Meh We were super excited to try this place and unfortunately left very unimpressed The building and setting is gorgeous and the staff? So friendly The food is where it missed the mark for us. I ordered a CB favorite- the shrimp and grits. Let's just say it was hard to find the grits underneath all the sauce- toooo much sauce The fried shrimp dish was more than ample; copious shrimp atop a platter- yes platter of French fries I'd give it another try, but not it's not high in our list read more

Foods and service was phenomenal! One of the best places to eat on the island. Calamari was delicious! read more

Havana's - Crispy Calamari and Oysters Rockefeller - Seafood Near Me - Carolina Beach, North Carolina

See all

Food is consistentmy great. good service and so pretty. Blackened Salmon is excellent and so is their calamari

Could have been an off night, but I don't think it's unreasonable to expect a glass of water quicker than 30 minutes after being seated, appetizers quicker than an hour after being seated and the meal--who knows when it will come. read more

Havana's - the moon setting over the ocean - Seafood Near Me - Carolina Beach, North Carolina

Bananas Foster was amazing. So was the crab dip and shrimp and grits. The rolls were also fresh and fluffy. You must try this place. read more

Havana's - Bananas Foster - Seafood Near Me - Carolina Beach, North Carolina

While visiting Carolina Beach we decided to step off the beaten path, and elected Havana's for dinner via takeout delivery. My food arrived lukewarm and the restaurant was located across the street from our hotel. The broccolini was over salted, so much so that I had to rinse some of the salt off before eating it. The crab cakes were just ok, nothing to write home about. I guess I was expecting more after reading the reviews. Next time we will elect to dine at the restaurant, I will update my review accordingly. Ok eats. read more

Havana's - Crab cakes, broccolini and rice pilaf, oh my! - Seafood Near Me - Carolina Beach, North Carolina

We couldn't of been happier, from the moment the fabulous hostess who knew absolutely what was going on, along with sterilizing tables when patrons left... she was spot on and didn't miss a beat. And it just continued, our waitress (Katie) was personable, easy going, happy and relayed menu selections with ease. Lightly battered calamari, was just that, light... not greasy or gummy. And the blackened Mahi-mahi, along with the Tuna Hawaii were devoured in record time. Compliments to the team for keeping everyone safe and sound, along with serving tantalizing entree's, healthy pours and ever so friendly atmosphere. read more

We ate here for our New Years Eve dinner. It was very good. The server was young and seemed to still be learning but very nice. The overall decor on the first floor & outside were nice. Second floor was eh but I could tell they only use that when really booked read more

Food was average, read some reviews that said it was overpriced but still tried it. Wasn't bad but we definitely understood why people said it was overpriced, wasn't anything special. I got the tacos and my husband got the bison burger, wasn't anything better than we could have made at home. The environment was really nice outside, we enjoyed the live singer and the porch had a lot of greenery! read more

Place was busy but they took the time to give us a lot of attention. Our waitress was awesome!!! Food was delicious, fresh, drink was amazing. I will be definitely back here! read more

We were first timers at Havana's and opted for delivery. From the moment the phone was answered all was GREAT! We got our food a little faster than expected and it was delicious! The plastic ware and napkins were of great quality and the food containers had tamper proof stickers. We ordered clam chowder, buffalo cauliflower, small Caesar salad and the Carolina bison burger (without the bun). The food was amazing! The dinner rolls with sweet butter-OMG! We will be here a few more days and plan on returning! read more

See all

We almost passed on this really nice restaurant bc the reviews were mixed. Our waitress was super attentive and friendly, there was a nice variety of menu options, the food and presentation was excellent. And, the dining area, outdoor seating and gardens are lovely. We have been in Kure Beach for several days and I've had my fill of my son's dive bars and dive restaurants and wanted something nicer. Highly recommended this restaurant for a sit down dinner or lunch, wait service and lovely atmosphere read more

Ate here a couple days ago and it was great. Tonight, I decided to try the catfish. Big mistake. I got mushy catfish with about two pounds of breading. And my mashed potatoes were cold. So disappointed that the last meal of our vacation was crap. On a positive note, at least our service was good on both visits. read more

Havana's - A little catfish with your breading? - Seafood Near Me - Carolina Beach, North Carolina

Definitely don't recommend if you have a large party. Long story short it took 4 hours from the time we put our name on the wait list until we were leaving the restaurant. I initially called to make a reservation for 12 adults and one high chair and was told that they didn't accept reservations for after 5pm because "it's faster to seat people first come first serve" we arrived at 6pm and were told it would be a 2 hour wait. When we looked at the link given with yelp to view where we were in line it said it should only be about an hour and we were 14th in line. Within an hour we were 2nd in line. 30 minutes later I received a text asking if we were still wanting to eat there. I confirmed we were still waiting and was told they were getting our table ready. 30 minutes later I texted back asking for an update and received a call asking if we still wanted our table, I confirmed again and she said the guests were getting up from the table and they would text us when the table was ready. 10 minutes later we were finally sat at two separate tables that were back to back. Unfortunately it took another hour to get our food when the restaurant was practically empty. My husband and I didn't even receive the appetizer we ordered. All in all not a great experience and the ambiance isn't worth it and the food is good but not worth the wait. read more

Food was semi ok. I'm going back to give a second try because my sis lives this place. The location is beautiful and service was good.

08/24/18 Havana's has a unique beach atmosphere in that it is housed in a cottage that was built in 1916. It has operated as an inn/restaurant since 1948 and is considered a historical building in Carolina Beach. It has operated as Havana's in 2009. The restaurant is also unique in that it provides its customers with two different atmospheres. Inside I would call the ambience upscale and if you came dressed in a suit and tie you wouldn't feel out of place, out side on the patio and porch a bathing suit fits in. After having a breakfast of donuts from Britt's and spending the morning exploring Carolina Beach, we were ready for a good lunch. We got to Havana's around 11:45AM and took a seat on the porch. Although the temperature was in the 90's, with the breeze, it was very comfortable. The hostess who sat us, welcomed us with a smile and she turned out to be our waitress too. As you would expect, most of the items on the menu were fish, but there were non-fish items in each category, so there was something for everyone, no matter what your preference may be. We started of with a bowl of French Onion Soup. Both Lois and I agreed that this is some of the best French Onion Soup we have had. I followed that with Havana's Clam Chowder, it was some of the best clam chowder that I have had since leaving Boston. Thick and creamy with the full flavor of the clams in each spoon full. For the main course Lois had their Cape Fear Club Wrap - stuffed with smoked ham, black forest turkey, American & provolone cheese, lettuce, tomato, mayo & applewood bacon. It came with a side of coleslaw that contained dried cranberries which added a unique flavor. I had their Salmon Carolina - Seared fresh salmon topped with a shrimp Cajun cream sauce & served over sweet pea risotto. Some of the reviews complained about the service, but we found the service to be great. The Manager even came by to check to see if everything was ok. I noticed that she went to every other table that I could see. That is usually a sign that service is important to them. I hope I have enough time to come here for dinner, before heading back home. read more

See all

Mediocre food and super expensive. I got the fresh catch of the day which was mahi - mahi with asparagus and rice pilaf. Fish was over done, asparagus was under done, and I'm pretty sure my rice was microwaveable rice. Whatever it was it was certainly no rice pilaf. If you want your pockets stripped to the last penny and leave hungry and unsatisfied, I would recommend Havannas. read more

Havana's - Me: unsatisfied after my experience at this deplorable establishment. - Seafood Near Me - Carolina Beach, North Carolina

My absolute must go to place on the island. A little pricey, but the atmosphere and careful preparation of the food is well worth it. The blue crab salad is AMAZING!! Filet, jerk chicken, desserts-all wonderful. Havanas was a first stop on each visit here, and when I moved here, it became my fav place to take guests. Stupid COVID shut them down for a bit, but when they reopened, I ordered the first day. The management and staff are first class!! Best restaurant on the island!! read more

Staff are friendly! We went twice on a 5 day trip and everything we ordered was delicious.

We keep trying to like this place because it has outdoor seating, the staff is friendly, and its close to where we live. The problem is the food. It's mediocre. It was underwhelming before the pandemic and continues to be so. My Caesar Salad with Blackened Salmon would have been amazing if the salad wasn't drowning in dressing. It was almost a soup. Note to self: order the dressing on the side. The catch of the day blackened grouper was barely blackened. The Bananas Foster was not authentic. More like a grade schooler's project/fantasy: Just syrups on ice cream. The broccolini was tough enough to nail something (and I like al dente). The cocktails without imagination & inconsistent. I could go on. I will continue to return & order the cauliflower appetizer, which so far, is my favorite thing on the menu. I wish they had more unique, daring, foodie kind of dishes & cocktails. read more

Brunch buffet was terrible. Sad bacon, hard and dry fish, nothing labeled and overpriced drinks. This place used to be really good, but has definitely fallen off. I gave it one extra star because our waitress was very nice. read more

Mediocre cobb salad and bananas foster was despicable!!! Supermarket shredded cheese, undercooked bacon, 2 shrimp? Bananas foster was made totally differently which is ok, but still not good, soupy mess!! Don't understand the hype I'm sorry to say. Really nice server and ambiance. read more

This was our first stop when we arrived in Carolina Beach. What a great way to start our beach getaway. Upscale and beach vibe. We had a late lunch of mahi tacos. Bowl of chowder. And the seafood civeche. It was all delicious and the cuban bread was wonderful too. Our server, Gianna was charming. Her and Natalie gave us the VIP treatment. Going back for dinner. Alert. Be careful if using metered parking. We had a $100 citation waiting on our car. Did not realize the credit card did not take. The sun was so bright and difficult to read the meter. read more

Loved loved loved this restaurant!The menu has a lot of great choices.I ordered the Boardwalk Salad and I must say it was everything.The steak (on the salad) is marinated with Coca-Cola and other ingredients which creates a well-seasoned,tender steak. The bacon,blue cheese crumbles,tomatoes and whatever else on the salad made it a mouthful of deliciousness!!! The onion rings are really tasty too.I'm not sure,but it tasted like they were battered in a seafood batter which was unique.My boyfriend ordered the Salmon BLT and was highly pleased with his meal as well. The prices are reasonable.There are different seating options too: inside,outside,and under the cover.We were able to find street parking which was within walking distance to the restaurant. To top it off,excellent customer service!! read more

Havana's - Seafood Near Me - Carolina Beach, North Carolina

While the atmosphere is very nice and the server was friendly, my fish was over cooked and dry, and the serving size was very small. I left the restaurant hungry. Add to this that the cost of this "special" was twice as high as it was worth. Plus the cost of parking as there is no lot. I will never go back to this restaurant! Completely disappointing. read more

Natalie was a wonderful server for my first night in town. She made me feel welcomed with my pup by giving her two peanut butter dog treats. The conch fritters were delicious and her recommendation of the bikini martini was a great choice!! read more

Stopped in for unplanned brunch today, when we got to the beach but it started pouring. There were lots of people in line for a table so we had high hopes but the food is merely passable. They were serving brunch menu only, which consisted of a few omelets, eggs benedict options, and breakfast burrito/quesadilla. The kids menu only had 2 items - French toast or scrambled eggs. For the price of dishes, which averaged $15-20 a plate, and $9 for kids, we felt the food fell incredibly short. The kids French toast was literally 2 pieces of toasted cinnamon bread with a cup of syrup, there was no egg wash, no powdered sugar, ZERO efforts. So disappointing for the $9 whopping charge! Our other kid got a little scoop of scrambled eggs (face palm). The omelet plates ran out of hash so we had either French fries or mashed potato as an alternative. Neither sounded appetizing for breakfast but we opted for the fries. They turned out to be thinly sliced steak fries and we barely touched them. We won't be returning. read more

When we arrived tonight we were told it would be a 30 min wait for a table for 3 plus our pupper, Bentley. No sooner did we sit to wait for our call, a server from the outdoor bar area approached us to let us know he had a first come/first serve table available. We snagged it! We started with the Calamari app, yum! Our entrees included the French Quarter Pasta, Seafood Platter and S&S Pasta. All I can say is Delish! Plus the portion sizes were huge! Great atmosphere, menu and service. Next time we visit Carolina Beach, we will be back! read more

Had brunch here. Half the food was gone as well as cold. And I saw a fly on the bread section in the middle. They need to have a bigger selection of food and work on keeping the food warm for the prices they are wanting to charge.... read more

Ordered the "award winning clam chowder" and the super grouper. The clam chowder was by far the worst I've ever had & the grouper was subpar but the worst part of it is I now have food poisoning. Would not recommend for anyone, especially 50$ for my meal read more

Really cool vibe. Really nice employees. However, they REALLY missed the boat with their Father's Day buffet. They didn't even tell us that it was a buffet until after we sat down and ordered drinks.. And that's okay, it happens, but it shouldn't happen for $26 per person (not including your $10 Bloody Mary and cold cup of coffee). First experience will be my last. Although, the vibe was excellent! read more

First off, thank you to Christine, our wonderful server, for making our family meal an incredible success. We started out with cocktails. Vodka martini up with blue cheese olives, a Flirtini, a blackberry mojito and several jalapeño Margaritas. Crab dip, oysters Rockefeller, and calamari as starters... Amazing... main course of crab cakes, several orders of seared tuna, shrimp and grits, seafood lasagna and fried catfish. All were exceptional with with some local flair in each recipe.. a truly unforgettable experience, with great food, bevies, and impeccable service. Thank you to the whole Havana Team for an epic evening. read more

Not sure why this has a low'ish rating. The space is very nice, service was FANTASTIC and the food was great! Our family thought the calamari was some of the best we have ever had (we try calamari everywhere we go so we think we are experts). Just an overall great experience and would recommend for anyone spending time in Carolina Beach. read more

We went out for a date night as we have not been in a while. We chose Havana's because we had a good experience a few years back but in this case I would rate as below average. The food was ok but nothing to be excited about. The green beans were u deer cooked and the mashed potato's were cold. Had the crab dip which could have been good but I think way too much cream cheese added. Tasted like dipping in to a container of cream cheese. The two bad things were the drinks and the service. I waited over 20 minutes in one case to get a drink made and ended up drinking a few different while there. My wife didn't drink two she ordered because so sweet and I had two Manhattan's that came really watered down and not very good especially for the prices here. I am not sure we will ever return as it used to be a go to when considering Carolina Beach and a night out with my wife. read more

Everything was tasty and well prepared. My wife had the pecan crusted grouper. It was a large portion, and sauce was very good. I had the mahi mahi tacos and they were very flavorful. The chips on the side came with queso on them, which was very good. Prices are kind of high, but I think it's worth it for the quality and the location. read more

Food was amazing. Rolls were so good, and the calamari was fantastic. The curbside to go process was easy and quick. Very nice staff and beautiful restaurant. Will be back! read more

Overall food experience was good- but it was marred by the fact that after waiting 45 mins (were told it would only be about 15-30 mins) our spot in the queue disappeared and we discovered they had accidentally seated another party at our intended table... so we had to chose between a table in full sun or to wait even longer. Annoying but I get it happens. No one was apologetic at all. We sat down and our waiter was great but the food took forever to come out. It was almost two hours from the time we arrived that we finally got our food. I heard our waiter mention to the table near by that the kitchen was taking a short break but their food would be out shortly. ‍ read more

We were hesitant to go here at first because the overall rating was about 3.5 stars (and we're very much 4 stars or higher people). I'm so glad we gave it a shot. To start - I could bathe in the butter served with the dinner rolls. We also ordered Buffalo cauliflower, pasta carbonara with shrimp, and the coca-cola steak tips. Everything tasted so good and the ambience is great. The restaurant is located in a renovated historic cottage with ample patio and outside seating. My only complaint would be that the mashed potatoes served with the steak could use a bit more seasoning, but the steamed green beans made up for it! read more

My son and I had a wonderful experience tonight. Alex was our server and she was as sweet as can be. We sat inside and we celebrated his 17th bday. He started with their bowl of clam chowder. It was very hood and had plenty of clams. It hadn't little kick to it but nothing too much. The rolls that were served were good and warm. I had the crab cake entree which was delicious and very unique. It was served with broccolini and rice but I subbed out a small house salad for a $3.00 up charge. The crab cakes were alittle spicy and had corn and peppers. I loved them! The salad was really, really good and the pear vinegaraitte was amazing. I highly recommend that dressing. My son had the Top sirloin and it was cooked perfectly and was perfect for him. It was served green beans and smashed potatoes. They have him a free dessert which was a chocolate mousse which was also delicious. We ate every bite. read more

See all

Mahi Mahi tacos were amazing!! Best I've ever had anywhere My husband had the super seafood combo platter, the oysters were cooked to perfection, fried shrimp, and the catfish was huge and cooked just right! He could barely finish his dinner, the portion was so big. They definitely deserve 5 stars!! read more