Business

Inlet Beach Water Systems, Inc. has started a $180,000 dollar project to refurbish and repaint the water tower in Inlet Beach, Florida.

When Jesse Hart relocated Gravel Road to a more visible spot in Seagrove Beach, it was more than just a change of address.

Chef Hart also created what he describes as a practical menu with moderate prices where people could dine more frequently.

While Hart might have lowered prices, he certainly didn’t lower his standards for food quality, service or ambiance.

The new locale also has the feel of fine dining with dark walls, muted lighting and tasteful music, he also retained servers with knowledge and skills that enhance the enjoyment of the meal.

If you're looking for a used bike and you ask a local where to find one, you're likely to be told to go see "the bicycle man". He's sort of a living legend around SoWal.

The dictionary defines  “legend” as a non-historical story, or the story of an admirable person.

The definition applies to the life of 89-year-old Leon Sulfridge, better known as  “Jack, the bicycle man.”

Folks in SoWal sure are passionate about pizza. Visitors love to pick up a pie and are always asking who has the best. Pizza! Pizza! Pizza! We all love pizza!

It don't get no fresher or better around these parts. Also known as Nick's in the Sticks by locals.
We sure do miss Nick's in Blue Mountain Beach - good thing we can still take a little drive for the real thing.

An honest to goodness, family-friendly, fresh seafood dive on the bay west of Freeport in Basin Bayou.

The Beaches of South Walton are highlighted in the September issue of National Geographic Traveler. The focus of the article is on the uniqueness of SoWal beach towns and how modern innovations of architecture, design, and engineering are blended admirably with retro elements.

Photo by Kurt Lischka

Will August Bring More Sales? In South Walton, we have been very fortunate that our beaches haven’t seen much effect from the BP oil disaster in Louisiana.

It seemed like many prospective buyers put their purchase on hold, waiting to see what would happen to the beaches, and to the prices.

There are tourists and then there are tourists - no matter where you travel. In Firenze or Milano, the shoes are usually a dead giveaway. The natives are wearing soft leather loafers. The Americans are often decidedly less stylish.

In Seaside, the tell-tale signs are often times even more revealing. Anyone in a bathing suit and flip flops is here to have fun.

The men in black and women decked out head to toe in an equally monochromatic manner of dress are likely on a mission, or more specifically, an architectural pilgrimage.

There’s a special category of cinematographer whose job is to bring a camera to bear in places the audience is unlikely to otherwise visit.

They pursue the inaccessible, and render the quiet workings of little-known worlds.  

“I get in the water,” says Elam Stoltzfus. “That’s what you have to do to get your shot.  And I love doing it.”

For lodging providers in Walton County, collecting bed tax is just part of doing business. Explaining why the money is collected and where it goes is not part of the mission for the Beaches of South Walton Tourist Development Council, but it’s becoming an important aspect in the business of running the organization.

“We are misunderstood,” says Tracy Louthain, director of communications for the TDC. Given the chance, she explains not only the basics – how and why the TDC exists – but also what it does with all those bed tax dollars.