Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
and out on the back patio, where the regular following is chowing down on homemade
hamburgers and hand-cut onion rings.
Our favorite area restaurant is a little harder to find, under the Kemah Bridge on the
north side access road.
Outriggers Seafood Grill & Bar
(
www.facebook.com/outriggersSeafoodGrillBar
; 101
Bath St)
is worth the search. You can't beat the Gulf-caught fried shrimp, and the sunburned
sailor crowd. Locals know to stake out a deckside waterfront table early on weekend after-
noons, to watch the boats come and go and listen to the live music downstairs.
Kemah
On the edge of Galveston Bay, Kemah waterfront is a grotesque carnival of commercial-
ism to some, a keep-the-family-busy blessing to others. Weekends expect to wait before
you can turn off Hwy 146.
The
Kemah Boardwalk
(
www.kemahboardwalk.com
;
215 Kipp Ave, off Hwy 146; admission free, all-day ride
pass adult/child $20/18; 10:30am-10pm; )
is the reason most people come. Its carnival-like
atmosphere comes complete amusements including a serious ferris wheel, roller coaster
and tower ride, plus step-right-up-and-try-your-luck games. If you decide to book a ride
on the Beast (adult/child $17/$14), a 70ft, 70mph jetboat - you WILL get wet.
Kitschy souvenirs are available on the Boardwalk, but more interesting are the quirky
boutiques on
Bradford and 6th Sts
. There you can by a handcarved pelican statue before or
after you have your tarot reading.
If you want to overlook all get a room with a balcony at the
Boardwalk Inn
( 281-334-9880;
www.kemahboardwalkinn.com
; 8 Kemah Boardwalk; r $129-329; )
. There are also a number of
B&Bs around; the visitor center has a full list. You can't beat the bayfront location at
White
Pelican Inn B&B
( 281-538-3900;
www.awhitetexaspelican.com
; 408 Bay Ave; r incl breakfast $125-250;
)
, where you can fish from a private 250ft pier or watch the sunset from the guest-use hot
tub.
Landry's restaurant group owns the Boardwalk, literally, so you'll find waterfront,
boardwalk dining at their chains with names likes Bubba Gump Shrimp Co and Cadillac
Bar. Our 8- and 11-year old nieces/restaurant critics give the
Aquarium
( 281-334-9010; 11
Kemah Boardwalk; mains $15-30; )
four stars - because there they can eat surrounded by a
filled-to-the-gills, multistory, 50,000-gallon fish tank. (The food isn't bad, either.)
Locals tend to hang a little further inland.
T-Bone Tom's
(
http://tbonetoms.com
;
707 Hwy 146 ; dishes
$7-20;
dining room 11am-10pm; backyard 5pm-2am Mon-Fri and 11am-2am Sat & Sun)
has been a Kemah
