Coffee & Cream Cabana, established in June 2023, is a Myrtle Beach destination offering freshly roasted coffee, espresso drinks, and homemade ice cream. Hand-crafted ice cream and locally roasted coffee sounds like a good match to me. I ordered a hot chocolate, which was lightly sweet, and an almond croissant, which was better than any croissant I've had. I think of croissants as being dry and flaky, but the sweet almond cream filling was perfection. Grade: A

Sugar Life is a giant candy store for adults and kids alike. Two main features are the ice cream bar and self-serve candy station. There are giant containers of candy all over the store with everything from gummies and jawbreakers to chocolates and taffy. I picked up a plastic bag and made my way around the store to see what I wanted to fill it with. Pizza-shaped gummies. Chocolate covered caramels. Hawaiian punch fruity chews. I threw all types of flavors and textures all in the one bag. They also have giant versions of lollipops and gummy bears. Remember the astronaut food from when we were kids? And super sour Warheads to prove how tough you were? Both there. Plus a full-on jelly bean wall with all sorts of flavors - from Snapple mix to s'mores. Of course, there's a bit of risk with a billion hands likely reaching into the containers and touching every single candy. Grade: B

"Since 1995, Croissants Bistro and Bakery has been a local’s favorite serving quality comfort food at affordable prices. Offering everything from in-house freshly roasted coffee to homemade soups and sandwiches to baked delicacies and catering – Croissants is the one-stop shop for all of your dining needs. Honored as SC Restaurateur of the Year and SC Chef Ambassador, owner Heidi Vukov strives to blend the freshest ingredients with exceptional customer service in order to create an unforgettable experience for each and every guest."



This bakery was my last stop in Myrtle Beach before heading home - my first ever trip to Myrtle Beach. 



And, it may have presented me with one of my most difficult challenges here yet - what to order. Everything on the menu looked delicious, from quiche and shrimp & grits to chicken & waffles and French toast. 



We started with this beautiful little complimentary muffin that got my tastebuds going. It was a delicious little sweet bite - perfectly moist and loved the sugar texture.



My breakfast was a crab cake benedict - I can't help myself. The fatty, rich breakfast just hits all the "yum" points in my brain. Paired with sweet, fresh fruit and cheesy, crispy hashbrowns, it was perfection. AND, they serve a complimentary ambrosia salad - which I don't think I ever had before. But I enjoyed it. 



Grade: A

Johnny D's Waffles and Benedicts is known for its red velvet waffles.  



If you’ve been to Johnny D’s once then its almost a sure bet to say that we will see you again. Chances are you’re going to see more than one thing that you want. Today it may be a Red Velvet Waffle, tomorrow it could be one of our breakfast skillet creations, and then next week maybe you just want a box of cupcakes. We take pride in giving our guest a dizzying amount of options to chose from and know that variety is the spice of life.



The red waffle has been voted the best waffle in the state, so I needed to check it out. At what point is it a waffle versus a flat, textured piece of cake? I generally hate these arguments about what food classifies as what, because I don't think everything fits into neat buckets. BUT, I know this tasted just like a piece of red velvet cake with a bit more texture! It even was topped with cream cheese icing. 



The best part, though, is that I got a side of sausage, which added some much-needed salt to the meal. Totally acceptable for a waffle. Maybe not so much for cake. 



Pretty good waffle? For sure. Best waffle in the state? Debatable.

Grade: B

Sea Captain's House is one of the last restaurants I was able to hit up before leaving Myrtle Beach.



It's a beautiful, white house sitting right on the beach with a floral entryway that just felt light and airy and beachy.

 
"A Myrtle Beach restaurant was built in 1930 by Henry Taylor of High Point, NC. For 10 plus years the Taylor family vacationed at their oceanfront beach cottage. During the 1940s, Charles W. Angle purchased the cottage, enjoying the sound of the ocean’s tide until 1954, when Mrs. Nellie G. Howard purchased the cottage and began operating Howard’s Manor. With nine guestrooms and three home-cooked meals daily, the guesthouse was a forerunner in providing the warm southern hospitality Myrtle Beach is known for today. Howard’s Manor was advertised as a place where friends meet each year with the beach at their front door."



The decor inside has a nautical theme, though I was only in there for a few moments to pick up my order. First up was their award-winning she-crab soup: "Rich and creamy soup with blue crab and a touch of sherry." I am a fan. It was even better when I dunked the hush puppies in the soup. It's like a beach version of tomato soup and grilled cheese. Comforting and a beautiful blend of flavors and textures.



I also ordered shrimp tacos, which used their bang-bang shrimp topped with jicama slaw, pickled onions and homemade sweet and spicy sauce on flour tortillas. These are simple in concept - crunchy and creamy and sweet and sour - and so tasty. It was a really perfect beach lunch, which was reflected in the flavors.

Grade: A

Big Mike's Soul Food in Myrtle Beach was quite the experience. I placed a pick-up order online and then pulled up to the restaurant. That's really where the adventure began. 



"Big Mike’s Soul Food is Myrtle Beach’s down home spot dishing up big plates of southern comfort food as well as southern hospitality. We have a variety of dishes that are sure to fill up your soul. Some of our staples include: fried chicken, collard greens, fried fish, corn bread and much more. On your way out the door we want you to remember Big Mike’s as: Soul Food the way his mother made it!"  



Once I arrived, I saw a huge line. Surely, these were people waiting to order, right? Negative. These were people who already ordered and were waiting for their food. After waiting for what was easily an hour, I received my plate and left the crowded lot to dig in.



While my breaded shrimp were a bit lackluster - not super flavorful and a bit mushy - the sides were all delicious. The mac and cheese has melted cheddar on top, the potato salad was creamy but zingy, and the sweet potatoes were sweet and soft and delicious. 

Grade: B

Peaches Corner says it's one of the most historic restaurants on the Grand Strand.



"Ocean Boulevard in Myrtle Beach has seen a lot of changes over the years. Ripley’s sits where Sloppy Joe’s used to serve hot dogs and Bingo. The lights and sounds of the Pavilion vanished a decade ago. But some things haven’t changed.

​One of those is Peaches Corner, a small restaurant that has occupied the intersection of Ninth Avenue North and Ocean Boulevard for over 85 years. The family-owned icon has served food at all hours of the day to generation after generation of visitors and locals, alike. Visitors often use Peaches Corner as a means of giving directions on Ocean Boulevard. It was started right here in Myrtle Beach back in 1937 by Peach Justice or Mama Peach as she was known to everybody in town. There were actually three of them— one in Myrtle Beach, one on Folly Beach and one on Carolina Beach in North Carolina. This is the only one that has lasted since then.

Eunice and Johnny Burroughs purchased the small restaurant on the corner in 1943 and it’s been in our family ever since. And now three generations, soon to be four, have served foot long hot dogs, cold beer and a variety of other foods to millions of customers who have sat along the same counter and booths watching folks walk up and down the boulevard.

In the early ‘40s Peaches Corner thrived only during the summer months. They worked hard to pay off the mortgage on the building. When other businesses struggled to pay rent during the tough times, Peaches was always paid for. And to do that it meant everyone worked long hours during the summer months before the tourists went home. Eunice and Johnny worked seven days a week during that time. In the summer, they even lived upstairs. They always told the employees, nobody working at Peaches is allowed to get married or die during the summer...they needed all of the help they could get during the 90 days of summer."



This place is pretty busy, and a bit gruff. I welcomed myself to a seat at the bar, and it took a few to be acknowledged. I wanted to keep it simple - and cool. It was a warm day with lots of walking, so peach ice cream seemed fitting.



I ordered two scoops. They arrived in two separate containers with spoons. Which made it a little awkward for me to sit there and eat one right after the other. But, the ice cream itself was fine. There were a few hunks of actual ice in there, which was not my favorite. I enjoyed the light flavor, overall. 



Grade: B

If there's a time to indulge in seafood, it's at the beach. In this case, Myrtle Beach.



While walking along the beach, I stopped at Wicked Tuna, a sushi grille and bar. I sat at the bar, which has a great view of the ocean. It was light and breezy. The menu has salads, sandwiches and sushi - all looked tasty, really. 



As per usual when I go on vacation, I had been eating my way through the city the whole day, so I really wasn't looking for anything heavy. But there were a ton of things I wanted to try between the lobster roll, maki rolls and even the beet salad. 



Instead, I opted for a simple shrimp cocktail. A few jumbo shrimp were laid atop ice and served with a cocktail sauce. I really enjoy shrimp. Sometimes, though, it can be not the freshest at the grocery store, and a weird texture can totally ruin it. But these? They were perfect. They are fresh, the texture is firm, there's no sliminess or rubberiness or fishiness. They are slightly sweet, have a nice little snap when you bite in, and the cocktail - I love horseradish. It's my favorite spicy flavor, and there was plenty here. 



Grade: A

One of the benefits of eating at the beach is the bountiful seafood available. In Myrtle Beach, there are quite a few places, but one specific style kept coming up: Calabash.



"Calabash-style seafood is lightly breaded and fried and typically served buffet style. The seafood is always accompanied with the ever popular side dish-hushpuppies. Corn meal is used instead of flour to give the seafood a light coating. The seafood is then fried in hot oil until it becomes golden brown."



There were two that kept coming up in my search: 
The Original Benjamin's Calabash Seafood: Myrtle Beach Buffet and Captain Benjamin's Calabash Seafood Buffet. I went with the former just because I saw they were takeout friendly. And during the midst of COVID, I was not trying to sit in a buffet with a ton of folks.



When I arrived, I told them I wanted to do takeout, and they handed me a bunch of boxes to head to the buffet and gather whatever I wanted. The buffet was huge, with multiple islands, stations and options. The buffet has nearly 200 items, like: 



Crab Legs
Blackened Salmon
Crab Cakes
Oyster Rockefeller
Steamed Oysters*
Scallop Cakes
Stuffed Flounder
Stuffed Shrimp
Seafood Special
Parmesan Tilapia
Shrimp Fried Rice
Steamed Clams
Cajun Crab Legs
Shrimp Scampi
Craw Daddy’s
Clam Strips
Seafood Wontons
Jumbo Shrimp
Fried Flounder
Fried Scallops
Blue Crabs*



Peel & Eat Shrimp
Clam Bake
Coconut Shrimp
Fried Oysters
Fried Calamari
Carved Ham
Ribeye Steak
Baked Chicken
Ribs
Barbeque
Fried Chicken
Chicken Tenders
Pepper Steak
Macaroni & Cheese
Mashed Potatoes
Yeast Rolls
Hushpuppies
Zucchini & Squash
Green Beans
Asparagus
Corn on the Cob
Shrimp & Grits
Fresh Salad Bar
Kickin’ Crab Bisque



Clam Chowder
Vegetable Soup
Potatoes Au gratin
Steamed Rice
Tomato Pie
Red Potatoes
Deviled Eggs
Cole Slaw
Sweet Potatoes
Soft Serve Ice Cream
Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ranger Cookies
Brownies
Banana Pudding
Cheesecake
Key Lime Shots
Red Velvet Cake
Carrot Cake
Oreo Delight
Chocolate Pudding
Lemon Pound Cake
Strawberry Cake
Fresh Fruit
Cupcakes
Chocolate Truffles
Peach Cobbler
Coconut Cake



Everything is blurry because I was juggling all these boxes and the lighting is pretty low, so apologies. But, once I took all my goodies back to the hotel, I was able to see what all I scavenged.



First of all, they do supply a whole order of hushpuppies, which could be a meal in and of themselves. I like mine to have a hint of sweetness, but these were not bad.



Look at that spread. It's just literally a little bit of everything. The appeal of this place is the sheer amount of food. It's insane. I took a bite or two of each thing before retiring. It was all decent. Nothing was mind-blowingly delicious, but nothing was bad. Lots of fried seafood, which was all fine. Plus, perks for such a good variety. 



Grade: B