Myrtle Beach Advice

[David Wigler]

I haven't been to Myrtle Beach since 1990.  If you could stay at either Pawley's or Litchfield for the same price, which would you?  Is either significantly nicer or is it a toss-up.

Thanks,

Dave

[A.G._Crockett]

David,
Michael Whitaker is the guy to talk to about this particular question.  He knows that end of the strand pretty well, I think.  I know the golf courses reasonably well, but always stay way up on the north end.

[Mike_Cirba]

David,

Depending on where you plan to play, Litchfield is a bit more centrally located.  

It's also closer to the scrumptious seafood restaurants in Murrells' Inlet.  (tip - the dingier they look, the better and more authentic they are).  

You're close to True Blue, Caledonia, Wachesaw Plantion (pvt.), and really not to far from the courses up 501 like Legends.

[Daryl "Turboe" Boe]

I haven't been to Myrtle Beach since 1990.  If you could stay at either Pawley's or Litchfield for the same price, which would you?  Is either significantly nicer or is it a toss-up.

Thanks,

Dave

That depends on what Litchfield course you are talking about.  The Reserve at Litchfield is the private course (Greg Norman) there, it is the class of the South end of the Grand Strand.  If you have access and are talking about that one I say it wins over Pawleys.

If you are talking one of the other Litchfield courses, then I say Pawleys is the better track.  I think there are 3 courses at Litchfield and  some of them I was not impressed with at all, sorry I cannot recall any more specifics on which Litchfield courses names etc.

[Andy Troeger]

Dave,
  I can't completely answer your question because I've never been to Pawleys, but I can give you my thoughts on Litchfield. My Dad has been there a couple of times and has had good experiences, and I went once and stayed in the hotel portion with and thought the place was place was nice. They have a good variety of types of accommodations depending on the size of your party, and some of he suites and other accommodations looked like a better deal than the hotel portion.
  I would rate the golf at above average, but not great. I played what was supposed to be their best course, The River Club, and liked it well enough. On a scale of 1-10 with 5 being the average I'd give it 6 or 7. From what I heard from my Dad of the others (I think called Litchfield CC and Willbrook Plantation) they're not much different, maybe in the 5-6 range.
  Hope that helps!

[Michael Whitaker]

Dave - I'll steer you in the right direction. Send me an email and let me know what you are considering: md.whitaker@charter.net

There are lots of options for you in the Litchfield/Pawley's Island area.

Mike

[Robert Kimball]

David,

Depending on where you plan to play, Litchfield is a bit more centrally located.  

It's also closer to the scrumptious seafood restaurants in Murrells' Inlet.  (tip - the dingier they look, the better and more authentic they are).  

You're close to True Blue, Caledonia, Wachesaw Plantion (pvt.), and really not to far from the courses up 501 like Legends.

David, do yourself a favor -- don't eat all day and then go to Lee's Inlet Kitchen on Hwy 17 for dinner. I am hungry just thinking about it!!!!!!

[Brent Hutto]

David, do yourself a favor -- don't eat all day and then go to Lee's Inlet Kitchen on Hwy 17 for dinner. I am hungry just thinking about it!!!!!!

I second that emotion, I've been eating there once a year or so for most of my life. Lee's was the best seafood restaurant I knew of back when it was all fried. Now they also offer just about anything you want grilled instead and it is so very, very good. They also have excellent Kona blend coffee which complements a piece of Key Lime pie perfectly. Rob, now I'm starving too!

[Mike_Cirba]

I can also personally (and recently) vouch for;

Inlet Crab House & Raw Bar (suitably dingy and unassuming, but surprisingly good food)

Flo's Place - Served with a creole/cajun twist, it's worth it just for the Bloody Mary's and Oyster Stew.

[Michael Whitaker]

Mike - Inlet Crab House has the BEST seafood in Murrells Inlet! Everything is fresh, never frozen... and your meal isn't cooked until you order it. It is a "locals" place not usually frequented by tourists... so, what in the world made you go in there? Most visitors are put off by the "unassuming" appearance.

I'll be there Friday night! Yum!!!

[Mike Hendren]

Forget the fried food.  Where's the best spot for a little shagging (note to UK friends:  this is a type of VERTICAL dance step indigenous to the Grand Strand) to some Beach Music.  Haven't been there in 20 years but last time the Mrs. and I caught the Catalina's live.  

I love Beach Music.
I always have and I always will.

Mike

[Robert Kimball]

"Carolina girls -- the best in the world."

[Jfaspen]

That depends on what Litchfield course you are talking about.  The Reserve at Litchfield is the private course (Greg Norman) there, it is the class of the South end of the Grand Strand.  If you have access and are talking about that one I say it wins over Pawleys.

Probably heading down there in a couple of weeks..  I have a couple of friends who are Reserve members.  I really enjoy that club, it's a big change from most other MYR golf experiences.  If you can get on, i'd give it a try.  The proshop people are pretty nice, I'd give a call or write a letter and I bet they'd let you pay the guest fee some afternoon.

Jeff

[Tim Gavrich]

Seeing as my family owns a place at Pawleys Plantation and has membership, I have to say I'm a little biased.  That said, I believe they are renovating/re-edging some/most/all of the bunkers on the course through February.  I'm going down for 3 days, the first weekend in February.  I like The Reserve, but I found that the style of the holes did not vary too too much.  It WILL be in very nice condition, I'd expect, though.  Pawleys has more different types of holes that it's a nice adventure.  You also can't miss with Caledonia, True Blue, and Heritage.  The difference in distance between Pawleys and Litchfield is a little more than 5 minutes, so that's not too big a deal.

Now for the food recommendations:
- Louis's: Probably the best upscale restaurant on the entire Strand.  The head chef if very famous, having previously won awards for his cooking in a Charleston eatery.
- Frank's: Another excellent restaurant, also pricy, but also very good.
- Austin's: same as previous two
- Orobosa's Lowcountry Café: A fairly new place; it doesn't look like much, but the food is terrific.
- Carolina Wings: Some of the best buffalo wings I've ever tasted, and there are a couple dozen diffeens flavors
- Pastaria 811: the best Italian restaurant with which I am familiar in that area.  Incomparable chicken parmagiana.
- Sam's Corner: phenomenal hot dogs
These are all within 5-8 minutes of Litchfield/Pawleys.  The South Strand is very much quieter and more low-key than the honky-tonky main city.  You can't go wrong, really.

Y'all have a good time, and IM me with any specific questions!

[Mike_Cirba]

Mike - Inlet Crab House has the BEST seafood in Murrells Inlet! Everything is fresh, never frozen... and your meal isn't cooked until you order it. It is a "locals" place not usually frequented by tourists... so, what in the world made you go in there? Most visitors are put off by the "unassuming" appearance.

I'll be there Friday night! Yum!!!

Michael,

It was totally by fortuitous accident.  

As you know, there are quite a number of seafood places right along the Inlet "business" 17 strip.  Myself, I'm preferential to something with some local flair, so driving along with my in-laws-to-be and fiance, we spotted the Inlet and basically said, "Let's go inside and see what it looks like...if we don't want dinner we can just have a drink and go".

Good thing we stayed.

btw, my earlier quote as wrong...it was the Inlet Crab House that had the incredible Bloody Mary's, as well as the fine Oyster Stew (and about 5 other courses we ordered!).

It was Flo's where I had the seafood gumbo, also scrumptious.

Next time I'm in the neighborhood I'll try to give you a heads-up.  My fiance's folks may be moving there.

[Ted Kramer]

Seeing as my family owns a place at Pawleys Plantation and has membership, I have to say I'm a little biased.  That said, I believe they are renovating/re-edging some/most/all of the bunkers on the course through February.  I'm going down for 3 days, the first weekend in February.  I like The Reserve, but I found that the style of the holes did not vary too too much.  It WILL be in very nice condition, I'd expect, though.  Pawleys has more different types of holes that it's a nice adventure.  You also can't miss with Caledonia, True Blue, and Heritage.  The difference in distance between Pawleys and Litchfield is a little more than 5 minutes, so that's not too big a deal.

Now for the food recommendations:
- Louis's: Probably the best upscale restaurant on the entire Strand.  The head chef if very famous, having previously won awards for his cooking in a Charleston eatery.
- Frank's: Another excellent restaurant, also pricy, but also very good.
- Austin's: same as previous two
- Orobosa's Lowcountry Café: A fairly new place; it doesn't look like much, but the food is terrific.
- Carolina Wings: Some of the best buffalo wings I've ever tasted, and there are a couple dozen diffeens flavors
- Pastaria 811: the best Italian restaurant with which I am familiar in that area.  Incomparable chicken parmagiana.
- Sam's Corner: phenomenal hot dogs
These are all within 5-8 minutes of Litchfield/Pawleys.  The South Strand is very much quieter and more low-key than the honky-tonky main city.  You can't go wrong, really.

Y'all have a good time, and IM me with any specific questions!

Is the Mayor's House still open?
My friends and I loved that place.

-Ted

[Michael Whitaker]

Next time I'm in the neighborhood I'll try to give you a heads-up.  My fiance's folks may be moving there.

Please do. We have a place in North Litchfield that is very to close to all the courses... and, the Inlet Crab House!

[Michael Whitaker]

By the way... if you have not tried the food at Caledonia be sure and schedule a lunch in their grill. It is outstanding... so much so that 80% of their food busniness comes from non-golfers! My wife and her Mom always plan to have lunch at Caledonia at least once every trip. They only serve lunch and close at 3:00pm so plan accordingly.

The Mayor's House is still open and going strong. They now have the Mayor's Pub next door with more casual fare.

[Jfaspen]

I might be looking for a game on Saturday, Feb 4th, sometime in the afternoon (flight gets in at around noon).  It'll be my first time playing in 3 months and I have brand new clubs built to new specs, so it could be rough, but I'd be interested in hearing what people are playing.

I think Doak's heathland is under $50 in the afternoon this time of the year.  I still owe Ran pictures from when my round there got cancelled due to aeration.

jf

[Ted Kramer]

By the way... if you have not tried the food at Caledonia be sure and schedule a lunch in their grill. It is outstanding... so much so that 80% of their food busniness comes from non-golfers! My wife and her Mom always plan to have lunch at Caledonia at least once every trip. They only serve lunch and close at 3:00pm so plan accordingly.

The Mayor's House is still open and going strong. They now have the Mayor's Pub next door with more casual fare.

Great point regarding the food at Caledonia.
They make a chicken and steak club sandwich that is out of this world!! Lunch on that back deck watching people play up 18 is about as good as it gets for me . . .

-Ted

[David Wigler]

Mike - Inlet Crab House has the BEST seafood in Murrells Inlet! Everything is fresh, never frozen... and your meal isn't cooked until you order it. It is a "locals" place not usually frequented by tourists... so, what in the world made you go in there? Most visitors are put off by the "unassuming" appearance.

I'll be there Friday night! Yum!!!

Great advice.  This place was awesome.  Boy did we eat!!

[Mike_Cirba]

David,

I think I get 1/2 credit for that one.  Glad you enjoyed!  

[Michael Whitaker]

Mike - Don't you love it when someone takes your advice and it works out? I always worry about recommending restaurants because individual tastes are so different... but, its pretty hard to go wrong with the Inlet Crab House.

David - Did you play any golf? If so, where?

[David Wigler]

Michael,

I played a lot (Willbrook, Pawleys, TPC, True Blue, Caldonia).  Murrels Inlet Seafood is my kind of place.  The second that I saw they had Christmas lights on the trees and the building, I knew it was where I wanted to be.  

I started with Crab Pizza.  It was an outright 10 - The dish was clearly Doakesque, as some might say over-the-top but it worked for me.  The mixture of Crab, sauteed onions, sauteed peppers and creole spices was a taste explosion.  I followed that up with the fish soup (I liked it a lot, 7 maybe 7 1/2, but like a Fazio, I can see others saying they have had it before).  Next course was the Sauteed Garlic Shrimp.  This was clearly a Dye dish.  It was spicy to the point that made your lips burn and kicked your butt while enjoying every bite.  I would have to give it an 8.  From there, I went to the Blue Crab claws.  They were Coore/Crenshaw to the bone.  The plate was overwhelming in the quantity of food provided.  They melted in my mouth.  WOW!  At first I tried them with the cocktail sauce but later realized that dipping them in my spicy bloody mary was the perfect compliment.  They are a strong nine.  Stettner and Reich would need to rate their meals for themselves but I would be surprised if there ratings differed from mine.  

Thanks again for your advice and I apologize for not giving Cirba proper credit as well.

[Mike_Cirba]

Thanks again for your advice and I apologize for not giving Cirba proper credit as well.

Don't worry David...that happens all of the time here on GCA, usually about golf course opinions, so I'm quite used to it.    

Your meal has me wanting to hop on a plane.

Michael,

Isn't it great when it all comes together so well?