The Kill Devil Grill — Restaurant in Kill Devil Hills

(This review was published during the off-season)

I have 0 complaints about this place; it's definitely worth visiting at least once during your trip to Outer Banks! Me and the wife celebrated our anniversary here, and we enjoyed every moment of it.

For drinks, my wife tried a few cocktails while I had an IPA that was on draft. The cocktails were well balanced, creative, and exciting to drink. The IPA i had was crisp and cold, which is all you can really ask for in a beer.

For food, I started with their soup special; their "Roadhouse" chili. I personally was not a fan of this chili; my primary complaint was that it tasted a bit too sweet. Next, we shared asamplerr platter; this comprised of house-made chips to dip in their spinach-artichoke dip, 4 "Backyard" wings, and 2 of their Cheesesteak eggrolls. The chips were fresh and paired well with their above-average spinach-artichoke dip. The wings are smoked prior to being thrown in buffalo sauce; while I personally have a preference for fried/baked wings, I can not say these wings were of poor quality. The cheesesteak egg rolls were phenomenal when paired with their tomato dipping sauce; it felt like a taste of a classic Philly cheesesteak paired with a fresh tomato soup. For main, the wife ordered the Big Kahuna Burger, and I ordered a half-slab of ribs. The fries were fresh, the burger had some pink in the patty (upon request), and the ribs were good for a "grill"."For dessert, we shared a slice of their homemade key-lime pie paired with their strawberry sauce. This was hands-down the best dessert I've tried during my time here in Outer Banks, and this alone constitutes a stop at this restaurant.

For service, our waiter was quick, attentive, quick to check on us (not to a fault), and provided many great suggestions on the menu. Definitely quality service through and through.

The atmosphere of this location is interesting; there is a dining area, as well as a bar. The bar area has more of a "diner" esthetic, while the dining area has more of a classical "bistro on the beach" vibe. Definitely not too loud or too quiet for the customers they serve.

We will be returning here for every trip we take here in Outer Banks. At the bare minimum, a requirement to try during...

The food was great HOWEVER most of the food we ordered wasn’t on the menu? The waitress noticed that most of our table ordered black bean burgers and rattled off some vegetarian dishes they also had that weren’t on the menu. I jokingly said I wanted chicken fingers and the waitress said they had those as well. The adult entree came with 3 chicken tenders that were wonderful but I’m not sure that’s an adult sized portion. I’m wondering what else they serve that they don’t put on the menu for some reason.

They have a strict rule that you cannot have your own reusable water bottles (or any outside beverages which makes sense but bottled water?). We were with someone who brought their own reusable water bottle due to water sensitivities at new destinations and we weren’t offered any bottled water but were asked to remove it from the restaurant immediately. That was even before we were greeted we were either asked to remove the water or we’d have to leave. Fine but maybe put a sign outside or present it in a more welcoming way… I guess they have issues with people sneaking in liquor. When they then ordered lemonade or gingerale, we were told they had it but quickly followed that they do charge for refills and said it was small in size. It seemed like they were trying to get us to not order a drink?

When we got our food, the check came immediately after our first bite and then as soon as you finished your last fry, the plate was gone from under you. I was still eating my meal and they had cleared the rest of the party’s plates and napkins. It was very awkward to feel rushed to eat, they could at least ask if they can clear some items off the table it’s generally rude to clean up everything while someone is still eating.

The food was amazing. The black bean burgers were good and their special Dijon ranch was WONDERFUL. Food came quickly and hot. Unfortunately, we felt so rushed to get out it wasn’t an enjoyable experience. Music was good. Place was cute but the whole presentation was off. We’d probably get something to...

I’ll start with the con because that’s what had me give it 4 stars instead of 5. My husband ordered a double bourbon on the rocks which came with a large ice cube, not uncommon nowadays…we didn’t request it nor were we given the option of large or small cubes like some places do but when we received the bill, there was a $3 charge for “rocks”. There was the charge for the double pour so it wasn’t related to that ($30) so we questioned our server and she didn’t know so asked the manager which we found odd considering they have to add it to the check for it to be there…if you don’t know what it is, why did you add it? The manager took it off the bill with the oddest explanation. When doing a double pour, they normally do a 1.5 oz pour for a single but do a 2 oz pour on doubles so that’s for the double. We asked her to explain it again because that didn’t quite make sense. You pour 1.5 oz on the rocks normally but when it’s a double, you do 2 oz times 2 so “rocks $3” is for that? But yet we were charged $30 for the double even with the $3 charge removed? All in all, the $3 was for the large ice cube. I know it, they know it, and it’s snuck on the customer’s bill hoping they don’t notice. They didn’t ask if we wanted a large ice cube or tell us if we did want it, we would be charged. By the time you do drinks, apps, and meals, $3 would be hard to notice on any bill and only when the customer asks or complains do they remove it without question. I bet during peak season they make a killing on that charge. With that being said - the food was great. The steak egg rolls were very good, I had the crab cakes and they were also very good with what I believe was their homemade tartar sauce. My husband had the ribs and he said they were really good. I started with the Caesar salad and the dressing I also believe is homemade and very good. Other than the issue with the bill, the food was very good. I would say watch your bill if you order a cocktail or something...