In 1999, George Hartley walked into Seagrove Village Market to buy a Coke. The owner at the time was talking about retiring. As the Walton Sun reported in 2014, Hartley told him he would buy the market and came back with a check by the end of the day. He had never seen the books. He had no restaurant or grocery experience, and he said his wife told him he was crazy. His reasoning was that he ate there three days a week and the parking lot was always full.
That purchase ran for 27 years. On Thursday, Oct. 22, Seagrove Village MarketCafé at 2976 S. County Highway 395 served its last day. George and Ann Hartley closed it after Hurricane Isaias, and their Watersound Village Market in Inlet Beach closed on the same day.
The market's history explains why this matters for anyone who has eaten a shrimp basket on that corner. The place was expanded once and repurposed several times before the storm. The Hartleys have said plainly that the closure ends the building's run, not the food.
A corner that already reinvented itself more than once
Seagrove founder C.H. McGee built the front of the building in 1949 as a live/work station, and the back was added in the mid-1970s, according to the Walton Sun profile. AL.com describes it as opening that year as a gas station and general store.
The café most people remember came later. When Hartley took over on July 1, 1999, it was mostly a grocery store with a small lunch counter in the back. He told his six employees he had no idea what he was doing, gave everyone a raise and asked them to stay. By 2014 the same cook had been working there for 26 years.
Then a Publix opened a few blocks away, and the business changed again. Grocery space gave way to a gift shop and café, with more seating indoors and out.
| Period | What the corner was |
|---|---|
| 1949 | C.H. McGee's live/work station, gas station and general store |
| Mid-1970s | Back section added to the original front building |
| July 1, 1999 | Hartleys take over a mostly-grocery store with a small lunch café |
| After Publix opened nearby | Shifted toward a gift shop and café with more seating |
| 2023 | Hartleys open a sister location, Watersound Village Market, in Inlet Beach |
| Oct. 22, 2026 | Both markets close after Hurricane Isaias |
Through all of that, the tagline held. The market's line was "Serving Deep Fried Love Since 1949." A 2024 anniversary release on VISIT FLORIDA's media site lists grouper sandwiches, shrimp po'boys, burgers and seafood baskets among its signature dishes. In 2014 the Walton Sun added gumbo, fish and shrimp tacos, smoked tuna dip to go and the key lime pie. Inside, diners sat at picnic tables with red-checkered tablecloths in the original 1949 front room, and a video in the back played photos of Seagrove from the 1940s.
What the Hartleys said, in their own words
The owners announced the closure in a letter on the Seagrove Village MarketCafé website and in a Facebook post that AL.com quoted. In that post they wrote, "Following Hurricane Isaias, we have made the painful decision to close Seagrove Village Market, effective immediately."
The letter on their website also looks ahead:
"This isn't the end for the po'boys and Deep Fried Love that you have known for more than 75 years. Use the button below to stay in touch so you'll be the first to know when something new is cookin'."
The letter is signed by George and Ann Hartley of Hartley Restaurant Group. It says the family will use the time ahead to plan what comes next. To hear about that plan first, sign up on the Hartley Restaurant Group's mailing list, which the letter links to.
The Watersound location got its own farewell on Facebook. AL.com quoted the Hartleys there: "These past three years have been filled with so many wonderful people, memorable meals, and special celebrations."
Where the gift card in your kitchen drawer still works
The Hartleys still run Surfing Deer in Seagrove, and the letter says gift cards from any of their restaurants are accepted there for dining or merchandise. If you have a card left over from a birthday or a visit from relatives, you can still spend it on the same stretch of 30A.
Surfing Deer came through the storm with damage to the outside of the building, which is being repaired. The owners say it's "business as usual" inside, "with the same good food, the same friendly faces and plenty of room at the table." 30A-TV reported on Oct. 22 that the restaurant was open and keeping its normal hours.
If you're working out what this means for your week:
- Find any Seagrove Village Market or Watersound Village Market gift cards and take them to Surfing Deer.
- Sign up on the Hartley mailing list if you want to hear about the next project before it's public.
- Follow the Seagrove Village Facebook page, which AL.com pointed readers to for updates.
The beach end of the same Seagrove walk
For many people, the market was a stop on the way to or from the Gulf. Walton County Tourism's update of Oct. 27 at 8 a.m., which The Pearl Hotel reposted, showed the Seagrove Regional Beach Access open with some limits.
- The restrooms were open.
- The dune walkover steps were open, but the ADA ramp was closed.
- Power and water were on.
- The beach flagpole was not working.
- Topside trash collection was working, and crews were still clearing debris.
Because the flagpole was down, the county's broader guidance applies. At accesses where a flagpole needs repair, the same update says to check current beach safety conditions before going in the water, since a missing flag does not mean conditions are safe.
A short way east, Walton County's Oct. 22 update kept an advisory in place for Eastern Lake near Lakewood Drive and 30A after a wastewater release. Anyone who walks the dog or paddles there should check the county's latest notice first.
The other doors between Seaside and the Seagrove Plaza
Next door in Seaside, several of the area's oldest spots came back within days of the storm, according to Vacation-30A's Hurricane Isaias reopening roundup. Bud & Alley's and its Taco Bar reopened with a limited menu on Oct. 12, and Pickles reopened the same day. The Shrimp Shack and The Meltdown followed on Oct. 13. Drome and The Seaside Style were also back by Oct. 12 and 13.
Closer to the old market, Seagrove Plaza at 3723 E. County Highway 30A lists Seagrove Coffee & Donuts, Beachside Acai Cafe and Coastal Steamer & Cafe among its tenants. The plaza's other tenants include A List Salon, the 30A Store, Emerald Stitchery, Jewelry of 30A, Emerald Coast Massage 30A and Frankly My Dear Boutique. The plaza directory sends visitors to each business's own website or social pages for hours, so check those before you go. For dinner, Café Thirty-A is at 3899 East Scenic Highway 30A, and its website lists service daily from 4:30 p.m.
The market began as a gas station, and in its last years you could order a fried shrimp basket there and eat it at a picnic table in a room built in 1949. It was a grocery until a supermarket moved in nearby, and then a café and gift shop until a hurricane. Each change reset what the corner sold, and the "Deep Fried Love" line came through every one of them. The Hartleys have told their customers that the po'boys have a next chapter. Until it arrives, Surfing Deer is where their gift cards still work.
At Resort Real Estate Group, we spend our days on this stretch of the Emerald Coast, and we watch its landmarks as closely as our neighbors do. If you'd like to talk about what's changing along 30A this season, stop by our Sandestin office or reach out to our team anytime.
