Welcome to Old Town Bay St. Louis!
Mississippi Gulf Coast
Our May 2018 Second Saturday
"Hot Spots"
stay "Hot" all month!
Hot Spot Activities are 4:00 - 8:00 p.m.
Saturday, May 12, 2018
Arts, Hancock CountyBay St. Louis Creative Arts Center
101 Central Ave. Bay St. Louis, MS 39520 
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Cork & Cleaver Italian Bistro 111 Main Street, Suite A
Bay St. Louis, MS 39520 228.344.3295 
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Arts, Hancock County, a fast-growing, active organization that offers sponsorship and genuine support in the form of shows, classes, events, and other instructional ventures, boasts over 300 members—all of them either artists or lovers of art.
If not butchers, bakers, and candlestick makers, the Arts, Hancock governing board is comprised of business owners, a photographer, an architect, a teacher, potters, a writer, and professional volunteers. This diversity reflects the spirit and fast-growing membership of a non-profit corporation dedicated to promoting art in everyday life in Hancock County, Mississippi. The vision spearheaded by Steve Barney, president of Arts, Hancock County, and founder of the STEAMpunk Pottery Project—an educational program for children—is to “reinvent the organization to support the entire spectrum of artists and capture the artistic buzz centered in Hancock County.” The buzz goes beyond traditional forms of art to include all types of creative expression and performance. For example, the rapidly growing 2018 Arts Alive! festival, the largest annual Arts, Hancock County undertaking, highlighted the burgeoning scene of artists, makers, and performers from across the region. Happy festival-goers found a riot of live demonstrations, hands-on activities, and artist showcases/marketplaces, from musical performances to belly dancers. At hands-on MakerSpace stations, festival- goers practiced the art of screen printing and drum-making, and volunteers of all ages engaged in public art projects such as the one at Ruth’s Garden on Court Street. Other participatory art experiences include on-site painting of beach-bound trash cans and the creation of a public mural. At the center of Arts, Hancock County is a 7,500-square-foot industrial building on the corner of Washington and Central, the Bay St. Louis Creative Arts Center (101 Central Ave., BSL). Since Barney purchased the dilapidated building in 2017, it has become a gathering space in an emerging art district. The building is the seat of monthly Arts, Hancock County membership meetings, the Raw Oyster Marching Club's oyster-painting central, the home of workshops from pottery to flower arranging, and even a space in which Mardi Gras floats are constructed. The most active part of the Bay Creative Arts Center, however, is the 1200-square-foot pottery studio, which partners with Lazy Magnolia Brewery and offers adult classes and after-school classes for children. Having moved to Old Town, an historic district extending from Beach Boulevard to St. Francis Street and Washington Street to Ulman Avenue, Arts, Hancock County is tapping into the creative economy in Hancock County, expanding into Waveland and the Kiln, and exploring partnerships between local businesses and artists. As of this writing, Arts, Hancock County boasts overlapping exhibits at four business and civic entities—200 North Beach, BSL City Hall, Waveland City Hall, and the Ground Zero Museum in Waveland. “In the early days of the organization,” Barney notes, the goal was to help artists re-establish themselves in the aftermath of Katrina. We are circling around, going back to our roots.” To join Arts, Hancock County, visit https://hancockarts.org/join-us. Alternatively, talk to organizational VP Ann Dinwiddie Madden, co-founder of Smith & Lens Gallery (106 S. Second Street, BSL), or Treasurer Alicein Schwabacher, owner and manager of the Mockingbird Café (110 South Second Street, BLS). As a featured Hot Spot during the Old Town Merchants Association Second Saturday celebration on Saturday, May 12, Arts, Hancock County will set up Imagination Station Activities for Kids at The French Potager (213 Main Street, BSL) between 4:00 and 8:00 p.m. Live music will be provided. |
 One of the $10 Tuesday pasta specials.
Chef David Dickensauge, Jr., owner at Cork & Cleaver, which features upscale, casual, authentic Italian cuisine, is a happily busy man. The chef is assisted on the financial side by his business partner and father, David Dickensauge, Sr., and appreciatively so.
“Dad is retired Air Force," Chef David notes, “with no clue about the day-to-day operational part of a farm-to-table restaurant. We both do what we're good at, and it works out perfectly." As operational manager and chef, Dickensauge is either sourcing food, planning menus, preparing food, or managing the restaurant. “We’re not warming things up here,” the Chef notes. “No big truck pulls up to make deliveries here. I’m busy with marketing, cooking, making sure the restaurant is running, the food is perfect, and the kitchen meticulous. I design everything here, and I run it.” And it shows. Lisa Monti, restaurant reviewer for the Shoofly Magazine, stated it perfectly in her February 2018 review of Cork & Cleaver—“Dickensauge has crafted weekly specials that might make you want to double down for lunch and then back for dinner in quick succession.” While the menu changes eight times a year to reflect the availability of fresh foods from Mississippi, Louisiana, and Alabama, the fare is always true Italian, the pasta is always made in-house, and the pizza prepared in a special gas-fired brick oven. Weekly specials are popular with the local crowd, a crowd that enjoys special Happy Hour deals from 4:00 to 6:00, as well. Monday draws beef lovers for the $20 ribeye and/or sirloin filet, each served with black truffle ricotta salada and twice-baked potatoes. Pasta fans enjoy the $10 Tuesday homemade signature pastas and/or a selection of artisan pizzas. Wine Down Wednesdays are becoming quite a big deal in part because of the great selection of wines by the bottle at half price and in part because of the freshly shucked char baked oysters that sell for $8.00. Thursday deserves a paragraph of its own. Thursday evening diners should prepare themselves for a four-course set dinner option for just $38 a person. The menu varies, but a recent Thursday, Chef David prepared a first course of roasted cauliflower with a goat cheese and feta spread, a second course of seared scallop over scallion mashed potatoes with roasted red pepper sauce, a third course of coffee crusted tenderloin (4 oz) with grilled polenta and sautéed vegetables, and a fourth course of ricotta cheesecake in a Mason Jar with fresh blueberries & lavender. On major holidays, Chef David offers six-course meals with a seventh course lagniappe. There’s really no excuse not to try C&C Italian Bistro at least once. The weekly specials make it easy, but don’t stop there! The menu itself guarantees one of the finest dining experiences on the Mississippi Gulf Coast. You'll be back. As a featured Hot Spot during the Old Town Merchants Association Second Saturday celebration on Saturday, May 12, Cork & Cleaver (111 Main Street, Suite A, BSL) will provide live music and bar specials between 4:00 and 8:00 p.m.
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The Second Saturday Artwalk is brought to you by the Old Town Merchants Association and sponsored by Hancock Bank, People's Bank, and The First Bank with support from the Seacoast Echo.
To learn more about the Old Town Merchants Association, use the alphabetical list below. You can also search by category from the menu bar above.
 Click on the cover to open the tour now!
The Bay's Walking/Biking Historic Tour is proof in print that history doesn't have to be boring!
And now it's available in a nifty PDF version, so it can go with you on your phone! Click to open it up and get going right now! Look for an updated print version available free at various merchant locations throughout Old Town in the coming weeks! |
National Recognition
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In the June 2017 issue of Vogue Magazine, Bay St. Louis is featured in the article "A Summer Road Trip Along the Mississippi Gulf Coast". Share it with friends and business associates. To read the article in Vogue Magazine, click here!
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In March of 2017, Bay St. Louis was featured as one of Thrillist 13 Amazing American Beach Towns you can actually afford to live in. Explore Old Town and find out why!
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U.S. Solo Travel Destinations for women...
In March of 2017, Glamour Magazine named Bay St. Louis as one of eight cool, unexpected American destinations for women to consider for a solo travel destination. So start bragging!
Share it with friends and business associates. To read the article in Glamour Magazine, click here!
Share it with friends and business associates. To read the article in Glamour Magazine, click here!
BSL Makes "Best Of!"BAY ST. LOUIS WAS ONE OF ONLY TWELVE MISSISSIPPI LOCATIONS TO BE SELECTED FOR THE "OFFICIAL BEST OF MISSISSIPPI" FEATURE. NOMINEES UNDERWENT A RIGOROUS SELECTION PROCESS. SEE WHY WE WERE CHOSEN "BEST PLEASURE SEEKER'S PARADISE!"
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