Salty Mule Offers a Taste of the Beach in Downtown Canton

The beach-themed local eatery opened in February 2021, quickly built up a loyal following, and garnered rave reviews from diners. Many who dine there say they come for the great selection of fish and seafood dishes and return again and again for the oysters. One reviewer wrote, “Great local place that is always spot on. We always sit at the bar and the bartenders are great. It is a beach bar without the beach. If you are looking for great shrimp, oysters, and fish, this is your place.”

Another said, “We shared some delicious, reasonably priced raw oysters. Perfect, with good cocktail sauce and bold horseradish. Just what we wanted. Also tried some conch fritters that were excellent. Crispy, but not overdone, liked the sauce also. Some of the best we have ever had.”

The Salty Mule is located at 169 South Church Street in a reclaimed building that originally housed a grocery store, part of the Colonial Stores chain. Colonial Stores was a popular grocery store brand that dotted small towns in the South from the 1950s to the early 1970s. The company, headquartered in Atlanta, owned 500 stores at its peak in the 1960s.

The Salty Mule was honored recently by Atlanta News First Channel 46 with a Golden Spatula Award after the restaurant received a 100 on their health inspection. In presenting the award, the television coverage noted that everything is made from scratch in the kitchen. “They’ll even shuck some oysters for you and make you a signature cocktail. They have New England clam chowder, gator po’boy with hand-cut fries, shrimp and grits, a ribeye with cream corn, peel-and-eat shrimp, blackened grouper, and creole rigatoni on the menu. Boy, that’s good!,” the news show reported.

The restaurant is a fun gathering place for everyone to enjoy fresh seafood and other dishes. New shipments of seafood arrive daily, and the menu also offers non-seafood options for those looking to enjoy the restaurant but who are not fans of seafood. The bar features drinks from local breweries as well as big brands.

A key feature of the restaurant is its unique design touches, such as the eye-catching bar, which is reminiscent of a silo. The silo bar came from a Kentucky farm, and the front of the bar came from a movie set. A man in Ball Ground built the rest of the bar, and another Ball Ground resident made the cocktail tables and tabletops. The barn door decoration came from an old farm in Tennessee that was going to be torn down.

The Salty Mule does not take reservations and is open Tuesday–Thursday from 11:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m., Friday and Saturday from 11:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m., and Sunday from 11:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. For more information, visit TheSaltyMule.com.

This article was featured in the Historic Canton magazine. Read more.