As the Summer heat begins to relinquish its grasp on Seaside, Fall begins to creep in. When everyone switches from swim trunks to cardigans and the colors start to change, beachgoers swap beach balls for footballs and our town comes alive.

Autumn is full of fun events, fantastic foods, and a full calendar of football games. Watching your favorite team isn’t complete without a game-day snack. Luckily, vacationing in Seaside means you never have to choose between a good time and great food. Read on to discover some of the best Autumn eats, whether you’re tailgating or heading to the beach.

Modica Market

The classic market offers fantastic wings, which are the perfect pre-game meal. These wings are ideal for the armchair quarterbacks and are available for the whole fan club. Modica Market also offers a variety of snacks to round out your tailgate – after all, what tailgate is complete without chips and dip? Modica Market sells Buffalo Chicken dip, Southern-Fried Pickle dip, and Street Corn dip, just to name a few.

Shrimp Shack

Shrimp Shack is carrying on the Southern tradition of gumbo on game day and the Seafood Gumbo is famous around town for a reason. This gumbo is made up of a classic roux base and includes shrimp and andouille sausage, which is then topped with rice. The warm gumbo comes in two sizes: a cup or bowl. The smaller size is the perfect snack for a chilly tailgate.

Barefoot BBQ

This barbecue spot has your tailgate covered with their take on the shareable snack, nachos. The BBQ nachos include your choice of pork, chicken, or beef brisket, and the tortilla chips are then smothered with beans, cheese, onions, jalapenos, and sour cream. Be on the lookout for these nachos come kickoff.

Daytrader Tiki Bar

With many fantastic menu items like their Tuna Crispy Rice, Maui Fries, and Maui Burger, Seaside’s newest tiki restaurant and bar has your game day party needs covered with a tropical twist. Daytrader’s boiled peanuts were recently featured in The New York Times and make a lovely game day snack. Daytrader also offers happy hour wings that are easy to pick up on your way to watch the big game.

Wild Bill’s Beach Dogs

Swap football vibes for baseball vibes with specialty hot dogs, including the “Chi-Town” made with Chicago relish, celery salt, pickle, poppyseed, tomato, and white onions, or “The Carolina,” made with mustard, chili, and homemade slaw. You’ll be transported to your favorite field instantaneously. Of course, they also offer the classic hot dog and their famous soft pretzels if you prefer that local park feel.

Pickle’s Sandbar

Pickle’s Sandbar is the place to be during football season! Spend your gameday here while watching the Sunday Ticket and playing a game of cornhole in the sand. You’ll be bringing your tailgate to the beach! They now offer delicious wings, which are the perfect gameday meal as well as refreshing drink specials.

SEASIDE® is getting its first tropical bar this spring, complete with the required kitschy glassware, updated twists on popular resort drinks, and plenty of Instagram-worthy decor moments. Before you step foot in the latest beach bar, here’s what to know about the history of tiki bars.

Tiki started after Prohibition because blended rum was cheap and easy to get. Many OF THE originators of “tiki cocktails” kept their recipes top secret.

Adventurer and World War II veteran Donn Beach would famously make the mix and not tell his employees what was in the drinks. The kitschy bars started popping up all over America in the 1950s and offered post-WWII escapism, allowing people to enter a tropical paradise.

Aficionados can visit Tales of the Cocktail in New Orleans and the Hukilau to learn more about the cocktail culture. And if you’re new to the experience, look for bars with a pebble ice machine on the bar and the proper tools and vessels.

And now, Seaside is opening its very own tiki bar, Daytrader, which offers an escape from the mundane. It’s opening in the former Pizza Bar space – which has since moved under Bud & Alley’s – and offers locals and visitors the chance to feel like they’re on vacation.

The bar’s mission: “To trade in, for just a moment, the life in the suburbs — of Zoom calls and closing bells, of slacks and ties, of the office and the cubicle, or the kids and the carpool lines,” Daytrader promises. “To escape the fever pitch of phone calls for the fever dream of island fantasia, of otherworldliness, of escape.”

Chef Nikhil Abuvala and Seaside’s Vice President Micah Davis have been working together on this exciting new bar and dining concept, which will be here just in time for spring cocktails.

“Nikhil and his team have created something truly special that is poised to become an iconic dining destination,” Micah says. “I’m very proud of the work we have done together to bring the Daytrader to fruition, and I could not be more excited to introduce this fresh and original concept to our town.”

Chef Nikhil is behind some of the most popular dining spots on 30A, including the award-winning Roux 30a and Nanbu Noodle Bar. Now, Nikhil is creating the ultimate vacation experience.

“We are very excited to bring The Daytrader Tiki Bar and Restaurant to Seaside this spring,” Nikhil says. “People come to this beautiful area to escape from their offices and normal day-to-day life and to step into the paradise we have here. We wanted to extend the idea of escapism through Daytrader. With tiki being one of the oldest forms of escapism, we thought it would be an easy way to connect paradise and escapism through our restaurant concept.”

“When thinking through the menu, we looked at what was missing in Seaside and thought a blend of Polynesian culture and food would fit in perfectly into the already diverse offerings,” Nikhil continues.

When Daytrader opens its doors, make sure to stop by for the tropical cocktail of your dreams – just remember to ditch your tie.