This Easter my daughter and I took off on a road trip from Texas to Grandridge, Florida to see my Dad. April 22nd was his 85th birthday and we wanted to surprise him with an unexpected visit. As you have heard – the fun, the learning, the excitement – is in the journey. I don’t know about you, but I think part of that excitement & learning and one of the best things about a road trip is the food – all the different restaurants, cafes, and eateries along the way. And this road trip did not disappoint us.
As you can imagine with it being a holiday weekend, the roads, highways, and byways were buzzing and I-10 was no exception. And Yep! You guessed it…vehicle accidents all along the way. One of those accidents happened on I-10 just outside of a town called Daphne in Al-ah-bam-ah (in my Forest Gump voice). Rather than wait on I-10 for hours in traffic that was not moving, we decided to exit and head into Daphne for fuel and food. Once we exited I-10, we took the Veterans Highway through Daphne toward the water & ended up in an adjoining town called Fairhope (www.fairhopeal.gov). We thought we would find a coffee shop, but as it turned out my daughter spotted a marina from the highway. We decided to head that way and see what we could find and stumbled on to the Fly Creek Marina.
Once at the marina, we drove around and found the Sunset Pointe Restaurant (831 N. Section St., Fairhope, Alabama). What a find it was! The restaurant sits on the banks of Fly Creek with rolling hills all around. Boats all lined up in the slips, bobbing up and down in the water that was smooth as glass that day. There is a fire pit to sit around in the evening with a nice adult beverage of your choice or even a good ol glass of Southern Ice Tea. The atmosphere is peaceful beachy and relaxing.
The patio & deck area outside was so very inviting & the day was gorgeous so we decided to have lunch outside. I ordered the Shrimp and Crab with Mussels Bouillabaisse & my daughter ordered the seafood dish of Shrimp in a Barbecue and Rosemary sauce…phenomenal! The portions are very generous and so delicious, you’ll wish you had room for more. For dessert, yes!…don’t judge us…we had a wonderful mousse based key lime pie treat. I cannot give you words to describe how delightfully tasty that was. Oh, and did I mention that Sunset Pointe has been featured on the food network? (www.sunsetpointefairhope.com)
Luke Walker is the General Manager at Sunset Pointe. He will make you feel right at home and make sure you are well taken care of and have plenty to eat. While visiting with Luke he told us one very important and impressive program that Sunset Pointe is part of called MESSLORDS.
The MESSLORDS are a group of chefs who get together to entertain and cook for our military troops all over the world. The program is headed up by a core group of 4 men, Panini Pete (who is also the owner of Sunset Pointe), STRETCH, Boss Man Mike, and Gorilla Rich. Their main purpose is to work with all areas of the U.S. Military and their families at home and abroad to provide entertainment and education while boosting the morale of our military personnel.
Check out their facebook page for more information on this amazing group of men, who have given so much of themselves for those who have given so much for us. (www.facebook.com/Messlords)
If you ever make it out to Alabama, make your way over to Fairhope to the Sunset Pointe restaurant. I promise you, it is well worth the trip and you will be glad you did! Oh, and if you get there around sunset, you can join them in the ringing of the sunset bell and toast the evening, good food, friends, and yes, the magnificent view.
If you want to try the Bouillabaisse at home…here’s the recipe. This recipe was actually featured on the food network, click the link for something delicious for your taste buds 🙂
Bouillabaisse Recipe: https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/sunset-pointe-bouillabaisse-build-3892571.amp
