Salty Dog closed

This is just a shame. All of it. I hope that the owner can work something out, the Salty Dog has become a weekly habit with us.

We really like Salty's and hope they can reopen soon.

We really like Salty's and hope they can reopen soon.

Same Here!!!


Good grief!

Sounds as though some mediation might be in order...any Mediator on Sowal ??
or does anyone know one who might be willing to give it a go for the good of the music

This is horrible, I love their Fried Brie Burger mmmmmmm. I hope they open back up soon!

Sounds as though some mediation might be in order...any Mediator on Sowal ??
or does anyone know one who might be willing to give it a go for the good of the music

I'll give it a try.......

Thanks Kurt

Word from the owner of the building is that on Friday night there was a confrontation and subsequent threat of harm from an irate neighbor regarding an ongoing dispute about loud music.

On a related note, we will not tolerate hearsay on this site which could damage individuals or businesses. First hand information or facts from reliable or official sources (such as police reports or public records) are welcome.

Posters who have axes to grind against individuals or businesses will not be tolerated.

Please allow me to dismantle the rumour mill on this one.
There is no need for it.
I reopened The Salty Dog because [like the Lake Place Restaurant] I truly believe The Salty Dog is a part of SOWAL heritage. (something that is celebrated where I am from) I also new in my heart there is a niche market there which made the whole thing possible. Thank you all for confirming my beliefs.

The Salty Dog was closed Saturday for a number of reasons;
neighbors complaining, manager(s)being arrested, and finally a man was arrested for aggravated assault on one of the same managers. I don't get it
I am very disappointed as many of you are and I pride myself on providing a good,safe and professional work place for our team but It is just not worth hard working honest people being harassed. It is very disheartening to lay those same professionals off this time of the year, the repercussions run deep in our community.

Please allow this old dog to rest for a little while.
It will be available for private functions so if any one needs a function space for a holiday function or a wedding we would all be grateful for the business.


And by the way, The same awesome Salty Dog Brie Burger is available at ( lunch Only) Stinky's Fish Camp (267-3050)

Many thanks to all who support our sowal restaurants.

Jim

I am quite skeeved. I just drove by the Salty Dog (right after telling some vacationers how much I LOVED the "Totally veggie, Dude" sandwich), and saw the sign saying "sorry, CLOSED"! I was willing to tolerate them xfering to a sports bar just so I could have my Totally veggie Dude, (Which I would have them add that awesome smoked bacon to.....as I'm no vegetarian...) but now I cannot even do that!! What 'Skeeves' me is that, at least from what I read somewhere else, is that this commercial building was there BEFORE the surrounding homes were there. If they did their due dilligence, shouldn't they have known the risk of building a home next to commercial property that was built as a food/music venue?? ( I can hear the responses now.... so if I am wrong, and it was just a commercial property, no designation labeled, and they could NOT know that a live music business could/would come in, and if they were disobeying the noise ordinance ((were they??)) then Ok,......I understand their rant. I think.) If not, I am totally skeeved, pissed, sad and irate that this has happened-especially as it's only because a few people got together and protested! If it's this effective, then why aren't we doing this about our government?? (Hello?!!) God, I'm just feeling like things are so backwards right now.
I loved going to the Salty Dog. Have been wondering when the old 'snapperheads' would open again, and when it finally did, I was so excited. It had great food at a decent price, good service and various music to listen to close to home. I'm bummed. I feel badly for the musicians that play along 30-a. Rrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!

Wonder what Jack Abbits views are, he lives near there and attended a meeting reference the noise. I don't know whether he was for or against it though.

This is so sad. I was there Friday night, but did not witness any assault, just had a fantastic time enjoying a sandwich and beer with some of the cast & friends after the show. No live music, not too loud, and lots of happy people enjoying themselves. What a shame.

I am quite skeeved. I just drove by the Salty Dog (right after telling some vacationers how much I LOVED the "Totally veggie, Dude" sandwich), and saw the sign saying "sorry, CLOSED"! I was willing to tolerate them xfering to a sports bar just so I could have my Totally veggie Dude, (Which I would have them add that awesome smoked bacon to.....as I'm no vegetarian...) but now I cannot even do that!! What 'Skeeves' me is that, at least from what I read somewhere else, is that this commercial building was there BEFORE the surrounding homes were there. If they did their due dilligence, shouldn't they have known the risk of building a home next to commercial property that was built as a food/music venue?? ( I can hear the responses now.... so if I am wrong, and it was just a commercial property, no designation labeled, and they could NOT know that a live music business could/would come in, and if they were disobeying the noise ordinance ((were they??)) then Ok,......I understand their rant. I think.) If not, I am totally skeeved, pissed, sad and irate that this has happened-especially as it's only because a few people got together and protested! If it's this effective, then why aren't we doing this about our government?? (Hello?!!) God, I'm just feeling like things are so backwards right now.
I loved going to the Salty Dog. Have been wondering when the old 'snapperheads' would open again, and when it finally did, I was so excited. It had great food at a decent price, good service and various music to listen to close to home. I'm bummed. I feel badly for the musicians that play along 30-a. Rrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!

People seem to never take where they are moving into mind. I did 7 1/2 years at the Okaloosa S.O. 911/Dispatch center. We used to get calls all the time about airport noise, loud music, traffic etc. from people who had moved next to these places after they were built! Hey, IMO, if you buy a condo next to AJ's, you are siging away your rights to complain about noise!

Thanks Jim! I will be eating at Stinky's ASAP!!!

i don't agree that you are signing away your rights when you move near a restaurant, etc. there is such a term as "reasonableness". i had the misfortune of sleeping at our son's house in louisville one night that is a couple of doors down from some bars & restaurants. louisville permits these places to stay open until 4 a.m. as you can imagine, i got about an hour of sleep. in my opinion, it isn't reasonable for places to stay open that late, even until 2 a.m. lets be honest...the people still out that late are drinking alcohol and getting on our roads and driving. those late hours just lets them do it longer. i don't think cutting off music at 10 pm or maybe 11 pm is unreasonable if you are located near residences. i'm all for musicians supporting their livelihood but there has to be compromise. if the noise is coming from loud people in parking lots, security personnel can solve that problem.

lets be honest...the people still out that late are drinking alcohol and getting on our roads and driving. those late hours just lets them do it longer. i don't think cutting off music at 10 pm or maybe 11 pm is unreasonable if you are located near residences.

Then what are the options for people that get off work at 10 or 11pm and want to go out to eat and have a drink "after work"...maybe socialize with others in the same industry? Its not like all the folks that are in places that have live music, drinks etc. have been in those places since the sun went down getting drunk. I agree that people need to research where they are moving to instead of just moving in and trying to convert the area into whatever/wherever they left.

Then what are the options for people that get off work at 10 or 11pm and want to go out to eat and have a drink "after work"...maybe socialize with others in the same industry? Its not like all the folks that are in places that have live music, drinks etc. have been in those places since the sun went down getting drunk. I agree that people need to research where they are moving to instead of just moving in and trying to convert the area into whatever/wherever they left.

And what about those that get off at 3 a.m or 5 a.m?

And what about those that get off at 3 a.m or 5 a.m?

I guess those of us that take care of all the "after dark" needs are just S.O.L.
Guess we have to just hurry on home, cook dinner (many after cooking for HUNDREDS for the last 8 hours or so) and watch some mind-numbing infomercials. Only so we can be awakened by someone mowing their lawn at 7a.m.

I guess those of us that take care of all the "after dark" needs are just S.O.L.
Guess we have to just hurry on home, cook dinner (many after cooking for HUNDREDS for the last 8 hours or so) and watch some mind-numbing infomercials. Only so we can be awakened by someone mowing their lawn at 7a.m.

You raise an issue that has puzzled me for a long time: why do lawn mowers/weedwackers, etc. have to be so loud? One would think with all our technology; we could figure out a way to soften the sound of a lawnmower

I agree there should be a way to solve this so-called "noise" problem without completely shutting the place down....

I guess those of us that take care of all the "after dark" needs are just S.O.L.
Guess we have to just hurry on home, cook dinner (many after cooking for HUNDREDS for the last 8 hours or so) and watch some mind-numbing infomercials. Only so we can be awakened by someone mowing their lawn at 7a.m.

I have made decisions in the past to deliberately avoid choosing a career that caused me to work odd hours and holidays and such. Perhaps some thought should be given in opening an after hours place in a wholly commercial district.

You raise an issue that has puzzled me for a long time: why do lawn mowers/weedwackers, etc. have to be so loud? One would think with all our technology; we could figure out a way to soften the sound of a lawnmower

I agree there should be a way to solve this so-called "noise" problem without completely shutting the place down....

Seems to me there are other options than just shutting down over noise complaints. And as to the other point there are electric weedwhackers/mowers that are much quieter, they just don't have as much juice. I use them as I have minimal landscaping needs.

I am on my way to the WCSO to turn myself in for a warrant that was issued from the night Blueground Undergrass played at Salty Dog. I granted an interview about the assault with a deadly weapon issue that happened Friday night when I was attacked with a knife by someone from the Gulfview Heights neighborhood, to ch 7. I was told it would air at 6 PM and /or 10 PM.
Stan a/k/a/ Mater Bandit

Keep an ear to the ground regarding a legal defense fund to defend the managers. They don't have money to defend themselves, yet they are charged by the neighbors. More news happening sometime today...

... i had the misfortune of sleeping at our son's house in louisville one night that is a couple of doors down from some bars & restaurants. louisville permits these places to stay open until 4 a.m. as you can imagine, i got about an hour of sleep. in my opinion, it isn't reasonable for places to stay open that late, even until 2 a.m.

whether it's reasonable or not, those who choose to live next to/near a bar/venue do so with the knowledge of same. maybe they can't afford to live where there's no bar. the municipality gave the bar owner a license to operate, and the state gave them the license to sell liquor. many people are suffering due to those who want to change the status quo.

kurt, does this mean we won't get to see any more of nathan's informed posts?

for those who work late hours and want to find music and drink, i'm sure there are various establishments open in non-residential areas. the developers were permitted to place subdivisions near the businesses (that is, if those businesses were there first and permitting music at late hours at that time), and it is only common sense that residents would not be able to sleep if music and loud noise coming from a parking lot were permitted in the middle of the night. this is not about one side getting their way if their way is totally unfair to the other side - it is about compromise. my son has also suffered damage to his home, his car and has had to put up with broken bottles on his lawn, drunk people urinating on his lawn, etc. his house is 107 years old so i bet his house was there first, huh? i'm not saying that these things were going on at the salty dog but you can't deny that these actions happen because people are drinking too much for too long into the morning. it's difficult to believe something cannot be worked out between the parties. certainly, there is absolutely no excuse for the nearby resident's attack.

Please allow this old dog to rest for a little while.

Wow! Sad to hear about these events. I used to frequent the original dog and love the new version, especially since it is walking distance from the house. Sounds like some believe that attribute is over rated. I took my young children there because they loved the food and music (to the delight of mom & dad). Hopefully cooler, rational heads prevail and this rest is only a short nap. In the meantime, you will be missed.

FROM CHANNEL 7:

A dispute between some South Walton homeowners and a nearby nightclub took a more serious turn over the weekend.

The general manager of Salty Dog Saloon on 30-A turned himself in to sheriff's officials this afternoon after he was almost stabbed this weekend, but not before he spoke for our cameras.

Salty Dog Saloon served its last meal Friday after Alabama resident Kenneth Arnett allegedly attempted to stab the establishment's general manger.

Witnesses say Arnett turned violent when management told him he couldn't smoke inside.

Stan Meadows, Salty Dog's General Manager, said, "One of my employees hollered out, 'knife.’ I looked down and had a knife headed toward my stomach. I was able to get the knife away from him, and at that point he told me he was going to get a shotgun and blow my head off."

Stan Meadows believes local homeowners instigated the attack. Meadows met with locals in September who claim the restaurant's music and crowd’s noise disturbed the peace.

Meadows promised to work with the homeowners, but residents say the situation only got worse.

Sandra Luchtefeld, a concerned neighbor, said, "I called Stan on his cell phone. He answered. I told him it was loud. He told me he'd take care of it. Ten minutes later it was even louder."

The homeowners' further complaints led to the arrest two weeks ago of Salty Dog's assistant manager. Then came this weekend's incident.

Sheriff's deputies arrested Kenneth Arnett at a home on Vickie St. Neighbors say this is a rental property and they've never heard of this man before.

Neighbors say they want to make it very clear that they did not encourage Arnett or anyone to hurt Meadows.

"Absolutely not. It's a rental property. I don't know how he thinks any of us could control the rental property."

But Meadows says it seems odd that the initial noise complaint filed against salty dogs came from the same home Anrett was renting. Meadows says he doesn't understand how the situation got out of hand.

"I really don't know the reason for all of this or why someone did try to kill me or why someone would want to put me out of work."

Meadows was released this afternoon on a charge of breach of the peace. Salty Dog's owner has decided to close the restaurant.