South Walton county, Florida & Scenic Hwy 30A - SouthWaltonScene.com™

Let's Do the Numbers - The most expensive land sold in South Walton in 2010 [real estate]

Brought to you by South Walton Realtors Craig and Tracy Baranowski

Scenic 30A has some of the most beautiful coastlines in the world. Along our 16 mile stretch of pristine white sand beaches are world class luxury communities. This years 2010 list of most expensive land sold on 30A has The Retreat is the top winner claiming 3 of the top 5 spots. Known for its gorgeous views and seclusion, The Retreat has been a top spot for premier luxury properties since its inception.

View most expensive properties sold in 2010 HERE

Alys Beach is pushing the envelope on luxury living and has sold two $3mil gulf front lots in the past 18 months. This is a surprising number since one can get an amazing luxury gulf front home for $3mil and the current state of our distressed market. It validates that location is everything and in the case of The Retreat, Alys Beach and WaterSound Beach…location IS EVERYTHING! All 5 of the most expensive lots sold on 30A are Gulf front lots and sold after the Gulf Oil Spill that fortunately had minimal impact on our beaches.

SoWalScene.com - 2008 A Year In Review: Part One.

Happy New Year!!  I wanted to take a moment to wish you and your family a healthy, happy, safe and prosperous 2009! 

I also want to thank you for your continued support and readership in SoWalScene.com's first full year on the 'net.  Actually, today is the one year anniversary of SoWalScene.com and I must admit, I am humbled by the journey this blog has taken me on in the past year and am incredibly excited about the upcoming year and beyond.  What started as a fairly straight-forward blog has morphed into a multi-page, multi-dynamic website with a sister site - SoWalDining.com and more exciting additions in the pipeline.  And a partner and I are in the process of launching another site that we think will be incredibly useful for the community so please stay-tuned! 

2008 has not been an easy one for many, both in South Walton and throughout the world.  It's been heart-breaking to see families forced to move to seek work elsewhere, see businesses that have had a presence in South Walton for years close, and hear the stories of people who have lost everything because of bad choices made during the real estate run up we witnessed back in '03-'05. 

No one can predict the future but collectively we are hoping for a better 2009 - and are bracing ourselves for the real possibility it will be as, if not more, difficult as 2008.  One thing is for sure - those that are still able to call this home are more grateful than ever for the charmed life we lead here. And, on other thing is for sure - the economy will turn around at some point.

In honor of the transition of years, I have complied Part One of a Year in Review below - view Part Two here  - and have listed some of my favorite posts from each month the year.  Enjoy - here's to 2009!

January 2008 in South Walton: Seagrove Villas and Motel put on the market - 30A big blue sign (new wayfinding signage) controversy erupts -  Kris Titus of the Walton county TDC steps down - four laning of Hwy 331 begins - Frill Seekers wins the 19th Annual Great Southern Cookoff at Sandestin.

February 2008 in South Walton: Walton TDC halts installation of big blue wayfinding signage on 30A - South Walton High students perform Blithe Spirit at the Seaside Rep. after it had been banned last minute from production at the high school because of a public complaint stating it was morally inappropriate - County Road 30A designated a "Scenic" highway - Coastal Vision 3000's "THE Beach" campaign unveiled - the community of NatureWalk on County Road 395, north of WaterColor, put up for sale - we observed a Leap Day on the 29th.

March 2008 in South Walton: Seaside Half Marathon draws record entrants - tourist season 2008 begins during Spring Break - Walton county TDC implements the "Leave No Trace" program on area beaches - celebrities Sheryl Crow and Emeril Lagasse were spotted around town - local artist Billie Gaffrey chosen as ArtsQuest 20th Anniversary poster winner - Easter comes early in March - former South Walton High School coach Mark Cozzie was found not guilty of lewd and lascivious behavior against a minor - the old Sandor's building that used to sit at the corner of Hwy 395 and Scenic 30A is moved down 30A to Alys Beach where it becomes George's at Alys Beach - 1st Annual 30A St. Patrick's Parade is held.

April 2008 in South Walton: The Seaside Rep's Annual Benefit, this year themed, "The Prom", raises over $56K - Walton county TDC decides to remove big blue wayfinding signage (the "announcing signs") on Scenic 30A - Seabreeze 106.3FM Jazz Fest holds last event in South Walton (it will be held at Pier Park in Panama City Beach starting in 2009)  - 22nd Sandestin Wine Festival held - Earth Day 2008 was on the 22nd.

May 2008 in South Walton: Yellow fly season begins - more than 60 swimmers pulled from dangerous rip currents in Bay, Walton and Okaloosa counties during Memorial Day weekend and one drowing was reported - 1st Annual Seaside Jazz Fest held - lifetime resident Doodle Harris passes away - Sonny Mares appointed Executive Director of Walton county TDC - VIE-people+places magazine launches - 20th Anniversary of ArtsQuest held.

June 2008 in South Walton: New Junior lifeguard program started on area beaches - Salty Dog Saloon, formerly Snapperheads, opens on Scenic 30A - new Blue Mountain Beach beach access opens - gas prices over $4.00/gallon - Parade of Homes 2008 begins - sea turtle nesting season begins on area beaches - hurricane season 2008 begins - rare Humpback whale sighting off Crystal Beach.

Some of my favorite posts over the past year:

• Signs Signs Everywhere (Jan)
• You Know You Are A South Waltoner When... (Feb)
• The Grouper Sandwich and Seagrove Village Market (Mar)
• Finding Opportunity in a Beach Resort Town (Apr)
• Seaside Jazz Festival - Weekend One. Marketing Snafu or First Year Growing Pains? (May)
• Welcome to the Beaches of South Walton, Dear Tourists (Jun)

Related Posts:

SoWalScene.com - 2008 A Year In Review: Part Two

You've Been Scene! Holiday Open House at The Village Boutique & Marla and Shane Photography

PJs Coffee Coming to WaterColor. Area Food Drives Need Your Help.

It's Official!  PJs Coffee of New Orleans is Coming To WaterColor (in the old Starbucks Coffee space)
Margaret Butler and Sara and Jackson Mumey, local residents and Owner/Operators of PJ’s Coffee of New Orleans and Planet Smoothie at Redfish Village, are pleased to announce they will be opening a  PJ’s Coffee of New Orleans in Town Center at WaterColor, FL.

Margaret, Sara and Jackson are excited to open a second location in the community and provide additional jobs to local residents and “simply the best coffee” in WaterColor.

Construction at the new location will move forward immediately, and Margaret, Sara and Jackson look forward to opening in Watercolor in late winter or early spring.

For additional details, please visit the website at www.pjscoffeeon30a.com.

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Come On, Folks - Help Out Local Families In Need at Area Food Drives If You Can!
I have been hearing that Caring and Sharing of Walton County is in desperate need of food donations this holiday season!  A Member Agency of The United Way of Okaloosa - Walton Counties, the purpose of Caring and Sharing of Walton county is to provide food, clothing, medical, prescriptions, utilities, shelter assistance in emergency situations, and other miscellaneous needs to those in the local community. 

Although the agency needs donations throughout the year to support the less fortunate of Walton county, there is an annual Holiday Food Drive held at several locations where you can drop off canned goods and non-perishables.  Since Thanksgiving is this Thursday, when you go to the grocery to buy the ingredients for your meal, pick up some extras and drop them off at one of these locations:

• Caring and Sharing - North Walton county
  1122 N 9th St # A, Defuniak Springs, 850-892-7656
• Caring and Sharing - South Walton county
  112 Lynn Dr, Santa Rosa Beach 850-267-2866.
• PJs Coffee and Planet Smoothie
  2050 West County Highway 30A, Blue Mountain Beach‎ - (850) 622-2399
  Bring in stuffing mix, canned green beans, cream of mushroom soup, instant mashed potatoes, jar of gravy, sweet potatoes, cranberry sauce, and apple pie filling. They will donate a turkey to go with the canned goods and give it to a family in need.
• Starbucks at Silver Sands Outlet
  9375 Highway 98 W, Miramar Beach (Silver Sands Factory Stores) 850-267-6648

Other Opportunities To Donate This Week:

• Heartworks Kids Food Drive this Wednesday, the 26th of November at the WaterColor Publix at 110 WaterColor Crossing from 1-5pm.
• In Partnership with Destin Harvest, Mitchell’s Fish Market is collecting canned food items through November 26.  As an incentive, for every guest who brings in five cans of food through the 26th we Mitchell's will provide acomplimentary appetizer!  The food you donate here will be distributed to families throughout our local area.  Additionally, your generous monetary donations will be utilized to purchase Thanksgiving turkeys for those who need them.  Mitchell's Fish Market is located at 500 Grand Boulevard, Suite K-100

Adieu - Salty Dog Saloon

I was perplexed when I drove by Salty Dog Saloon (3711 W County Highway 30A, Blue Mountain Beach | 850.267-1184) and, according to a non-descript message on their sign, was informed that they are closed.  Closed?  Closed for the day?  Closed for the week? 

On that note, I was floored to be told that the owners have closed the joint down for good due to the recent brou-ha-ha between the establishment and property owners in the surrounding neighborhood over noise. 

Apparently, the situation has escalated to the point where owner Jim Richard felt he couldn't guarantee a safe working environment for his employees and, really, it sounds like he just didn't have the fight in 'im to see the issue through to a resolution.  I suspect they were struggling in the downturn - could it be that on top of the bad press and bad karma with the noise issue, it was just not worth continuing? 

The whole thing just plain and simply stinks in my opinion - it's very unfortunate that both sides dug in their heels and let their emotions cloud their judgment.  The mudslinging turned into much more disturbing behavior, leaving South Walton one less place to grab a cold one or hear some tunes in our suits and flip flops.  What will replace it?  Will the new establishment have the same fight on their hand?

Mr. Richards owns the popular Stinky's Fish Camp and The Lake Place restaurant (opening Spring '09) in Dune Allen Beach so he has other establishments to fall back on and to nurture.  But the employees at Salty Dog are out of a job today, pretty close to the holidays and in the off-season nonetheless.  Very unfortunate indeed.

Adieu Salty Dog Saloon - South Walton will miss you (well, most of South Walton will miss you).

Adieu - David Seering's Piano Cafe at Redfish Village

THANK YOU Lori and David - we will sincerely miss you in South Walton.  Please keep SoWalScene.com updated on your continued success!

Here is the email I received today about the closing:

"Dear Jill, We read with interest your comments regarding the closing of Seering’s Piano Café.   The cafe has been a dream of ours for many years and we feel privileged to have brought it to the 30-A community.  We were completely embraced by the locals and tourists that graced our place and hope they received joyful memories as we did.

We did get bitten by the economic bug, and gas prices and phantom hurricanes did not help.  We have been approached to bring the concept to a metropolitan area with its larger pool of customers….where our restaurant would not be hidden by trees and we are not kept from putting up adequate signage.

We’ve enjoyed being here on 30-A and we have made so many friends.  We thank all of our loyal regulars for their unending and continued support.  We will both continue with the music ministry at the Seaside Chapel; Sundays at 10:00 a.m.  As for the future, we’ll keep y’all posted of the haps on davidseering.com.

Sincerely, David and Lori Seering"

A few days ago, I had put a tweet on Twitter (I know, that sounds absolutely ridiculous but ....) that there was chatter in the community that David Seering's Piano Cafe in Redfish Village on Scenic 30A in Blue Mountain Beach had unexpectedly shut their door over the weekend. 

Well, I got the confirmation this morning that, yes indeed, the rumor is true and Saturday was, sadly, the restaurants last Sinatra-inspired song, their last New York cabaret, their last hurrah.

Seering's opened last December after a long build out in the new Redfish Village community.  The restaurant had just recently begun to accumulate accolades, including a 5-apple rating The Beachcomber.  They lasted less than a year - what the heck happened?

I have been unsuccessful in finding out the "why" behind the closing.  I'll take a stab at the guessing game until I collect more info: Mr. Seering is a musician, not a restaurateur?  Or, the economic perfect storm - and the difficulty of securing lines of credit to operate - proved to be too challenging?  Maybe Redfish Village, who still hasn't been able to attract many new tenants in their commercial center, proved to be a bad fit for Seering's and they are relocating the restaurant to a new spot?

Regardless, it's another loss for the South Walton culinary scene.  That sucks.

So until next time, Seering's. South Walton is going to miss you (and your chocolate piano dessert)!

Related Posts:

• Adieu - Criolla's Restaurant in Grayton Beach
• Adieu - Ball's Out Sports Bar on Hwy 331 S
• Adieu - Sean Boone, Reporter for the Walton Sun

PJs Coffee of New Orleans & Planet Smoothie in Redfish Village

Posted by Jill Gaupin

Now, you probably wouldn't think that a coffee shop-slash-smoothie bar would be a logical choice when deciding on where to eat a quick lunch but don't be fooled.  PJs Coffee of New Orleans & Planet Smoothie in Redfish Village in Blue Mountain Beach serves up some fantabulous hot and cold sammies (you choose) - for prices that are cheap-cheap-cheap by South Walton standards - making it one of my top choices when I need an on-the-go bite. 

My standard is the hot Garden District - grilled portobella mushrooms, spring mix, tomatoes, mozzarella cheese on ciabatta slathered with basil pesto.  With chips and a pickle spear, it rings up at only $6.95+ tax.  Yes, only $6.95!!

Other lunch items include a Greek, Caesar and Chef Salad ($4.95 - $5.95), and five other New Orleans-inspired sandwiches like the French Quarter Dip ($6.95) and Muffaletta ($7.95).  If you like breakfast for lunch, they also serve a variety of breakfast sandwiches all day long ($3.95 - 4.85).  Oh, and if you like lunch for breakfast, they accommodate as well.  And of course, they serve all kinds of coffee and espresso drinks AND have free WiFi, making it a great place to hang out if you need to escape the house or office for a few hours.

Owned and operated by 2 incredibly nice women - local residents Sara Mumey and Margaret Butler - PJs extended summer hours are Monday through Saturday, 6:30am-7pm and Sunday from 7:30am-5pm.  They are located in Redfish Village at 2108 W. County Highway 30-A in Blue Mountain Beach.  Phone is 850.622.2399.

Related Posts:

• Beach Bite - Smiling Fish Cafe
• SoWal Scene List of 5 - Free WiFi in South Walton
• SoWal Scene List of 5 - Nothing Like a Good Cup of Joe

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About Jill: Jill, publisher of SoWal Scene, is a '95 graduate of L'Academie de Cuisine, a nationally acclaimed culinary school located outside of Washington D.C., and was at one time an aspiring pastry chef in the D.C. area.  No longer cooking in a professional setting, Jill considers herself a 'professional foodie' and started the South Walton Foodie Group in 2004.  Jill and her husband, Olivier (a 24-year veteran of the kitchen himself), spend an extraordinary amount of time cooking, eating, dining out and drinking wine with friends and family.

The Battle of the Bikini Line at The Aesthetic Clinique

Hangups - we all have 'em.  And if you say you don't?  Sorry - you are either a narcissist or you are lying.  Hangups are just part of the human condition - nothing to be ashamed of here.  If it's not your cottage cheese legs, it's your bald spot, your crooked teeth, your hairy back, your bulbous nose, your junk-in-the-trunk butt, your frizzy hair, your third chin, your stumpy toes ... and on and on.  If it's a body part, someone out there has a hang up about it.

I have to admit one of my biggies has always been my - ahem - outta control bikini line.  Unless you suffer from this condition, I can't explain how embarrassing this is, not to mention the painful lengths one must go to in order to manage and hide the overgrowth if a trip to the beach in a suit is going to be a possibility.  Tweezing, Epilady (that little torture device that rotates like 35 tweezers and pulls the hair out at the root), frequent waxing - all of it hurts like a MF but are the only things that actually work.  No pain, no gain as they say.  And forget shaving - the in-grown hairs and razor bumps are not only terribly unsightly, they have a host of their own issues like infection (I know, it's horrid).

Needless to say, when I heard The Aesthetic Clinique (850.622.1214) - a boutique medi-spa with two locations, one at Redfish Village and the other at Rosemary Beach - had moved to South Walton and offered Laser Hair Removal, I was absolutely overjoyed!   I had always considered electrolysis but laser is so much quicker!  And I thought if I could use the Epilady on my bikini line without screaming or crying, a few quick laser treatments would be a piece of cake.  I saved up for 4 treatments (note 6 is recommended) and made my appointment. 

So, what was my experience like?

Awesome! New Summer Event Series starting tonight - Beach Villages Around the World

I got an email yesterday from Hillary Fosdyck, co-owner and event designer of Monark Events, about a new Friday night summer event series being hosted at Redfish Village called "Beach Villages Around the World" which kicks off tonight! 

In Hillary's words, "The concept is to travel the world by celebrating other beach villages such as Redfish.  We will celebrate a different village/country every week with food/drink/entertainment/ambiance to go with it."

I just think this is brilliant!!  Hillary and her business partner, Briane Workman, really thought outside-the-box on this event, offering something totally unique and innovative to attract folks to Redfish Village.  I am putting this on my personal calendar for sure!  Way to go gals!

Loreto, Mexico is the first Beach Village to be "experienced" tonight.  Here are the details -

Join Redfish Village this Friday, May 30th at 5:30 p.m. as they celebrate the culture of Loreto, Mexico. You will enjoy live Mariachi music, authentic Mexican cuisine, a top-shelf Tequila and Margarita tasting, and an unforgettable atmosphere.  Recapture the spirit of Loreto's Town Square at Redfish Village, where you will experience the enchanting culture of the Baja right here on 30-A.

Here is the line up for the rest of the summer!  Head to Redfish, SoWal, to experience the world - enjoy!

Marla and Shane Photographers

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