Explore · Bay St. Louis · Food & Dining
Where to eat in Bay St. Louis, from someone who covers this Coast.
Bay St. Louis eats like a town that knows it’s a destination but hasn’t gotten precious about it. Old Town is small enough to walk between most of the good spots, the seafood is right off the Gulf, and nobody’s judging your flip-flops. Here’s where I’d send you — show up hungry.
Old Town anchors
The walkable heart of it — where most visitors end up eating.
The Mockingbird Cafe
A coffee shop, cafe, and art space in an old building two blocks off the beach, open since the year after Katrina. Sandwiches, salads, good coffee, and a courtyard that’s a perfect slow-morning spot. The local gathering place — start your day here.
The Sycamore House
The grown-up dinner in town, family-run since 2002 in an old boarding house with a screen porch. Gulf seafood and New Orleans–leaning plates, open just a few evenings a week. Call ahead and reserve — it’s small and the hours are limited.
200 North Beach
Fresh seafood, pasta, and steaks in a restored 1903 building across from the municipal harbor, with some of the best water views in Old Town. The nice sit-down option that isn’t fussy about it.
On the water
Beach-bar energy, harbor views, and live music on the weekends.
The Blind Tiger
Open-air spot on the marina front with big views of the harbor, in-house brews, and live music on the patio most weekends. Get the royal reds or the barbecued oysters. Family-friendly and very Bay St. Louis.
Buoy’s Bar
A nautical-themed watering hole right on the beach. People rave about the burger and garlic fries, and on some weekends there’s live music you can catch with your feet practically in the sand.
Gulf seafood (obviously)
You’re on the Coast. This part is mandatory.
Cuz’s Old Town Oyster Bar & Grill
Family-owned and casual, with the bayou-flavor lineup people drive in for — boiled shrimp, fried oysters, crawfish étouffée, crab claws, and gumbo. The no-frills seafood meal you came to the Coast for.
The deal
Bay St. Louis isn’t trying to be New Orleans, even though it’s only an hour away. It’s its own thing — an artsy little beach town where the dinner spots are casual and the harbor is the view. Reservations really only matter at Sycamore House, and only because it’s small and open a few nights a week. When you’re done eating, the things-to-do guide and the outdoors guide pick up from here.
Eating your way down the Coast?
I track new openings, pop-ups, and the spots worth the drive across all three counties in The Seawall, my twice-weekly Coast newsletter.
Rob Recio lives in Ocean Springs and is in real-estate-licensure training in Mississippi. This is informational visitor content, not real-estate advice or a solicitation.