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We've compiled the best of the best in The North Carolina Coast - browse our top choices for the top things to see or do during your stay.
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 watching surfers catch waves just steps away. Dishes are thoughtful—they're not solely relying on the view. Sunday brunch is particularly popular.
Craft beer rules at this wind turbine–powered brewery and British Isles–style pub. Opt for seared local tuna atop a garden salad or noodle bowl, or go for a bratwurst sausage plate. Copper accents, lots of wood, and fun, retro touches (a Superman doll denotes the men's room; Wonder Woman, the ladies' room) characterize this huge white building, modeled after a turn-of-the-19th-century lifesaving station. Regularly scheduled live music adds to the festive atmosphere.
Housed in a replica of an early-19th-century Outer Banks Lifesaving Station, the dining room of this classic since 1946 feels like a nautical museum: classic clapboard construction, pine paneling, and walls of maritime artifacts. Miss O's crab cakes are perennially popular, as is the 14-layer chocolate cake.
New Bern's only waterfront restaurant doesn't rely on geography to impress—the craft cocktails, seared scallops, and entrées like salmon and local littleneck clams over angel-hair pasta simply taste even better when you're seated directly over the water.
The sophisticated dining room delivers inventive new American dishes, crafted out of local ingredients and coastal bounty. There are no wrong choices on the nightly changing menu, from beef tartare to a fried pork chop with honey apple glaze.
Named after two fishermen, father and son, this no-nonsense shack opened in 1937 and is one of the Outer Banks' oldest restaurants. Fishing photos hang between mounted catches on the walls, and classic country music twangs in the background. Locals flock here, especially for breakfast or a lunch of Hatteras-style clear clam chowder and fried seafood.
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.
Don't be fooled by the strip-mall location—this tiny dining room is a haven for farm-fresh, creatively constructed dishes served in generous portions. The menu changes frequently, but you can always expect interesting versions of seafood, beef, pork, and other standards. Reservations aren't accepted, so come early in prime periods (May to August) or expect a wait at the bar, where the pours are generous.
