LandShark Bar & Grill

Fish tacos, cold margaritas, and South Texas hospitality make Seaside the kind of unhurried Gulf-side bar that explains why South Padre’s permanent residents never seem to want to leave.

South Padre’s consistent Gulf swells built a real surf community, and Longboard gives it a bar that actually understands the culture instead of just borrowing the aesthetic.

Forty-five years anchoring Laguna Boulevard, an all-you-can-eat prime rib buffet, and Tuesday fireworks over the bay, Louie’s somehow keeps getting better despite selling more booze during Spring Break than anywhere else on the island.

When everywhere else on the island closes, Bob is still going, neon lights, no cover, and a bayside perch for SPI’s summer fireworks.

The name is a promise and Tequila Sunset delivers on it nightly, live music while the sky over the Laguna Madre actually explodes orange on cue.