Toucans on the Beach making a comeback in Mexico Beach years after Hurricane Michael

PANAMA CITY, Fla. (WJHG/WECP) - For years, Toucans on the Beach was a local staple — until Hurricane Michael changed everything. Now, nearly eight years after the storm, Toucans on the Beach is making a comeback.

“I’m from Panama City Beach, grew up there, and Toucans has always been a word out there in Mexico Beach or in Gulf County,” said Toucan’s owner-operator, Rob Hammer, “but as I’ve discovered, there is a lot of fanfare around Toucans.”

Hurricane Michael destroyed the landmark in 2018. But now it is coming back.

“This one is built to withstand multiple hurricanes,” said Hammer.

Construction is nearly complete on the new Toucans, which will be much larger than the original.

“This has got all the new bells and whistles of 2026,” said Hammer. “We’ve got the primary dining and the deck on the first floor.”

The second floor has additional dining and a sports bar-like atmosphere.

While the new Toucans is more modern, pieces of the original can still be found on the menu.

“It’s a little diversified, but we have a lot of the original stuff that Toucans had,” said Hammer, “the chicken Pappadeaux there, shrimp and sausage pasta, she crab soup, most of the appetizers.”

A few finishing touches remain before the doors open.

“We got a few little plumbing issues we’ve got to take care of,” said Hammer, “then we’ve got the devil in the details stuff, signs, and things like that that we’ve got to get up, and we do that after everything’s clean.”

We are told the community is looking forward to the opening.

“I’ve been going through this construction phase, I’m here every day, and I’ve talked to countless people about when are you opening, when are you opening,” said Hammer, “So that’s going to be the exciting part of it.”

The doors are expected to open right after Labor Day.

Toucans on the Beach is currently hiring for all positions; you can find out how to apply here.

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