The Alabama Gulf Seafood Courtyard is returning to the Hangout Music Festival this weekend, giving the Gulf Shores crowd a taste of the state’s coastal kitchen between sets. The three-day festival runs Friday, May 20 through Sunday, May 22 along the beach in Gulf Shores, and the courtyard will once again sit on the boardwalk directly across from The Hangout, framed by large Alabama Gulf Seafood containers.
Chris Blankenship, director of marine resources and program administrator for Alabama Gulf Seafood, called the partnership between the seafood program and the festival a longstanding and fruitful one. He encouraged attendees who want a taste of the Alabama Gulf between musical acts to stop by the courtyard.
The menu leans on the classics that made the state’s waters famous: shrimp and grits, po’boys, etouffee and fried and grilled seafood plates, alongside shrimp spring rolls, seafood pita and coconut shrimp. For locals, the courtyard is a familiar spread; for the festival’s many out-of-town visitors, it is an introduction to what Alabama’s waters and kitchens do best.
More from the coastal food scene
Also marking an anniversary on the local food-and-drink scene is “Sip and Chew with Mike and Stu,” the live wine-and-food talk show on FM 106.5, which recently celebrated its third year on the air. Hosts Mike Bailey, a wine expert, and chef Stuart Reb Donald have welcomed celebrity guests ranging from John Besh and John Folse to local favorites such as Panini Pete over the show’s run.
In Fairhope, Fairhope Brewing Co. put the finishing touches on its third annual “Suck it, Cancer” crawfish boil, set for Sunday, May 22 beginning at 2 p.m. at the taproom at 914 Nichols Ave. A $10 entry gets attendees a share of 1,000 pounds of crawfish supplied by DIP Seafood-Mudbugs, with live music from the duo Mid-Life Crisis and seven teams competing over the pots. One dollar of every pour of beer benefits the American Cancer Society.