Happy 25th Anniversary Undertow, I owe you my life.
I sat on your upper deck today and watched in wonder as the sun sleepily set under a brilliant red sky and I saw a silhouette of my son stand up with wobbly toddler legs in sugary sand and run screaming from his older sister around the beach volleyball courts and I couldn’t help but be grateful for what this amazing bar has meant to me over the years.
For me it started in 1997, freshly 21 and ready to explore every beach cocktail I could find. Everyone I knew spent their nights at The Undertow, and so would I. A perfect place to escape from the sun to cool off and watch the vibrant colors unfold in warm summer sunsets, the Undertow was like a second home, and soon owners Paul Nicklaus and his sister Karen Browning would become like a second family.
The Undertow Beach Bar first opened on June 25, 1990 nestled between a few boutique hotels, a paradise tucked away just north of the Don Caesar Hotel, where the world’s best sands are waiting for you to make an impression. It was a humble beginning; a small gazebo was almost hidden behind a large Spanish style home that had been converted into a 17-room resort known as the ‘Archway Villa’. A brother and sister team of entrepreneurs talked their father who owned the resort, into letting them open a bar in the back. They offered beer and wine to local patrons in the winter and an occasional tourist in the summer. They had a signature bar top, with a lazy river flowing through it with miniature rubber ducks that sent silent messages to the patrons across the bar.
Five years later, Paul & Karen bought the adjoining property, an 8-unit motel called the Bel Mar and they demolished the original Archway Villa. They worked together to redesign the building to expand into an enclosed bar complete with a new liquor license and added a Kitchen with a four-star chef. The Undertow quickly became a fixture on St. Pete Beach with it’s perfect locale, gorgeous bartenders and perfectly poured cocktails. They offer something for everybody. I loved to watch the “Tow” as we regulars call it, transform throughout the day. An early breakfast with locals on the beach in the morning, a watering hole for hot and thirsty beach goers throughout the day, and an amazing place to meet gorgeous singles at night. The beauty of the Undertow is, there isn’t one clientele or niche they focus on. They truly have something for everyone.
If you asked Paul or Karen their secret to growing a successful beach bar, they would probably nonchalantly say, something like “it’s simple: have fun, be safe, respect the beach.” But I’ve noticed something remarkable over my years of patronage. Both Paul and Karen are passionately committed to evolving. They are two of the busiest people I know and they never stop for long to bask in what they’ve built. They are constantly changing, rather, improving their environment. Every few months, the entire staff gets a new line of custom swim suits to wear to work. It seems like every year Paul is working on some major rebuild to the property. He has added a second story deck, extended the bar on one side, tore a section of the bar out and added video games and pool tables. It seems like every time I turn around, they’re bringing the Tow a fresh new look, without removing the nostalgia, “the spirit” of the Undertow I’ve come to love.
10 years ago, I stopped considering the Undertow for a place to meet singles, although I’m positive others carried on for me. That’s because one day while walking to through the parking lot I saw the woman of my dreams sitting in a lawn chair, waiting to direct cars into the parking lot. While she waited, in her delicious undertow bikini, she was reading an obnoxiously thick book about capitalism and I was hooked. I married her 15 months later. Today we have 4 beautiful children and while we’ve evolved from the late nights and late mornings we spent together in the early years, the Undertow evolved with us as well. Paul and Karen both started having their children around the same time as we did, so little by little, there was a new family attraction added to the beach sand for the kids. We’re lucky when we get to stay past sunset now, but I love that I still get to take our kids to the very spot where I fell in love with their mother. And the first Saturday after Thanksgiving, I know Paul and his brother-in-law Lance, along with a few close friends like Rick, Derek and “Capoosh” will be waking up early and pruning their yards for decorative palm leaves, so we along with hundreds of other locals, can take our family Christmas photos with the Undertow’s signature giant Sand-Snowman.
I’ve heard a lot of small business owners talk about their staff as being “part of a family” but I never really believed it until I met Paul & Karen. My wife worked for them for 6 years while she finished up school and waited for me to take her off the market. 10 years later, she still talks to Karen regularly and we always make sure to swing by and see them anytime we’re in town. Paul & Karen came to the hospital when our babies we’re born, “we wouldn’t miss it for the world” Karen says. My wife’s cousin Kat has also worked for the Undertow for over 15 years. She’s now an R.N. in a hospital, but still can’t bring herself to quit working at the Undertow because she loves it so much. They have several other employees, who aren’t blood relatives, that have stayed there for over 15 years. That’s unheard of in this industry and it speaks volumes to me about the kind of people Paul & Karen are.
It’s not just a business, it’s a safe haven, a community of people who love the beach and want others to love and respect it to. They were one of the first bars on the beach to stop using plastic straws and opt for a more expensive and ecologically friendly paper straw because they care about the sea turtles that frequent their sandy shores to lay eggs. They’ve also hosted events such as the three-day Hawaiian Tropic charity pageants benefiting the Humane Society, a beach crawl supporting cancer research and fundraisers to help save the turtles and manatees.
Sure they have the most beautiful bartenders on St. Pete Beach, sure they have the most perfect sand in Florida. Sure they have the best open beach atmosphere one can find. But it’s the fact that they’re the whole package, thatI will always love. Thank you for introducing me to my wife and making these gorgeous kids possible and thank you for always welcoming us back with open arms.
Happy 25th Anniversary, may you have 100 more just like it!
Story by By D.B. Thomas