Calabash – what a great name! If you are a “certain age” you will remember Jimmy Durante’s signature sign-off, “Good night Mrs. Calabash, wherever you are.” Was this just a fictional character Durante dreamed up to tease his audience? Locals say Mrs. Calabash was Lucy Coleman, who in 1940 ran a restaurant in this tiny seaside community. Jimmy Durante and his entertainment troupe enjoyed a meal there and during the evening Durante told Coleman he was going to make her famous; which was ironic considering Coleman didn’t even know who Durante was. As he was leaving the restaurant he turned and said to Coleman, “Good night Mrs. Calabash.” It wasn’t long after that night that Durante began to close his radio show using that same line.

This small town nestled on the border between North and South Carolina is full of Calabash restaurants, Calabash being a style of cooking seafood.

Besides a variety of restaurants, Calabash has a thriving shopping area, including the Sunset River Marketplace. This gallery features pottery, paintings, hand-crafted furniture, glass and metal and wood sculptures, from North and South Carolina artists.

While there are around 700 full-time residents the summertime finds the population dramatically due to Calabash’s proximity to the Intercoastal Waterway, Calabash River, and Sunset Beach.

Calabash may be small in size but there is still plenty to do. Calabash has a half-dozen golf courses, sail and power boaters have access to rivers, the ICW, and the Atlantic Ocean, and fishermen have a choice of sinking a line in offshore or inland waters.