1. Great Southern Cafe
Our favorite restaurant, we love their award winning Grits à Ya Ya and their Balsamic salmon. And for dessert….my favorite Key Lime Pie! Don’t forget to sample their mojitos! Peach, strawberry, classic, mango, guava … you really can’t go wrong. And if you like Key Lime Pie….they have the best one around! They have a wonderful happy hour for drinks from 3:00 to 5:00!
Great Southern Cafe2. Amici Italian Kitchen
Italian for “friends” and fondly known as Amici 30A, the Italian Kitchen specializes in authentic Neapolitan pizza pies made in a pizza oven known for its crispier, brick-oven styled crust. All made with locally-sourced ingredients, this eclectic family-friendly concept serves everything from belly satisfying pastas and entrees perfect for one to delicious Italian small plates that can be shared. They also have one of our favorite happy hours from 3:00-6:00 which includes pasta, pizza, beer and cocktails!
Amici 30A3. Nanbu Noodle Bar
If you’re looking for comforting Japanese ramen with Southern flair while visiting 30A come to Nanbu Noodle Bar! You can taste the love they put into their noodles. Nanbu’s ramen bowls are fresh and filling – loaded with noodles, vegetables and protein. Chefs prepare their daily selection of dumplings by hand and they are delicious! Nanbu is the perfect family dine in OR take out spot. The menu has something for everyone! Starting with the shishito peppers, dumplings, and pork belly buns (my personal favorite) to the light flavorful ramen broths, or poké bowls you really can’t go wrong when paired with a cold or hot sake. Definitely a must-stop spot when visiting 30A!”
4. Bruno’s Pizza
Bruno’s Pizza has been voted 30-A’s Best Pizza For 30 Years. Great pizza in a super-casual spot! From freshly made dough from scratch to homemade marinara, they construct the most delicious pizza on the beach. They have gluten free pizzas and also thin crust available. And, if you have a sweet tooth, get their cinnamon knots!
5. Seagrove Village Market Cafe
If you have not had a fried or grilled grouper sandwich at Seagrove Village Market Cafe, you haven’t had the best one we have ever tasted. A local institution, the Grouper Sandwich at Seagrove Village Market Café was named one of the “100 Things You Must Eat Before You Die” by Garden & Gun magazine, and it’s consistently voted as one of 30A’s hot spots for deep fried seafood. A no-frills diner and souvenir shop that’s just a short bike ride or car ride from Sea-esta and anywhere on Seagrove Beach.
Seagrove Village Market Cafe6. Surfing Deer
With a wide array of American and Seafood, Surfing Deer has something for everyone. From their Crispy Vegan Wings, Clothesline Bacon, and Bloody Mary Oysters to their Caramelized Sea Scallops, Chargrilled Lamb and Havana Grouper, you just can’t go wrong with whatever you choose.
They also offer vegan, vegetarian, and gluten-free options, along with an extensive array of mixed drinks, wines, craft beer, and coastal libations. One of the best restaurants when looking for something nice and refined.
7. Cafe 30A
Café Thirty-A is a casual fine-dining restaurant featuring grilled and fire roasted seafood, meats and poultry, wood-oven pizza, vegetarian fare and hedonistic desserts. The menu changes daily according to availability of ingredients. Fine wines and cocktails–including the best martinis in the area–complement the meal. We like their daily by one entrée and get the second half off 4:30 to 5:00. This restaurant is only a five minute drive from Sea-esta.
Cafe 30A in Seagrove Beach8. Borago
Borago is a classic trattoria with a contemporary flair serving homemade food that is the heart and soul of Italian cooking. Borago’s dinner delivers an authentic take on traditional Italian cooking. Our favorites are the house made Focaccia. And then you can’t go wrong with their traditional pasta dishes including their addictive Three Meat Bolognese with cheese tortellini, and penne with hot Italian sausage, roasted tomatoes, caramelized onions, portabella mushrooms and herbed goat cheese. Borago’s Italian menu is a favorite among locals, and it’s consistently voted one of 30A’s hottest spots for Italian cuisine for great reason.
9. The Bay
Chef Jim Shirley’s family-friendly waterfront restaurant features mouth-watering Southern gulf coast cuisine, sushi, a 12-draft beer system, excellent wine selections, and inventive bar-crafted cocktails. Table and bar seating is available inside and outside on the deck overlooking Choctawhatchee Bay, and you can stroll on the sand while awaiting your food.
10. Perfect Pig
Breakfast, lunch or dinner, we love this place all day long. At breakfast you have to try their brown sugar bacon and their Parmesan Crusted breakfast sandwich. For dinner, the Pork Tenderloin Medallion are wonderful…and the salmon is also very good. And a great thing about this restaurant….it is a 9 minute walk from Sea-esta or a 2 minute drive!
The Perfect PIg11. Airstream Row in Seaside
We had to add a number 11 to our top ten list! While food trucks are anything but new, Seaside joins the popular urban trend with classic silver Airstream trailers offering a variety of fares. Illustriously known as “Airstream Row”, the grouping of food trucks are at the center of Seaside directly on Scenic Highway 30-A. Airstream trailers are as much a part of the landscape and style of Seaside as any of the other elements.
The Airstream restaurants in Seaside are unique in style and cuisine, making them stand out among the other more traditional dining establishments.
“Airstream Row” includes:
- Frost Bites – Hawaiian shaved ice, homemade frozen custard, fresh squeezed lemonade and cold drinks.
- Barefoot BBQ -Specializing in beachside BBQ in retro, tiki-style atmosphere. Meat is hormone, steroid & antibiotic-free.
- The Meltdown on 30A – Everyone loves a traditional grill cheese sandwich! Now you can also try specialty. Serving traditional and specialty grilled cheese sandwiches.
- Wild Bill’s Beach Dogs – Best hot dogs on the beach! No antibiotics, hormones, nitrates, filler or junk.
- Crepes de Soleil – Made-to-order crepes: either sweet or savory
Other Choices:
A few restaurants that we also like but did not make our Top Ten list are Pescado in Rosemary Beach (an adult casual fine dining, seafood grill & rooftop bar), North Beach Social by the south end of the 331 bridge (a casual family and dog-friendly restaurant with primary outdoor seating) and Red Bar in Grayton Beach (a local institution with a limited but delicious menu).
You may also want to see our Top Ten Things to Do on 30A!