we will help promote it.

The band was heading to Panama City for the night. We wished them well. Wayne was still there, Cherie showed up and we had a few beers and some food. It was a nice night and enjoyable for us to try and help an upcoming band break into the Destin scene.

It looks like we might have a rainy weekend in Destin. But no matter. We will still be out “Embracing the Chaos!” See ya Monday!

Destin fun

What a fun weekend we had in Destin. Thursday was Valentine’s Day so being the romantic type I took Sunshine Cindy to a Sport Bar! We went to Johnny O’s for some Sam Adams and Jalapeno Poppers. I told you I was romantic! From there we stopped in at Sago Sports Bar. A small group was around the bar. We chatted with Chef Wayne and a few others before we headed home.

Friday we met Sunshine Cindy’s parents at TGIFriday’s. Rick waited on us and he was his usual crazy self. We then decided to head to the harbor as it was going to be a nice sunset. We went to the Boathouse but it was packed with Snowbirds so we headed up to the Red Door Saloon. We had a few beers. $2 happy hour prices can’t be beat. We also watched a couple of dogs playing as one had the others lease in his month and was trying to “walk” the other.

Brandon Day

We left there and went to Crab Island Cantina. Dave and Marilyn were there as well as Dave’s daughter Sabrina. She was home on leave from the Air Force. It was good seeing her again. Greg and Dominic were behind the bar. After a while, Carlos the owner came by and wanted to talk to me. He wanted my opinion on a possible new venture. It sounds exciting and I hope he can make it work. We talked to him and Dominic for a good while about past lives as music promoters. Carlos actually hired The Judd’s for $500 right as their song, “Mama He’s Crazy” came out. That was a good bargain!

 On the way home we stopped in at Rotolo’s Pizza. The crowd was thinning out at the bar. Blake was the bartender and Berg was there again too. Not too long after we sat down I felt someone grab me. I turned around and there was Kenny and LeeAnna. They were looking for us and happened to see BadAss in the parking lot. That was cool. We had fun catching up with them as it has been a couple of weeks.

On Saturday someone turned the wind machine on and it got a lot colder. We had to go back down to the harbor for a while and were almost blown over. Saturday afternoon we had a “Chase Away the Winter Blues” party at KC’s Sandbar in Ft. Walton Beach. We were upstairs and there was a heater to help keep us warm. Brandon Day played music and our big group had a blast. Jan and Kenny even sat in and did a few songs. When it ended, some of the crowd went to a bonfire.

Fun at KC's

We were not in the mood to sit outside in the cold and wind so we headed to the Legion for Karaoke. Judie and Kelly joined us. The place was packed with snowbirds. We had one drink and decided to move on as we were not feeling it there with the ‘birds. We went to Sago where they also do Karaoke. It was a lot of fun there. We saw a ton of friends and most had been there since early in the day so they were not feeling any pain. Kelly, Judie and Sunshine Cindy all did songs.

Cheers at Sago

Sunday was a much more laid back day. I had to go out for some errands and decided to stop in at Landshark Pizza. I had not been there since Brian and Sue got back from their vacation. Brian was there and he was training a new girl. It was Julie who used to work at Beef O’Brady’s in San Destin. She was there to open Beef's and 7 years later she closed it. The landlord raised the rent so high it was not profitable for them to stay open. Glad to see her at Landshark. The rest of the day was spent at home relaxing.

Enjoy your week. It’s warming back up. Spring is right around the corner here in Paradise!!! See ya Thursday!

Destin Dog Days of Winter

Okay, I have had a few drinks so hopefully this will come out alright! LOL

Drinks on the Destin harbor

If it is possible to be in the “Dog Days of Winter” then we are there. Some rain, some wind, colder weather moving in…Summer can’t get here fast enough. Oh well, we find ways to make the best of it. Monday Sunshine Cindy and I went to Rotolo’s pizza in Destin. Kerby and some other folks were there. Kerby was having a good time. Bri was working the bar again and Berg greeted us when we came in. We had a Mambo meeting while enjoying the rants of Kerby!

Tuesday and Wednesday nights we stayed in. Too much to do around the house to get out. Besides we want to be free and clear for the weekend where we are having a gathering at KC’s Sandbar in Ft. Walton Beach on Saturday.

Fun in Destin

Speaking of Ft. Walton, the downtown strip along Hwy. 98 is getting some new businesses open up. A runners store is expanding and a bicycle shop is also moving into the area. Looks like the physically active folks will have some choices now besides the wind surfing place. There is also a new sports bar opening where Barley’s used to be. Looks like they are getting close to having a grand opening. If you have never been to downtown Ft. Walton you need visit sometime. There is a lot of different places and you have a city park along the water. Join us at KC’s Saturday and see for yourself.

The changes continue at the old Island Putt-Putt golf course. The building has been torn down and the course is down to dirt as they rebuild a newer and bigger amusement area. I suspect it should be open sometime in the spring judging by the pace of work. Yep, nothing stays the same for very long around here.

Get out and enjoy the weekend. See ya on Monday!

Busy weekend in Destin

What a weekend in Destin. There is a lot to cover so here we go! Friday was the “All Sports” banquet. This is a local awards fundraiser and this year they out did themselves. They give the “Danny Wuerffel” trophy to Matt Barkley from Southern Cal. But the highlight of the night was Deon Sanders as the keynote speaker. Primetime was a dynamic speaker who talked about following your dreams while interspersing antidotes from his playing days in the NFL. Also on the stage was coach Bobby Bowden and coach Mickey Andrews. Pretty cool.

Before the banquet was a VIP party at Harry T’s that I got to attend. At the party I was across the bar from Peter Boz, the developer of Harborwalk Village. I could hear him talking to a guy about Margaritaville. I eavesdropped a little and think I heard him say they (Buffett) are going to put over a million dollars into renovating the building. I only wish I knew when it was going to start!

Parrotheads getting ready to walk last Saturday

Also at Harry T’s on Friday night the Parrotheads had their monthly meeting. I understand they packed the upstairs area. I stopped in on my way home and it was still packed with young folks dancing to the music of Flash Flood. What a night for Harry T’s.

Saturday was the Mardi Gras parade on the harbor. I got down there about 11 am. I went to the Crazy Lobster to get a burger as I knew it was going to be a long day. Jesse was behind the bar and joked that he was still drunk from the night before. He also told me how he kinda met Deon Sanders too. 5:30 am he was in a Waffle House on the Island when his friend said Deon was sitting behind Jesse. He didn’t believe him and started to rag on Deon a little about his college days. When he turned around he realized it was Deon. He said Deon was laughing about his comments. Either Deon had a late night or an early flight. I am betting on the early flight.

Jim and Betty carried the sign

Wayne joined me and we headed to the parade staging area. The ECPHC was marching and we were joining them. We stopped and talked to Steve at the Hawaiian Ice booth. It was his first day open for the season and he had made his first sales already. He was happy.

Our staging spot was right in front of AJ’s. For some reason the cops did not close the entrance and cars kept coming down to where we were and then had to back up and get turned around since there was no parking left. As the parade started a car with Ohio plates came down and said they were going to swing around or something but they ended up in the parade. Now that is snowbirds who will have a story to tell the people back home.

The Ohio Snowbirds who ended up in the parade

The parade was a lot of fun. When we ended Jackie spotted me so I joined them at Crab Island Cantina. Dominic and Greg were working the bar and were kept busy with the big crowds. I then went up to Harry T’s. Wayne and Cherie was up there. Other folks joined us and Sunshine Cindy also joined us. We stayed there for a while then headed to the Boathouse. Matt and Kerby were there as well as many other folks. We talked to Gigi the manger about Crab Island Mambo and she even bought us a beer. Cool.

Sunshine Cindy and I finally ended the day at Sago Sports Bar. But the excitement didn’t end. A guy at the bar recognized us. He used to be a parrothead. Dave remembered us and he even attended a few beach clean-ups. While talking to him a lady came in and sat down next to me. One of Dave’s friends started talking to her but she seemed strange. At one point Dave’s friend leaned over and told me this lady was crazy. She said she was the Queen of England’s sister and somehow also related to the late Steve Jobs. Okie Dokie then.

Fun at The Boathouse

It gets better. The bar had a big bowl of boiled shrimp they were passing around. When the bowl got to her she started to eat the entire bowl dumping the shells back into the bowl. She must have made some comment too and finally Stephanie the bartender told her she was going to have to leave. This lady threw the bowl of shrimp at Steph which got her immediately thrown out. Good thing they got Steph calmed down as I think she was going to come across the bar after this lady. What a day!

After all the activity on Friday night and Saturday, we decided to take it easy on Sunday. Sunshine Cindy and I puttered around the house and I spent a good part of the day working on the Crab Island Mambo Mullet Wrapper. It was nice to relax and not have to go anywhere.

This week is Fat Tuesday. Enjoy the celebration. See ya Thursday!

Checked out a new spot this week

Sunshine Cindy and I have been taking it kind of easy this week as we recover from Super Bowl Sunday. Monday night was spent at home working on Crab Island Mambo stuff. This month’s Mullet Wrapper newsletter is shaping up and that is what I have been spending most of my time on.

Mardi Gras in Destin

We did get out Tuesday to check out a new place for us. Kerby and Matt have been telling us about Rotolo’s Pizza in Destin. I have seen the place many times. It sits in a strip center near Winn Dixie. When we walked in I was amazed at how big it was inside. They have a full bar and TV’s all around. We met the manager Berg and Bri was behind the bar.

Harborwalk Village Mardi Gras

We had some food that was good. They have excellent drink prices including $2 domestic bottles all day every day. Can’t beat that. Plus they have Abita and Yuengling Light in bottles!!! We also talked to Thomas who was sitting at the bar. He is the bar manager at Peppers in Shalimar. It was an enjoyable evening. We will be back. Wednesday was back to Mambo stuff.

Sue was the "parrot"

Well, the Jimmy Buffett concert came and went on Tuesday. There was still no official announcement about Margaritaville coming to Destin. This despite the fact employees at Harborwalk Village were briefed on the plans. I am not sure what the hold up in announcing it is. Oh well, at this rate it won’t be open till next spring!

This is a big weekend on the Destin harbor. The annual Mardi Gras parade will be Saturday. That always draws thousands of people to the harbor. This is kind of our unofficial start to spring. I am ready.

Enjoy your weekend. See ya Monday!

Super Destin Weekend

What a fun weekend it was on the Emerald Coast. It started out Thursday evening. Sunshine Cindy and I met up with Alan and Jackie for happy hour at the Ramada. They are staying right across the street and have told us how nice it is in there and how friendly the staff is. They were right. We had a nice relaxing evening talking and laughing. From there Sunshine Cindy and I stopped in at Hogs Breath. We had a bite to eat. Cam was working the bar. Some guy talked to us about acting in some kind of commercial that will be filmed. I doubt we will ever hear from him again.

Julie, Loujean, Jackie and Sunshine Cindy at Fisherman's Wharf

Friday we went to Fisherman’s Wharf for their $1 draft happy hour. Alan and Jackie joined us. So did Julie and Loujean. We had a blast BS’ing and looking out at the harbor on a beautiful afternoon. Sunshine Cindy and I went down to Crab Island Cantina from there. Greg was working the bar. Sunshine Cindy got her sweet tooth fix there with some type of Guava brownie. It was really good. We made one more stop on the way home at the Rotten Apple. Our usual crowd was in there to listen to Matt and Mindy play. There was a good crowd overall there.

Cherie singing at Sago for Karaoke

Saturday I was able to get a lot of Crab Island Mambo stuff done including posting pictures and video’s from the fun we had in January. Click here to check it out: http://www.crabislandmambo.com/January-2013-Crab-Island-Mambo-events.html  Saturday afternoon I went down to the harbor and Crazy Lobster. I needed an Abita fix. Jesse was working the bar again. As I sat down some dolphins were putting on a show in the pass. They were jumping and having a great time. It never gets old watching them.

Jan having fun at Sago

Saturday evening Sunshine Cindy and I went to Sago Sports bar. They were having karaoke and some of the singers were fantastic. Wayne, Cherie and Cajun Mike all came in. We had a fun time as there was a good vibe to the place.

As everyone who is not living under a rock knows, Sunday was Super Bowl Sunday. Sunshine Cindy and I went to McGuire’s for brunch to get the day started. The food was great as usual there. For the game we went to Sago. Tommy set us up with a big table right near the 100 inch screens. We had 11 people show up and we all had a great time. Shannon took good care of our group. Sago was packed but I don’t think anyone had as much fun as we did. We even got a mini wave started around our tables during the power outage! The only thing that would have made the game better was if the Niner’s had won.

Have a great week. See ya on Thursday!

More changes in Destin

Looks like a brief return to cold weather for Destin. Of course that’s relative as we will still be in the 60’s today getting back to 70ish by the weekend. Sunshine Cindy and I went out Tuesday to Hard Rock Café at the Commons. We have not been there in a while. I got a gift card from my brother so we decided to use it. The place was pretty much empty. For a while we were the only folks in there. We did cut up with the staff but then we always do that no matter where we are! LOL

The prices are high at Hard Rock for what you get. Draft beers were $4.95 each. Ouch. The atmosphere is cool with all the memorabilia on the walls but even that is getting dated as the Destin location has not changed its stuff in years. But it is still a neat place to visit and the staff there always seems to have a good time and they take good care of the customers.

Blake playing at the Boathouse

An iconic Destin night spot is closing. KJ’s on the harbor is shutting its doors this weekend. KJ’s is a late night place that does not even open till 10 pm. It is a small hole in the wall spot that has been going strong since the 80’s. In fact, Keith Urban has played there in the past. Okay, Keith actually lived in Ft. Walton Beach with Rusty and his wife. Keith actually went to high school here and he would play at some of the local spots before he hit the big time. I am not sure if someone else is buying the place or what might happen to it.

KJ's on the Destin harbor

One thing that could happen is it might be tied into a property a few feet away. The old Woody’s bar that sits right on the water and has been empty for a couple of years has been taken over by Alan Laird of AJ’s. The word is he is going to remodel and open a new restaurant there. I wonder if the KJ’s property might be a part of the deal. I will have to dig in and find out but it would make sense.

One last new opening is in San Destin. Elephant Walk restaurant is reopening. For years in the San Destin resort Elephant Walk was the best upscale restaurant in the area. It sits right on the beach and has great views. The resort a few years ago tried to make it more casual and renamed it Finz but it never seemed to catch on. New owners are going back to what worked and bringing the old name back too.

Elephant Walk in San Destin

With Elephant Walk coming back that reminds me of a story a friend told me a few years back. He was in the restaurant when a couple came in with a couple of young kids. The kids were kind of loud as kids are prone to be. The parents tried to keep them quiet and eventually they went to my friend to apologize. He told them it was not a bother then he realized the couple was Tim McGraw and Faith Hill. Yep, even stars have normal lives.

Enjoy the weekend and the Super Bowl. See ya Monday!