The North Carolina Coast Restaurants

We’ve compiled the best of the best in The North Carolina Coast - browse our top choices for Restaurants during your stay.

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  • 1. Manna

    $$$$ | Downtown

    Sleek design, creative lighting, and carefully orchestrated music provide a mesmerizing backdrop to chef Carson Jewell's locally sourced ingredients and culinary artistry and the talented mixologists who create cocktails using seasonal ingredients and house-made bitters. Try the braised pork shank with sweet-potato puree, collards, and radish pico de gallo, or the pan-seared Virginia scallops with parsnip puree, braised leeks, and apple salsa. You're made to feel very special here, and there's great attention to detail.

    123 Princess St., Wilmington, North Carolina, 28401, USA
    910-763–5252

    Known For

    • Incredible desserts, like a deconstructed peanut butter cheesecake
    • Creative, locally sourced dishes
    • Impeccable service

    Restaurant Details

    Rate Includes: Closed Mon.
  • 2. Seabird

    $$$$ | Downtown

    On a prominent Market Street corner, chef Dean Neff's long-awaited seafood-and-cocktail lounge fully delivers, from the selection of local raw oysters to the impossibly buttery swordfish schnitzel, served with lemon jam and a mustard emulsion. The throwback style of the comfortable bar and small dining room invites leisurely meals, lubricated by addictive concoctions like the Hummingbird, made with local End of Days rum and honey-rhubarb simple syrup.

    1 S. Front St., Wilmington, North Carolina, 28401, USA
    910-769--5996

    Known For

    • A seafood tower, featuring seasonal catches like blue crab claws and littleneck clams
    • Creative, delicious cocktails
    • Wine and oyster pairings

    Restaurant Details

    Rate Includes: Closed Tues.
  • 3. Bespoke

    $ | Downtown | Coffee

    The drinks extend beyond coffee at this attractive, airy spot for a pick-me-up, from turmeric to matcha lattes, where the sign on the wall reads "Death Before Decaf." There's a small selection of scones and muffins and plenty of room—indoors and out—to kick back and work for a while.

    202 Princess St., Wilmington, North Carolina, 28401, USA
    910-769--4088

    Known For

    • Delicious iced drinks
    • Quick service
    • Creative skeleton-oriented branding and merchandise
  • 4. Catch

    $$$$ | Midtown

    Native Wilmingtonian chef Keith Rhodes is a James Beard Award finalist who sources local seafood for inspired, beautifully plated Asian- and Southern-influenced dishes. Copper fish sculptures decorate the dining room's sky-blue walls and watch you enjoy lump crab cakes, blackened swordfish, pan-roasted grouper, and other seafood dishes.

    6623 Market St., Wilmington, North Carolina, 28405, USA
    910-799–3847

    Known For

    • Locally sourced seafood
    • Artistic presentations
    • Celebrity chef owner, of Top Chef fame

    Restaurant Details

    Rate Includes: Closed Sun. and Mon., Credit cards accepted
  • 5. Ceviche's

    $$

    Panamanian-inspired food is the focus of this lively rum bar and restaurant just across the bridge from the beach. The eponymous ceviches—traditional Panamanian corvina, lobster, and tuna "cooked" in lime juice—are all wonderful, but ropa vieja (flank steak served over coconut rice) and blackened tuna are tasty, too. Outdoor seating includes a pleasant interior atrium, and tables on the patio by the road.

    7210 Wrightsville Ave., Wilmington, North Carolina, 28403, USA
    910-256–3131

    Known For

    • Flavorful empanadas and tacos
    • Four house ceviche blends
    • Big selection of high-quality rum drinks

    Restaurant Details

    Rate Includes: Closed Sun.
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  • 6. Oceanic

    $$$

    At Crystal Pier, this casual fine-dining destination lets you indulge in entrées like crab-stuffed salmon or a platter of Calabash seafood while sitting directly over the sand and surf. Sunday brunch—when specialties like crab and wild mushroom hash make their appearance—is particularly popular.

    703 S. Lumina Ave., Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina, 28480, USA
    910-256--5551

    Known For

    • Carolina crab dip
    • Upscale but reasonably priced seafood
    • Stunning location with outdoor seating directly on the ocean
  • 7. PinPoint Restaurant

    $$$$ | Downtown

    The sophisticated dining room delivers inventive new American dishes, crafted out of local ingredients and coastal catches. There are no wrong choices on the menu, from cornmeal-crusted North Carolina catfish to beef tartare, but the smoked trout with baked oysters is especially noteworthy.

    114 Market St., Wilmington, North Carolina, USA
    910-769–2972

    Known For

    • Triggerfish with ramp bisque
    • Polished farm-to-table experience
    • Raw and baked oysters
  • 8. Sealevel City Vegan Diner

    $ | North Metro

    The culinary creations here may be free of animal products, but they're certainly not lacking in flavor, from the addictive lentil burger patty melt to a kimchi tempeh Reuben that hits all the right notes.

    1015 S. Kerr Ave., Wilmington, North Carolina, 28403, USA
    910-833--7196

    Known For

    • Healthy, filling burgers and sandwiches
    • A towering plate of nachos
    • Relaxed, courteous service

    Restaurant Details

    Rate Includes: Closed Sun. and Mon.
  • 9. The Workshop

    $ | Coffee

    The owner of this coffee, smoothie, and sandwich shop is a scuba diver and fossil hunter, and the bustling counter-service operation doubles as a gallery for her shark and megalodon jewelry and art. Most of the seating is outside at picnic tables.

    86 Waynick Blvd., Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina, 28480, USA
    910-679--8605

    Known For

    • Cold-brew coffee with coconut water
    • Turmeric smoothies
    • Toasted baguette sandwiches
  • 10. South Beach Grill

    $$$
    Under Renovation

    Tight parking on a cramped lot doesn't deter diners from this friendly, slightly retro-looking restaurant, on the site of the first bank in Wrightsville Beach. The fried seafood is good, but the chef shows off with dishes like Lowcountry Frogmore stew or crab-stuffed calamari. Beef, pork, chicken, steak, and vegetarian options please landlubbers. Sit inside or on the patio with views of Banks Channel.

    100 S. Lumina Ave., Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina, 27480, USA
    910-256–4646

    Known For

    • Southern and Lowcountry dishes
    • Local seafood just off the boat

    Restaurant Details

    Rate Includes: Closed Mon. No dinner weekends, Credit cards accepted

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