“Nobody goes there anymore. It’s too crowded.” Yogi Berra’s famously tangled logic might be the best description of The Sloop Galley and Spirits in Gulf Shores, a sports bar and restaurant tucked beneath the Highway 59 bridge that prides itself on catering to locals and does not go out of its way to attract anyone else.
The legendary New York Yankees catcher and manager gave the world a whole vocabulary of “Yogi-isms,” sayings that sound confused but somehow land exactly on the truth: “It ain’t over till it’s over.” “When you come to a fork in the road, take it.” And, most useful for a first visit to a locals’ hangout, “You can observe a lot just by watching.” Berra, who won 10 World Series titles as a player with the Yankees and was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1972, had a gift for saying more with less. That was the approach during an August 2023 lunch at The Sloop with Blakeley Ellis, executive director of CCA Alabama.
A Locals’ Hangout Under the Bridge
Walking in for the first time, a visitor was greeted by a man in shorts and a Sloop T-shirt asking how things were going. It turned out to be B.R., co-owner of The Sloop, who quickly picked up that he was talking to a newcomer. The Sloop takes pride in its local following, and while tourists are welcome, they are not exactly courted.
“We don’t do a lick of advertising,” B.R. said. “We like our regulars.”
The building itself was once a house, converted into a sports bar and restaurant. A big bar dominates the main room, surrounded by plenty of large-screen TVs, and on a weekday at lunch a few locals sat at the bar enjoying a drink or a bite to eat. Out back, there is an outdoor porch and a bandstand in the corner of a fenced courtyard.
The restaurant came recommended by three different people, yet finding it took some effort, which is exactly the point. When B.R. heard a story might be written about the lunch, there was a hint of reluctance about the attention it could bring. He came around to the idea, though, and returned with a business card and a pair of Sloop stickers to display with pride.
Cheesesteaks, Shrimp Bisque and the Eggroll Surprise
The lunch started with shrimp bisque and stuffed mushrooms to share, served with toasted pita strips for dipping in a tasty sauce. For the main course, both diners ordered the dish The Sloop is best known for: a Philly-style cheesesteak with homemade chips. Every bite disappeared, and dessert was passed over out of sheer fullness.
Server Rachel, originally from Shreveport, Louisiana, had worked at The Sloop for about a year at the time. She confirmed that the cheesesteak is the top seller, followed by the Eggroll Cheesesteak, the second most popular item on the menu.
The cheesesteak has been a Philadelphia icon since the 1930s, when, according to the well-known origin story, hot dog vendor Pat Olivieri began grilling thin-sliced beef on his stand. The sandwich of chopped or shaved steak, onions and melted cheese on a long roll has since spread far beyond Philadelphia, and plenty of Gulf Coast bars have made it a menu centerpiece. Turning those same fillings into an eggroll, as The Sloop does with its second-best seller, is the kind of playful bar food that fits a place built around game days and good company.
“A Little Club of Everyday Locals”
Rachel described the atmosphere plainly. “It’s very local,” she said. “It’s a safe place away from the tourist spots, and we have a little club of everyday locals.”
The Sloop had been open for about four years at the time of the 2023 visit, and it has a laid-back vibe and friendly staff. Newcomers should not be surprised by a quick, curious look as regulars try to determine whether they are locals or just passing through on vacation.
That dynamic will be familiar to anyone who lives in a beach town. Gulf Shores and neighboring Orange Beach welcome millions of visitors a year, and during peak season the beaches, restaurants and roads can be packed. Year-round residents often gravitate to a handful of spots off the main tourist paths, places where the bartender knows their order and the crowd looks familiar. A bar tucked under a bridge with no advertising is just that kind of refuge.
Sociologist Ray Oldenburg called such gathering spots “third places,” the informal settings apart from home and work where people relax, catch up and build a sense of community. Neighborhood bars, diners, barbershops and coffee shops often fill that role. In a town whose population swells and shrinks with the tourist seasons, a dependable third place can matter even more to the people who stay year-round, offering continuity when so much around them changes from week to week.
Live Music and Game Days
The Sloop hosts live music from local bands Thursday through Saturday on the courtyard bandstand. “Some nights the music is from 7 ‘till 10, and other nights it’s 8 till 11,” Rachel said. She did not specify which nights were which, a detail that seemed to fit the place’s casual, unregimented style. She also mentioned that the restaurant planned to begin serving breakfast.
Live music is part of the fabric of the Alabama Gulf Coast, which has long supported a deep bench of local performers. From beachfront stages to backyard courtyards, working musicians play covers, originals, country, rock and blues for crowds of locals and visitors, and many coastal bars rely on weekend music to draw regulars.
The Sloop is, first and foremost, a sports bar, and football season is likely its busiest stretch. In Alabama, where college football loyalties run deep and Saturdays in the fall can feel like a holiday, a bar with plenty of screens and a crowd of familiar faces is an appealing place to watch a game.
People like watching sports with people they know, and newcomers hoping to catch a game might want to become a familiar face first. On his way out, B.R. stopped by the table to say goodbye, a sign perhaps that the application for membership in “the club” was under serious consideration.
CCA Alabama and the Coastal Connection
The lunch also served as a chance to discuss CCA Alabama and its programs. CCA Alabama is the state chapter of the Coastal Conservation Association, a nonprofit organization of recreational anglers dedicated to conserving and enhancing marine resources. Along the Alabama coast, the group is known for supporting habitat projects such as artificial reefs and oyster restoration and for advocating on fisheries management issues, work that matters in a region where fishing is both a way of life and a major draw for visitors.
It is fitting that the conversation took place at The Sloop. The restaurant sits near the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway, the long protected channel that runs behind the barrier beaches and separates Pleasure Island, home to Gulf Shores and Orange Beach, from the mainland. The waterway carries a steady stream of barges, fishing boats and pleasure craft, a daily reminder of how closely the community is tied to the water.
Gulf Shores Beyond the Beach
To most visitors, Gulf Shores means white sand, condominiums and the public beach at the end of Highway 59. But the city has a year-round population with its own routines. Incorporated in 1958, Gulf Shores grew from a small beach community into one of Alabama’s best-known destinations, rebuilding after powerful storms including Hurricane Frederic in 1979 and Hurricane Ivan in 2004. Each recovery brought new development, and with it more residents who work in tourism, fishing, construction, health care and schools.
Those residents need places of their own, and the neighborhoods north of the beach, along the waterway and up Highway 59 toward Foley, are where many of them eat, shop and gather. Bars and restaurants that serve that crowd tend to stay open through the quiet winter months, when seasonal visitors thin out and the town feels more like a small community again. The Sloop, with its no-advertising approach and regular crowd, is a clear example of that side of Gulf Shores.
If You Go
- Location: The Sloop is tucked under the Highway 59 bridge in Gulf Shores, so keep an eye out; first-timers have been known to miss it.
- What to order: The Philly-style cheesesteak with homemade chips is the top seller, with the Eggroll Cheesesteak close behind. Shrimp bisque and stuffed mushrooms make good starters.
- Music: Local bands have played Thursday through Saturday evenings, with start times varying by night.
- Etiquette: This is a locals’ spot, so be friendly, be patient and tip well.
- Current details: Hours, menu items and music schedules can change, so check before heading over.
In the end, The Sloop is the kind of place Yogi Berra might have summed up best: it is popular precisely because it does not try to be. Just don’t tell too many people.