Pier Park to Host 5k Sports Clinic on Saturdays

Well, I missed the gun this week, but fortunately for those of you that rely on me to keep you up to date, this particular event will run every Saturday for the next 4 weeks.

Pier Park is hosting a 5k sports clinic at the Aaron Bessant Park Ampitheater at 7:30 am. I guess you could still make it this morning if you wanted.

Details:

K SPORTS CLINIC AT PIER PARK
Runners welcome to train and learn with Freedom Sports

WHAT:
For five Saturdays in March and April, runners are invited to Pier Park for the 5K Sports Clinic hosted by Freedom Sports.

COST:
This event is free and open to the public

WHEN:
Saturdays at 7:30 a.m.
March 14, 21 and 28, 2009
April 4 and 11, 2009

WHERE:
Pier Park – Amphitheater
600 Pier Park Drive
Panama City Beach, FL 32413

MORE INFO:
Felicia Cook, Director of Mall Marketing
(850) 236-9974 or simon.com

Red Robin to Give Away Free Child ID Kits

Red Robin to give away FREE Child ID Kits and donate 50 cents from every gourmet burger sold during grand opening week to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children.

Red Robin Gourmet Burgers, Inc. (Red Robin) – known for serving high-quality gourmet burgers in a kid- and family-friendly atmosphere for the past 40 years – will open a new Red Robin(R) restaurant in Panama City Beach, located at 100 Bluefish Drive, off of Highway 98 in the Pier Park development, on Monday, March 9, at 11 a.m. To support child safety efforts in the Panama City Beach community, Red Robin will give away Child ID Kits for FREE* during grand opening week from March 9 to 15. In addition, to celebrate Red Robin’s ongoing commitment to kids and families, the Panama City Beach restaurant has partnered with the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) to host a Burgers With A Heart(R) fundraiser during grand opening week. Red Robin will donate 50 cents from every gourmet burger sold during this time to NCMEC to support its child safety initiatives.

“We look forward to serving crave-able gourmet burgers to the community in the Panama City Beach area, while also supporting child safety efforts in the local community through our Child ID Kit program,” said Eric Houseman, Red Robin president and chief operating officer. “We invite everyone to come to Red Robin to enjoy one of our more than two dozen high-quality gourmet burgers, learn more about child safety, and help us support the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children.”

Red Robin focuses its philanthropic support on local and national causes that promote the health, welfare and education of children, families and citizens in the communities it serves. Because Red Robin is all about kids and families, its ongoing partnership with NCMEC continues to grow through the company’s new restaurant openings and additional programs such as “Red Robin’s Kids’ Cook-Off.”

“On behalf of the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, I would like to thank Red Robin for their generous support of our mission,” said Robbie Callaway, NCMEC co-founder and past chairman of the board. “It is important that we empower families to make safer decisions for their children, and communication and education are vital tools in that effort. With Red Robin’s support, we are able to reach many more families across the country through our child safety initiatives.”

The 5,495-square-foot Panama City Beach Red Robin(R) restaurant will seat 164 guests and offers:

A family-friendly, come-as-you-are atmosphere
Birthday celebrations complete with a free sundae and special birthday song, and an online eClub that awards kids a free kids’ meal and adults a free gourmet burger for their birthday
Kids’ menu featuring trans-fat-free favorites like mac’n’cheese, as well as fruit and vegetable side options, such as apple slices, baby carrots with ranch dressing and mandarin orange slices
Detailed allergen information that is also easy to understand
A unique Unbridled culture that inspires Red Robin team members to consistently put guests’ needs first and perform random acts of kindness that enrich the lives of their fellow team members and guests, and that positively impact the community
In-school programs designed to create caring communities, including the U-ACT(R) Champion Program, a national character-building initiative and grant program specifically designed for middle and junior high schools each academic year

For more information about Red Robin and to find additional restaurant locations, please visit www.redrobin.com.

Red Robin in Pier Park – Gourmet Burgers and Bottomless Fries

Adorned in bright red and various other bright colors the walls are covered with the likes of movie posters, new and old, posters from various bands, such as the Beatles, and other seemingly random protrusions that all help complete the feel of “wholesome fun and entertainment for families.”

Tom Sweet, hailing from the cold streets of Ohio was talked into coming to our quaint little beach town (without much persuasion, might I add) to participate in what some may deem a revolution of sorts for Panama City Beach – Pier Park. Now, I don’t have to tell you all the great things about Pier Park, I have a whole category dedicated to that, but I will tell you that Red Robin is a welcome addition to the family.

When asked about the signature menu items, Sweet said it’s all about the gourmet burger, bottomless fries and shakes. “Bottomless fries AND bottomless shakes,” I hopefully asked. The answer was a quick “no.” I had to try. How are the fries? “Insanely delicious seasoned steak fries.”

With the First Place Blue Ribbon across the top of their web site, Red Robin is proud that they landed on the “10 Best Family Restaurants” list. The whole place is designed in a way that is fun for everyone, even the adults. Right when you walk in, you are greeted by Mini-Lady Liberty.

The restaurant is sit-down style with menu items ranging from burgers to salads to healthy kids-choice menu items such as apples and celery. Prices range from just above $9 to just over $12 and all burgers come with bottomless fries. Seems kinda high for a burger joint, but we’ll see just how good they are next week.

They are located in the north side of Pier Park, right across from Baja Grill, in the same building as the Great American Cookies.

They are doing a soft training opening next week (that I’ll surely report on) with the official first day of business on March 9th.

The Menu

Randy Houser – Another Big Name comes to Tootsies in Pier Park

As the word gets out, Tootsies Orchid Lounge in Pier Park continues its success with another appearance from a big name in the world of honky tonk and country music. Randy Houser recently showed up and played a few sets as fans watched and marveled at how the word has gotten out that little ‘ol Panama City Beach is the place to go if you are a country star and are wanting to go to the beach.

With our sugar white sands and awesome winter weather, who wouldn’t want to come here, right? Alright, enough with the PCB commercial stuff.

According to his web site, Randy Houser was born and raised in central Mississippi. His mentor and main motivation for his musical career came from his father, who was also a singer/songwriter.

With several videos on CMT.com, he seems to be quite popular and definately a welcome addition to the many that have come and will come in the future to Tootsies Orchid Lounge in Pier Park.

Mardi Gras Parade on Saturday in Pier Park

This Saturday, February 14th, be sure to come out to Pier Park for the Mardi Gras Parade put on by the Krewe of Dominique Youx. With around 50 floats expected and thousands of people to be there, it is sure to be a total blast. The Parade starts at 3 pm at the intersection of Hills and Front Beach Road and will travel west-bound on Front Beach Road, enter into Pier Park and end at the end of the Boardwalk area at the round-a-bout.

The Krewe of Dominique Youx is Bay County’s original organization of over 185 members who have celebrated the festive Mardi Gras season here in Bay County for over 22 years. Dominique Youx is the nickname used by the eldest member of the famous Lafitte family of buccaneers who sailed the southern seas in the early 1800’s plundering vessels of those deemed to be their enemies. Dominique Youx was actually Fredric Alexander Lafitte, brother of Jean and Pierre Lafitte. He was the first of the Brothers to become a buccaneer. He was commissioned by Napoleon Bonaparte as a privateer and served for France during the war with Spain. When the Lafitte’s moved to New Orleans, the charismatic Jean Lafitte organized hundreds of rogues into a band of pirates who became the scourge of the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean. Local rumor has it that some of their loot is still hidden in the estuary of St.Andrew Bay.

After the parade, be sure to join Bootleg Barbeque’s 1st Annual Mardi Gras Party and Crawfish Boil to benefit the Anchorage Children’s Home. Bootleg will be serving up true Louisiana-style crawfish boiled to the tune of live zydeco music performed by Heat & the Zydeco Gents at 4 pm with festivities expected to roll through 8 pm.

Bootleg Barbeque, a locally owned and operated business, appreciates the community support it has received in its first year and is sponsoring this event as a small way to give back to the community through this truly worthy cause.

Anchorage Children’s Home is a private, non-profit, Christian organization serving, protecting and strengthening children, families and community. Anchorage offers emergency shelter for children and youth who have been abused, abandoned and neglected. Anchorage also offers services to homeless youth through transitional living, street outreach and maternity home programs. Anchorage Children’s Home’s mission is to be an Anchor for today’s children…strengthening tomorrow’s families.

For more information on Anchorage Children’s Home visit their web site at anchoragechildrenshome.org.
Event information can be found at Bootleg Barbeque’s web site rockabillybarbeque.com

Doggie Doo on the Beach at Pier Park – Move the Doggie Beach

As a resident of Panama City beach living directly across the street from the “doggie beach” I have seen numerous infractions of the boundaries, clean up, and leash rules. The aptly nicknamed “tootsie roll beach” has been true to its name and I and my children have happened upon several “accidents” outside the designated “doggie beach” boundary. When the dog beach was approved in October 2007 several of my friends and neighbors asked the question “Why this beach?” We are not opposed to a dog beach per say, we are more concerned as to why the city would tarnish the beach directly in front of our newest and nicest tourist attraction.

Take the Poll

In the larger of the sidebars on the right, directly below the Featured Video a poll has been created.

The question: Do you think the dog beach should be moved from the City Pier at Pier Park to another location?

The city told me they designated the Pier Park beach as the dog beach because it is a “dog friendly” area due to the allowance of dogs in Aaron Bessant Park and along the sidewalk areas of Pier Park. I believe that dogs in these areas are great. The City should acknowledge though that Pier Park has its own security guards to enforce proper leashing and clean up compliance. In Aaron Bessant Park there is a great deal of rule breaking and accidents left behind but my children are not sitting in minimal clothing and digging where the dogs are playing. On the beach my children are in fact sitting in minimal clothing and digging. Last fall break I had family visiting and we had to scoop up three accidents 200 yards west of the dog beach boundary before allowing my children to play. In this same area a man took his dog out into the water right next to where my children were wading. Dogs are known shark attractants and when I politely asked him to move back down to the dog beach he ignored me.

After complaining to the city about the dog beach infractions I was directed to Stephani Somerset the executive director of Bay Families with Dogs. She told me to let the perpetrators know of the dog beach boundary as some of them may be unaware. I wanted her to be right but after approaching two more people about the fact they had their unleashed dogs outside the dog boundary they’re response was, “yes we know where the boundary is”, and proceeded to remain in their seats. I go to the beach to relax not play police.

In an article in the News Herald on 2/4/09 it was said that “98 percent of dog owners who use the beach pick up after their dogs…” I would like to say in my experience of being outside of the boundaries of the dog beach the statistic is more like 50 percent. If dog owners were cleaning up after themselves 98 percent of the time why would the dog beach have to hire a beach butler, which it has since done. The ironic part is that the beach butler only cleans up after the 400 feet of designated dog beach. This leaves the accidents outside the dog beach for us to clean up.

I would like to state for the record, growing up I owned a dog who I loved dearly and I have many friends with dogs which they adore. I recognize the importance of raising a happy dog with a life full of exercise and variety but choosing the beach directly in front of our newest and nicest addition to Panama City Beach to provide that “exercise and variety” is not the decision the majority of residents would have agreed to. As I speak to friends and neighbors, including dog owners, we all feel this was the wrong beach to use as a test site for an unregulated city ordinance.

During a time when we are competing with other panhandle beaches for much needed tourism dollars my question to the city is, “What was the motivation in turning the city’s potentially most active beach into a dog beach?” . I don’t see how a dog beach could bring in increased revenue for the improvement of our city. There are no “Dog” retail shops in Pier Park. My point is that making THIS beach a dog beach only downgrades the beach without bringing any additional revenue to the area for things such as sidewalks and community upgrades.

Millions of dollars have been used to put retail on the beach to create an atmosphere in which tourists can have beach, dining, and shopping in one trip. The majority of tourists don’t bring their animals with them. The idea of lying on the sand that is possibly tainted with the morning’s dog activities is not exactly appealing. I understand it is a “nice” thing to have for “some” of the residents but my friends with dogs have admitted they would not take their children to the dog beach for fear of what they might dig up.

My request is that the city moves the dog beach away from the Pier Park beach. Again I am not trying to eliminate the idea of a dog beach. I am not trying to be unsympathetic or unfair to the dog owners who have respected the dog beach boundaries. I am trying to say the Pier Park dog beach experiment needs to end. The majority of dog owners of Panama City Beach have not shown they can govern themselves in this privilege.

Guy Harvey's in Pier Park to Open Soon

Guy Harvey’s Island Grill in Pier Park will be open first part of April, as long as everything goes according to schedule. Interior construction is heavy under way on the 10,000 square foot restaurant and shop and is located at the south side of Pier Park, right next to Reggae J’s and across from Back Porch and Margaritaville.

This will be Guy Harvey’s fifth location with others located in Orange Beach, AL, Marco Island, Key West and Grand Cayman.

The Pier Park location will feature a restaurant that will seat around 200 people and a shop where tourists and locals alike can purchase merchandise from artwork to belts adorned with various sea wild-life. There will be two levels, although at this time, I’m unsure what the second floor will hold.

The menu will include similar items as the other locations with a few “local” adaptations. However, you will not see on the menu items such as swordfish, chilean sea bass, grouper, or any other billfish or shark species for that matter. Guy Harvey deems these species threatened or depleted.

Visit www.GuyHarveyInc.com for more details on Guy Harvey, and check the picture below to see what the place looks like inside, right now.

Mardi Gras Parade on Panama City Beach

The Krewe of Dominique Youx is Bay County’s original organization of over 185 members who have celebrated the festive Mardi Gras season here in Bay County for over 22 years.

According to custom, Shrove Tuesday (“Fat Tuesday” to the English-speaking settlers, “Mardi Gras” to the French) is the last day to indulge, or overindulge, before Lent and its 40 days of fasting. The celebrations that take place before Mardi Gras in New Orleans, Mobile, and Galveston set off a carnival season that is notorious.

The Mardi Gras tradition came to Panama City in 1986 when a group of local residents headed by Errol Legasse and the late Jerry Castardo decided that we should not miss out on the excitement of Mardi Gras and formed the Krewe of Dominique Youx.

Dominique Youx is the nickname used by the eldest member of the famous Lafitte family of buccaneers who sailed the southern seas in the early 1800’s plundering vessels of those deemed to be their enemies. Dominique Youx was actually Fredric Alexander Lafitte, brother of Jean and Pierre Lafitte. He was the first of the Brothers to become a buccaneer. He was commissioned by Napoleon Bonaparte as a privateer and served for France during the war with Spain. When the Lafitte’s moved to New Orleans, the charismatic Jean Lafitte organized hundreds of rogues into a band of pirates who became the scourge of the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean. Local rumor has it that some of their loot is still hidden in the estuary of St.Andrew Bay.

The present day Krewe of Dominique Youx, like other famous Mardi Gras Krewes, celebrates the season in a carnival atmosphere. For the first time, the krewe will parade on Panama City Beach. Pirates dressed in colorful costumes will be throwing beads to revelers along the parade route beginning at Hill Road, proceeding down Front Beach Road, and into Pier Park. This year, King Rob Fernandez (Dominique Youx XXII) and his Queen, Joyce Muller, will spearhead the Krewe as beads, doubloons, and other throws are tossed to the huge crowds lining the parade route. This parade is free to the public and suitable for the whole family.

In Panama City Beach, the season begins in mid-November with a black-tie evening celebration. The Krewe presents a local, non-member dignitary with the “Baratarian Cup”, a Mardi Gras honor unique to Panama City. This year’s recipient is Robert “Bob” Myers. Bob was an Air Force officer who settled down in Bay county after retiring and over the years became one of Bay County’s most prolific charity volunteers. Bob will lead this year’s parade as Grand Marshall.

The Krewe also holds a formal, costumed Mardi Gras Ball for the coronation of the new King, Queen and court members for the following year.

The Krewe of Dominique Youx is self-financing, paying for its own equipment, floats, costumes, as well as the beads and doubloons thrown to the watching parade crowds.

The Panama City Krewe of Dominique Youx is proud to use the name of an historic buccaneer to promote the carnival spirit of Mardi Gras for the enjoyment of the people of Bay County.

Local Businesses gather at Baja Grill

Last Thursday, I joined some of the 980 Panama City Beach Chamber of Commerce members that flooded Pier Park for an after hour meet and greet, hosted by Baja Grill. The atmosphere exuded an enlivening blend of jovial comradery with subtle networking. Crowds flocked the open bar and full gourmet buffet; enjoying dishes such as herbed lamb, cheesecake and shrimp primavera.

Guests participated in a raffle, complements of Regions Bank. Some went home winners, others not so lucky. In addition to various other items, a lime green bike was raffled to promote the bank’s new “green” account programs. This is dueling fitting as Regions’ trade color is green.

I had the opportunity to speak with a few business owners. The first was Bobby Griggs, who has run The Beach Butlers (out of Rosemary Beach) with her husband Jeff for around five years now. The Beach Butlers make coming here on vacation one step easier, eliminating the need for those late first night shopping trips to be sure you don’t go without the essentials, and non-essentials. “You enjoy the shore, while we stand in line at the store.”

Some of the more recent additions to Pier Park include Solace Day Spa and Salon and Massage Envy. Solace has been open in Rosemary Beach for six years, but owner Jennifer Staerker decided it was time to open her second location in Pier Park just last year.

As far as expanding to Pier Park- I moved to the area in 2000 and i have watched the Panama City Beach area grow over the years. We have had wonderful success with Solace at our Rosemary Beach location and many of our guests are from the Panama City Beach area. When the opportunity to expand Solace and Aveda to the Beach to make it more convenient for our beach locals and visitors…Pier Park was a natural fit. As an Aveda Lifestyle Salonspa, Solace is about quality, customization and creating an experience for the guest. Pier Park shares the same philosophy. ~ Jennifer Staerker

Pier Park’s Massage Envy, owned by Lynny Conklin, is also rather new and will celebrate one year of business in March. Offering health and wellness through thearaputic massage, they give locals, tourists and shoppers alike a way to unwind and relax.

With so many new businesses on the rise and the busy season only a few months away, PCB’s economic future looks to be a bright one.

Encore Presentation, Pier Park Beach Ball Drop – Extended Version

The Beach Ball Drop was awesome, and Pier Park did a great job in executing this first of many New Year’s Eve events.

The production and editing on my part was lengthy, time consuming, and exhausting, to say the least, but it was fun, very fun. The first version of the video was just over 7 minutes, but I decided to edit it down to around 5 minutes so as to prevent it from seeming to drag on. However, the first video was so successful and so “talked about”, I decided to release the longer 7 minute version to feature longer interviews and more footage.

Enjoy, and thanks to Pier Park for sponsoring the production of this video!

http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=2858544&server=vimeo.com&show_title=1&show_byline=1&show_portrait=0&color=&fullscreen=1
Pier Park Beach Ball Drop – extended version from Jason Koertge on Vimeo.