Think about some of your favorite foods right this second! If you absolutely love seafood, then you have clicked on a blog that is covering the right region. There is no need for any breaks when it comes to this delicate food that I personally adore as well. We knew there would be plenty of this Gulf Coast specialty. Offered three meals a day and it’s what created the tiny tear in my wonderful blue eye as we dove into the menus. Here are some of the best of our family meals in Gulf Shores and Orange Beach while we keep on summering! Don’t think for a moment that the summer ends when the leaves start changing colors up north…..
*We had the great pleasure to be hosted by the awesome folks at Gulf Shores and Orange Beach Tourism. Some of our meals were complimentary and the views expressed are always of our own. Let’s gallivant, Bama!
Let’s coffee-up at Kitty’ Kafe in Gulf Shores to get this day kicked off right!
Ring the Breakfast Bell, Bama!
There’s always going to be time for breakfast in my travels because its always going to be my favorite course no matter what time it is. Same with ice cream! There’s nothing better than when these worlds collide, and it happens on a delightful daily basis with donuts and some of the freshest ice cram you’ll ever have in Orange Beach!
Located on the main drag of Orange Beach is one of the newest and freshest ways to enjoy the beaches with your sweet tooth. Pete’s Ice Cream & Donuts is ready to give your getaway a sweet escape!Made from scratch donuts hitting the conveyor belt and ready to make quite the splash into some hot fryer oil at Pete’s!A beautiful smile with a beautiful case of donuts at Pete’s!
Another way to keep the soul food momentum going is to find a place with an unforgettable menu that fuses so many of the classics together. BuzzCatz Coffee & Sweets has the taste of the south in some delectable and unique ways!
Mini biscuits to help you forget how many you’re eating so just enjoy every bite!Holla h bread filled with pimento cheese!Belgian style waffle topped with banana puddin’! The Ruby Slipper started the Orange Beach seafood feasting!This is how you party in the mornings. Shrimp Boogaloo Benedict!
The Ruby Slipper Cafe made history here on The Iowa Gallivant by unloading a great portion of Gulf shrimp over fresh southern biscuits. This is a total Alabama experience in one meal. Along with fresh shrimp and fluffy biscuits, the Boogaloo Benedict is topped with pork Tasso and Creole tomato Coubion. That’s not it! After you cut into the poached eggs you’ll be getting a bite of fried green tomatoes in every bite!
Time capsule search completed! The Sunliner Diner is a shiny breakfast beacon all day and into the night in Gulf Shores.The shrimp filled breakfast quest was in full steam here at the Sunliner. Or full net? Full net ahead! Nah. Full steam ahead!Those are menus that look like the daily newspaper. I would like to thank the serving staff for pointing that out because I was beyond captivated and is still the most reading I’ve done in years. Probably not a good thing to admit if you’re a travel writer.Never wonder when your coffee is coming in hot. They constantly keep it refilled.The Southern theme continues. Fried chicken with those runny eggs, baby!
Sunliner Diner goes back decades with their decor, concept, and stick to your Alabama ribs breakfasts. We’re Benedict fans and it came calling again. Jumbo shrimp with a Creole hollandaise over their beautiful biscuits and a side of grits to make your mom happy with your choices. I just assume that all moms would appreciate that. The trusty sidekick of chicken fried chicken topped with sausage gravy slid into place and was properly annihilated. Dipped into over-easy eggs with every bite with noticeable and delicious crunch from the breading.
Let’s have French for breakfast! How often are you saying that? Except for all the times you order French toast.The sweet snowy peaks of Orange Beach, Alabama.That moment when you let you challenge your daughter to a sugar face battle. This is the perfect establishment for that. Who you calling puddin’! It’s totally fine if you call me puddin’.
Sign me right up for Cafe Beignet! These wonderful delights are served hot out of the fryer and you are welcomed to support the sugar industry all you want here. Have them classic style or filled with pudding and topped with chocolate, so please enjoy all with hot coffee. This is a great fuel booster before taking your first dip of the day on the white-sand beaches!
Another round of biscuits and shrimp for breakfast at Duck’s Dinner in Orange Beach! Made from scratch cooking with a taste of the Gulf Coast in my omelet is the ideal way to start your day on the beach in Alabama.The biscuits and berries nearly hypnotized us when they arrived to our table. The sever said they were like a funnel cake and a beignet had babies and she was right!The Creole omelet was a no brainer for me when I was gawking at the menu. Creamy sauce with a little spicy kick and it’s loaded with shrimp!Orange Beach. I have an idea. Have the “O” be a donut on your welcome sign. Jut a thought.For all of you that had the sudden craving for Lucky Charms while ordering your box of donuts.Go ahead and hum the Jaws theme song. My son will just go about his glazed croissant while you do it. But you’ll have fun!
We love getting recommendations from the locals and they nearly had a runway crew setup directing us to City Donut. Their long and fast moving line shuffled us through with the rest of the eager customers. If you get one sweet selection here make it the glazed croissant. Make it two of them. Oh boy. Get a lot, and become the greatest friend to all on the nearby beach since the invention of the towel.
Lunch Break!
The view from the marina can provide a memorable backdrop. Alabama’s beaches can provide plenty of these opportunities to have the salt in the air with some fancy seagoing vessels overlooking your good time. Like fun with Murder Point oysters at Zeke’s Landing & Marina!
Local Bama beer with fresh oysters at Zeke’s!Always has time for a pose!Murder Point never tasted so great!Smile, grouper samich! You’re on The Iowa Gallivant!This Po’boy right here….Loaded with Zeke’s fried shrimp!Luna’s Eat & Drink is another fantastic Orange Beach restaurant with great lunch specials. You know you’re getting hungry again!Get ready for this appetizer! Deviled eggs of the day, pimento cheese dip with pork rinds, and house made pickles. That’s like a potluck sampler!Stop playing with your food. Actually that’s pretty funny. Let me try!The fish so nice they named it twice. Boy, do I wish I came up with that one. Blackened Mahi-Mahi with collard greens and amazing corn fritters.That is a man that is about to take a bite of a thick swordfish sandwich!Fried pecan pies aren’t just for dessert anymore! They can be a lunch item too! Or for dessert like we had them. Luna’s has one of the area’s best selections of craft beer and your warm Alabama day could use a cold one!
You have many choices for restaurants in the area and we all love a great special especially when it comes to lunch. Luna’s Eat & Drink has one of the most talented kitchen crews in Baldwin County and we had an amazing meal from these folks. Our server knew the menu inside and out and kept us entertained with her descriptions of meals they so proudly prepare. Obviously the entrees were home runs but let me tell you this. The collard green are the truth here. Slow cooked with Alabama’s famous Conecuh sausage and simply unbelievable. Order whatever you want here, but DO NOT LEAVE WITHOUT SOME GREENS!
See that beefy piece of art? You’ll see why this is one of the headliners!Creole seafood stuffed tater! Which part did I have you at?One of the best Po’Boys you’ll ever have is here in Orange Beach, Alabama. Change my mind everywhere else!
We love our seafood and we like to beef up our meals as well. Make the Alabama cattle ranchers proud when you order the Roast Beef Debris Po’Boy! This New Orleans original has made it to the Alabama beaches and inside fresh French bread at The Flying Harpoon 2! One of the richest tasting beef sandwiches you’ll ever meet-up with and it soaks right into that Po’Boy bread. Highly recommend paring it with their twice baked potato stuffed with blue crab, gulf shrimp, crawfish, and topped with melted cheese. Better give it a dose of their sour cream remoulade sauce.
High Tide Daiquiris & Mimosas in Gulf Shores is a refreshing way to take a break when you’re gallivanting Alabama Beaches. Go to flight school with both of their signature creations!If that doesn’t look like a guy on vaction then I don’t know what does!Spicy pimento-cheese dip on the patio in Gulf Shores!High Tide’s lobster dip is a must-have!
Southern cookin’ is one of my favorite styles of food, and deep down it’s everyone’s if you ask me. I like to go where the locals go and they gave us the heads up on the Undertow Bar & Grill for a beer, a boil and a baskeket!
That’s a bunch of mud bugs making my wife really happy!Fried chicken fingers with fried okra in one happy basket at the Undertow!
Dinner Y’all!
Let’s start out with apps and great scenery. A white-sands beach view from the patio at Sea-N-Suds in Gulf Shores!Get the royal treatment with Royal Red Shrimp by the pound after pound after pound.The Sea-N-Suds is known for their house made gumbo and its packed with hearty flavor. Beach goers have been known to walk up and order this specialty by the quart and after one bite you will see why.You’ve seen the Jolly Rodger. Meet the Jolly JayJay!
Another locale the locals said we had to visit! Longtime favorite of Gulf Shores and brilliant place to view the coast is the Sea-N-Suds. Pile in for the apps, fresh salad bar, great drinks, oyster bar, or nightly specials and watch the Gulf Shores universe go by. One Royal Red shrimp at a time.
One of the newest restaurants in Orange Beach is CoastAL with an emphasis on the AL. See what they did there? I was hooked in like a prized grouper which is exactly what some of us ordered!
A spicy Bloody Mary to kickoff this maiden voyage!Unbelievable crab claws served with a creamy garlic sauce to make our appetizers craving mouths water!Fried Gumbo bites loaded with flavor and prepared the only way Coastal Orange Beach can do it!The classic Cajun pasta with Coastal’s delicious twist on it.More grouper for a hungry table full of folks that adore seafood.Meat and potatoes ribeye-styale at CoastAL Orange Beach!
The nightlife can be exciting when you’re on the lookout for great foo in Gulf Shore and Orange Beach. Look for the bright lights and lively patios all over like our next place that specializes in all sorts of oyster dreams….
The Steamer won’t be hard to find in Gulf Shores even though it’s a little off the beaten the path. It’s lively, vibrant and loaded with fun loving customers that love seafood!
Another hotspot for dinner in Gulf Shores is The Steamer Baked Oyster Bar, and they had a packed house that was ready for some amazing seafood cooking. That’s always a good sign when you’re in search of quality food with a kitchen staff that keep the gourmet plates of fresh Bama seafood flyin’ out to the tables!
Look what was waiting at the table….A whole squirt bottle of butter!The shrimp boil! Shrimp lovers will love everything on this plate especially the Royal Reds!Blackened red snapper with some of the best potato salad you’ll ever have!
How does southern cooking with a little Thai spice added to the mix sound when you’re visiting the Bama beaches? Niki’s Seafood and Thai in Orange Beach created some amazing appetizers and entrees that made it to the top of our list of Thai specialties!
This is said with all honesty….the best calamari I’ve ever had!Scallops with a chili kick and stir fried veggies!Softshell crab over fluffy rice and served with a rich curry!Lightly battered softshell crab making this smile happen early and often!Bring your appetite, energy, thirst, and shopping list because Gulf Shores has a world famous place for all that. LuLu’s is the family dinner party you don’t want to pass-up!Dream of your meal. After you dream of setting sail during the total LuLu’s experience.Tell the guests about all the wonderful souvenirs and gifts at LuLu’s, Gigi….Said JayJay. Wow, that was fun to write!Smoked tuna dip is not something you’ll find on every menu. Get it here and step up your tuna salad game.Shrimp and grits o’clock! Gouda cheese grits served with a Tasso tomato cream sauce that’s packed with shrimp, andouille sausage, and a whole lot of love. Another one of the favorites here and you will want a second helping. Trust me!A trifecta of slow smoked pork tacos!Melt away into the Gulf Shores night with the crab melt! Crab claw meat, Swiss and cheddar cheeses, green onion, and mayo on an open-face piece of French bread. No wonder this is a best seller!Don’t be bashful about ordering the chicken fingers. They fry’em up right here and don’t turn down the honey mustard.Po’Boys are a staple in Gulf Shores and you have located another one worth writing home about here at LuLu’s. Or blogging about! Gulf shrimp battered and perfectly fried with a hot bowl of crab bisque. Go ahead and dip that Po’Boy into that creamy bisque. I know you were thinking about it.That smile says so much. An Iowa kid on the vacation of a lifetime and all with the help of a plate of tacos from LuLu’s.Your night has only begun to be entertaining. Great times with great food is served up all day long at this massive facility.
You get taken care of here in Gulf Shores and Orange Beach. The hospitality is supreme and the community prides itself with this. One of our first stops in Gulf Shores was here at Lucy Buffett’s LuLu’s and we couldn’t have asked for a better welcoming to Alabama’s beaches. Fun, food, and music is their motto here and you can add more to that. Friendly and professional service while going the extra mile. More like an extra 10 miles. LuLu’s wants everyone to have a memorable and safe vacation here in Gulf Shores. Which is why they are proud to offer and extensive allergen and vegan menu. The manager takes the time to hear about what your dietary needs are with careful respect. Add this with all the views, tasty food, live music, arcade games, gifts, and sunsets. Make Lulu’s happen, y’all. BTW…A little pelican tells be that Jimmy Buffett’s sister owns this joint. You just started craving a margarita!
One of the biggest venues for dining in the area and all of it beachfront. The Hangout you’ve been wanting in Gulf Shores!Mahi-Mahi was back on! The Hangout serves it smothered style with a crawfish andouille sausage cream sauce and topped with blue crab. That did not disappoint!The Shaka wrap! Grilled shrimp in a warm flour tortilla with lettuce, cheddar and Monterey Jack cheeses, tomato, and their tasty Shaka sauce!Somebody get me a lifeguard! That’s what the Hangout calls this towering burger. 2 1/2 pound beef patties, cheddar and pepper jack cheeses, fried green tomatoes, fried egg, bacon, fried pickles, and all on a soft brioche bun. That is a heroic burger!
One of the funnest experiences we had in Alabama was at The Hangout! The entire atmosphere was unforgettable with an open air dining room and a beachfront view. Great food and service that made us feel right at home for like the zillionth time in Alabama. They also got us dancing on the tables and that’s not an embellishment. They asked the diners for August birthdays and that’s when the party really started. Luckily this happened before my enormous burger was served because myself, my daughter, and all others with August birthdays were encouraged to stand on the tables and boogied our way into The Hangout evening.
Meet some of the amazing crew here at The Hangout. You all know just how to keep a group of Midwesties loaded with wonderful and delicious memories of Gulf Shores.
Don’t Forget Dessert!
Sometimes I say that I don’t have a sweet tooth. That’s until I get to Bama and start visiting with the locals like we did at Deep South Cake Company in Orange Beach!
Strawberry, German chocolate, key lime, wedding cake style….You just need to pick-up a box for yourself and dive in!Hey, look who I found! Shannon loves to bake cakes and I love to eat it! We’re going to see eye to eye just fine…Heck yea the cakes are fresh! Once you walk into this bakery you’ll never want the aroma to go away.One of the most memorable buttery and caramel moments of your life will begin here with your first bite!This little stinker right here….Look what he found!
Let’s head back to Pete’s Ice Cream & Donuts to further test this sweet tooth craving in Orange Beach and beyond. Pete’s uses some of the freshest and most gourmet ingredients you’ll find at an ice cream shop anywhere!
That’s a big’ol portion of fresh berries going into some beautiful creations at Pete’s!The blueberry sorbet was my new best friend in Orange Beach!
That was a lot of great meals. Do you think that’s all we had to eat? Nope! We’ve only begun to tell you about the oodles of restaurants here in Gulf Shores and Orange Beach. You’re going to love what JayJay and Monie had on a couple grownup getaways we were able to accomplish during our time here. Let’s just say we got to tiptoe into Florida for a little while and by tiptoe, I mean getting a chance to see a national treasure on the state line. Let’s get clicking on some sites to start your own Gulf Shores and Orange Beach vacation!
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