Best Lunches on 30A

There are many but Bud and Alley's Pizza Bar on the terrazzo is not to be missed.

Stinky's. The Great Big Salad with shrimp and the andouille po' boy are only on the lunch menu, and they are our favorite items at Stinky's.

Also lunch at Bud & Alley's Tarpon Club with the beautiful Gulf views.

Smiling Fish on the patio- the biggest selection of interesting entree salads in the area.

Modica and the grouper sandwich special on Fridays - sit outside and watch people.

Chan's at Watercolor- arugula salad with candied pecans, great wine selection, sit outside and watch people.

Wild Olives in Rosemary Beach- fried green tomato BLT on ciabatta. Sit outside and watch people.

Man I love to eat and watch people.

Smiling Fish on the patio- the biggest selection of interesting entree salads in the area.

Modica and the grouper sandwich special on Fridays - sit outside and watch people.

Chan's at Watercolor- arugula salad with candied pecans, great wine selection, sit outside and watch people.

Wild Olives in Rosemary Beach- fried green tomato BLT on ciabatta. Sit outside and watch people.

Man I love to eat and watch people.

So do we. We had planned to go to Wild Olives on Labor Day Weekend for the bratwurst, but it was just too hot to sit outside -- gives me a tummy ache to eat outside in the heat. And unfortunately they have done away with their indoor seating.

But we will definitely be back to Wild Olives in the off-season. Love their sandwiches. Will defintely give the Modica grouper sandwich a try.

The others are great too.

Red Bar for when you're wanting something really substantial. Their grilled fish sandwich is huge (and very tasty) at that price and their equally yummy tuna salad is big enough for two.

I'm more blue collar:

Bruno's Pizza - It's just darn good and $7 foor the buffet including the drink is unbeatable.

Haus of Klaus - The BEST fish sandwich in the area. A reasonable price and homemade ice cream ta boot!

The Deli inside the Grayton General Store - Paul, Mitch and Lil' Momma make awesome biscuits for breakfast and the best subs on 30A for lunch.

Panhandler's in Chevron at 393/98 aka The Chicken Store - This store is owned by Paul and run by Doug of D&K's. The staff whips up the best breakfast and lunch in the area. Yummy southern cooking including meatloaf, fried chicken and all of the veggies. They cater to the local workers and it is almost always packed. The service is fast and the staff is very courteous.

These are my favs. They aren't bassed on scenic views or atmosphere. To me, it's all about the food. I know my pallet is bit too unsophisticated to appreciate some of the fine dining but I go with what I like.

All of the above are good for different reasons.

My favorites are Smiling Fish (anything) and Stinkys (shrimp on big salad) for lunch. During the off season I really like Flip Flops for their smokin off season lunch deals. Pizza by the Sea also has good lunch deals. They also have a frequent diner card that is worthwhile.

If you're in a hurry, there is always the option to pickup a sandwich at Publix or Subway. I also hear that The Happy Apple is good, but haven't tried it yet.

Wild Olives has quite a bit of indoor seating in the space right next to their original store. At least it did 2 weekends ago!

I've also tried Shades recently and they had a HUGE grouper sandwich that was excellent.

LOVE The Smiling fish at Gulf Place. When I worked in Gulf Place, I could not get enough of the fried grouper fingers but just about anything you would want to order on the menu is good and you get to sit outside.

George's at Alys Beach: Pollo Fajita Wrap and Key Lime Pie, yummy. Great view, with friendly service.

All of the above are good for different reasons.

My favorites are Smiling Fish (anything) and Stinkys (shrimp on big salad) for lunch. During the off season I really like Flip Flops for their smokin off season lunch deals. Pizza by the Sea also has good lunch deals. They also have a frequent diner card that is worthwhile.

If you're in a hurry, there is always the option to pickup a sandwich at Publix or Subway. I also hear that The Happy Apple is good, but haven't tried it yet.

Wild Olives has quite a bit of indoor seating in the space right next to their original store. At least it did 2 weekends ago!

I've also tried Shades recently and they had a HUGE grouper sandwich that was excellent.

Oh, I didn't know that the space to the right of Wild Olives was part of their store. Thanks.

We are old Shades friends from the days when they were in Seaside. We'll try them again for sure!

I love the Salade Nicoise at George's. Yummy!

Bruno's lunch buffet is a definite yes (of course it's difficult for me to deal with all of the Alabama memorabilia). LOL.

I am for anything, anytime from Smiling Fish!!

We had a great lunch a George's and reasonable for the quality of food.

One day we ate at Seagrove Coyote and enjoyed a good lunch. Portions are huge, reasonable, and can easily be shared. Keri took very good care of us!

SeaGrove Market Cafe has great sandwiches under $10

Thanks for all the recommendations, I want to try them all

I love Smiling Fish and Basmati's for lunch. Basmati's is one of the best lunch deals around IMO.

I love Smiling Fish and Basmati's for lunch. Basmati's is one of the best lunch deals around IMO.

Have to agree with Scooterbug - Basmati was our favorite lunch last year (followed very closely by Wine World Watercolor).

More horn tooting and thanks Jenny! Modica has a lunch on weekdays from 11:00 till 2:00. Check my lunch special thread or come in and check it out. Lisa does a great job with the tasty little treats just make time for a nap!

Summer Kitchen's fantastic burgers, none better. Great salads too.

When it's really hot I like Shades on the Loop for one of their big salads, or if it's too hot to eat much of anything, their wedge is great -- wedge of ice cold iceberg lettuce with bacon, bleu cheese, red onions and a chewy roll.

You'd never know to look at me that there are days when I find it too hot to eat much.

Summer Kitchen's fantastic burgers, none better. Great salads too.

When it's really hot I like Shades on the Loop for one of their big salads, or if it's too hot to eat much of anything, their wedge is great -- wedge of ice cold iceberg lettuce with bacon, bleu cheese, red onions and a chewy roll.

You'd never know to look at me that there are days when I find it too hot to eat much.

Does James still own Summer kitchen? Used to eat there all the time,when it was just a shack.

Back in the "old" days The Wheel House restaurant was the place to be(and eat) sure miss that place.
Cocoons has great food as well.

Does James still own Summer kitchen? Used to eat there all the time,when it was just a shack.

Back in the "old" days The Wheel House restaurant was the place to be(and eat) sure miss that place.
Cocoons has great food as well.

Yes - James still owns it. He is an excellent chef.

Recommendations and why? Thanks

New place just opened at Gulf Place called Tortugas...they have breakfast and lunch. 3 of us ate there yesterday, very generous servings and tasted really good

SHOO MAMAS is by far the best restaurant in the area.

Gravel Road! meatloaf and sides!
Smiling Fish! every single thing
Red Bar! paneed chicken sandwich and fry
Wild Olives! burger and fry

Don't ya'll forget that there are other places on the East end of 30a.....remember that spot between Rosemary & Alys??? oh yeah, Seacrest! Seacrest Sundries has great breakfast sandwiches starting at $1.25 and made to order sandwiches at lunch for $4.00....not to mention great burgers and dogs! This week grab up some of Mrs. B's homemade chicken salad....it will make you slap yo' mama!

We don't eat a lot of lunches out since we're usually at the beach but we like Flip Flops for chili dogs, Seagrove Coyote gave us a good latin fix one day, Cocoons has great sandwiches and prepared foods to go, Bud and Alley's lunches are tasty, had a great pastrami sandwich at House of Klaus one day. I like to go into Dynasty Chinese for hot and sour soup and eggrolls at lunch if we get a rainy day and also like Ciao Bella pizza. Bayou Bills has a tasty lunch as well and we've had a good late lunch at Shades, too. Guess I've eaten more lunches out than I thought!!

On my short list for lunches is the General Store and the cafe at the Chevron, anywhere associate with Doug sounds great to me!! I'd like to try Basmati's and the Chinese food place next to Winn Dixie. I'm also looking forward to Fire for lunch.

I just had my new favorite sandwich on 30A- the BLT at Seagrove Coyote. BLT with chipotle mayo and avocado on a to-die-for baguette. Just spicy enough, but not too too. Sandwich is HUGE (plenty for 2), and comes with 30A's best tortilla chips and salsa (IMO- and I eat gallons of salsa).

I ate the whole thing. Oink oink.