Breakfast on the Grille
From Ponce de León’s search for the Fountain of Youth to Hernando de Soto’s quest for gold, explorers have been scouring Florida for centuries in search of treasure. Some adventurers explored alone, while others were aided in their search by locals who guided them along Florida’s wild coast as they hunted for hidden gems.
However, there are still treasures to be found on the Florida coast if you know where to look. So put on your sunblock and allow me to be your guide as you discover a hidden gem nestled at the bottom of Long Key in Pass-a-Grille, Florida. A gem called The Seahorse Restaurant.
Seahorse (as my daughter likes to call it) first opened its doors in 1938 and has been serving up delicious food to tourists and locals alike ever since. Sitting on the intercoastal end of 8th Ave in Pass-a-Grille, Seahorse is open for breakfast and lunch every day except Tuesday and is just a short walk away from many other great Pass-a-Grille shops and beaches.
Stepping through Seahorses’s doors feels like stepping back in time. The pine booths, wood paneling, and decor scream old Florida but in a quiet, cozy, laid-back way. With indoor and outdoor seating, there is never a bad season to eat at Seahorse, but my favorite seat is tucked into a corner booth near the bar that is always full of locals reading newspapers and sipping coffee.
Breakfast is our go-to meal at Seahorse, although lunch has many great options as well. A few breakfast staples we always order are the pancakes (delicious), biscuits and gravy with scrambled eggs (my five-year-old daughter’s favorite), fried eggs and corned beef hash (my favorite), a fruit cup (for the baby), and orange juice all around. If we are still hungry, an order of shrimp and cheese grits usually hits the spot.
If we aren’t in a rush after eating, we often take a little stroll down the block. I could write another article about all the fun things to do on 8th Ave in Pass-a-Grille, but there are plenty of shops to explore, ice cream to enjoy, and souvenirs to peruse casually. If you are feeling extra adventurous, you can head west all the way down the block, across the street, over the golden sand dunes, and right into the emerald waters of the Gulf of Mexico where, with a little imagination, you might see a Spanish ship hungry for hidden gems.
