We have been vacationing at the OBX for 13 years and each year we eat out twice and both are at the BP. We sit at the bar, enjoy drinks, play games, relax and enjoy the great food the BP has to offer. Highly recommend!! read more

There food is amazing!!! Fast service, gluten and dairy free options as well.

WOW-- this place is well worth the wait. We were there Labor Day weekend, and we had to wait. If a restaurant is good, that is to be expected. I have to say waiting only made this a better dinner. We were very hungry by the time we got seated. (again our fault we spent too much time on beach and arrived at dinner time) Had appetizer, fish bites. My husband had the shrimp and grits, and I had a risotto dish. Both something we will want again. We never get dessert, but after seeing the dessert cooler in the waiting area, we had dessert. Key Lime Pie. Server was running around and taking care of everyone, but she also had time to talk to us and make us feel welcome. The Steamer had broken that evening and I am sure the server was getting yelled out by everyone. They were doing a great job on a night when they had a problem to overcome. read more

I've dined at the Black Pelican several times and it is my number one choice for lunch in Kitty Hawk. The food is fresh, delicious and nicely presented. The service is friendly and courteous. The coconut cream pie dessert is ridiculously good. A place where locals happily take themselves and their visitors. read more

This place is awesome . Love the appetizers pizzas pastas salads etc . Great waitstaff and management team !

We have are at the Black Pelican for at least 10 years now, and I hate to say this, but I will never ever visit this place again. The waitress was absent, I had to go to the bar on my own four different times to get my kids drinks refilled. The waitress was absent, she came by twice in the 1.5 hours we were there. When we got our meals, they were cold and undercooked. This place has gone to hell. When we finally got our meals, we had to send 2/4 meals back, the same waitress charged us full price for all 4 meals. I will never eat there again. No wonder they had no wait. Its so sad, we loved the Black Pelican. Never again! read more

Sub-par food. Below average service. Overpriced. Would not recommend going here. A lot better bang for your buck and food around the Outer Banks. read more

I went here once with my husband in Sept 2013 and have no plans on returning. We ordered two fish entrees and one appetizer. Nothing was good. The fish dishes looked presentable and on first glance, looked legit, however, the flavoring on both was not good. We did not enjoy anything about this restaurant and regretted our choice of restaurants that night. read more

Don't go with a big crowd they have one server that takes care of on table of 17, the two things that I ordered were forgotten and the place did nothing to make the situation better. The food was good when I finally got it after everyone at my table was finished eating. If you do have a large group maybe break your group up so they can have two different servers help you read more

Above average restaurant. About the view. It's of the ocean with obstruction! The road then a sand dune. So there is road noise. So the view is not of the beach and ocean. So there are better view. Like the reef restaurant in Florida. The food I had. Was good. Burger was good needed a little seasoning but good. Onion rings were top notch. About the coconut cream pie. The slice looks perfect. The taste a little fluffy and airy. I had better at wind creek Atmore Casino. There are richer and creamy. read more

Coming from New England, I guess my expectations for seafood were set to high. Food is OK and the service is slow. Dessert was the best part. read more

Our server was the worst server I have ever encountered in my life. Food took over an hour to come out and when it did he forgot two entrees completely, not to mention how many drink orders he screwed up. We had to say something to him, knowing not everything was his fault, and he acted dumb about it and offered no apology or explanation. He did not care in the slightest. We were a large group so we expected some delays but not waiting an hour for 10 entrees then another 20min for 5 more entrees, another 10 for 3 entrees, and not getting 2 of them all together. I don't know why no other servers were helping him - probably because he was too stupid to ask for help. The food was mediocre at best. The crab legs were stringy and wouldn't come out of the shell easily (a sign of old crab) the fries were undercooked and limp, the clams were not cleaned well and had sand in them, and they served steamed unseasoned vegetables and rice with everything, so I am wondering why some entrees were so expensive. I wouldn't trust their seafood whatsoever. At then end, the server came out and said 'guys, this is on one check, its impossible to split' in a dumb surfer kind of way, and told us that it says on the menu that they cannot split checks (really? what restaurant cant split checks??) We had told him up front that we wanted to split by couple and he said it was no problem, he even asked who was with who when he took our orders. When he went back to split the checks he screwed up 50% of them and made a joke to the other waitresses about how hard he was failing at life. I heard the comment. Our group of 20 are typically generous tippers. We figure this guy screwed himself out of over $200 and pissed of 20 people at once. Save yourself and go to Barefoot Bernie's instead. read more

We wanted to check this place out based on all the great reviews. We were staying in Corolla and drove down to Kitty Hawk to check it out. They don't take reservations, but we only had a 15-20 minute wait despite seeing all the other people waiting outside. There was also a nice little gift shop inside to check out while you are waiting. They have a pretty big menu to select from. It seemed mostly seafood, but I was hopeful with the wood-fired pizzas being an option to select from. My husband had said the seafood was just ok, after having eaten at other restaurants prior to this visit and having some of the best seafood. I had the Aloha pizza and it was just ok. It seemed pretty heavy for a wood-fired pizza. The kids' menu is ok, pretty much your standard kids' restaurant menu. The restaurant is really big and can accommodate large groups of people. read more

Great atmosphere. Worth the wait. Best crab dip I have ever eaten. Clambake is my personal favorite. Been going to this place ever vacation for 10 years. read more

Just had average meal here. But I thought they may have brought me a different kind of wine than I ordered. So what I think is VERY odd -- the waitress took my glass and then came back and she said that she and other wait staff drank my wine (from my glass) with a straw and decided that they had served me the correct type. Yuck!!!! Also the parking lot smells like a toilet ! read more

Jalapeño Poppers, cold beer and trivia at the bar. It was a great evening out. I'll definitely be back...

Great pizzas. Excellent service. Food came fast for our party of 10. The whole table but two ordered pizzas and I tried three different ones with seafood and they were sooo good! The two others ordered the special of the day and one said it was the best meal they had since they have been in the Outer Banks! I don't think you could go wrong with anything on the menu! I wish I could have tried their desserts though because they looked amazing, but our family was in a hurry to head out on a boat! read more

They sat a party of ten - with 3 children - fairly quickly (we went at the start of the off season so there wasn't much of a wait anyway). Food was good - crab dip app suggestion was a big hit. Meal portions were good and there were no complaints about dinner. Kids meals come on frisbees which the kids loved. Service was attentive and friendly. We will definitely go back. read more

This was our first visit to this restaurant and we were not disappointed. The view of the ocean is amazing. We came for lunch. Our server, Sara, was great! She was very attentive and my children loved her. I got the pulled pork sandwich and it was a generous portion. My husband got the tuna steak and he loved it. Even the portions for the children's meals were generous. She came back often to check on everything and refill our drinks. We also had the fried green tomatoes as our appetizer and they were fantastic. We felt like it was a great value. With food and service like this we vowed to make this an annual stop while vacationing on the outer banks! So glad we came! read more

Great dinner and the view was beautiful! Visiting from California, so our waiter Brad did a great job telling us about the menu (as well as a few local facts about the Outer Banks). The Shrimp and Grits plate was perfectly spiced! The pastry chef Renee knocked it out of the park with the banana creme pie too! Make it a point and stop by The Black Pelican!; read more

One of my favorite places to come when I'm on vacation. Some years I have been multiple times in a week. My family and I have never had a bad meal. read more

"Brad-Lou", our waiter, made excellent suggestions. Tsunami tuna was fresh and deliciously cooked. Coconut cream pie was best I ever had!

Stopped in for lunch and ordered fried basket with flounder. The flounder was paper thin and saturated with grease! Awful! Don't order anything fried. We paid almost $40 for French fries and side vegetables. Won't be returning to the pelican! read more

Our party of 11 was seated quickly. The server, Curt, was friendly and fast. He did an excellent job. The place was busy, but he was jonny on the spot with everything. As having been a waiter myself, I know that having multiple large parties is not an easy thing. The food was killer. I had the shrimp and grits and must say it was the best I ever had. I was to full for dessert but it sure looked good. read more

Best meal we had on a recent vacation. Our server seemed rushed, but we enjoyed all that was served to us. Seafood pasta was excellent. Every dish was well presented. Desserts were outrageous. read more

The Black Pelican Cafe is what it is. Good food, reasonable prices and great wait and bar staff. Relaxed atmosphere, kind of rustic decor. read more

Favorite restaurant on OBX! Returned three times in one week. Quick, easy, comfortable service and setting. Great for kids too! Thanks!

I'm an OBX local and we are always at the Black Pelican. One of the best restaurants on the beach for sure. I'd say between eating with friends or family and hanging out at the bar on the weekends I'm at this establishment 3-4 times a week. This building has an awesome past being the old Western Union where the Wright Brothers sent their telegraph they were first in flight and over the years being a lifesaving station. Great for the entire family young and old and I have NEVER had a bad meal here, EVER. This is a true must visit for any guests of the Outer Banks. read more

My husband called me from obx and said he took five men to have dinner tonight at the Black Pelican . He said the service was so bad he was truly embarrassed ..all you did was make excuses...Said you could not grill a flounder...needless to say they left because of this and went to a better place to eat down the road....Remember this. .. . when you are hurting for business. We were there together last month for a week and found some other places with great service and great food.. read more

menu looks great but is very poorly executed, especially for the price. Would not return. We had the fish bites and buffalo shrimp as appetizers and they were great. For main dishes I had tuna on my salad, there was no flavor and the texture bad. My husband had the pecan crusted mahi- fish tasted very "fishy", mashed sweet potatoes were the worst I've ever had, and vegetables had no flavor. Friends had pizza topped with very dry and unseasoned chicken. Overall the menu looked good but the flavors were terrible. read more

This place was recommended, but was fair at best. For a seafood restaurant it had a slim selection and when asked if the kitchen could alter the scallops from bacon wrapped to fried, they said they don't change premade menu items. Obviously nothing freshly made. I had the seafood pasta the scallops (3 small ones) were chewy and tough, and the shrimp as well. Dakota , the waitress, seemed disinterested at best, and had to be asked for a water refill. Pass on this place in the OBX. read more

Black Pelican catered a family reunion for us on July 11, 2015. We were overwhelmed--with the menu, with the quality of the food, with the service. I cannot imagine anyone doing a better job. When we hold our next reunion in 2017, my first step in planning will be to contact Black Pelican. read more

The history behind the name and the building are unique and the food is as well. We went just for the wood fired pizza and it was awesome! We also had the key west rockfish and crab dip which was spectacular. The waitstaff and atmosphere were right on time. The gift shop is tiny and hard to navigate, when busy, but killed the time until our table was ready. Wait time was about 15 min on a Tuesday evening. This visit was just for the pizza, but next time it will be our special seafood dinner out. All the plates passing us in the dining room looked amazing. read more

My family and I went to the Black Pelican for the first time this October. We all loved our lunches, with a range of grilled and fried foods. The food is gourmet and sauces homemade with reductions and fresh olive oil-based salad dressings. The service was also very good and accommodated my food allergies well. Between the view, interesting building, good service, good price, and great food, we will definitely be back on our next trip to OBX. read more

I will never be back. I've come to the Outer Banks all my life and after losing a house to Hurricane Isabel (2003), we are finally homeowners again. I've seen this place thrive and fall but we have enjoyed meals here since purchasing property earlier this year, our realtor even brought us here. But tonight my son and I came and found a 50 minute wait. So we asked the hostess if we could get the full menu at the bar. After taking our seats the bartender asked my sons age, he's 6 foot tall but only 17. He told us he wouldn't serve us. I was embarrassed and apologized but told him we were allowed to sit at the bar at another place last night. He said it wasn't against the law but he wouldn't serve us. I'm so sorry I put my son in this position, but I still don't feel I did anything wrong. He loves their flounder, but sadly, we won't be back. And we will recommend friends and family don't eat here. read more

we went there because of a recommendation from a park ranger. we paid a fairly high price for what we ordered. but, we were on vacation, we were on the beach and the seafood should be good. right? wrong!!! my daughter and i both had the fried mahi mahi. my fish was about twice the size of hers. they both were overdone. when i questioned the server, he said the cook is in charge of the portions and he made it sound like it was a case of take it or leave it. i told him that for the price we paid for the fish it should at least be a decent size and cooked well. after about 15 to 20 minutes he came back with a piece of fish that looked great. why weren't the first ones like this? i guess they figure the tourists won't be back so why give a crap what they serve. read more

The only reason I did not give this place 5 stars will be revealed at the end. Have wanted to try this restaurant for many years. Visiting in OBX during off-season gave us our first chance to do this. We were seated immediately. We started off with drinks and Bangkok Shrimp as an appetizer. The shrimp was perfect with a lightly breaded tempura coconut batter, very crispy and would be just enough if you wanted a light dinner. My husband ordered Steamed Shrimp and I got bacon-wrapped scallops. We were both very pleased with our meal. The bummer came at the end when we wanted key lime pie for dessert. Our waiter apologized saying they were all out. So we settled for a piece of coconut-cream pie. As we were finishing up our last bit of pie the table behind us also asked for slice of key lime--our waiter was also serving that table as well. Initially he told them the same thing, then one customer said she thought she saw a piece being served to another person. Well, our waiter said well we do have one slice-and then turned & looked at my husband and then quickly turned away. The only thing we are sorry for is that we gave him a very nice tip prior to this experience. Had we known we would have cut it way back. It's not nice to do that to your customers. read more

I have to agree with several other posters that this place is getting by on the hype. We had dinner earlier this week and waited almost 1 1/2 hours to be seated. We called on our way over to the restaurant and were told it would about a 45 minute wait. 5 minutes later when we arrived the wait had extended substantially. Fortunately, they have live music up in the outside bar and the beach is across the street so if you are not too hungry, the wait can be rather pleasant. Now for the food, I can sum it up by saying very mediocre. Yes, they were very busy but they've been doing this for a long time and know that summer is their busiest season. I ordered the Black and Blue cooked medium (NY strip with blue cheese crusting). When it arrived 40 minutes after I ordered it, it was completely overcooked, but we had kids with us and I didn't want to prolong our dinner at this point so I didn't send it back. My mother got the Mahi Mahi which was also overcooked. My husband got the clambake and was really disappointed that 6 out of 12 oyster shells had NO oysters. He did speak with a manager who agreed to take a few dollars off of his meal. Overall, everyone in our group of 10 was disappointed with their food except my daughter who ordered a cheese pizza. Save your money and time and find another restaurant. There are plenty to choose from throughout the area. read more

Our group of three had an excellent experience here. Pulled up and saw it was packed, including a charter bus waiting outside. We were sure it would be a long wait but we were in after only about 30 minutes. Our waiter appeared in a very timely manner and got our drink orders, etc. He was able to answer any questions we had and also made a recommendation (the grouper special). He was not overly friendly, but he was happy to answer any questions and we also had a few laughs with him as the night went on. He provided awesome service and was there any time we needed anything. In our group, we got the grouper special, seafood risotto and some kind of dijon pasta dish. First, the grouper - quite possibly the best we'd ever tasted. I had the seafood risotto and it was also excellent - especially the scallops. The dijon pasta dish was also said to be delicious (this was one we had questions about, and the waiter's description was right on point). The only very minor complaint I had was that the bread was more or less cold and left a lot to be desired...but who needs bread anyway? I was very impressed with the food and service, especially on what appeared to be a busy night. Highly recommend! read more

We wanted to eat here during our recent trip to obx because of the good reviews we read. We called in advance to see if our dogs could accompany us if we sat on the deck and were told it was no problem. We drove twenty minutes from Duck and when we got there my mom went in to check again about the dogs. They said no problem go ahead up and have a seat. A waitress came over and asked if we needed menus. After she walked away another dog came running up on the deck unleashed and acting a little crazy. My dogs barked a few times until we told them to stop and they stopped and sat quietly again. They are very used to other dogs and wanted to say hello but like I said just sat quietly after we corrected them. This other dog was still running around. The waitress then comes back with our menus and said we were not allowed to have the dogs there because it was against the law to have them where food is bring served. First of all if that's true then alot of other restaurants down there are breaking the law which seems unlikely. Second we were told by two other people it was fine. (she said they were wrong and she would let them know about it) Third, why were my two behaved dogs asked to leave while an unleashed, wild dog was welcome to stay? We go to obx every year or two and we will NEVER eat here no matter what because of the way we were treated. My dogs are little puggles and certainly not a threat to anyone. And making that kind of a drive then be told we couldn't eat there was ridiculous when we called AND went in to ask in advance. There are many great restaurants on obx and we will for sure be taking our business elsewhere. read more