UNSTUCK: FAIRHOPE, ALABAMA

Reflection, Rumination & Rhetoric from the Road

Nestled along Mobile Bay, this tranquil town is a slice of Sublime Pie with Whipped Cream and a Luxardo Cherry on top.

The only consolation leaving Rosemary Beach was to wind up in Fairhope, Alabama after a mere three-hour drive—as directed by a message from the universe delivered during a low ebb at the Havana Beach Bar inside The Pearl.

As its name suggests, The Grand, founded in 1847, is very grand indeed. The kind of spacious lodge along a sandy beach that induces one to do nothing more than chill—a welcome respite after two weeks’ crossing the country then changing direction.

Everything you need is right here: fine wine, good food, live music—and jaw-dropping sunsets.

But when you roll three miles into town, even more delight awaits.

Start with Ben’s BBQ, which opens at 11 a.m. to a queue that never quits: a pulled pork sandwich with baked beans and potato salad and a jar of root beer.

You feel like you’ve gone through a portal back in time, say, the 1950s, when Americans were proud to display old glory.

Literally.

The main road leading into Fairhope is lined with flagposts atop which stars & stripes flutter in the balmy breeze.

Since cocktail hour melds with a setting sun, there is no finer place for a bourbon Manhattan than Buckey’s, sitting around a firepit…

…with Mobile’s lights twinkling across the bay.

Then, beneath the snow full moon…

…a drive into town…

….to Thyme on Section, a husband-and-wife fine dining experience that “reimagines coastal cuisine.”

We went at it tapas style, ordering several appetizers (instead of an entree): an artichoke tart, crab mac ‘n’ cheese, a Banh Mi pork belly sandwich and a “cashew sweet chili fried chicken salad with sesame-ginger dressing.”

A feast of flavors!

As their website boasts, “It’s all about the food.” (As it should be for any restaurant.)

Easily one of the finest meals between coastal California and the Florida panhandle. And for only $79.71?

Local shopping is a pleasant surprise: Want to purchase French antique furniture for less money than Restoration Hardware reproductions?

I found an antique ”wine work” table so solid it would take four strong men to pick it up.

$990?

In Montecito and just about anyplace else this piece of art would price at least twice that amount, probably more.

Alackaday, no room in the COW.

But when I’m no longer officially homeless, I know where to come to furnish the new abode.

Add NOLA for illuminations.

I anticipated Fairhope to be a two-night stay. However, it will smoothly evolve into four, not just to chill but to drill through the veneer of this ultra-charming town.

And to catch a couple more amazing sunsets.

Jack ‘O Lantern Sun