Central Texas Sailor - Kemah Visit

DESTINATION GUIDE

Kemah, TX
March 1999

Although Port Aransas is our favorite summer vacation town on the Texas Gulf Coast, my wife and I will occasionally visit Galveston for a long weekend to "recharge" our batteries. When my wife suggested a trip to Galveston for my 40th birthday, I was excited at the chance to again watch the merchant ships from our room at the Harbor House and also by the excuse to visit a sailboat dealer or two by detouring to Clear Lake. I'd heard the Clear Lake area was home to a large fleet of sailboats and, surely, they'd have sailboat dealers in the area.

After checking into our Galveston hotel, we made the twenty mile trip north to Kemah. After passing near Texas City and a few of the other coastal towns, we weren't expecting much from Kemah. Maybe a refinery or two . . . most likely a deteriorating town which had seen its better days. We were surprised to find a beautiful, seaside community with a vibrant waterfront area containing a new hotel, a small amusement park for the kids, countless shops and many restaurants we have come to know in the Austin area: Landry's, Joe's Crab Shack, and Pappadeaux's (actually, Pappadeaux's is on the Seabrook side of the channel). And, a few that we know from the coast such as Willie G's (in Galveston next to the Harbor House).

My wife says that the shops in Kemah far exceed those in Galveston's Strand District. So, bring lots of cash for the craft, antique and Christmas shops located both on the waterfront and in the "Gaslight" District down the street.

Apparently, the Landry Group has been instrumental in developing the waterfront area and they say that their goal is to make Kemah an "exciting family-oriented travel destination." A brochure I read says "the Houston-based Landry Group has purchased property at Second Street for development consisting of a four story parking structure with 20,000 square feet of retail space attached and a two story hotel with 52 rooms. The group also plans to open, in the former Kemah Cantina, a special aquarium-themed eatery designed to give patrons the feeling of being under the sea. Enormous salt water aquariums are being built into the walls which surround the diners. The latest acquisition by Landry's began with the group's purchase of every restaurant on Kemah's waterfront that it did not already own. Hoping the revamped complex will attract 2 million visitors to Kemah each year, Landry's Chairman Tilman Fertitta says 'The company plans to create something so spectacular, no visitor to the greater Houston-Galveston area will believe their visit is complete without visiting the Kemah Waterfront.'" I can tell you the aquarium restaurant is open for business and another restaurant (Willie G's) is halfway through construction. Development is well on its way and telling by the foot traffic on both a Saturday and Sunday in late March, this place will be a great success.

Now that we're talking about food, I've been told that T-Bone Tom's Restaurant has wonderful home-style cooking, with the best BBQ and steaks on the Gulf Coast. It is located near the waterfront on Hwy. 146. We'll give it a try the next time we visit. Telltales Magazine says that "Barry and Melissa Terrel are the new owners." It goes on to say: "Don't expect any changes, for awhile anyway, to either menu or environment, although other innovations may be added. Barry brings plenty of experience to this new endeavor, as he previously was the regional manager for Landry's Seafood Restaurants Inc." Looks to me like Kemah is well on its way to being owned by the Landry Group. But, that's fine by me. They have a great setup.

Now, on to sailing. The Galveston Bay area is said to have the third largest concentration of pleasure boats in the United States. And, Kemah, is said to be the home of the largest charter fleet in Texas (located in Lafayette Landing Marina . . . now known as the Kemah Harbor Marina; photo at left). Although Kemah Harbor Marina is the closest to Galveston Bay, many other marinas dot Clear Lake.

The fine folks at Kemah Harbor Marina were kind enough to direct me to the local Catalina dealer located in the Watergate Yachting Center. My wife and I spent a few hours with Vince Morvillo (owner) over at Sea Lake Yacht Sales. Vince is the local Catalina, Beneteau, Pacific Seacraft, Ericson, J-Boat and Fountaine Pajot dealer. He's a very friendly guy and he encourages you to climb on-board, "touch" and "feel" his new yachts. He knows how to sell boats. Not surprisingly, he has a very good reputation for both new boat and brokerage yacht sales. The day we visited, he had a number of new boats at his dock: two Catalina 320s, a Catalina 42, a Catalina 380, a Beneteau 321 and at least three other (and larger) Beneteaus. He also had a slew of brokerage and trade-in boats available for inspection and sale. If you are considering a larger boat (30' +), give Vince a call. Check out my Boat Dealers page for more details and directions.

Other dealers of interest include Ship and Sail (which is the local dealer for Hunter and Island Packet) and Sailventure (local dealer for MacGregor sailboats). Unfortunately, we didn't have time to visit with these dealers but, again, information is available on my Boat Dealers page.

We plan other trips to Kemah . . . possibly a hotel stay and boat charter. Watching the yachts motor back and forth from Clear Lake to Galveston Bay through the channel at the waterfront makes me want to find a job closer to Houston. The boat parade is quite a spectacle and is well attended by both yacht owner and shoreside onlooker.

Kemah is a wonderful little town. They next time you begin a search for a new or used boat, a quick trip to Kemah may be in order.

[MTM - 03/23/99]