Front Porch Sittin’ at Happy’s Bayou Bites
Front porch and window where you can place your order for delicious Cajun-inspired food at Happy’s Bayou Bites.
Driving along Skinner Boulevard (FL 580) between Highland and Douglas avenues, you can’t miss Happy’s Bayou Bites. You’ll likely see folks lined up to place their orders at the window, with the big oak tree shading colorful picnic benches. This is where Happy and Mark Jordan share their love of Cajun food with Dunedin.
Because this is what they’ve always cooked at home, it seemed like a natural fit when they decided to open their restaurant. Over the years they’ve amassed quite a collection of Cajun cookbooks. Mark spent 30 years in the military, and during the time he was stationed in Afghanistan, Happy decided to go to culinary school.
Retired, they now work together in the kitchen, cooking and putting orders together.
“If it’s on the stove, I cook it; if it’s on the grill, Mark cooks it.”
Happy and Mark Jordan standing on the porch at Happy’s Bayou Bites.
You’ll find traditional Cajun cuisine, such as Po’boys served on French bread, featuring catfish, shrimp, oysters, chicken, crab cakes or gator, gumbo, muffuletta, red beans and rice, and award-winning hush puppies.
The menu pretty much stays the same, with unique specials rotating in weekly. Happy said these specials are sometimes driven by availability of ingredients. “Lately chicken has been scarce, so we focus on ingredients we can get,” she said.
Recently the Jordans took inspiration from a trip to North Carolina and brought back a delicious trout BLT special. Mark also has created Cajun lemon pepper wings. During my visit, the special was Bermuda fish chowder, featuring veggies, Atlantic cod and island spices. The crab cakes are Happy’s own special recipe. A lot of folks ask for etouffee or jambalaya, so the Jordans try to put requested menu items in rotation.
On today’s visit, Kyle (top left) had the Blackened Chicken Po’boy with Zapp’s chips. Kim (top right) savored the Crab Cake Po’boy and hush puppies. Bill (bottom) enjoyed the gumbo, red beans and rice with French bread on the side.
Mark and Happy are very much a part of the fabric of Dunedin life. They regularly work with local vendors for their main ingredients, like Jensen Brothers Seafood for fish and Southern Steer Butcher for Andouille sausage. They serve cookies from Kookie Krums Bakery and The Scone Age Bakery. They have featured a coffee rub from Tukro Coffee for a special. Bring your dog along for a visit and serve them treats provided by Woofgang Bakery & Grooming and Dunedin Pet Supply.
“We like people to feel like they’re sitting in our backyard at home.”
Happy’s Bayou Bites has a unique design. Yes, there’s a food truck behind that well-built front-porch facade. Happy said: “We were the first food truck in Dunedin six years ago. When I went to the city, they said,. ‘We don’t want to see it, and we don’t want it on our streets.’ ” Their landlord, Grant Painter, owner of Woodwright Brewing Company, who lives across the street, didn’t want to see it, either. But, it turns out he’s also an architect, and he threw out the idea of building it out to look how it does today. Mark liked the idea of not having to drive a food truck around, and the land was sitting there unused, so it really worked out for everyone. Plus, Happy said, “We wanted to find someplace local to stay put and support Dunedin – our family, friends and neighbors.”
One service they aren’t currently offering is delivery. They had a nice partnership worked out with Kafe Racer, which provided a delivery bicycle in return for food. Sammy the Crab Man used to wear a crab hat and make deliveries around Dunedin. Everyone knew him. “It was a nice service for folks who weren’t able to get out of the office or out from behind their counter,” Happy said. But Sammy has since hung up his hat. “We miss him.” It sounds like they might be looking for a new Crab Man…
431 Skinner Blvd., Dunedin 34698 • 727-240-1102
Open Wed & Thu 11-4 • Fri & Sat 11-6 • Happy Hour Fri & Sat 3-6 with live music