4 Corners Diner — Restaurant in Atlantic Beach

We visited this place yesterday after seeing other positive reviews and were not disappointed. Upon arrival, we considered leaving because there were no parking spaces in the front. But after driving around a little more, we realized they had plenty of parking behind the restaurant.

When we entered the door we were disappointed to find about 20 people waiting. Some were sitting and standing in a little lobby area at the door and others were in a line along the wall leading up to a greeting booth. We got in line and were pleased to see that it moved quicker than we anticipated. The only negative thing we experienced was that we didn't see any signage and no one told us their process for getting seated. We noticed people passing us to get seated and figured that one of their party members was in line holding a spot for the group's. However, when we got to the front of the line, the hostess asked us what number we had. We told her we didn't have a number so she handed us one and said it shouldn't be too long. A gentleman behind us experienced the same thing. He had been waiting in line behind us. When two other men walked pass and the hostess questioned them concerned their desires and told one of them to go on in to the bar area, I heard the man question how they were able to get served before him. I informed him that he needed to get a number. He was obviously upset, but took it like a champ and didn't complain.

Once we were seated, we were greeted almost immediately for our drink orders. She was very attentive to us, got our food to us in a timely manner, and the food was very good. We will return to this place when we're back in town.

The staff members are very efficient here and I've never seen anything like it before. I don't know if someone is watching the cameras and directing the staff or what, but I observed that once a person was seated, most were greated within a minute. Then once they got up from their table, staff was clearing their table within a minute. It was as if the staff was watching around the corner just waiting for someone to get up.

But one of the things that which impressed me the most was the customers care I witnessed from a man who appeared to be a manager or owner. A waitress accidentally spilled a drink and it splashed up on a young boy. I couldn't make out what the manager said, but almost immediately someone came to help the waitress clean up the mess and he showed concern for the boy's health. They gave him some napkins to clean himself and after a while, the manager returned to check on him again. This time he joked with the boy and asked him if he was paying the bill for his family. The boy replied no because he didn't have any money. The manager said you can afford this bill...

We found this quaint family restaurant at the end of our vacation and wish we’d have found it much sooner! We had breakfast there the first day and returned Friday and Saturday because we loved it so much!

The menu is full of home cooked, as well as local favorites and everything we ordered was cooked perfectly and very good. Servings are generous and the prices are low to average for the Emerald Isle/Atlantic Beach area.

We were there in the off-season, but we did have to wait a few minutes to get a table - very brief wait times, but I would imagine in-season this place is packed. No other restaurant on the island had a wait time during our trip. That in itself should tell you something.

Again, the food was great, but the best thing about 4 Corners? The atmosphere and staff!!! Jess was our waitress on all three visits. She was friendly, sweet, efficient and most of all genuine. Our drinks were always refilled and she even brought to-go cups and containers without us even asking. She took time out, when she wasn’t hustling to wait other tables, to chat with her customers and get to know them. Even though she asked the standard “How is everything?” She also asked “Did ya’ll get enough to eat?” I know it sounds silly, but that question alone made us feel like we were sitting at a mom’s kitchen table having a hearty breakfast.

Then there was David, one of the family members that owns the 4 Corners. Right away I noticed how interactive he was with all his customers. Not only did he greet us upon our arrival and check us out at the end of our meal, but he was constantly making rounds, stopping at every table in the restaurant to make sure folks had what they needed. I watched him clear plates and refill drinks several times as well. Again, just like Jess, he took the time to get to know us and made us feel so very welcome. And it was genuine! You could tell the staff love their jobs and were one big family there. Everyone was smiling and pleasant. They took pride in their work and their restaurant - you could feel that family vibe from start to finish and even though we loved the food, the atmosphere is what had us coming back.

Give it a try, there’s something for everyone on the menu. They serve breakfast and lunch. The only con to this restaurant? They are only open until 2:00 each day. We probably would have ate dinner there as well if they had been open, but I get the feeling one of the reasons they have limited hours is so they and their staff can have a life with their families and...

Came to this restaurant on 4th of July... We've come to this restaurant even when it was at a different location the former owner Mel was very nice person always very pleasant... Finishing up our lunch a lady could be heard belittling her kitchen staff from the kitchen.. couldn't quite make out what she was saying but you could tell it was very hateful. She came out into the dining room with a nasty sour look upon her face you could tell she has a very poor disposition.... Upon seeing her we happen to ask a staff member who it was and they told us it was the owner Anita... I'm a district manager for a chain restaurant I have several restaurants in my district we would never allow a manager or another employee at that to talk to the staff like this lady was talking to the people that work for her I asked if they had a high turnover rate and was told yes and I definitely can see why.... This lady has no business running a restaurant at all.. she needs to learn how to talk to people... She would not last a moment with our company even as an employee.. she needs to figure out that if she treats people with respect and is nice and leads by example that people will work better for her and want to come to work and she would not have a high turnover rate... I called back in today actually because I wanted to speak with Anita personally but was told she was too busy to come to the phone . I was told by staff members that she lived upstairs didn't participate too much but came down and complained a lot. ... this restaurant has always been wonderful the service was great but we will never come here again.... If she keeps this up the store will go out of business because nobody likes to be treated like a piece of dirt and just because you're in a horrible mood or a miserable person you bring that environment to your restaurant it's a toxic place for your staff to work and for your guests to eat..... You should be ashamed of yourself for treating your staff that way.. there are limited places to eat in this area so if you do decide to try this restaurant out I suggest to take out order... Because a run in with this lady will definitely ruin your appetite.. and the word of advice maybe if you would have actually came to the phone when asked to be spoken with by a guest you wouldn't be getting these bad reviews.. it was obviously she could care less.....