Fish Hook Grill — Restaurant in Harkers Island

Went in for lunch about 1 pm on a Tuesday. Several tables were open and we sat at the high top by the front window. Server came and took our water order, we had 4 waters and a sweet tea. Waited about 5 minutes for waters- server dropped them off then told us of the daily specials and then disappeared. No kids menu was offered so I went to the hostess stand to ask for one from our server who was also the hostess. She couldn’t find a menu so just recited the menu- hard to remember- but oh well.

Service was slow- very slow. Locals that came in after us (server knew their names) but got their food way, way before us. Server seemed a bit flustered and came out to tell us that the kids shrimp that we ordered grilled could only be served fried. This seemed odd since we ordered grilled shrimp for the adult lunches. We changed the order to an adult lunch (at twice the price of the kids plate) so we could have the grilled shrimp.

Food came out staggered, first the fried clam strips and fries, then the 2 Hot Dogs- them the 3 orders of shrimp (1 blackened- 2 grilled) and finally the salad that was ordered as a starter for the table. People that brought the food were not our server and we did not see her for a good bit.

The food- with as high of a rating that Fish Hook Grill had- we had high hopes that the food would be good. The chili dogs were good, nothing special, the clam strips were cooked nicely- not too well done. The shrimp were all way, way overcooked. Like almost to the point of being in little balls- and were so tough- I thought at first I was eating gator tail. The one order of blackened were basically flavorless due to being so over cooked, and the grilled shrimp was very tough and flavorless. No cocktail sauce was brought to the table- and since the server did not drop by and we didn’t see her, I went to hunt some down. Went to the kitchen entrance and found a different person and asked for cocktail sauce and lemons. She brought it quickly to the table and it was literally the best part of my meal. A good bit of horseradish gave the bland, tough shrimp some actual taste. Should note that the digestive tract vein that goes down the back of the shrimp was not removed in any of the shrimp- we removed it while eating. Gross. We finished what we could, and went back to the hostess stand to get the checks. Paid our bill and left. Won’t be back- do...

Drove from the Emerald Isle / Morehead City / Beaufort areas down to Hawker’s Island for birding on a Saturday afternoon. We stumbled onto this spot and it instantly looked like my kind of place – a casual seafood restaurant in a classic fishing village.

Walked into The Fish Hook Grill and that’s exactly what we saw. Nautical décor, a lot of friendly folks (likely locals) chatting over lunch, and a cheerful welcoming staff.

Since it was mid-January, they mentioned they might be out of some items (for example, the Hatteras Clam Chowder) since they were closing for a few weeks at the end of the month and into February. But having seen rows of shrimp boats docked just a few blocks away, I figured that was the right move to make.

So, we ordered a Buffalo Shrimp appetizer (in honor of the football game taking place the same weekend), and two Shrimp Burgers (in honor of what seems to be a classic dish on the Crystal Coast).

The food and service were excellent! One bite of one shrimp and I knew right away these were super-fresh. I eat a LOT of shrimp, and these really stood out as superb!

I highly recommend The Fish Hook Grill. My wife and I will definitely be doing a 1.5-hour trip from the Triangle again - just so we can eat here while on a birding adventure.

I absolutely loved this place. You feel like family. Oh, and they had a great Pandora channel on the tv for nice background music.

Check out my photos for more details...

Our waitress should also be mentioned as she did an excellent job all around. She was polite and friendly, helped us with menu selections, and our drinks were quickly refilled.

We'll definitely be back at The Fish Hook Grill on our next trip to...

I was down here on Harkers Island for the very first time on August 10th 2014. I was hungry and in the mood for seafood and this place was recommended by my host who was driving me around showing me places outside of Beaufort where I was staying for the weekend. My friend raved about this place and Mrs fayes cooking, but when we arrived we saw that "The Fish Hook Grill" has changed hands and no longer looks the same, because Mrs Faye passed away taking her recipes with her. The outside of the building is no longer red like in the photos and everything inside has been redecorated very nicely in different color, not like the photos shown. The recipes are not the same. The food was very $$$ pricey for how much fish you actually got on your throw away styrofoam plates,bowls plastic utensils . I ordered the fried scallops, got only five of them. the rest were fries, slaw and hardly any hush puppies for the both of us. The food was tasty though. I really like the clam chowder, big chunks of potato and lots of clam, but in a very small bowl. I have had better seafood and more fish at other places for the same price. My friend had the most expensive plate. He also commented that he barely got any fish on his plate.He also said that his Key lime pie was not freshly made, but store bought, so we both agreed unless it gets better we won't be...