Day Trips From Gainesville: Salt Air and Chowder in Cedar Key

If you’ve read my last piece for GainesvilleScene, then it might be obvious that I’m trying to do a bit of a series here to bring some adventure and joy to the lives of our residents. If you haven’t read my last work about the wonderful town of Micanopy, please go read that now and then read this one on the way there, so long as you’re not the driver.

Located about 50 miles southwest of our dear Gainesville is the picturesque, quiet and seaside town of Cedar Key. With a permanent resident count of only around 800 people, this sleepy, little town is how I imagine the town that Andy Dufresne goes to at the end of Shawshank Redemption to look and feel like.

In fact, their website wonderfully describes this with the phrase: “Long admired for its natural beauty and abundant supply of seafood, it is a tranquil village, rich with the almost forgotten history of old Florida.”

The history of old Florida is massive, with historical sites scattered across the state. In short, Cedar Key has definite history dating back to artifacts from 500 B.C. and might have been an refuge for escaped slaves pre-Civil War. It was also an important stop on the Florida Railroad.

In fact, for the history buffs, there are many markers on the hour-long drive on Highway 24, which indicate the former stops on the old Florida Railroad.

Long admired for its natural beauty and abundant supply of seafood, it is a tranquil village, rich with the almost forgotten history of old Florida.

I’ve visited Cedar Key on three separate occasions: once during the annual Seafood Festival  once to kayak around the area, and once just last week to get a better taste of the food and snap some great pictures for this article.

Waterfront exploring: Cedar Key Paddling

I rented a kayak with the wonderful folks of Cedar Key Paddling. The family-run business was friendly, efficient and economical. The time between walking in the door to setting out on the water for my adventure took about 15 minutes.

There were many different routes and ways to paddle around; the proprietor mentioned an old island with a historic cemetery in the center of the jungle, so that was immediately the main course I chose. There are, of course, an endless number of routes to take and places to visit that are wonderfully talked about in this article on Paddle Florida.

Atsena Otie Key is actually the original Cedar Key, where roughly 200 residents lived in 1860 and established a pencil mill and other businesses. A 10 foot tidal wave washed it away in a hurricane in 1896 and the residents moved closer to the mainland. 

The cemetery is rather old and particularly fascinating if you’re into that stuff like I am. To demonstarte how old the cemetery is, the island was almost entirely abandoned in 1896, (a few houses remained into the 20th century) so it’s been over 100 years since anybody was laid to rest there.

Pro tip: If you plan on visiting this historic island, bring bug repellent. Mosquitoes are extremely dense on this island and even with bug spray, you might not want to stay long.

Fun fact: The difference between a graveyard and a cemetery in simple terms is that a graveyard is adjoined with a church and a cemetery is not.

There are many different islands and places to explore, so I encourage you to check out Cedar Key by water if you can. It’s beautiful and great exercise. Bring plenty of water and enjoy yourself.

Your caffeine fix: 1842 Daily Grind & Mercantile

If you’re just looking to explore the town however, there are plenty of things to do. I recommend starting your day at 1842 Daily Grind & Mercantile.

While I have yet to try their breakfast, this adorable little coffee shop serves up a great cup of joe and has a delightful staff. It was rather crowded though, so I imagine their food is quite tasty.

Grab a coffee, listen to some tunes on their record player and start your day with some chocolate covered Key Lime Pie before heading out to explore.

There is a main strip of bars and restaurants that sit over the water and offer stunning views of the Gulf. There are a number of gift shops to suit all of your tourist delights as well.

Cedar Key Eats: Tony’s Seafood Restaurant

To get to the (clam) meat of this piece, let’s talk about Tony’s and ignore that awful joke.

Tony’s Seafood Restaurant was probably the highlight of my third trip to this wonderful spot. I’m not a big spender when it comes to big dinner plates and my preferences fall towards the middle-to-lower tier of the menu at most places since it’s what I can afford.

With that being said, I ordered their Po’ Boy and a bowl of chowder, and my anonymous partner ordered the “Kickin’ Crab Cake Sandwich.”

These options offered the choice of a side and I opted for the potato salad. Upon ordering, the server told me the potato salad was “pretty good” and made in-house.

Made in-house is always a good sign, a server  saying it’s “pretty good” leaves something to be desired as far. I’m glad the server didn’t pull the wool over my eyes, though, as the potato salad was just… pretty good. 

The chowder was phenomenal. I love most food. I think most things are good, but it’s hard for me to come across a dish that blows me away and this chowder did just that.

Phenomenal can’t even describe it. I don’t think words can. Georgians have a word “shemomedjamo,” which literally translates to ‘I accidentally ate the whole thing.’ The phrase means that something is so delicious, you can’t stop eating it. That’s this chowder, folks. 

The Po’ Boy and Crab Cake were both delicious and easy on the wallet. The Po’ Boy has a spicy remoulade that I was a big fan of and would have bought by the jar if given the opportunity.

Overall, the place is cozy and small. I would arrive early if you don’t like waiting for a table. It has my endorsement and others tend to agree— they have 4.4 stars with 299 reviews on Google. My only regret is that I wish I was more strapped with cash so that I could experience the best they have to offer. 

I like to cap these stories at about 1,000 words so I don’t bore you and I’ve spent about 350 talking about my beloved chowder, so I’ll make this brief and let my pictures do the talking: visit Cedar Key.

Visit their history museum, visit their restaurants; Tony’s and 1842 Daily Grind & Mercantile especially. A couple other local bars and restaurants are are Black Dog Bar & Tables and Steamer’s Clam Bar & Grill  and talk to the locals. Support this amazing piece of Florida history and help conserve this beautiful ecosystem.

Upcoming events in Cedar Key

They have a Labor Day Auction to benefit the Chamber of Commerce on September 2; the 49th Annual Cedar Key Seafood Festival coming up on October 20 to 21; and the Sixth Annual Cedar Key Pirate Invasion Weekend is November 30 to December 2. I hope to see you there.

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