The iconic Seaside beach community in South Walton, Florida has always been a place I’ve dreamed of visiting. I was so excited to get the chance to go for the first time last weekend. I love the idea of living in a small neighborhood and walking to everything. We got a taste of that in Seaside this weekend and I fell in love. In Seaside, travel is by foot or bicycle. The narrow cobblestone streets are lined with charming cottages, white picket fences, and picturesque storefronts. On the relaxing stroll to lunch our first day in Seaside we spotted a gelato shop across from Seaside Neighborhood School where kids were playing soccer. (We totally came back for gelato after lunch.) In the center of town there’s a field that hosts a weekly farmer’s market, outdoor concerts, and movies under the stars. Surrounding the town square are renowned restaurants, quiet cafes, gourmet food trucks, stylish clothing boutiques, art and jewelery galleries and a quaint book and record store. There’s also the famous Modica Market with every gourmet grocery item you could ever dream of. Did I mention they have coffee ice cream made with beans roasted at the local coffee shop? It’s the idyllic life.
The South Walton tourism board and the Cottage Rental Agency of Seaside were kind enough to host us for the weekend and give us a tour of their fabulous community. Here’s a peek at our weekend at Seaside! :)
I loved, loved, loved the beaches at Seaside. There is nothing quite like Florida beaches. The perfectly soft, white sand…
The crystal clear blue waters…
I could not get over how crystal clear the water was! I just wanted to dive in.
Dorky photo alert!
This is the famous beach-access Seaside tower. We got our exercise running up and down this sandy incline! I had no idea how hard it was to run up an incline in sand, lol!
How fabulous is the curtain-lined front porch?? This house was on the street where we stayed and we walked past it every day. Just wait until you see the cottage we stayed in! Look for it on Friday. :)
I’ll take a good book, a tall glass of ice water, and this porch swing please! :)
Shops and cafes in town.
Did you know The Truman Show was filmed in Seaside? It is one of my favorite movies and we brought the DVD with us and watched it one night to see if we could recognize anything. The beach tower and Modica Market are totally recognizable! :)
We also got ice cream from the Blue Mountain Creamery every night. :) I loved their unique “Cookie Doughlicious” flavor. It’s cookies ‘n cream ice cream with chunks of cookie dough! Too fun.
Loved this teeny post office in the center of town.
Pickle’s! I really want fried pickles and a shake from here. :)
The main drag in town was lined with the cutest food trucks. I wanted to eat at all of them.
Especially this grilled cheese truck!!
How cute is this little shaved ice truck?
Kevin couldn’t resist the shaved ice. Of course he got sour grape and banana, lol!
So many fun restaurants.
I was so excited to see the Deja Vu boutique! There is one in Destin that I’ve been to before and it is one of my favorite boutiques ever. They have the cutest, most unique clothes. You know no one back home will have anything like it. One of my favorite tops (I’m wearing it in the first photo in this post) came from there. It’s so far away though, I hardly ever get to go. So I was super excited to see one right within walking distance of our cottage!
There’s also the big outdoor market, Perspicasity, in Seaside.
I was dying over all their scarves.
Perfect for sitting and shopping.
It took all I had not to bring back one of each! :)
There’s also the classic Seaside shop.
How cute are these little weenie dog shirts?? :) I want one with a Boston terrier on it! :)
We heard about Charlie’s Donut Truck, and their famous doughnuts that sell out at like 8 or 9 every morning. So on our last day in Seaside, we got up super early to be there right when they first opened. We rode our bikes down to the neighboring community at Alys Beach and got there right at 6:30 am. There was already a line!
Fortunately, they still had one of each and of course we had to try them all. :)
The raspberry and blueberry filled doughnuts were amazing!! I am still dreaming about that sweet filling. Usually I don’t like jam-filled doughnuts because the filling tastes too “fake-flavored” to me. But these were perfect!
They had a yummy red velvet doughnut and an old fashioned doughnut as well.
Chocolate sprinkles! Delish.
Right before we left town we had a late brunch at Great Southern Cafe. Everyone told us we had to eat there before we left, so we walked on the beach and worked up an appetite. :) We definitely wanted to squeeze in one last amazing meal before we left! :) We started with their famous beignets which were fabulous, and I ordered the corned beef hash eggs benedict. The smoked gouda cheese grits that came with it were AMAZING!! I could not stop eating them. Definitely a must try if you are anywhere near South Walton.
Oh, and I have to tell you guys about one more thing. This Key Lime Pie from Stinky’s Fish Camp was without a doubt one of the best things I have ever eaten. Not just one of the best key lime pies I have ever tasted, but of the BEST THINGS I have ever eaten, ever. It is pure heaven. Out of all the cupcakes, cookies, chocolates and ice creams, this just shot itself right to the top. It’s the perfect combo of sweet and tart with the perfect texture and ratio of pie to crust.And whipped cream. And strawberries. I can’t even describe it. We had a moment. Just to show you how incredible this key lime pie was, we also ordered a chocolate peanut butter pie (just look at it!) and I completely ignored it for this key lime pie. It is THAT good. I know what you’re thinking, who wants to eat at a restaurant with “stinky fish” in the title, but if you avoid it for the name alone you are missing out!! Trust me!! If you are ever within 100 miles of this place, no matter how full you are, this key lime pie is a must must must order. You can even call ahead and get a whole pie to go. I am kicking myself for not doing that. But, uh, I know what I want for my birthday this year!
For more of our favorite eats in South Walton, check out our Seaside hashtag on Instagram, and be sure to follow us on Instagram for extra content between posts! :)
Thanks for looking and be sure to come back on Friday for another new post! :) Talk soon!
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Filed Under: Travel • Seaside • The BEST Thing I Ever Ate • Visit South Walton • Weekend Getaways • Where to Eat!
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