Did you know there's an actual sand beach upstairs at the Sandbar? I'm pretty sure we've blogged about this before, but after searching through nearly five years' worth of posts, I couldn't find it.
Once upon a time, the upstairs area was uninhabitable. We had an office, but no one dared to venture into the front area upstairs.
Then, Dave and Ted and other Sandbar staffers renovated the area. It was exciting to have more space! Even though it didn't increase our occupancy limits, it gave us more space for fun stuff.
About ten years ago, we started a gift shop upstairs. We had T-shirts and other luau and tiki-themed gifts for sale. The gift shop worked well for a couple of years, until suddenly people decided to start stealing stuff and we decided to close it.
What could we do next?
Of course, the logical answer was to create a beach. We hauled in a ton of sand. Not literally; that might break the floor. Dave thinks he brought in 20 bags that weighed either 60 or 80 pounds each of the fine white sand that is used for sandblasting and so closely resembles the sand on faraway tropical beaches.
For a brief time, we had a wedding chapel upstairs. We remember one wedding that took place but the idea never really caught on with people (wonder why!?).
So today, the Sandbar beach is a quiet place for customers and staff to escape the madness. Next time you're in, feel free to ask the staff if you can check it out. However, keep in mind that the staff on duty has full discretion to allow people upstairs, so if they tell you no, don't get upset- just check back next time.