Living and Playing in Destin

Sunshine Cindy and I did a lot of playing this past week. Thursday was her birthday. She is 29…again! We went to McGuire’s for dinner. The food and drinks were fabulous as always. The business McGuire’s does is amazing. The place stays packed.

When we left McGuire’s we stopped in at Landshark Pizza to watch the first few selections in the NFL draft. My Browns were picking first and fourth. The reward for a terrible season. I wanted them to take Baker Mayfield with the first pick and they did. I let out a big yell of approval. They then made another good pick with the fourth selection in an Ohio State cornerback. Hopefully this is the start of something good. Landshark’s had a big crowd for the draft. I guess everyone is ready for some football.

Friday evening was our Parrot Head Phlocking at Crab Island Cantina. We had over 100 folks show up on a beautiful night. The Dizzy Juke’s Band entertained everyone and the staff took great care of us. We once again raised a bunch of money for our current charity.

Saturday was spent at home as Sunshine Cindy’s parents came to visit for her birthday. It was a perfect day for us to celebrate.

Sunday we got a lot of stuff done around the house as we prepare for an upcoming trip to Costa Rica. I snuck off for a while to Landshark to get a pizza but that was it. Sue was working the bar and it was a relatively quiet day there. The weather was so nice most folks were probably on the water or at the beach. There was one couple in there with their kids. Sue said they come down once a month from Birmingham for the day and always end up at Landshark before they head home. It’s about a three hour drive but when you love the beach you do what you have to do!

Actually on Sunday it finally felt like spring. The temp got up to 86 degrees. It was awesome!

The old Helen Back on the island reopened this past weekend. The new owners have renamed it The FUBAR Pizza bar and grill. Their advertising is making a point to say the entire place is remodeled and the “smell” is gone! LOL

Our friend BT is back at Crab Island Cantina’s on Sunday’s now. And he will be playing at Tailfins each Friday and Saturday evenings for the season. With Ronnie leaving this left an opening and I am glad BT was able to fill that slot. He will do awesome there.

Have a great week. See ya next Monday.

Destin Steve

Living and Playing in Destin

It was a wild week in Destin

The biggest news of the week was a tornado hitting Ft. Walton Beach on Sunday. It started out as a water spout then came ashore on Okaloosa Island crossing the island, going into the Sound then hitting land again by The Original Crab Shack. It damaged a bunch of cars in their parking lot, hit city hall across the street then hit an apartment. Luckily no one was hurt as it could have been bad.

Sunshine Cindy and I had a busy week. Tuesday we went to the harbor to see our friends Alan and Jackie. They came into town for a few days. I am glad to say Alan is looking good after a health scare. We met them at Crab Island Cantina then we all went to Harry T’s. It was awesome catching up with them again. They will be back in June with the family.

Friday and Saturday we did more yard work spreading more stones. We are almost done with that project. Friday afternoon we went to The Crab Trap on old 98 for a late lunch. We had a good meal while enjoying the Gulf of Mexico. The water was a perfect blue. After eating we went to their beach bar. Old friend Glen was bartending. We have not seen him in a long while. We had a fun time talking to him and some tourist and locals that were at the bar.

Saturday morning Sunshine Cindy and I went to Harry T’s for brunch. We were amazed at the number of rental pontoon boats that were going out. Saturday evening our good friends Mike and Brodie got married. They rented a house on the beach in Destin Pointe and had a great day for their wedding. It was a beautiful ceremony that even had dolphins swimming by for a nice touch.

Sunday was a rainy day with storms on and off as witnessed by the tornado. Sunshine Cindy and I went to Tailfins for some lunch. Victoria was working the bar. It was a slow day because of the weather.

Here is another reason why I love my Parrot Head friends. Music on the Bay is an event in Tampa held each year. This year they presented to the Shriners Hospital for Children a check for $57,500!!! Since they started MOTB they have donated over $269,000! Parrot Heads sure do know how to party with a purpose!

Last Tuesday night / Wednesday morning the 112 year old Gulfview Hotel was moved. It will become a welcome center in downtown Ft. Walton. They threw a big party for the move since they had to shut down 98. The move went well and the hotel is now in its new location.

With Alan and Jackie in town I was able to get some news on things on the island. Last year it was announced a Hard Rock resort was going to go in at the Ramada Inn. Will I guess that has fallen through and it will stay a Ramada Inn. I suppose that is why they were doing so much renovation to the place.

I have been wondering what was up with the Fuds location on the island. They have been closed since the first of the year. It was reported they were remodeling but now I understand it was sold to the owner of the Ramada Inn and Jay Odem who plan to open a new restaurant there. I wonder that happened to cause Fuds to sell.

Back on the harbor, Carlos continues to expand his Crab Island Cantina empire. He is moving his Carlito’s deli from the little space in the Cantina to the old Tropical Smoothie location across from the big stage in Harborwalk. He will be doing breakfast too. It should be opening soon.

The McGuire’s bus is back. The double-decker bus has been a landmark in front of McGuire’s since they opened. A few months ago a car crashed into the bus so it had to have repairs made. The repairs are done and the bus is back greeting everyone as they go to McGuire’s.

The city of Destin is talking about not allowing any commercial activity on Crab Island. First I don’t know that they have any jurisdiction out there. And second something should have been done a long time ago. Pretty soon you won’t be able to get any boats out there due to all the structures selling stuff. This will be an interesting fight.

The Tampa Bay Lightning are moving on to the second round of the Stanley Cup playoffs. Let’s keep the momentum going guys!

This Friday the Emerald Coast Parrot Head club will be meeting at Crab Island Cantina. The fun starts at 5:30. Come out and help us raise some money for our charities.

Have a great week. See ya next Monday!

Destin Steve

It was a wild week in Destin

Another busy week in Destin

Sunshine Cindy and I had another busy and fun week. We spent another weekend of working in the yard as we continue to put down marble rocks. Two more pallets went down with one more to go. I guestimate I have moved about 33 tons worth of rock over the last couple weekends. Not bad for an old man! The yard is looking great. Sunshine Cindy’s vision is coming to life.

Tuesday after work I met Sunshine Cindy at Tailfins. BT is back in town and we were meeting him and Nicole there to welcome him back. It was great seeing him. He is booking gigs again. He starts at the Cantina on the 29th for his usual Sunday afternoon gig. It was fun hanging out at Tailfins. We saw several friends who were there enjoying a nice afternoon too.

Thursday evening we went to Landshark Pizza to watch the Tampa Bay Lightning’s first playoff game. We had a great time. Josh was behind the bar taking care of us. Jason was working tables but he talked to us when he had time. Turns out his brother has season tickets to the Lightning’s games. That’s cool. I got to wear my jersey Sunshine Cindy bought me for my birthday too. And the best thing was they won!!!

Friday night we were supposed to join the Parrot Heads at Royal Palm Grill for a beach bonfire. We were both so tuckered out from working all day we decided to stay home and relax. The Parrot Heads had a great time but it was the right call to stay home.

On Saturday our friends Mike and Brodie had a pre-wedding reception at Crab Island Cantina. Their actual wedding is next Saturday but it is at a small place so they had this reception for all of their friends to help them celebrate. BT played and a ton of folks came out. There were friends from Panama City who we don’t see often enough who even came. We are so happy for Mike and Brodie and we were glad to help them celebrate!

Saturday night / Sunday morning we had a big line of storms pass through our area. By sunrise they were past us and the sun came out by 9:30 am. I was able to take Chaos out for her normal walk. She was happy about that! LOL  Sunshine Cindy and I went to The Fresh Market for breakfast. It was our first time there. The breakfast was only so-so but some of their sandwiches looked like they would be great. We might come back to try them.

When we left The Fresh Market we stopped in at Publix for a few things. I noticed they had signs up saying no beer/wine till 1 pm on Sunday. I thought that law was changed. I know Beach Liquor is open early on Sunday. When we left Publix we actually stopped in at Beach Liquor and found out that change was only for places in the city limits of Destin. So that only includes Beach Liquor, Cash’s and Winn Dixie. Except Winn Dixie is still not selling beer/wine early because they have not received corporate approval. No wonder Winn Dixie has declared bankruptcy. They are losing a lot of money because of this. This should be a no-brainer to make happen. Geesh…

Around town the last big parcel of land that was under contract to a Dolly Parton development company has been sold again. This is next to the new apartments on Commons. A bank that was on the property has been torn down too. I have not heard what is going in here yet.

The old Panini Pete’s building next to the Waffle House is being remodeled. I think some kind of vacuum place is going in there. I could not read the sign to well as I drove by. And if it is a vacuum place that makes no sense to me but hey, what do I know. LOL

Businesses on Crab Island are getting an early start this year. There are already 5 or 6 structures set up out there. I know the county is working on something to regulate it out there but I don’t think they will get anything done for this season.

The rebuild of The Pointe is coming along. We now have a mountain of sand at the end where they have extended it to pre-hurricane days. I hope we don’t get any hurricane’s this year as I can see all that sand back in the harbor entrance.

And last but not least the girls are coming back to town. This Friday, Saturday and Sunday Drop Dead Dangerous will be back at Juana’s in Navarre. It has been a while since we saw Kitty and Melanie. They are a great duo. Get out to see them if you get a chance.

Have a great week. See ya next Monday.

Destin Steve

Spring Break is over in Destin

Last week was the last hurrah of 2018 Spring Break in Destin. And it was probably our busiest week of the season. Traffic was heavy, wait times were long and chaperones were busted for throwing house parties for underage kids. Two different house parties were busted. The cops came because of loud music. You would think if you were giving underage kids booze and pot you would at least try to keep it down a little so you don’t draw attention to yourself. SMH…

It was another busy week at our house. We had a paver walkway installed from the driveway to the pool. It looks awesome. All Good Construction did the work. We highly recommend them. While that was going in Sunshine Cindy went to Home Depot (We should own stock in them we go there so often right now!) and ordered a pallet of Marble stones. They come in about 60 pound bags and a pallet holds 75 bags. It was delivered on Friday and we had it put down by the end of the day. Well, those 75 bags didn’t go too far. So she ordered another 3 pallets.

It was raining Saturday morning so we couldn’t work. Plus Sunshine Cindy had to go visit with some relatives. In the afternoon the sun came out and the pallets got delivered. I managed to put down another half pallet of the stones.

Sunday we got another pallet and a half down. Next weekend we plan to get the last pallet down. The stones look great. We have them in the flower beds and a big area alongside the house where our pool pump equipment is located at. They are a white stone with some hint of grey and they contrast the house perfectly. Now if we can get the grass to start growing! LOL

Because of the house work we didn’t get out too much. I ran to Landshark Pizza on Friday to get us a pie after we called it a day. Brian was working the bar. Pops came in and we chatted for a while. On Saturday while it was raining I got a haircut. I was supposed to go to the harbor on Saturday evening for a bachelor party for Mike but by the time I was done working I was pooped so I relaxed at home.

Around town the new shops by Publix are open. Starbucks, Panera Bread and the auto parts store are all open.

I hear there is a new GM at Hogs Breath. The word I got is they are not doing locals cards anymore and they don’t plan to cater to the locals. If that’s true that would be a big mistake. I know several people have left there. I don’t know if this is the reason but it could be. We have not been there in a month or so. We need to get back and see what’s going on.

BT is back! BT Turner is back in town after being gone for the winter season. Hopefully he will be getting back to some of his old gigs soon. We love going to listen to him play.

The Emerald Coast Parrot Head club will be meeting this Friday at Royal Palm Grill for their Friday night beach bonfire. It should be a lot of fun as we “party with a purpose.” Mike and Brodie are having a pre-wedding reception this Saturday. We look forward to this as we love them both.

Have a great week. See ya next Monday with another recap of “Living and Playing in Destin.”

Destin Steve

Atlanta comes to Destin

This week is Spring Break for many public schools in and around Atlanta. With Atlanta being the metro area that sends the most tourist to Destin that means this week is going to be crazy with Breakers and their families in town.

The onslaught began Friday and Saturday with inbound traffic looking like a summer weekend. Saturday afternoon, Sunshine Cindy, Wayne and I headed to Bluewater Bay and Ciao Bella Pizza shop to listen to music. A musician friend, Eric Stone was going to be in town and playing there. The traffic coming into Destin was bumper to bumper. From the toll booth at the Mid-Bay bridge traffic was backed up to Hwy 20.

Inside of Ciao Bella is a small bar called the Blue Bar. The owner of Ciao Bella is an old friend of Eric’s and hires him to play whenever he is in town. Even though it was last minute we had some friends show up. Mark, Stephanie, Cliff, Sharon, Paul, Debbie and Rob were all there. We had a fun time. Eric used to live in Destin and he would hang out on the beach with us back in the day. It was good catching up with him.

Last Wednesday we had a special ECPHC board meeting at Royal Palm Grill in Seaside Resort. This was a planning meeting for our upcoming “Phins for Phurry Phriends Deck Party” that will be held May 12th on the pool deck at Royal Palms. This should be a fun venue for our event. Check us out on Eventbrite for tickets: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/phins-for-phurry-phriends-deck-party-tickets-44508713761?aff=es2  Tickets are only $20 PP and all proceeds benefit Alaqua Animal Rescue. Everyone 21 and over is welcome.

Friday afternoon Sunshine Cindy and I headed to the harbor and Tailfins for a late lunch. They have reopened the lower level after having to rebuild all the decking due to a fire. It was good to be back in our usual spot. Victoria was behind the bar and Jasmine took good care of us. We talked to Johnny the owner a little telling him they did a great job on the rebuild. We noticed they have added more docks and rental pontoon boats. They also moved the outside trailer bar a little to give more room to walk on the back side. All in all they did a good job and it was pretty busy.

After having our late lunch we decided to walk down to The Boathouse. They were just opening for the evening. We got a seat at the bar. The place quickly filled up. Jack came in. We had not seen him in a long time. He was looking good. We talked to a charter boat captain. He was an interesting person. I don’t remember his name but his dog was Ozzie. He was a cute pup who spent most of him time under the captain’s bar stool although he did wander a couple times to get petted by a pretty girl or two. Smart dog!

Our football watching friend Donny came in and we had a chance to catch up with him for a while. All in all we had a fun time.

We left and headed back towards Tailfins. Ronny was playing so we grabbed an outside table to listen to him and dance a little. Sadly this was Ronny’s last day in town. He has taken a job as a music director on a cruise ship. Good luck to Ronny but he will be missed. We saw several more friends while we were down there. James and Jonelle walked by and chatted with us for a few minutes. We had a good time but it was time to get home to Chaos.

Easter Sunday was spent at the Casa with the in-laws. The weather was perfect. I grilled baby back ribs and we had a nice relaxing day.

In the Gulf you never know what you might see. A Humpback Whale and a Great White Shark have been spotted in the last week in the Gulf. That is unusual for our area but not unheard of. But just remember, when you swim in the Gulf you are in the food chain!

Surprise surprise… Southern Living Magazine has named Destin’s beach the third best in the South. I think we should have been number one but I am biased.

Another Broken Egg restaurants in Destin and Grayton Beach have changed their name to “Cracklings.” The owners have parted ways with the Another Broken Egg franchise and gone out on their own. They have the same owners and management team, just a new name. They plan to keep most of the menu the same too. 

Have a great week. See ya next Monday.

Destin Steve