NC Coast Grill & Bar — Restaurant in Duck

You know those disappointing soundfront restaurants with great views and not-so-great food? Well this is not one of them! Our lunch at NC Coast was nothing short of amazing. And they were open the day of New Year's Eve; anyone who spends time in the northern banks over a winter holiday knows it's hard to find restaurants that are open. If you find one that's open AND it happens to be a great dining experience, bonus points for you! On a whim that day (and because one of our regular places normally open in the winter was actually closed) we ended up at NC Coast. So glad fate intervened on our behalf. Bonus points for us!!

Where do I start? The interior is light, bright, and casual but refined. The furnishings are designed so that guests can see the sound whether they are 'up front' by those windows or in the back of the restaurant, closer to 12 & the small parking area: the tables farthest from the water view are taller; the tables closest to the water view are shorter (I think that is really clever). So we sat at a high-top near the main entry and admired the view from afar. There is a bar that runs along the south-facing wall, and an open kitchen area with a pass-through counter that spans part of the north-facing wall. Visually it provides a nice balance to the interior.

Our waiter was fabulous. If I can remember his name I'll come back and edit this post... but he was terrific. We started with NC Coast Oysters which were quickly devoured by my husband and myself. So fresh! Crowned with pimiento cheese and pork belly, they reminded me of a better version of clams casino. I don't risk my shellfish allergy with just any ol' oysters (or shrimp or steamed crabs for that matter!) but these were absolutely worth it. Just wonderful. For our meal, I went with a small plate selection, the shrimp & grits by Chef Wes. Artisanal in its presentation and served inside a martini glass; at first I noticed there were only 4 or 5 whole shrimp but I quickly became convinced that extra shrimp were ground into the rest of the dish. Perhaps?! Either way, it was a very satisfying smaller portion full of shrimp goodness.

My husband had the crab cake sliders with the Korean slaw. We don't ever do crab cakes outside of Maryland, because, well... why would you?! They're just never the way they should be. Well... these crabcakes do indeed contain the perfect amount of Old Bay seasoning, and they're the only non-Maryland crabcakes my husband has ever really enjoyed. This entree came with tasty pickled vegetables. We ordered a side of shoestring fries to share; they were perfectly crisped on the outside, soft on the inside, and salted just right.

Somehow we were talked into dessert, specifically the housemade beignets (sp?). They were warm and pillowy and out of this world. This meal was the perfect way to end 2019 and kick off the new year. The only downside I can think of is that the restaurant itself is smaller, but the staff did a great job and guests were efficiently served while seemingly not rushed through their meals. Oh, there is one more dilemma: we can't decide if we should take along friends next time so we can share a bunch of the other menu items we had to skip this last time, or if we just keep going to NC Coast every time we are in town and work through the menu that way. Regardless, this place is a winner with exceptional dishes to share alongside one friend...

The Outer Banks is a beautiful place with great restaurants, and, unfortunately, this restaurant does not fall into this category. Despite the great decor and food, the treatment of guests by management and staff is appalling, especially for a family friendly restaurant.

The Experience:

We’ve eaten here twice - our first visit the day before our second. Our small family of three are locals, and we just now found this restaurant! Casey, our server, was incredible - very kind, receptive, and suggested great dishes. She even provided us a locals discount after learning that we were from the area (we’re new here - in the last year).

The issue was our second visit:

We brought our youngest son to the restaurant (16), since it was such a phenomenal experience we wanted him to experience (he had school the day before). Food was great, and service was satisfactory.

When we finished the problems began:

Firstly, we are locals of the area. On our first visit, we were referred to the restaurant by Aqua (another local restaurant - amazing by the way), and they offered a local discount. When asking about the discount we received on our first visit - to continue this discount since we’re locals (very respectfully), we were told three different things:

They don’t offer discounts to those on the 4x4. They don’t offer discounts in Summer. Discounts stop in May.

When hearing this, our middle aged son asked if it was normal to be told that living on the 4x4 “doesn’t count” as a local and if this was normal behavior. It is not.

The manager proceeded to say that the server who gave us the discount on our first visit will be “talked to” and shouldn’t have done that - in a very aggressive way.

Our family is pretty understanding! We run our own business, and the food was amazing here. Despite this issue, we were willing to move forward. We paid and were finishing up our desserts when our second issue arose:

We were told that a “reservation” was coming up and we had to leave - not even 5 minutes after obtaining the check (seriously). This restaurant does not take reservations, and when we mentioned this some excuses were fumbled.

This was, especially since the beginning of the pandemic, one of our first visits back to restaurants, and it was difficult!

I sincerely hope that this attitude towards locals changes, and that other patrons are respected when dining here - because the food and decor is great.

Overall, some things fall short - and it...

My family and I recently visited NC Coast Grill and Bar in Duck, NC, and it was a profoundly disappointing experience from start to finish. We arrived with high hopes for a nice seafood dinner, but what we got was a complete lack of quality control and a litany of frustrations.

First, the view was delightful, but that’s about it. Thee wait was a grueling 90 minutes just to be seated, which already set a sour tone. The slow service continued throughout our meal.

The food, when it arrived, was a huge letdown. The "coastal" seafood was anything but. The crab legs were pitifully sparse, with about half of them having barely any meat. The shrimp were even worse—unpeeled and undeveined—making them utterly unappetizing and a waste of our money. My family and I ended up throwing most of them out. This is not what we expect from a restaurant that prides itself on being a coastal seafood spot.

However, the most egregious part of our meal was the shocking lack of cleanliness. We were seated on the patio, which was completely overrun with spider webs. While we understand that some bugs are to be expected outside, this was a full-blown infestation. Our umbrella was home to at least six spiders, two of which feel into our food. My sons were frustrated as two more spiders dangled directly above their heads. They were so disgusted they couldn't finish their meals and left early. When we brought this horrifying issue to the staff's attention, the response was a dismissive "they come out at night." This is unacceptable. These were not new webs; they were huge, indicating a long-standing and unaddressed problem. A simple hose-down each night would have prevented this nightmare.

The final straw was witnessing a staff member pouring leftover drinks from a table directly into the ocean. This blatant disregard for the environment and basic sanitation was a truly shocking end to an already terrible evening.

For a bill that was nearly $300 for 3 lbs of crab, 1 lb of shrimp, sides, and sodas, this level of service and quality is simply inexcusable. My family and I will not be returning, and we strongly advise others to save their money and their sanity by...