Tag Archives: South Padre Island

Fresh Shrimp Key to Success

Dirty Al’s restaurant business is owned and operated by the Salazar family, left to right, Cameron, Al and Ethan. (VBR)

Little did Al Salazar know that a small bait and tackle stand on South Padre Island would become a multimillion-dollar enterprise that keeps growing as time goes by. Today, the family business owns and operates seven restaurants, and is about to open an eighth eatery, Josephine. Salazar, the family patriarch who wears no fancy outfits and who often advertises himself holding a beer mug, said he opened a fishing stand…

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Medical Conference Coming to SPI

The 27th Annual Rio Grande Valley Medical Education Conference takes place April 26-27 at the Isla Grande Beach Resort on South Padre Island. Helping to plan the conference are Dr. Dionisio Calvo III, internal medicine physician in Weslaco; Mitty Reyna of the Knapp Medical Center Education Department; and Dr. Robert Sepulveda, internal medicine physician in Weslaco and conference chairman.

The Rio Grande Valley Medical Education Conference & Exposition for Valley physicians, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, nurses, pharmacists and medical students takes place April 27-28 on South Padre Island. “This year’s conference will be particularly convenient in allowing physicians and other healthcare professionals in Hidalgo and Cameron counties to obtain the education credits they need in one jam-packed weekend,” said Dr. Robert Sepulveda, chairman of the conference. The conference will also provide…

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Upscale SPI Boutique Prospers

Barbara’s owner Remedios Villarreal takes care of work at the counter among merchandise on display. (VBR)

Some businesses come and go like the wind. Others not only survive but stay alive and prosper despite enduring one obstacle after another. Barbara, an upscale boutique on South Padre Island, falls in the latter category. The shop, owned by Remedios Villarreal, has been in business for nearly half a century and has been doing remarkably well after all those years. “I am still running Barbara,” she said. “It was…

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Artist Creates Business Niche

A photo of a heron and reflections in the water after being processed by artist Elisa Baker using special software. (VBR)

Inspired by a lifelong love of photography, and using creative computer software designed by her husband, Elisa Baker has embarked on a path to turn her personal passion into a business venture. Baker concentrates her photography on capturing images of Rio Grande Valley flora and fauna. Her husband developed the software that processes photos to create a sfumato effect. A style of painting associated with Italian Renaissance artists like Leonardo…

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Farm an Organic Family Affair

Susanne and Bud Cooke discuss the raising of the canopy on a greenhouse at Acacia Farms. (VBR)

The scene was reminiscent of an old-fashioned barn raising, where friends would turn out to help a farmer build a new barn, and then celebrate the accomplishment. But on this Saturday in December, what was being raised was a new covering for a damaged greenhouse at Acacia Farms in Bayview. The greenhouse, some 30 feet by 130 feet, lost its plastic covering in a freak windstorm earlier in the year…

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Kauffman Coming to SPI

A limited amount of spots are open for the upcoming Kauffman FastTrac starting in January in South Padre Island. The NewVenture program provides tools to both develop business concepts and successfully launch a business. To be held at the Port Isabel Events and Cultural Center as well as the South Padre Island Birding and Nature Center, the seven sessions encompass facilitated instruction. Students in the program identify market needs, understand business…

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Creating a Culinary Adventure

Brandi Hackett and Walter Greenwood have teamed with restaurateurs Scott and Bob Friedman to create South Padre Island’s newest restaurant. (VBR)

With culinary lessons learned at fine-dining establishments in places like New Orleans, Las Vegas and Los Angeles, a couple has teamed up with Laguna Madre area veteran restaurateurs to create a new dining experience on South Padre Island. “There are some really great restaurants here but we wanted to offer something different,” said Walter Greenwood, executive chef of F&B SPI. “For example, we want to bring coastal Italian flavors here.…

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Investment Pays Off for SPI

Hotelier Barry Patel is upping his ante in the South Padre Island tourism economy with the construction of a Courtyard by Marriott near his Hilton Garden Inn on the north end of the coastal town. He is wagering the Island’s future will deal him a full house. “I am very optimistic about the Island,” said Patel, a former mayor. “The things that the city has done in the last three…

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Sea Wolf Howls on Island

The Lobo Del Mar Dance Troupe performs an eclectic blend of international dances. (Courtesy)

Palm Street Bar & Grill on South Padre Island used to be just a place to grab a sandwich, enjoy a spirit or listen to good music. Not anymore. The bar and grill, now operating under the name Lobo Del Mar Café, has transformed into a potpourri of entertainment, art, food and people under the direction of a large family group of entrepreneurs. Sitting at the end of West Palm…

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Island Native Surfs to Success

Island Native Surf Shop owner Kerry Schwartz stands among some of the surfboards he sells. (VBR)

Kerry Schwartz discovered surfing at a young age growing up in the Rio Grande Valley. “Surfing was always my passion,” he said. “I even had a little surf shop in Brownsville in the 60s when I was just a teenager.” Today he owns and operates Island Native Surf Shop on South Padre Island, which he opened in 2003 when he retired. After college Schwartz lived in the Houston area where…

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