In an idyllic cove overlooking Baffin Bay, right down the road from the Famous King’s Inn, there is a tiny fishing marina, bait shop and café complex. Locals and fishermen prefer the low-key Baffin Bay Café over the touristy atmosphere and higher prices over at the Famous King’s Inn.

Baffin Bay Cafe
1289 County Road 2360
Riviera
(361) 297-5354

The colossal fried shrimp here are every bit as good as what you get down the street, and the kitchen here makes their own homemade tartar sauce. The beer-battered onion rings are suberb. Service is slow, the beans are bland, and menu items like crab and shrimp sometimes run out.

The café has been around for a mere 12 years, but as the last of the old bait camp resorts, it deserves special consideration in the iconic beach restaurant category. The weathered wood buildings and landscape of broken boats and random palm trees are so engaging; you might be tempted to rent a waterfront cabin at the nearby Baffin Bay Inn fishing resort and spend the night trying your luck on the lighted pier.