MapQuest helpfully projected a nine-hour and three-minute drive from Memphis, Tennessee to Destin, Florida. As it ends up, I did it in just ender eight hours, and managed to pull in to the Hard Rock Cafe Destin at 3:16 for a late lunch. The cafe itself is scarily reminiscent of the cafe that used to be in Ft. Lauderdale... a crappy mall location with no history or interesting architecture. In the end, it does end up faring slightly better because Destin seems to be a relatively new resort development, but it's hardly an ideal location for a Hard Rock from a design perspective. Oh well, I hope Destin can hold out longer than its ill-fated twin in Ft. Lauderdale.
The interior is rather pedestrian, but does try to cram in a lot of memorabilia into the space available. I was a bit surprised to find the restaurant completely packed at such an odd hour, which I guess is a good thing considering it's the "slow season."
Like so many of these heavily-populated beach resort cities, Destin has been dramatically over-developed. The roads in and out of the area just can't handle the volume, meaning you have a non-stop traffic jam for an hour in and another hour out. I'd hate to think of how bad it gets during the height of summer vacation... perhaps that's why MapQuest adds an extra hour?
Anyway, not really a bad cafe, just nothing special.
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I have lived in the Desin, Fla area since 1978 and am now thinking of moving due to the poor highway infastructure. During the summer it is almost impossible to move from one side of Destin to the other without an hour traffic delay, and I am talking about four miles. Tourists willl more than likely make it a one time visit after they sit in traffic for hours trying to get around town.
I visited the Destin location a two weeksa ago.
And, like you, I was a bit disappointed to see another “mall location”. I also think this was another missed opportunity. The beaches in Destin are so beautifull, and they decide to build this location at a mall. I must say, the staff was so great, even the manager literally sat at our table to chat with us.
Overall, my visit to the smalles HRC in the US was great. The traffic, however was a killer!