One of the great things about vacation is trying local or regional recipes. If you've read my previous posts you are aware that my wife and I love the Florida Gulf Panhandle. We vacation in the San Destin area each October for several days and thoroughly love it. Between the beach, the tennis, the gorgeous weather and the food it is idyllic.
As in most years we hit a local family oriented restaurant Bayou Bill's. We started going to Bayou Bill's when our daughters were still in school and we had to fight the spring break crowds. In October, the place is busy but it is fairly easy to get seated quickly. Bayou Bill's burned down several years ago but they rebuilt and the restaurant is very nice and spacious.
We like this restaurant because there are several meals we can split and still have plenty of food. We usually get a Grouper meal to split but this year we went twice so we split one meal and had separate entrees the other. As is the case with all of our favorites in the Panhandle the seafood is FRESH and purchased from local fishermen. Patrick Matthews and his family do a great job at Bayou Bill's providing quality food which is consistently good.
We also found one new restaurant on this trip which we enjoyed in Baytowne Wharf called Acme Oyster House. This restaurant is actually part of a small chain (about 5 locations) out of New Orleans. The original was started on Royal Street in the French Quarter in 1910. We have tried several places in Baytowne Wharf but this was the best yet. It is a bit unusual for a chain to be this good but we will be going back annually because the food was great, the service excellent and the atmosphere fun. In fact, during my next trip to New Orleans I will visit the original store since I enjoyed the FL location so much.
Wherever you travel, try the local fare and also don't forget to seek out the local regional cookbooks which stocked full of regional recipes, and, more often than not, are better than trade cookbooks and raise funds for a local non-profit.
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