Seafood and Musical Festival Rocks Panama City Beach
By Kim Duke-Layden â|â Photography by Nikki Hedrick
The Panama City Beach Chamber of Commerce, the Florida Restaurant and Lodging Association, and the Panama City Beach Convention and Visitors Bureau teamed up with local restaurants, businesses, charities, and volunteers to present the 2013 Panama City Beach Seafood and Music Festival October 17â19. Record crowds attended the main event at the newly built Aaron Bessant Park Amphitheater to celebrate the areaâs legendary seafood and coastal lifestyleânot to mention a few rock ânâ roll legends.
âIt was a wonderful event that really showcased the new Aaron Bessant Park, which opened this past spring,â says Dan Rowe, president and CEO of the Panama City Beach Convention and Visitors Bureau. âThe various musical events featured there this year alone demonstrate that Panama City Beach is able to attract a wide audience of visitors as well as locals.â
âVines to Steinsâ was the theme for the UNwineD walkabout event, which kicked off the festival on October 17. The eveningâs crisp fall air was filled with the sounds of popping corks and lively tunes performed by singer/guitarist Sean Flood of the local band Panhandlers. More than two hundred attendees sipped and sampled award-winning wines, craft beers, and delicious cuisine prepared by area chefs. Among the mouthwatering menu items were crab cakes with red pepper aioli from Fishale Taphouse and Grill, seared tuna with mango chutney from Sharkyâs Beachfront Restaurant, seafood ceviche from Runaway Bay Caribbean Grill, and espresso-braised boar shank from Firefly. Hammerhead Fredâs white chocolate bread pudding paired with a bubbly glass of Stellina di Notte prosecco made for a luscious finale.
Throughout the weekend, restaurants set up festival booths with boatloads of fresh seafood prepared every way imaginable. Adventurous eaters lined up for shark on a stick, Hawaiian-style ahi tuna poke, and deep-fried frog legs and alligator. Smokân Butts BBQ and Shipwreck Island Catering and Concessions rounded out the something-for-everyone menu. Sports fans flocked to the Coors Light mobile party bar, which debuted at this yearâs festival with a sleek, wraparound bar and fourteen flat-screen TVs so fans could catch all the action on the field and at the fest; meanwhile, the Reddâs Apple Ale team entertained with party games and free samples of their new strawberry brew.
On Saturday morning, October 19, the reel festival action shifted to Capt. Andersonâs Marina, where a plethora of waterfront activities and competitions took place, with proceeds benefiting three local childrenâs charities. Visitors of all ages participated in the deep-sea and bay fishing tournaments, as the marinaâs lofty mission was to get every fishing pole (and spear) in Bay County into the water. This zealous effort paid offânearly two hundred lionfish were caught during the second annual Lionfish âLion-Tamerâ Dive Tournament. Congratulations to this yearâs winner, thirteen-year-old Courtney Galbreath of the Diverâs Den team, who brought in twenty-three lionfish! Capt. Andersonâs Marina furthered its efforts to inform the public about the destructive yet delicious lionfish by holding free cooking demonstrations and tastings throughout the day that featured this emerging seafood delicacy.
Another highlight among the waterfront activities was the Kidsâ Art Contest exhibit, which featured wonderful artwork of various fish species by Bay County art students in grades Kâ5. The amazing winning masterpieces were displayed on the official fishing tournament weigh-in boards.
On October 18 and 19, when the sun started setting, the stars came out to play. This yearâs stellar lineup of live musical talent brought out festivalgoers in record numbers. More than 11,000 people attended the festival over the weekend, with VIP tickets for both nights selling out weeks in advance. âI think the festival accomplished two goals,â says Lance Allison, president and CEO of the Panama City Beach Chamber of Commerce, âIt brought people into town and at the same time provided the locals with great entertainment. It far exceeded the expectations we had for this year; attendance was double what I was going to consider a success. Weâre ecstatic about the turnout.â
Besides the cool October weather and the full moon, Fridayâs attendees enjoyed live performances by Nashville singer-songwriter Abigail Rose, popular New Orleans rockers Better Than Ezra, and headliner Collective Soul, whose hit single âShineâ had the audience singing along like it was 1995. Saturdayâs sizzling roster drew an even bigger attendance. Collective Soul front manâs country side dish, Ed Roland and the Sweet Tea Project, got the party started, while the Andy Velo Band kept things down South with singles such as âHank It Upâ and âSouthern Thing.â The crowdâs response was far from âcold as ice,â especially when headliners Loverboy and Foreigner brought everyone to their feet. Festivalgoers and event organizers alike left Aaron Bessant Park in high spirits late Saturday night, with excitement already brewing for another rocking festival next year.
âThe success of this festival highlights why the tourist development council invested its first BP marketing support funds after the Deepwater Horizon oil spill into the park,â says Rowe. âIt is a lasting legacy. Having such a nice performance venue will allow us to create tourism opportunities, like the seafood festival and other big concerts, for a lifetime.â
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For more information, visit www.pcbseafoodfestival.com.