First, let me say that if you aren’t familiar with southern geography, the fact that I spent two nights in Pensacola, Florida while visiting Alabama is going to make NO sense to you at all. In truth, Pensacola is so close to the Alabama border that people in the area hop back & forth across the state border with ease (and I assume frequency).
Many people have talked about supporting local businesses during the pandemic. People claim that they have made a concerted effort to do so. I certainly hope this is true. It is really something we should be doing all year round, though. Travelers know that the only way to learn the heart and soul of a place is to eat and shop local.
Two Heroines with Big Hearts & Mad Skills
This is a special THANK YOU to my heroines, Rheana and Melissa at 3 Muses Costumes and Alterations in Pensacola.
You can also find them on Facebook: 3 Muses Costumes & Alterations – Home | Facebook
You see, while traveling we discovered split seams on two pairs of pants. Since we travel lightly in our nomadic life, not being able to wear two pairs of pants is a big deal. I tried to fix them by hand. Let’s face it, a hand-stitch wasn’t going to hold. I don’t travel with a sewing machine, so I needed a seamstress. . . fast.
Rheana and Melissa were accepting work by appointment only because it is prom season and they are swamped! We texted back and forth, and they came to my rescue. They each grabbed a pair of pants and fixed them fast. I mean fast. It took them 120 seconds (roughly, I wasn’t actually counting) to mend both pairs.
If you have friends or family in the Pensacola area with formalwear needs or costume design needs (fun!), these are their specialties. Please send some business their way. I can attest to the beautiful work they do. I saw it myself in their showroom. Let’s support local businesses throughout the year. These are two classy ladies and they came to the rescue of a traveling stranger who really appreciated it!
A Big Local Business with Big Portions
I know that we all typically think of small businesses when we think local. The truth is, some local businesses aren’t that small. That doesn’t mean they don’t deserve our patronage. McGuire’s Irish Pub fits into this category. It opened in 1977 in Pensacola and has been so successful that they now have a location in Destin too. At the suggestion of our hotel’s front desk staff, we ate at the flagship Pensacola location for dinner. The building may look small from the outside, but it actually seats a whopping 615 patrons and is a maze of rooms! On the journey from my table to the ladies’ room, I stopped to ask for directions twice!
McGuire’s has won numerous state and national awards and been featured on TV shows. With all that attention, we were concerned it would be a disappointing tourist trap. We were so relieved to find that the quality of the food was fantastic and well-priced.
Warning: The portions are gargantuan. Consider splitting an entrée with someone if you plan to start with an appetizer or have any hope of considering the dessert menu.
My husband was coming from work and was late. Lucky me! That gave me the perfect excuse to order a cocktail, which I rarely do. My blueberry lemon drop made me so very happy. This drink was $9.00. People who drink cocktails regularly will tell you this is a reasonable price. I am a very frugal person (and traveler), so I consider this expensive and don’t treat myself often. Our attentive server, Shelby, brought me some dark Irish bread with honey butter melted over the top to snack on while I enjoyed my drink.
We ordered two entrees, went “halfsies”, and took the leftovers back to our hotel for dinner the next night. I ordered the barbeque burger and my husband tried the fish and chips. The burger was so big that I asked my husband what size he thought it was. I should have read that menu more closely. It was ¾ of a pound! The meat was well-seasoned and it was truly delicious and juicy. We both liked the fish and chips quite a lot. This is a high compliment, considering the fact that we have been to Ireland and Scotland and had “real” fish and chips (with malt vinegar for the chips).
If there was a mistake made this night, it was not sharing an entrée. However, the food was good enough that we are looking forward to travelling back through Pensacola at some point and trying some of the other menu items.
McGuire’s also scores points for quirky ambiance. When it was founded, the owner’s wife hung her first $1.00 tip up on the wall behind the bar. This act evolved over the years into the tradition of patrons (especially those of Irish descent) signing a $1 bill and hanging it up in the restaurant. The restaurant now displays well over $1 million on its walls and ceilings!
That must be some custom insurance policy! Our bill was $40 (not including a lovely gratuity for Shelby) and we got a second meal out of the deal. We felt it was a worthwhile experience and not a tourist trap at all. Hey, I am just sharing a little food wisdom. . . like you’ll need to share that entrée.
You Want Me to Eat at a Gas Station?
Fortunately for us, we arrived in Pensacola on Taco Tuesday! This fact hadn’t occurred to us until the front desk staff started listing local establishments we could try for dinner. The young lady said, “I have to work here all night. I am going to try to talk my boyfriend into bringing me some tacos from El Asador. I need their tacos!”
She certainly had our attention. She explained that on Taco Tuesday at El Asador, diners can get three authentic tacos for $5.00. Her co-worker raved about the $5 quesadilla. In 2017, Business Insider and Yelp teamed up to create a list of the best taco shops in the U.S. and this place ranked at #4. Yes, I said #4 in the nation! Then, the hotel staff said something to the effect of, “Don’t worry that it’s at a gas station.”
Excuse me? Did you say gas station?
It turns out that El Asador is actually a food truck and a tent behind a Shell station. Now, we were sold. This is exactly the kind of local flavor and local legend we want to find on our travels. Judging by the line that formed 5 minutes after we ordered, the food truck is the worst-kept secret in Pensacola.
I tried a pollo (chicken), an asada (beef) and an el pastor (pork). We also shared a chicken quesadilla. The tacos came with a selection of sauces that we informally referred to as “the green one, the orange one and the red one.”
NOTE: The red sauce is not for the timid. I assume it is the “burn-your-lips-off” kind. I assume this because I did not try it and Mr. HomeFree loved it. There is nothing too hot for him, so it was a fair assumption.
We both agreed that the best combination of the evening was the asada taco dipped in the green sauce. YUM!
In all honesty, I missed the sweet pineapple flavor that is usually present in el pastor-seasoned meat and have to admit that I liked the el pastor taco from Tiki Taco in Charleston better. Having said that, I suggest that all my readers make a beach pilgrimage and try out the food truck at the gas station to see where it ranks for them.
Do you shop/eat local when you travel? Please feel free to share your best shop local/eat local experiences in the comments.
Leave a Reply