We recently had our annual family beach trip to Seagrove, FL. It is our goal to take our kids on a beach trip once a year. For those of you who have not experienced toddlers on the beach before, let me tell you, it is not the most relaxing time that you can have on the beach. But I enjoyed watching Greta have so much fun playing in the sand, and water, I am already looking forward to coming back next year.

 

We usually stay in the Sandestin/Destin area, but this year, we decided to stay in Seagrove so we could explore different areas of 30A. We were just a couple miles from Seaside (and Alys beach was just a short drive in the other direction as well). Here’s a rundown on where we ate in case you’re headed to this area anytime soon.

 

 

BUD & ALLEY’S PIZZA BAR & TACO BAR

 

 

Our first night in town, we were going to eat at Bud & Alley’s, but we had a little issue with our reservation. I’m not going to name names, but someone made our reservation for the following night, instead of that night! Hangry and not wanting to go far for food, we decided to just snag a pizza and some tacos, and eat on the patio area in between the two bars.

 

If you haven’t been to Seaside, this is a great little spot to grab a bite! Keep in mind, the Bud & Alley’s, the Pizza Bar, and Taco Bar are all separate spots, but they’re all right next door to each other!

 

We shared a Margharita Pizza with Salami, and a fish taco, and pork taco. The pizza was delicious (baked in a stone oven), and tasted pretty authentic (made with real mozzarella and fresh basil, etc.). The tacos were also very fresh and had a good salsa on them. I was so hungry, however, I failed to take pictures!

 

 

 

THE PERFECT PIG

 

 

There was a perfect pig right next door to our Air BNB, so a couple mornings during our trip, we walked here for breakfast. They do serve all meals, but I can only vouch for their breakfast (although the rest of their menu looked pretty tasty, and they had a great looking bar menu as well).

 

First of all, I’d like to say, that they had really good coffee. I usually don’t critique coffee, but whatever they’re serving was delicious, so if you’re a coffee lover, I just wanted to let you know. The bacon was looking really good to me (on both mornings we ate there), so I tried the bacon biscuit with an over easy egg, and fresh fruit, one morning, and the breakfast grilled cheese the other.

 

Greta enjoyed their sand dollar pancakes both mornings we were there (practically liked the plate clean), and Will enjoyed a couple different biscuit sandwiches as well.

 

 

 

SURFING DEER

 

 

The Surfing Deer had been on my list of places that I wanted to dine for several years now, so I’m happy to say, we finally made it there! It is more of an upscale dining experience, with great ambiance, but it is still very kid friendly if you’re on a family beach trip like we were.

 

We sat outside on the patio, and were able to enjoy a beautiful 30 A sunset as we dined!

 

We started our meal with the Lobster Tacos and Crispy Vegan Wings, both were very  tasty! I had the Snapper Imperial for dinner. It was very mild tasting, the curry was barely noticeable for a curry dish, but maybe that is how the chef wanted it so it wouldn’t overpower the fresh fish.

 

I would definitely dine here again to try some other items on the menu, and enjoy a nice glass of wine, since I could only have mocktails on this trip!

 

 

 

 

DONUT HOLE

 

 

The Donut Hole is a Destin/30 A landmark, so I thought that it was time I give it a try. I just picked up dome donuts to go for the family, but it was a cute spot to hangout and dine as well. They do have an extensive menu for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

 

There was also a nice patio with corn hole boards, etc. (at the Inlet Beach location) so you can have some fun while you brunch and enjoy some donuts.

 

I picked up some chocolate eclairs, chocolate coconut, glazed, and key lime donuts. They were all delicious!

 

 

 

Cafe Aroma

 

 

I also stopped in to Cafe Aroma, which is almost next door to The Donut Hole because I heard that they were voted best donuts and diner in Southern Living Magazine! While their food looked good, I was only in the market for donuts, so I popped in to grab a few and go.

 

I picked out a few (cinnamon roll, blueberry cake, and a classic chocolate glaze), and the lady working there gave them to me for free! She said she was about to throw them away for the day, so she just let me have them.  It was only around 2:30/3:00 P.M., so I thought that was a little early to discard the daily donuts, but I didn’t argue with her about it!

 

I’m not much of a donut connoisseur, they all pretty much are the same to me, so I can’t tell you which was better out of the two, you will have to try for yourself!

 

 

LOCAL CATCH

 

 

Local Catch was a little bit of a drive for us, but I had read good reviews, and it was a place recommended by friends and family. It is a casual fish house and also a kid friendly spot to bring the whole family to.

 

We started off with some Wings and the Crab & Cheese Wontons (not pictured, but very tasty!). When it came time for us to order, it is always hard for me not to choose fish tacos if they’re on a menu, so that is what I went with. 

 

I was stuck between the Caribbean Shrimp and Lobster Tacos, but went with the shrimp because our waiter said those were his favorite (although he did also say he was not a fan of lobster).  Will ordered their Fish tacos, and we each traded a taco with each other so we could try one of each. 

 

 

The tacos were good and fresh, but as someone obsessed with trying fish tacos (and other seafood variety tacos), I wouldn’t go back here just for the tacos.  We had great service here, however, and overall, I have no complaints about the food. 

 

 

BUD & ALLEY’S

 

 

We didn’t end up eating a meal at Bud and Alley’s (although all the plates of food that I saw looked delicious), but we did hang out on their rooftop deck and took in a gorgeous view of the beach while enjoying some drinks and appetizers.

 

We split the Bud & Alley’s Crab Cake, and the Smoked Gouda, Jalapeño, and Bacon Pimento Cheese. They both were to die for, and definitely hit the spot after a morning walking around Grayton Beach State Park, and checking out the shops in Seaside.

 

 

 

CAFE 30A

 

Cafe 30A was a spot I dined at on my last beach trip to the area, but I definitely didn’t mind eating there again! We were staying just a short walk from the restaurant and didn’t want to pass up their happy hour specials, so we made a point to dine there one night.

 

If you’re not familiar with Cafe 30A they have a happy hour special on entrees (BOGO) every day from 5-6 P.M. On Tuesdays and Thursdays they have martini specials as well!

 

We started our meal with the Beef Carpaccio, a thinly sliced beef with a horseradish creme and truffle vinaigrette. It was a great start to our meal! For dinner I ordered the Maine Lobster in Paradise (a three cheese, crawfish, truffle mac n’ cheese with lobster), and Will ordered the Pan Seared Snapper, which came with a delicious, lobster and carrot risotto. We ordered Greta some chicken tenders with peas from their children’s menu, and the plate was HUGE! She ended up eating mostly my mac n’ cheese for dinner, but I wanted to mention the large children’s plates in case you’re dining with kids.

 

 

Cafe 30A is a must if you’re in the area!

 

 

AMICI 30A Italian Kitchen

 

 

Amici 30A is in Inlet Beach, but was not a far drive from where we were staying in Seagrove. It is located in a cute little shopping center.

 

We started with their Ravioli Cheese Stick, which was a foot long! It was everything you could want in a cheese stick and more. It was stuffed with a chest mixture that you would put in ravioli (instead of your classic mozzarella), and topped with even more cheese! After filling up on our foot long cheese stick, we decided to order even more cheese and split the Pesto Pizza.  Their pizzas were also baked in a stone oven, and were really good! 

 

 

 

 

SIGHTS

 

 

Although most of us come to the beach to actually hang out on the beach, sometimes it’s fun to mix things up a little and check out other things to do in the area. Especially if you have small children, hanging out on the beach all day is not at all relaxing! I was filling up water buckets every 30 seconds, and laboring for hours making sandcastles, only to have Greta knock them down a minute later. It was all totally worth it though, because this trip was for her!

 

I did enjoy getting out and exploring Seaside, however, and would like to explore more of Grayton Beach, Alys, and Rosemary beach on future trips!

 

Hats: Peter Grimm | Mom’s Swimsuit: Boen | Mom’s Sunnies: Diff | Toddler Swimsuit: Rufflebutts | Toddler Sunnies: Babiators

 

SEASIDE

 

If you haven’t been to Seaside and are around the Destin area, it is worth a drive to check out! Where The Truman Show was filmed, it’s a quaint little area with a nice, beach vibe. There are bunch of little shops, an amphitheater, and a long line of air stream food trucks too!

 

Although I wanted to try the food trucks and have heard great things, we did not end up getting anything from them because we wanted to sit up on Bud & Alley’s rooftop to have a bite. We did walk by the food trucks to check out the menu’s however, and everything looked delicious, and smelled really good too (Especially the BBQ and Grilled Cheese airstreams)!

 

 

 

GRAYTON BEACH STATE PARK

 

 

Grayton Beach State Park is a great spot for an outdoor adventure with the family. There are trails you can walk through with natural sand dunes, and wooded areas. You can also rent canoes and kayaks and explore have a nice day on the water! There are plenty of picnic tables if you pack a lunch for your family. And just like any state park, there are camp sites available as well!

 

We only ended up walking around one of the trails, but it was a nice way to work up an appetite before hitting up Seaside for the afternoon.

 

 

 

 

Not staying in the Seaside/Seagrove area? Check out my other posts and food reviews on WHERE TO EAT IN SANDESTIN and WHERE TO EAT IN DESTIN.

 

Also, be sure to leave a comment and tell me where your favorite place to eat is in 30A!

 

 

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