You should know that I'm generally almost entirely uneffected by advertisements, marketing, gimmicks and other corporate tomfoolery. It's my x-gene. I can stare at a website and the advertisements completely get blocked out by the content. I just don't see them. The second my mind detects someone - or something - trying to sell me something, the firewall goes up and very little gets through.

So, when a friend Mike txt'd me during his vacation about this restaurant called "The Gulf" and said I had to go check it out, I will admit I was skeptical. I know my friend wouldn't try to overtly sell me something and I trust his judgement but I just concluded in my mind that: yeah, yeah, yet another tourist trap gulf coast seafood place with a great view. They are dime a dozen, most serve frozen seafood and have mediocre food to accompany their great views.

His major selling point was, "they have these chairs, sitting right out on the beach!"

While beach chairs are among my favorite things to photograph because they generally stay still and seldom resist being photographed, I thought - Hey -- let's go check this place out, maybe it'll be worth a few pictures.

Boy was I in for a pleasant surprise. Finally, something different. Whether it was the wicker-covered furniture right out on the Gulf, the construction made of shipping containers or the salt air, this place definitely left an impression. It is strange that they've managed to take these elements of old furniture, metal trimmings, stark white furniture and shipping containers and managed to create an up-scale feeling, right on The Gulf. Maybe upscale isn't the right word. Hipster.. Maybe Yuppie.. Heck I don't know the difference but with lunch for two (ringing in at $40), this is typical tourist trap prices with unchararistically good food with a unique delivery.

The cheeseburger with swiss, pita chips and hummice was quite epic.

As for the hipster aspect, I used by best hipster-inspired instagram-knockoff filter so that from the comfort of your chair you can hear the vinyl spinning "Louis Armstrong Hello Dolly", smell the firepit and taste the salt air.

If the storms don't decimate this restaurant over the summer, I look forward to returning during the off season in better light for some interesting shots..

Oh, and to the super-impatient spaz lady behind us in line bitching that someone might have cut in line in front of us : You totally miss the point of a place like this. You gotsta chill. Go black friday shopping to relieve some angst, sheesh. :/

Photos & Random Stuff