Southern Restaurant Group

What Southern Restaurant Group does

Southern Restaurant Group is a privately held, locally owned restaurant operator founded in 1979 in Destin, Florida by General Henry H. Cobb, Jr. Originally incorporated as the Destin Development Company, the firm evolved through two corporate rebrands (Cobb Investment Company, Inc. in 1998, Southern Restaurant Group in 1999) while continuously operating under the same local ownership. The group currently owns and operates six waterfront seafood restaurants across three Gulf Coast towns — Destin, FL (three locations), Panama City Beach, FL (two locations in Pier Park), and Orange Beach, AL (one location in SanRoc Cay) — across three restaurant brands: The Back Porch Seafood & Oyster House, Pompano Joe's Seafood House, and Louisiana Lagniappe. The corporate office is headquartered at 1771 Scenic Hwy 98, Destin, FL 32541.

The business model is direct-to-consumer on-premise dining, with all revenue generated through physical restaurant operations. The company's positioning centers on fresh Gulf of Mexico seafood, in-house prepared sauces, and waterfront views, targeting tourists and local diners in the Florida-Alabama Gulf Coast tourism corridor. There is no disclosed pricing model, no mobile application, no digital ordering platform, and no third-party delivery integration mentioned in the source material — the technology footprint is limited to individual restaurant marketing websites and a corporate Squarespace site. Operational leadership is anchored by Executive Chef Roberto Hernandez (40+ years in the industry since 1975) who standardizes kitchen operations, with David Smith serving as Marketing Director for media and public relations.

The company has no parent, no subsidiaries, no disclosed funding rounds, no external investors, and no revenue figures available. It is a closely held, family/local ownership entity that has not pursued visible expansion in over 25 years (the last documented acquisition was Louisiana Lagniappe in 1998). Pricing, headcount, financial performance, and customer segmentation beyond dine-in tourists and locals are not publicly disclosed.

Name

Southern Restaurant Group

Legal name

Southern Restaurant Group

Website

https://srgcorp.net

Company type

Private

Founded year

1979

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Southern Restaurant Group is a privately held, locally owned operator founded in 1979 that runs six waterfront seafood restaurants across the Florida-Alabama Gulf Coast under three brands — The Back Porch, Pompano Joe's, and Louisiana Lagniappe — serving Gulf Coast tourists and local diners.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Waterfront Seafood Restaurants

NAICS

Full-Service Restaurants (722511), Restaurants and Other Eating Places (72251)

SIC

Retail-Eating Places (5812), Retail-Eating & Drinking Places (5810)

akta.pro primary industry

Steakhouses & Seafood Restaurants (THAFACAE)

akta.pro secondary industry

Ethnic & Regional Cuisine Restaurants (THAFACAD)

Keywords

• Waterfront seafood restaurants
• Gulf Coast dining
• Fresh seafood dining
• Restaurant group operations
• Waterfront dining

Headquarters

HQ city

Destin

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Distribution channels1 record

Core offering

Southern Restaurant Group owns and operates six waterfront seafood restaurants along the Gulf Coast under three brands: The Back Porch Seafood & Oyster House, Pompano Joe's Seafood House, and Louisiana Lagniappe. All restaurants serve fresh Gulf of Mexico seafood with sauces made in-house and emphasize waterfront dining views. Locations span Destin FL, Panama City Beach FL, and Orange Beach AL.

Product overview

Southern Restaurant Group operates a portfolio of six waterfront seafood restaurants along the Gulf Coast, spanning three Gulf Coast towns. The portfolio consists of three distinct restaurant brands: The Back Porch Seafood & Oyster House (with locations in Destin, FL and Panama City Beach, FL), Pompano Joe's Seafood House (with locations in Destin, FL and Panama City Beach, FL), and Louisiana Lagniappe (with locations in Destin, FL and Orange Beach, AL). All restaurants emphasize fresh Gulf of Mexico seafood, in-house made sauces, and waterfront dining views. The group is locally owned and operated since 1979.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• The Back Porch Seafood & Oyster House Waterfront seafood restaurant serving fresh Gulf of Mexico seafood, operated by Southern Restaurant Group with locations in Destin, FL and Panama City Beach, FL (beachside in Pier Park). Targets tourists and local diners seeking fresh Gulf seafood with waterfront views.
• Pompano Joe's Seafood House

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights2 records

Broad incumbents

• Landry's Inc. Large multi-concept restaurant and hospitality operator (Tilman Fertitta) including Landry's Seafood House, Bubba Gump Shrimp Co., and Mitchell's Fish Market. Comparable as a multi-brand seafood full-service operator with similar waterfront positioning and Gulf Coast presence.
• Darden Restaurants: Largest US full-service restaurant operator (Olive Garden, LongHorn Steakhouse, The Capital Grille, Eddie V's). Comparable as a broad incumbent with seafood exposure and a multi-brand full-service portfolio model targeting similar middle-to-upper income diners.
• Bloomin' Brands (Bonefish Grill): Owns Bonefish Grill, an upscale-casual seafood full-service chain. Comparable as a national seafood full-service operator with similar menu positioning (fresh seafood, scratch preparation) to Southern Restaurant Group's concepts.

Regional players

• Legal Sea Foods: Multi-unit full-service seafood operator primarily in the Northeast US with strong waterfront/waterview locations. Comparable as a regional seafood-focused restaurant chain with waterfront real estate strategy, though operating in a different geography.

Direct peers

• Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. Themed full-service seafood chain (operated under Landry's) specializing in shrimp and Gulf-inspired seafood in waterfront/tourist markets. Comparable in customer demographic (tourists seeking waterfront seafood experience) and unit positioning.
• Captain D's: Largest seafood-focused QSR chain in the US with strong Gulf/Southern US presence. Comparable as a multi-unit seafood restaurant operator serving Gulf Coast markets with similar value-conscious tourist customer overlap.
• McCormick & Schmick's: Full-service seafood restaurant chain focused on fresh fish and scratch preparation in urban and tourist markets. Comparable as a multi-unit full-service seafood operator emphasizing fresh, in-house prepared seafood.
• The Rusty Pelican: Iconic waterfront full-service seafood restaurant operator in tourist destinations. Comparable as a tourist-oriented waterfront seafood restaurant group with strong destination-dining positioning similar to The Back Porch and Pompano Joe's.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/srg-properties-inc.

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Southern Restaurant Group