Smitty's Grille — Restaurant in Kernersville

(3.25 stars) Smitty’s is a difficult place to properly rate. In terms of what it brings to Kernersville, it’s a breath of fresh air, a fun place to grab a drink, and a reliable source of seafood options. At the same time, if you’ve traveled a bit, you’ll recognize Smitty’s as a worse version of what you can find elsewhere.

Despite the unassuming shopping center location, Smitty’s atmosphere definitely stands out. The netting and pirate flags on the walls help reinforce a beach/nautical theme. There are also a variety of seating options from traditional tables inside and out to a seat along a wraparound bar.

The menu here offers chicken and steaks, but seafood is the star. You can get it in a sandwich, in a fried platter, in a pasta dish, in a taco, in a rice bowl….you get the idea. While there may not be many types of fish to choose from, the number of permutations still offers plenty of variety.

My wife and I opted to split a fried pickles appetizer and a fried platter with flounder, popcorn shrimp, oysters, potatoes, and broccoli. Our food came up relatively quickly, and it was hot and fresh.

The quality, however, rated as largely just OK. The pickles were nice and crisp, but the accompanying remoulade had a confusing sweet note (relish, maybe?). The “famous” potatoes were buttery though they would have benefited from some herbs. The flounder was thinly breaded. Both the shrimp and oysters were good and paired nicely with the accompanying tartar and cocktail sauces.

At $9 for the app and $26 for the pick three fried platter (including a $4 upcharge for oysters), Smitty’s pricing is higher than you’d expect for its atmosphere. Servers seemed friendly enough.

If you’re in Kernersville with a seafood craving, Smitty’s has a lot to offer even if the quality is hit or miss. However, if you’re willing to drive twenty-something minutes, Full Moon does a better version of much of what you...

If you care about receiving good customer service, I definitely would not recommend coming here. When I spend my money, I expect to feel that my business is wanted and appreciated.

My issue was so small and could have very easily been resolved in a fast & friendly manner. When the check came, I noticed I was charged .50 cent for “extra sauce” on my wings. That would have been a fair price if my wings had enough sauce on them in the first place and I simply wanted extra, but the wings were very dry and everyone at my table agreed. I asked for the sauce because there was barely any on the wings in the first place and my waitress knew this. I asked the waitress to remove the .50 since it wasn’t actually extra sauce. She said she couldn’t and sent her shift manager, Whitney, to the table. She came straight to the table and said no, we can not take the .50 off because you did get extra sauce. We literally went back and forth over .50. Finally, she agreed to take it off “this time” but let us know in the future she would not do it again. When I said “there probably won’t be a next time”. She said, “Ok, well that’s up to you”. Wow, no “we would hate to lose your business over this” or anything like that. It was terrible. My table spent over $125 and we were treated this way over .50. To make things worse, when the waitress came back we asked if there was another manager we could speak to about Whitney. She checked and came back and told us that he refused to come to our table because he was busy. I said we could wait. She said he would not come. I asked for his name and she said Lane. The waitress offered us free dessert, but because of the treatment from management they have lost us...

This is a great "being a regular" spot! It draws in an older more lain back and very respectable crowd. About 85% of it is bar or high seating. Reminds me of the atmosphere at great restaurants in Myrtle Beach (while I was a local there). A bit small, a bit crowded, and a bit rugged. That's what I like about it, tbh.

Service is great—unless Star Trek comes up! JK... it's always great. The staff is always bouncing around and helping each other out. If you need something, you won't need to wait for your specific server. Most of the service staff have lively personalities and are engaging to talk with and get to know. I've made it my new spot and every time I'm in there someone is getting met personally with care and genuine excitement.

Food is just above board and exceptional in some areas. I've had several dishes from all the different choices. The worst one was just meh. Not bad, but not exciting. However, most of them have just been mouthwatering and savory. Favorite dish so far the Tuna Poke Bowl. It was absolutely on point.

Definitely a place to check out, maybe even become a...