Spending a few weekdays in Galveston in May. Its been 10 plus years since we've been there. Looking for recommendations for bar or hot spots to hang out at during the day, nice restaurants for the evening, and any fun touristy things do to.

Sugar & Rye is a nice, fairly new restaurant near the Strand. I also recommend Hearsay on the Strand, another new place.

We always hit Galveston Island Brewing (Stewart Road) and the Naked Iguana (Strand) when we're in town.

If you are staying on the west end, Waterman's is a great spot for dinner.

And if you have a sweet tooth, Cordray's Drugstore has great rolled ice cream.

ETA ... the newly remodeled movie theater on the Seawall is pretty nice, especially for a day when the weather is bad. They also have a bowling alley inside.

West End in Sea Isle has a restaurant and the Sand Bar, usually live music on weekends.
The Spot for food and drinks.
Rudy & Pacos, Vargas Cut & Catch and Thirteen for high end dining.

Actually a lot of restaurants and bars in town....of course Gaidos and Katies for seafood.

Anything specific you're looking for

It's a bit of a drive from Galveston but great environment and the best fresh seafood you can find.

https://topwatergrill.com/

Daiquiri Time Out in the Strand area is a cool little bar with solid cocktails and a nice bourbon list

Bumping this up. Wife and I taking 15 month old to first beach trip in a few weeks. Thanks for all the suggestions.

dorado has great drink specials and great food from the restaurant in the same shopping center. I go once a year when down there.
Can't beat GIB like stated above. I love their Tiki Wheat!

Nick's kitchen and beach bar is on Seawall Blvd. The 4th of July parade comes down Seawall Blvd from 6PM - 8PM. The fireworks are at 8:45. The parade passes in front of Nick's. My bride and I are going to be in the pool at Nick's with a drink watching fireworks. Happy 4th of July!

Has anyone tried the Pineapple Parlor? They bill it as a Tiki bar speakeasy.

Yesterday afternoon after Hurricane Beryl, the East End Tavern looked really busy. Probably 30 people on the deck when I drove by. Every other place on the island was closed.

Krazykat said:

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Has anyone tried the Pineapple Parlor? They bill it as a Tiki bar speakeasy.

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I've been a couple of times. I have to say it's pretty neat when you walk in and the drinks are good. Pricey but good and come with a tasty appetizer. It's a small venue and there's the whole code thing to get in but it's worth a stop. Of course, I prefer to drink at DTO because they have an outstanding bourbon selection that doesn't get talked about enough.

Can't believe no one has mentioned the Poop Deck.

Where the elite meet in bare feet!

HollywoodBQ said:

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I moved to Galveston from Los Angeles 11 months ago and finally bought a house 6 weeks ago (I would need Han Solo kind of money to ever move again) so here's what I've discovered during the past year:

• Favorite bar to just hang out and watch the Gulf while enjoying the breeze - Float
• Favorite bar to hang out and drink nice beers and watch A&M games, NHL Stanley Cup Finals, etc. - Beerfoot
• Favorite bars to hang out with alcoholics - Lucky Lounge, Bar 43
• Bar to hang out with local day drinking "professional alcoholics" - Brewchachos (they all know each other there)
• Nice bar to drink upscale drinks in a great setting and watch the Gulf - Lucine Hotel's rooftop deck
• Nice sushi, Teriyaki steak, etc. - Sky Bar
• Nice white tablecloth restaurant with drinks that are reasonably priced - Willie G's
• Best bar for watching multiple sporting events simultaneously, especially soccer right now - Brick House Tavern. Bonus - they have beer towers. They're not the full 3L (100oz) towers you find in Asia but they're 88oz and the prices are very reasonable. If you're going to have 3 beers, you might as well get a 1/2 tower.
• Best Margaritas on the Island are at Salsa but the food is not great.
• Nice secret spot for Italian is Gonzalo's next to UTMB.
• Hidden spot for enjoying the sunset is the Marina Bar & Grill
• Cowboy bar with too much gaiety for my tastes - Buckshot Saloon (bartenders are great there, it's the male+male dancing that's awkward - and I've been to The Castro before)
• Local Brewery with really nice management and good beers - Naked Iguana
• Local Brewery with really good beers with more of a biergarten feel - Galveston Island Brewery
• Local Burger place that is fantastic - MAC-IES
• Favorite Pizza place depends on your current location and time available - Papa's for quick and reliable, Mama Teresa's Flying Pizza for the best pizza and a show when they're spinning dough (will probably have to wait for to get seated), Mario's Seawall for a nice view.
• Local Coffee/Beer bar - Proletariat
• Best BBQ on the Island in my opinion is Leon's. Old man was an Army Cook, Vietnam Vet and it's a family operation. Koops gets a lot of critical acclaim but it was just too hipster for my tastes and Queens had terrible service the one time I went there - took almost an hour to get freaking BBQ and I had my 3 y/o grandson with me so speed of service was a problem. Leon's has been great every time I've been there although my daughter and I did catch a few side eye stares from customers when we went there on Juneteenth (ironic given all the media hype about the need to support Black Owned businesses).
• Interesting wildcard location - Pirate Island Bar And Grill. When I've been in there, I've met interesting folks at the bar and the Vietnamese owner is a riot. They also serve Pho which I've heard is really good but I haven't tried it yet. They have a rooftop deck which would be awesome but it doesn't look like they have enough business to support it.

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This is a great post. I would add-

Yamato- great sushi
1817/Empouria/Sugar Bean- all good places in scenic Evia
Original Mexican- better than Salsa's including the margaritas
Mr. Taco- food is legit, margaritas skrong
Pennie's- try their bbq, excellent tamales
High end drinks- Vargas and Tremont House bars
Dive bar- Roll In; think Marquis 2 post renovations
Divier bar- Tin Cups
Hooli Hut- fantastic seafood boil
Jimmy's- great sunset view even if touristy
Leeland House- Sunday funday

HollywoodBQ said:

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Cowboy bar with too much gaiety for my tastes - Buckshot Saloon (bartenders are great there, it's the male+male dancing that's awkward

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It seems things are different at Bucks than during my time at TAMUG.

The Press Box is a good spot that deserves some recognition in this thread. While DTO has already been mentioned, I'll add that they have a pretty good happy hour.