Family Photographer in Bluffton, SC

Bluffton fans of Island Nutrition and Okatie Nutrition won’t have to drive as far for the business’ shakes and teas.

The owners have opened a third location — they’re calling this one LoCo Nutrition — in the Shoppes at Myrtle Park shopping center at Bluffton Parkway and Burnt Church Road.

In January, Melonie Hackman and Doug Rounds took possession of the storefront in the plaza that also is home to Planet Fitness, but they were not able to start construction for several months. They are still waiting on some finishing touches, including a sign for the front.

LoCo Nutrition opened May 29.

“We are so excited about this location,” Hackman said. “It’s something our customers have been asking for.”

Island Nutrition opened on Hilton Head in November of 2020, and Okatie Nutrition in Riverwalk Business Park quickly followed in June 2021.

The Bluffton location will offer the same basic menu of Herbalife-branded shakes and teas but also will include pre-workout and post-workout options.

“That’s brand new for us,” Hackman said about the new “Fuel Your Workout” menu.

A grand opening will be scheduled in the next few weeks.

Hackman said fans should follow the shops’ Instagram and Facebook pages for information about hours and daily specials for LoCo Nutrition’s shake and tea combos.

“Ordering two drinks together is a different idea for some people,” Hackman previously told The Island Packet. “But it’s like when you go into any other restaurant and order a meal and a drink. The shake has the nutrition of the meal while the tea is your drink.”

There are dozens of different flavors of shakes, each with 24 grams of protein and about 250 calories. They are made to be energizing, metabolism-boosting and calorie-burning. If tea isn’t your thing, there are coffee options on the menu, and coffee-flavored shakes as well.

What: LoCo Nutrition

Where: 48 Burnt Church Road, Suite 200A

Hours: 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday; 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday and Sunday

Phone: 843-298-7203

Instagram: www.instagram.com/loconutritionsc

The visiting Bluffton Sardines outswam Ada-Lost Creek Gators in West Ohio Aquatic League dual meet action Thursday night, June 9.

The Sardines won the combined boys-girls team event with scores of 465-274 over the Gators. The Sardine boys won 235-153, while the Sardine girls won 230-121.

Bluffton's Kari Diller won five races in the 11-12 age bracket to lead the girls..

Bluffton's Camden Verb won four individual races in the 11-12 age bracket to pace the boys.

NOTE: SC indicates "short course" pool length.

Bluffton first-place finishers:

Girls 8 & Under 100 SC Meter Medley Relay Team Relay Seed Time Finals Time Points

1) Gwin, Grace A 8 2) Geiser, Kenlee G 8 3) Agner, Madelyn P 8 4) Kauffman, Evelyn R 8

Girls 9-10 200 SC Meter Medley Relay Team Relay Seed Time Finals Time Points

1) Wischmeyer, Autumn E 9 2) Ward, Naiyana R 10 3) Cocherham, Alysia D 10 4) Ulrey, Arden C 9

Boys 11-12 200 SC Meter Medley Relay Team Relay Seed Time Finals Time Points

1) Armstrong, Owen L 12 2) Essinger, Levin D 11 3) Verb, Camden R 11 4) Cockerham, Caleb G 12

Girls 13-14 200 SC Meter Medley Relay Team Relay Seed Time Finals Time Points

1) Downey, Jenna M 14 2) Schneck, Lyla A 13 3) Mohr, Makenna P 14 4) Geiser, Karden F 13

Girls 6 & Under 25 SC Meter Freestyle Name Age Team Seed Time Finals Time Points

Girls 7-8 25 SC Meter Freestyle Name Age Team Seed Time Finals Time Points

Boys 7-8 25 SC Meter Freestyle

Name Age Team Seed Time Finals Time Points

Boys 9-10 50 SC Meter Freestyle

Name Age Team Seed Time Finals Time Points

Girls 11-12 50 SC Meter Freestyle

Name Age Team Seed Time Finals Time Points

Boys 11-12 50 SC Meter Freestyle

Name Age Team Seed Time Finals Time Points

Girls 13-14 50 SC Meter Freestyle

Name Age Team Seed Time Finals Time Points

Boys 13-14 50 SC Meter Freestyle

Name Age Team Seed Time Finals Time Points

Boys 9-10 100 SC Meter IM

Name Age Team Seed Time Finals Time Points

Girls 11-12 100 SC Meter IM

Boys 11-12 100 SC Meter IM

Name Age Team Seed Time Finals Time Points

Girls 13-14 100 SC Meter IM

Boys 13-14 100 SC Meter IM

Girls 8 & Under 25 SC Meter Butterfly

Boys 8 & Under 25 SC Meter Butterfly

Name Age Team Seed Time Finals Time Points

Boys 9-10 50 SC Meter Butterfly

Boys 11-12 50 SC Meter Butterfly

Boys 13-14 50 SC Meter Butterfly

Boys 7-8 25 SC Meter Backstroke

Girls 11-12 50 SC Meter Backstroke

Boys 11-12 50 SC Meter Backstroke

Girls 13-14 50 SC Meter Backstroke

Boys 15-18 50 SC Meter Backstroke

Girls 8 & Under 50 SC Meter Freestyle

Boys 8 & Under 50 SC Meter Freestyle

Girls 9-10 100 SC Meter Freestyle

Girls 11-12 100 SC Meter Freestyle

Boys 11-12 100 SC Meter Freestyle

Girls 13-14 100 SC Meter Freestyle

Boys 13-14 100 SC Meter Freestyle

Boys 15-18 100 SC Meter Freestyle

Girls 9-10 50 SC Meter Breaststroke

Girls 11-12 50 SC Meter Breaststroke

Boys 11-12 50 SC Meter Breaststroke

Girls 13-14 50 SC Meter Breaststroke

Boys 13-14 50 SC Meter Breaststroke

Girls 15-18 50 SC Meter Breaststroke

Girls 8 & Under 100 SC Meter Freestyle Relay

Boys 8 & Under 100 SC Meter Freestyle Relay

Boys 9-10 200 SC Meter Freestyle Relay

Boys 11-12 200 SC Meter Freestyle Relay

Girls 13-14 200 SC Meter Freestyle Relay

Boys 15-18 200 SC Meter Freestyle Relay

Team Relay Seed Time Finals Time Points

On a recent evening, the line was out the door at Mama G’s Pizza Bistro and Bar in Moss Creek Village.

It didn’t take long for word to spread about the restaurant located on the Bluffton side of the Hilton Head bridges.

Karen Davidson of Bluffton was waiting for a table with her husband and daughter. She said it would be their second time dining there in the three weeks the restaurant has been open.

“The dough on the pizza is just phenomenal,” Davidson said. “You can just taste the freshness of the sauce and the ingredients and the cheese.”

Mama G’s owner, Glen Grace, said he and his staff are “super passionate about ingredients.” Fresh and homemade are key.

“We use everything organic or non-GMO that we can find,” he said.

The new restaurant is a family business.

Grace, who also has a trucking company, moved to the Lowcountry six years ago. He’s originally from New Jersey.

His three grown children had been working for other restaurants in the area.

“I told them, ‘If you want to give me a three-year commitment, I can open up a restaurant, and you can be your own boss,’” Grace said.

They took him up on the deal.

Mama G’s seats 95 inside, and Grace expects to add an additional 32 seats outside, possibly by July Fourth.

“This isn’t your kid’s pizzeria,” says the restaurant’s website. “This is a pizza joint designed for grown-ups, but kids are welcome too!”

Pizzas at Mama G’s come in a “bar pie” — a roughly 8-inch by 12-inch rectangle cut into six pieces — or an 18-inch round. Pizzas are generally in the $15 to $18 range for a bar pie or $23 to $29 for the 18-inch.

The flavors are in line with the restaurant’s upscale Italian motif. (We’re welcome to call it “bougee,” according to its website.)

“The Boss” or Capo pizza is topped with tomato sauce, mozzarella, sausage, pepperoni, ricotta, basil and Asiago. There’s another with Gorgonzola, prosciutto, pear and arugula. For mushroom fans, the Funghi comes with shitake, cremini and portobello mushrooms, truffle pecorino and a balsamic drizzle.

Those with more simple cravings can get a cheese pizza or customize it with an array of toppings, including bell peppers, olives, spinach, bacon, ham or grilled chicken, among others.

In addition to pizza, customers can choose from small plates in the $10 to $15 range, including arancini (risotto with peas and cheese rolled into balls, breaded and fried), roasted eggplant caponata, braised claims and grilled calamari, or share an antipasto board for $27.

An assortment of salads round out the menu with panini served on house-made focaccia.

Drink specialties include an Amalfi spritz (house-made limoncello, prosecco and club soda) or the Costello, an espresso martini.

To end your meal, choose from a dozen flavors of Marion’s Gelato from Mount Pleasant.

What: Mama G’s Pizza Bistro and Bar

Where: 1533 Fording Island Road, Suite 302, in Moss Creek Village

Hours: Noon to 10 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday; closed Sunday and Monday

Phone: 843-543-6262

Website: mamagpizzahhi.com

The Bluffton Juneteenth Festival, commemorating the emancipation of the last enslaved people in the Confederacy in 1865, is back for a seventh year.

While Juneteenth is a federally and town-recognized holiday falling on the 19th of the month, Bluffton’s celebration is robust and will span June 17-19.

The free June 17 event, held from 5 to 9 p.m. at Bluffton Eagles Field, will kick off with Black Food Truck Friday, featuring 10 Black-owned food trucks, a DJ battle, and tournaments for Spades and cornhole.

Cuisines will range from Gullah and Caribbean-inspired food to sweet treats. To register for the Spades tournament, go to blufftonmlk.org.

Day Two, held at the Burnt Church Distillery from 4 to 10 p.m., will include free performances from artists, food and artisan vendors, kid’s activities and a drum circle. Performers include The Promise Land Band, Energy Evolution Drum Circle and gospel singer Angela Bonaparte.

Shuttles will be provided for the Saturday event, starting at 3:30 p.m. from Red Cedar Elementary School, located at 10 Box Elder St.

On June 19, tickets will be required for the 2nd annual Blues Brunch from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m at Burnt Church Distillery. The brunch will offer a catered buffet from Melly Mell’s, mimosas and dessert bars. Tickets can be purchased through midnight Saturday, June 11, on The Bluffton MLK Observance Committee’s website.

While enslaved people were legally freed under the Emancipation Proclamation on Jan. 1, 1863, President Abraham Lincoln’s declaration did not instantly free enslaved African Americans. On June 19, 1865, 2 1/2 years later, Union soldiers, led by Maj. Gen. Gordon Granger, landed in Galveston, Texas, with news the war had ended and the enslaved were now free.

The following year, freedmen in Texas organized a celebration of “Jubilee Day” on June 19. Over decades, the celebration grew and Black people who migrated from Texas spread word of the tradition. It’s also referred to as “Juneteenth Independence Day,” “Freedom Day” or “Emancipation Day.”

Over a century later, in 1979, Texas became the first state to mark Juneteenth an official holiday. Last year, two days before June 19, President Joe Biden signed into law the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act, establishing Juneteenth as a national holiday.

In South Carolina, June 19 was designated as “Juneteenth Celebration of Freedom Day” in 2018, but lawmakers stopped short of making it a legal holiday, according to previous reporting by The State.

By the time you read this, you’ve probably already heard about Bluffton’s hottest new restaurant. No, it’s not one of those fancy places with ingredients you’ve never heard of or cannot pronounce. It’s a pizza joint. A simple, clean, quality pizza joint that in just over a month in business as I write this, has become the talk of the town.

Mama G’s Bistro and Bar sounds a bit on the uppity side. That assessment is fair enough because this is a higher end establishment. Everything about it is.

About a week and a half after they opened last month, I spent a couple of hours with the owner, Glen Grace. He and his family have been in the area for a hot minute. He’s spent his time here working in the trucking industry. Which is not exactly the kind of profession that allows a clean transition to food and beverage. So you had to wonder, how did he end up renting a space and putting about a million dollars into a renovation, research and development of what has become the best pizza in the Low Country? Because it is.

The intentions were 100% pure. In more ways than one.

Glen shared a story with me about his own childhood. He brought up something that many of us who try to watch what we consume on a daily basis talk about fairly regularly.

“I assume we are about the same age.” He said “When we were kids, we didn’t have problems with GMO food or Gluten Free products or Organic anything.”

“The things that they are putting in our food now is terrible. It’s garbage.”

His 3 children wanted to open a restaurant. He gave it some thought and finally landed on ‘if we are going to do it, we are going to do it my way and we are going to do it right.”

So he went full steam ahead on renting a space in the Moss Creek area that would eventually become home to a good looking restaurant who’s main offering, that’s right, is pizza. Not just any, though.

In those two hours, Glen more than shared his passion. On a tour of his kitchen, he showed me all of the high-end ingredients that he had just spent 30 minutes telling me about. I could list them here for you, but it doesn’t really matter. What I can tell you is that flours, the oils and anything else you will find in their kitchen is the highest quality you can get delivered in this area.

Some of it required a significant commitment on Glen’s part with his distributors because no one else in this area is using it. If they are going to make the commitment to get it to Bluffton, South Carolina for you, you’d better be prepared to buy a lot of it. And he is.

The result of this dedication is very clear when you take a bite of their pizzas at Mama G’s. The pies are wonderful. The quality is more than obvious.

“I like to look at people’s eyes when they take their first bite.” Glen says. “The eyes don’t lie”

No, they don’t, and as a result, Mama G’s has been very well received. They’ve gone on hour plus waits multiple evenings since they first opened. There’s been no ‘easing into it’ here. They’ve been drinking out of a fire hose from just about day 2 or 3 and it’s more than obvious that Glen is loving every minute of it.

On the flip side, the price you pay for all of this quality, passion and excellent execution is….the price you pay. There is nothing inexpensive about the pizza Mama G’s is offering the community and Glen makes no apologies for it.

If you are looking for a Tuesday night $8 three meat special, you’d best be served getting on down the road. That ain’t happening here. His least expensive glass of wine on the day I visited was $9. Again, Glen references the fact that he refuses to serve low end wines that he can burn through at $6 a glass just to make a buck or two. This isn’t about that. It is, and always will be about serving clean, healthy food with the most simple recipes and ingredients you will always know.

Even the sodas. There is no Coke or Pepsi in here. It’s organic fountain sodas. The gelato is made by a very small company in Charleston who, Glen says, is very persnickety themselves about who serves their product.

“We are her first brick and mortar.” He says.

Overall the experience is fantastic. The space is beautiful, the vibe is warm and inviting. I have yet to see it, but I imagine the dinner crowds on the weekend offer an energy that you won’t find at too many places on the mainland. Sure, there are a few, but now there is one more.

A pizza joint, where you will Eat It and Like It.

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