Sad, but things change. Can't escape that.

COCOA BEACH -- 

A Cocoa Beach icon where locals could mingle with astronauts in the early days of the space program is no more.

Crews on Monday began demolishing the former Bernard's Surf restaurant.

Heavy equipment knocked down most of the decades-old building, a place known to locals as "The Surf."

The eatery is steeped in history dating back to its opening in the late 1940s.