If you love seafood this would be the restaurant to check out. They also have a side door where you can go in and order your favorite plate as a carry out which is a very limited waiting time for them to prepare your order so either way you order (eat in - take out) you'll enjoy it just the same read more

We got two combination plates of three the food was perfect. The seafood was cooked perfect fried just right the coleslaw was a little bland.. definitely recommend friendly staff we DoorDash it was hot and right on time even called the restaurant and spoke to someone and asked for extra cocktail and tartar and they politely obliged and make sure that it was in the bag definitely recommend if you're visiting or if your local.. we will definitely re-order read more

I live in New Bern, NC not California, don't know how that got under my name. We had 14 people in our party on Thursday night, 19 June 2025. we had a fantastic waitress Paris, food was amazing. we all got a variety of plates offered and all of them were cooked to perfection!!!!! We had a wonderful time! The back room we were eating in was quite warm so we ask the staff if they could turn the air down, they did! Fortunately we were the only ones in the room and we had a wonderful family oriented evening. I If you want great food, reasonable prices, great staff I encourage you to try this restaurant. I know it may not look like your normal restaurant, but they have updated it and it looks great. Thank you Andrew, Keith, Danny and Ginny Strange for offering us a family friendly place to meet family and friends for great food and friendly staff. We love and appreciate this family for the years they have served us in New Bern. They also run Annabelle's Restaurant, check them out as well for great food!!!! read more

INSPECT YOUR FOOD IF YOU DARE TO EAT AT THIS "RESTAURANT". I was served shrimp and metal fragments this evening. This metal wire was embedded in the shrimp breading. I notified the waitress and she assured me the manager would come over to our table. After waiting and fearful that my family had just ingested metal, the waitress came back. The manager simply told her to ask if I wanted a discount on my meal. The manager refused to speak with us, view the metal fragments on the plate or even offer an apology. I was also partially charged for a meal that should have been completely removed from the bill. I am very disappointed in the way this situation was handled. I would not trust eating at this restaurant ever again. The horrible upkeep of the dilapidated building correlates to their inept food preparation skills. read more

The food and service are very good I give 5 stars . Thank you to all staff it was an amazing experience

We were a good size group showing up, so I know that it can be difficult. Given our group size, you would think that they would have tried to help our waiter out a little but you can tell she got a little overwhelmed, but she did the best she could. As far as the food goes, the hush puppies were really good, and umm everything else was just okay. The place will a little dark and seemed dated. This would not be my first choice if I am driving through town again. read more

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my mama has been going here many years. today we went n she ordered clam chowder and I ordered catfish. hers was fine. I sent catfish back and it still was slimy like inside n not browned good. The waitresses and greeters are excellent but cook cannot cook catfish. they still charged mama for catfish cause I was so pissed I waited n car. no sure why a place would charge for something not eaten . fuck you fridays seafood cook read more

It was Mother's Day and we were looking for a seafood restaurant that wouldn't "break the bank". We thought we had found it, but upon entering, the place was sooo dark, dreary and had such a heavy greasy smell to the air, that we left.! Granted there were plenty of people eating there, it just didn't fit our plans. read more

I've been 2x. Will not return. Service was excellent but good service doesn't mean good food. Everything tastes like it has been fried in the same oil. Same with boiled/broiled. Nothing tastes correct. Took hours to get the taste out of my mouth. Gave it to my dog who turned her nose up at it! The large party room is extremely small and hot. The building is run down. The lighting is poor. There are better places in New Bern to spend your money and actually taste your food. read more

We went Friday evening, around 530pm. We were greeted with a sign that asked for patience as they are short-staffed. We were immediately seated, given menus, and told our waitress would be right with us. We sat for quite some time (maybe 10 minutes or more) waiting for anyone to acknowledge us. We still had our menus, so it was obvious to the several waitresses who passed us that we had not yet been helped. Finally, Candice came over. She apologized and said our waitress had a problem but that she (Candice) would take care of us. She certainly made up for our wait time!! She took our order, brought the food out very quickly, and made sure our sweet tea stayed filled! She was so nice, very accommodating, and so kind! We were thankful to have her as our waitress. Great job, Candice!! read more

Be brave. Enter. The building and parking lot make you want to drive by, but trust me, it is worth stopping and going inside for some really good seafood. Upon being seated, we were immediately met with a basket of fresh hushpuppies and butter. My husband had the ultimate platter for $19.99. It had deviled crab, sea scallops, shrimp, grey trout and oysters. Huge portions. Coating was very light as in Calabash style. I had the pick two regular for $13.99 with flounder and shrimp. Again, large portion, light coating, delicious. The sides we chose were also worth getting again. Baked potato, okra and baked beans (multiple options, choose two). Service is very attentive. We were glad we braved the obstacles of appearance and entered for a delicious feast and excellent service. read more

We ordered off of Door Dash and picked up. My husband had the fish n chips with a side of potato salad. He enjoyed everything but the potato salad. He said it lacked flavor. I got the crab dip. The menu said it came with pita chips. It came with garlic toast. It was good, and I was happy with it, but honestly, I wish it had the pita chips. It would have been better. read more

4th and last visit. Previous three were two sit down and one take out. Dirt on painted over dirt. Poor food. Poor service. That was a few years ago, and an acquaintance reassured us that it has vastly improved and we simply had to try one more time. So we ordered take out. To order take out you go around to the side, through a dirty glass door into a small dirty room. It's like a back corner of a kitchen. There's a counter and part of a wall behind. It's not hard to see into the kitchen and you hear everything. It was 4 pm on a Friday. Hardly the dinner rush. The smell was of fried food was everywhere. I stank of it after sitting there twenty minutes waiting for my food. The kitchen was dirty. I saw staff without gloves, without hairnets handling food, yelling at each other such choice tidbits as "I think she left it on the floor". The microwaves, two, were busy. I had oysters and hubby had fried fish. They tasted exactly the same. The fries were limp. The coleslaw was warm. We were afraid to try it, given the mayonnaise base and quite warm temperature. The hush puppies were very good, as were the tarter and cocktail sauces. There are some simply fabulous seafood offerings in New Bern. Seek them out. read more

It's April Fools day 2023 so you'll know when I wrote this. I have read all the mostly negative reviews and find no fault in their opinions. I've been there four times before and consider it mediocre at best. Of course the 1950s decor is a knockout as is the weathered from entrance door that could be from a left over hurricane. The godawful wooden paneling makes you feel like you're in a ships hold rather than a restaurant. Ok so much for the good part. I had a oyster cocktail that was from already shucked oysters that come from a food service business but thankfully they were very good and very large at that so I almost made a meal from that order. My three Maryland crab cakes were over cooked but edible. My partner had fried flounder cooked in deep fried fat with a mystery coating resembling bread crumbs. Of course they were shrunken and tough but they gave her three pieces anyway. Baked potatoes and okra and baked beans came with our meal. All standard with the okra being deep fat fried also. There was plenty left over so we brought home the parts we didn't eat but they lost flavor overnight. The service was excellent. The food came out fast and the price with two glasses of wine was $50. I'll probably wait another year before going back. Maybe somebody will buy the place and turn it around in the meantime. Have very low expectations when darkening their rotting front door. read more

Quite possibly the worst meal I've ever had. We came in for lunch. Waited an hour for food. Our waitress was very nice and we felt bad for her. I got a seafood sampler. Trout tasted bad. Fried clams looked like they took the burnt pieces out of their fryer and put on my plate. The fried shrimp were ok...deviled crab was more like crab stuffing. read more

I would give negative stars if I could. The place was empty, but it still took 20 minutes to get our drinks. 30 minutes later, still no food. We had to get home, so had them box our order. Took them 10 minutes to do that. And the manager thought taking the drinks off the bill and giving a 10% discount was being generous. I can't review the food, because we still haven't eaten! read more

The service was excellent, we were seated immediately and treated to some hot, fresh, tasty hush puppies and it was close to the hospital but that was it. Utilitarian table and chairs in rustic, private cubicles with plastic table cloths. Food was terrible, reheated, pre made, fried and just awful. Fish was soggy, tasteless and full of bones. Steamed broccoli was decent but green beans were fat soaked. Even the fries were more soaked in grease than crispy and hot. Nina was very attentive but we won't be returning and don't recommend this place. read more

This place needs an overhaul. The price you pay is not worth the cost. We were seated and forgotten about. Fish had to many bones,salad dressing is watered down. The list goes on. Not a place I will be going back to. read more

While in NC my friend spoke highly of this place and she adamant that we had to make time to visit proclaiming that they had the best seafood! Upon our arrival we were greeted and seated fast and the staff were super southern friendly. The decor was nautical themed and resembles the inside of a ship. Cute right. Smoke promptly served a basket of hot golden brown hush puppies that had me tapping me feet...they were so good! I orderd the fried seafood platter with 2 sides and 3 choices of seafood (trout, scallops and mini shrimp). The seafood was fresh, lightly fried and plentiful. I ordered a tossed salad which was an update and I didn't mind. The dressing was a little thin but the veggies were fresh enough where I didn't need the dressing.Corn on the cob was cold buy edible and the Mac and cheese was average. Overall , I was pleased and the price for all this was $20.78 read more

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This is the first time I've ever written a review. I'm sorry to say it's because our dining experience was so abysmal I wanted to save others a similar experience. The service was slow, but friendly. The food, when it finally came, was not impressive. my boyfriend's fish was so over cooked it was burned to the dish. We sent it back and had it replaced. The second attempt was cooked to a reasonable degree but was swimming in grease. All food was clearly made from frozen, even my broccoli. So disappointing to be on the coast and not get fresh fish. The shrimp and scallops were rubbery and flavorless. The restaurant was not crowded yet it took us an hour and a half to get from appetizers through paying the bill. The long and the short of it: save your time, save your money, treat your taste buds; go elsewhere. read more

Good food at a good price...friendly service. Big portions won't have you going home hungry. Interior along with the exterior could use some updating. read more

Friday's 1890 Seafood - Seafood Near Me - New Bern, North Carolina

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I've been to this restaurant several times but tonight was the absolute worst. Like I said I've been here before and the most I would have ever complained about then was the table not being too clean. But tonight I was really disappointed in the service, the food and the suggestion on my bill of how much I could leave as a tip. I always get the same thing, I love fried oysters not raw oysters but that's what I got. The outside was so brown and crispy just how I like but the oysters were not well cooked at all. This time I made a change, I got catfish too instead of flounder. You know how you can tell your fish is done? Well why couldn't this chef see that it wasn't ? If the fish coating is still yellowish, it ain't ready yet, new chef or what? The waitress wasn't terrible but I don't want to see you walking around me passing my table at that and I still don't have the napkins I asked for. Ok you may say it was busy....ummm no but it wasn't. In most areas only one table had diners seated there. I'm going to chalk it up to it being a bad night. I just want to warn you of what you can expect if you do go there. I'm really surprised but then again some restaurants don't always give you the best service every time, that's how you know it's time to eat somewhere else! And it was my mother's birthday too, so I didn't even complain to management. read more

Okay Where do I start, gave the place the benefit of the doubt and next time I promise to believe the reviews... This place is terrible... Ordered the Fried catfish ( very lightly fried, could have used another 2 mins in the grease), Never got my hush puppies, Crabcakes..(one was chocolate covered and the other one was light brown.. and it didn't taste like crab...and last thing... Greenbeans looked as if they we're sitting for a few days... disgusting... I'm sorry I tried....Never eating here again..oh yeah I gave one star because the Sweet tea was as on point after some of the ice melted in it ‍... read more

So sad. This place looks like it advertised... a step back in time...in a bad way though. OK. The waiter took 20 minutes to find my table in this maze. He said I didn't know anyone was sitting here. SMDH. Dude tried to take my order without a pen and order pad. Epic fail. Then Some random dude just sits down across from me and of course says I don't mean no disrespect sweetheart but....trying to ignore him. I told him stop creeping me out. The waiter says I don't know who he is I am creeped out too and does nothing. Anyway the chicken soup was way too salty. It wasn't all bad. The hush puppies were alright. Too much sugar though. Waiter comes back to my table to ask if he took my order already... millennials trip me out. Of cowherds got my order wrong. That was a given. This dude is in the wrong business. He needs to go home and play Fortnight or something cause he bombing out in real life. read more

Friday's 1890 Seafood - Seafood Near Me - New Bern, North Carolina

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New Bern's best kept secret!!!! I live 4.5 hours away but when I'm in town, I never leave before I grab a jumbo shrimp/scallop platter with melt in your mouth hush puppies and freshly made slaw. It's rustic and quaint but the food is out of this world! Shout out to the salt & pepper flounder! Thank you for being so tasty. Ooooh, and you gotta taste the shrimp creole! It's like communion... "Eat Ye All Of It".. read more

The seafood was very greasy no taste to it this place does not even deserve one star. My husband and I will not be back, do not waste your time or money. read more

Don't waste your time. The worst seafood I've had in a while. First, what they are claiming is catfish is not catfish. Second the fish was barely fried. The shrimp was also barely fried with the batter falling off. The only thing that really had flavor was the hush puppies. I will not be back. read more

The service and the food has really declined over the years. Me and my wife use to come hear when we were dating. The food and service was excellent. No I wouldn't recommend anyone to come hear. Maybe its new management. read more

Food really good. Fish really good. It's really clean. Food takes awhile. But it is cooked to perfection

Took our friend to celebrate his birthday here, his request. Not real happy with it. The food was crazy greasy. Ordered chicken friend steak, asked for NO GRAVY, it came drenched in brown gravy...yuck! Should have been white gravy! Sent back, took a while to get the replacement steak. By then, everyone was finished eating. The steak was soaked in greese. The 3 stars was being very generous, did it because our server was amazing! read more

Terrible. What a disappointment. Had not been there in many years, likely will NOT be back for many years after tonight. Our orders included broiled thick flounder, fried large shrimp, scallops, and flounder, slaw, fries, hush puppies. All seafood overcooked and greasy. Slaw tasted like almost going bad or cabbage was old. Fries limp, not brown. Clam chowder has been on stove too long too. We paid extra for thick flounder and got the white side (under side = thin side of a flounder) of the fish. Used to have great hush puppies here. Now they are just greasy, limp and a nasty mess. Even our dogs refused them. Staff at counter were very nice, but can't rate table service since this was takeout. Huge disappointment!! read more

We love Fridays 1890. The oysters are good and the shrimps are good but those hushpuppies are the best. Just ask for real butter. Salad bar is fresh and good. The staff is really nice too. The decor hasn't changed in 30 years... Maybe. read more

Staff very friendly and attentive. Clam strips were outstanding. Crab cake was not to our tastes. Would go again for the clams! read more

Stopped by on a whim. Great customer service! Great shrimp....anything that says crab however NO. Taste as if freezer burned and is more filler than actual crab (think stove top stuffing). Hush puppies were good too! read more

I was looking for a good little seafood restaurant near my new residence and figured it was close enough to the ocean to provide really fresh seafood. I was so hoping for real crab cakes as this place touted the fact that theirs were not frozen. I was disappointed to find they used imitation crab : ((( The slaw wasn't great but the tartar sauce was excellent. read more

If I could give it zero stars I would. Was brought here by my family and upon seeing this place I could tell I was in for something strange. We started with the hush puppies, pretty good actually. Then the salad bar was pretty standard. However, being a "landlubber" as the menu dubs people who don't like seafood, I ordered a strip steak. Boy, what a mistake (no pun intended). It's as if the chef knew the steak was overly ripe and knew they had to mask it and ran around the kitchen looking for spices. They must have found all the garlic in the kitchen and put it on the steak they served me, and added a pound of salt. My girlfriend however, ordered fish AND chips but was served fish Chips. Not a pleasant food experience. Staff was great, unfortunately what they're serving is rubbish. read more

I asked them to cook my food fresh and it was not carried out. The fish and shrimp were VERY GREASY and less than 1hr later it violently came back up and out. Server was great but CHANGE YOUR GREASE and cook the food fresh. Will not return!!!!!! read more

Best fried chicken around here. I'm not a big seafood fan so can't comment on that as I didn't try any. But fried chicken and they burgers are great! Staff is very friendly too. read more

The food was ok I had the trout and shrimp combo with field peas and pasta salad. The pasta was way over cooked and the overall salad was eh. Just wasn't work the overall wait. Would I come again probably not... I'd stick to a downtown restaraunt. read more

Had take-out from Fridays 1890 for the umpteenth time today. I cannot say they are my favorite seafood place in eastern North Carolina, but they are definitely one of the top few. They are also consistently really good, so I have never been disappointed with the food there even if I have never been blown away either. The fried oysters today were extra crispy (as I requested) and the fried flounder was nice and flaky. They corn on the cob was a bit bland for my taste, but other than Chili's I rarely find corn on the cob that impresses me since I like it buttered up and grilled over charcoal. The baked potato was good, but how much magic can you work with an ordinary spud? I haven't ever actually eaten in the restaurant, so my rating is based solely on the food and take-out service (which has always been fast and courteous), but maybe one day I will stop in and sit down for a meal and see how it goes. read more