Great ambiance right on the lake but the food and menu can use some serious work. Has an excellent location with great views of the lake. Came with a party of 3 and no one was satisfied with the taste of their meal read more

Hello, Sailor - Popcorn shrimp - Seafood Near Me - Cornelius, North Carolina

My gf and I had gone out for dinner wanting a nicer restaurant on Lake Norman other than North Harbor or the other more grill pub locations. We ordered two, half dozen order of oysters as appetizers. When we got them, they were the size of muscles, meaning super small. Generally they are 3 inches long or more. These were half the size and didn't fill the large ice plate that they were served on. When we got the bill, each of the half dozen was $26. That's ridiculous!!! We spend half that for much better oysters just about anywhere. Side note, some of the best oysters I've had ever are at the basement restaurant in Grand Terminal NYC. Hidden gem for sure. For dinner we ordered a burger and tacos and waited 45 minutes. The restaurant was barely half full so I'm not sure what kept the kitchen staff so busy. The burger and shrimp tacos were ok at best. By this time we were hungry and had been waiting for an hour. We will likely come back for the view, but will go for drinks only. read more

So this place is really cute, not big and not crowded (at least inside). Hush puppies and beef fat fries and oysters to start, yes please! Then I had the trout which was yummy, and my wife had the fried bologna, which was decent but just not what we were expecting (thick slab instead of thin cut, so a softer texture). To drink I had the Bermuda hundred, which had way too heavy for my liking, and then the daughter Judy which I enjoyed. read more

Wonderful meal tonight sitting by the window watching the sun set. We had some drinks and appetizers.... Old fashioned (of course) and she had a rum and coke. Grant took great care of us and brought us beef fat fries and unicorn hush puppies. Good but other than being pink in the middle I don't get the unicorn reference.... Dinner was.. if you know me you know it was a burger. Tasted like an upscale Big Mac. A "Royal with cheese" if you will. She had a Korean bbq chicken. Delicious moist and on point. All in all a great night. read more

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Casual laid back dining experience. Food was well prepared. Service was sufficiently attentive . Ordered: Blue Crab Claws Appetizer - Served set onto a spread of aioli (AKA mayo sauce) Piri Piri Chicken Wrap - order light aioli if you prefer a lighter dressed wrap. Trout Plate - GREAT Key Lime Pie - Tasty Overall was just OK. Didn't have anything that I would consider crave worthy, but maybe that's because I chose more lighter options. Standouts were the Steelehead Trout and Key-lime Pie read more

Hello, Sailor - Chicken Wrap & Arrúgala Side Salad - Seafood Near Me - Cornelius, North Carolina

Always love this place. Great view, great food, great time! Their oysters are the most fresh and delicious oysters in the area.

Don't go here if you're looking to have a nice evening out. You'll be waiting 30 minutes to get your drinks and 1 hour to get your food. I want to love this place and have been here 3 times now, but they are very unorganized and can't handle the flow of service when busy. When we asked if they could check on the wait time of our entrees, we were treated with bad attitudes. No apologies from the staff or management, and no effort to fix their mistake. The food is mediocre and we couldn't even finish it. read more

Service was great, food was good, selection limited and overpriced in my opinion. But try the place out for yourself.

The vibes here are amazing! Nice restraunt on the lake with beautiful views. The food & drinks were great. Popcorn shrimp was everything you would expect it be. Good service as they are a busy place but have a lot of waiters to take care of every table. read more

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We always enjoy coming to Hello, sailor for the last eight years.Food is it's a really good OneNegative is they put a fifty foot by four foot sign up on the main deck, seating area and all views of the lake are blocked. This is very irritating If you happen to be one of the diners behind this obstructive sign. It's also very hot because does not allow air to move. We wish they would do better and lower the sign. This is the third year in a row they've done this. read more

The crab roll and hush puppies were fantastic! Beef fat fries were perfectly crispy. Will be back

Super cute vibe on the water with cheerful staff and yummy menu! Server Noel was kind and attentive. Hush puppies and smash burger were amazing! Chicken sandwich was so savory and juicy too! Location is charming and we will be back next trip for sure. read more

Hello, Sailor - Aperol spritz & hush puppies! - Seafood Near Me - Cornelius, North Carolina

I love this place. The service is A1 and the wait staff is all so attentive. I'd go back just to be served by them. The food was really good. We had the smoked wings, crispy chicken sandwich, shrimp tacos and steak. Steak was a little overcooked. Smoked wings were tasty and the dipping sauce was interesting. The chicken sandwich was very tender. I loved that they are dog friendly. I was able to bring my dog and sit on the patio. It will be my go to spot. The views are amazing and it's so cool that you can come off the boat to grab something to eat. read more

Hello, Sailor - Seafood Near Me - Cornelius, North Carolina

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We went for the only buffet they apparently do all year, New Year's morning. It was fantastic. Unique choices like fried chicken sliders, sausage quiche and fire cracker shrimp. They also had all the usual breakfast buffet options. All of the food was excellent. The pans on the buffet were all refreshed regularly so that nothing was getting stale, cold or dried out. It is to bad they don't do buffet brunch more often. read more

I am sorry I apologize did not take any pics, the beef fat fries OK, I had the wedge (no breadcrumbs) add popcorn shrimp, I liked it a lot. Rest of my family got burgers they enjoyed very much. We started with the hush puppies they were dry and not very sweet very bland and the bbq shrimp (popcorn shrimp with some bbq sauce) OK. The burgers stole the show for sure. Great service! Great view! read more

Theron (spell check) who is also a manager stepping in to help his staff with the load took great care of us out on the lower deck patio. We enjoyed the PEI Mussels so much we got 3 orders of it. The hush puppies were great and so was the queso. We got two Bermuda Hundreds as well and a margarita slushee. Perfect early dinner for such a nice day on the lake. Vibe and atmosphere is very fun definitely gives summer resort so perfect for spring and summer. Definitely will be back. I STRONGLY suggest having a reservation especially as summer approaches. read more

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Bus your tables! The food is good. But, it is gross to eat next to multiple tables with old food, piles of plates and spilled drinks. read more

Hot and slow! What a miserable birthday dinner for my dear wife. We had a reservation at 7:15. Upon arrival we were told it would be about 20 minutes to be seated. We grabbed a drink at the bar and noticed there were three open tables. I went and asked the hostess and she promptly seated us at one of them. We waited another ten minutes for the server to come by and take our order. It's unseasonably hot here, but it was the same temp inside as it was outside. Was the AC broken or something?? The cherry on top was when we used the restrooms as we left. Absolutely filthy and gross. Empty toilet paper wrappers and rolls on the floor, plus some brown liquid running across the floor. We will not be back! read more

It has been a few years since I have been back to Hello Sailor because our experience was so bad. It was a nice night on the lake so we decided to take the boat over in give it another shot. This may be the most pretentious restaurant I have ever been to. First off, when you get to the front of the restaurant they sell shirts saying "3.4 stars on yelp". Basically laughing at their customers that provide feedback on their restaurant. I noticed the 94 sanitation grade on the wall, I am surprised they have not put that on a T shirt to laugh at the inspectors. They ask if we have a reservation and we look around, and there is not a single person at a table inside and only about 8 tables taken outside. We sit down and order drinks and then food. I ask about the $65 New York Strip and the waiter informs us that the kitchen will only serve it medium or medium well. One of the most outlandish statements I have ever heard. We heard that the spicy chicken sandwich was good, so my wife and I each order on of those. I ask them to put cheese on it, and the waiter informs me that the kitchen is very particular and will not add any items to anything on the menu and the cheese is only reserved for the burger. We shake our head and go ahead with the order. After about 20 minutes both sandwiches arrive and they are cold. Like they have been sitting in a refrigerator. The fries were great and hot, but we didn't say anything to the waiter because the kitchen staff was so picky about how they serve their meals we thought that maybe the sandwiches were supposed to come out chilled. As we were paying the bill the waiter asked us how our meal was and he was surprised and asked why we didn't tell him. We said it just wasn't worth the hassle and thought that the chef meant to do it. I would love a chance to meet the owners and understand why they think they know more about what their customers want than the customers themselves. Even with so few restaurants accessible by boat, we can strike this pretentious stuck up place off our list permanently. 3.4 yelp review is far to generous. Nobody would go to this place if it didn't have the water view. read more

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Came here on a Sunday afternoon for lunch before we went out on the water at lake Norman. Obviously this place has a great location, right on the water. The mid century modern vibe was cool and fun too! The host was miserable, not sure if she was having a bad day or what, but she was awkward to talk to and extremely rude. Our waiter was so nice though and luckily made up for the bumpy start. We both got salads and split the fries. Both were very good, but LOADED with bread crumbs. It kind of tasted like there was just a bunch of sand in your lettuce. I would ask for way light on the breadcrumbs next time. I added chicken to my kale salad and it was cooked well. Fries were good. It's a little expensive, but to be expected with the waterfront location. I would definitely come back, but with some editing on the food. read more

Hello, Sailor - Wedge Salad - Seafood Near Me - Cornelius, North Carolina

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Everything was amazing at Hello, Sailor. The atmosphere, service and food are all excellent. Will be back!

The service was amazing, the ambiance was beautiful, but the food was straight up terrible. The shrimp were DIRTY and everything else was just not good. read more

The Crab Louie salad was tasty and fresh. My only request is to chop up some of the salad leaves. Easy online ordering and pickup. read more

Hello, Sailor - Crab Louie salad no breadcrumbs - Seafood Near Me - Cornelius, North Carolina

The setting was beautiful. It overlooked the bay area and boat slips. The food was pretty good, but it was a little overpriced in my opinion for what we got. The servers were friendly and semi-attentive. read more

We walked into the space to see a clever shirt that read "3.4 stars on Yelp". Naturally I loved it but also after experiencing lunch here I can see why a place with a great ambiance and delicious food gets quite the deduction for utter lack of service. We arrived at 11:30 on a Sunday with reservations. We had two groups and they willingly combined our tables which was greatly appreciated. Our server was very sweet, however it took over an hour for us to be able to just order our meals and she forgot to put in a drink order. Throughout our meal we saw various guests standing up asking for a server to come see them. Unfortunately I just think there is a serious lack of staff for a space of the size and popularity. With regards to the food and drink - all really good! Our table got the Miami vice which is a unique spin on the classic and very yummy but small. We got the hush puppies for the table and then the Caesar salad, shrimp basket, burger and steak sandwich as our meals. All the food was great so it's a really big bummer I probably wouldn't return because of the experience as a whole. read more

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We went here on a Saturday afternoon. When we arrived the parking lot was packed. The place had a nice little vibe to it. They had outdoor and indoor seating. They had a bar outside and it was a nice view of the water with boats docked. The weather was nice and we wanted to sit outside but we were hungry and it was a faster seating time if we sat inside. If you sit inside you will still have a nice view of the water. We had the smoked wings. Which was ok and they came with a mayo based sauce. They were ok. I ordered the blackened catfish with red eyes grits. My food was ok. The red eye grits were good I haven't had those before. The catfish was cooked nicely and my margarita drink was good as well. The service was nice. We had Zaid and he was nice. read more

Hello, Sailor - Catfish with red eye grits - Seafood Near Me - Cornelius, North Carolina

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Oh my goodness, what an amazing day and lunch we had at Hello Sailor! It was a beautiful day on the lake. Just perfect for a bite to eat while house hunting in the Lake Norman area. read more

Loved this place! Came for dinner while on vacation in Charlotte. Make a reservation, they get busy! The ambiance and service was phenomenal and the view is on point- right on the lake! I got the piri piri chicken wrap with the kale salad. So fresh with great flavor! Highly recommend read more

Hello, Sailor - Chicken wrap - Seafood Near Me - Cornelius, North Carolina

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The food is good. Unfortunately, as other reviews implied, the location is better than the flavor. I think the quality is there, as is the service, but the price & flavor combo is what brings it down a notch. The flavor isn't premium. I could make equitable food at home. So I'm paying not to do the dishes and enjoy the view of the lake. Had the salmon the first time - which is tasty. My wife had the Piri wrap and wasn't satisfied. I returned for the Spicy Chicken Sandwhich and Beef confit fries. It was spicy, I give them that, but I wouldn't pay $20 for it again. That's how I felt in general, I wouldn't return for that price. Same for the key lime pie. Sorry read more

Hello, Sailor was a place I had heard a lot about from friends and on Yelp, so on a decently nice fall weekend my wife and I decided to make the bit of a trek down to try it out! Hello, Sailor is on Lake Norman, somewhat in a marina area, which makes for a very nice setting and view. It was warm enough out that we were able to sit outside and enjoy that view a bit. Our servers were good, but everything seemed to be a bit hectic and like nothing was quite completely under control, but that certainly could have just been the day. As for the food and menu, they have a pretty wide range of foods for a small menu. Everything from Mussels, to Blue Crab, to Cauliflower Steak, to Baby Back Ribs. For an appetizer we ordered the hush puppies and really enjoyed them. They came with a sweet honey butter that was real good! I had seen pictures of the Blue Crab claws and knew I had to try those and I really enjoyed them. I was not expecting them to be chilled, but with the chile oil on them it really worked nicely. To go with that I just had a small salad, which was fine but nothing special. My wife went with the popcorn shrimp and fries, while they certainly give you plenty of food, the shrimp and fries were fine, but again, relatively average. I think overall, it is a nice place to go to sit outside on a nice day, the food is average to pretty good just depending on what you get but is a bit expensive for what it is. I think overall though, the food combined with the location it is a nice place to try our and see if you enjoy it! read more

Hello, Sailor - Seafood Near Me - Cornelius, North Carolina

My dad has encountered this restaurant a few times in relation to work and mentioned it would be a cool place for our family to check out some day. During my extended vacation to NC, we decided to dine here after running errands not far from the area. There were parties seated inside when we got there but there wasn't a long wait for a table. The staff cleaned one off promptly and we were seated almost immediately. The decor has a lot of mid-century modern touches and elements to it. Add the fact that it's located on the water where people can dock/tie up their boats and you have a picturesque and relaxed spot to eat and people watch for the months when people are out on the water. (Because it was colder out, we didn't see any boats out on the water and no one was dining outside.) They're known for the chicken sandwiches, which were featured in a best chicken sandwich list for NC. My dad and I ordered them with the spicy sauce (which is a Buffalo style) with fries. My mom had her sauce on the side. Food came out pretty quickly and was hot and fresh. The sandwich is quite big - definitely get what you paid for. Chicken was cooked well with a crispy outer and the inside was moist and flavorful. We also got the soft serve in the peppermint chocolate and vanilla swirl, which was a perfect ending to the meal. There is a fair amount of parking available for Hello, Sailor. We went a little after the average lunch time and had no problem parking. In addition to the scenery and great food, there is a cute Photo Booth inside where you can pay $5 for 4 poses and the machine prints 2 strips - one in black and white and the other in color. read more

Hello, Sailor - Spicy Crispy Chicken Sandwich with Beef Fat Fries - Seafood Near Me - Cornelius, North Carolina

This is a mixed review. I would give five stars for the food and one star for service. The food was fantastic - it came reasonably quickly and was delicious. At our table we had the ribs, seafood tacos, mussels and Korean BBQ chicken. Everyone loved their meals (I took home 1/2 of my ribs and they were still delicious the next day). The service was terrible. We had a reservation but weren't seated for quite a while even though there were many open tables at which we could be seated. They said they had "over-reserved." When we got to the table for four there were four small plates, three water glasses and no silverware or napkins. A waiter came reasonably quickly with menus and the service went down from there. Another person came to give us water, filled one glass and then realized she could only fill another glass partially so took off with the glass and empty pitcher. She eventually came back (quite a while later) and filled the remaining glass but had to go get two more because she had taken one of the three away. In the meantime, the waiter took our drink and food orders and we didn't see him again until the end of the evening. Our food came first but we had to point out to one of the servers that we had no silverware and napkins. We had to flag down another server to point out that we hadn't gotten our drinks yet. From that point on, no one came to our table. We could see a variety of staff circulating around the dining room but there seemed to be no role definition or organization. It felt like everyone was new and was just sent out to randomly help at different tables. Luckily our food was fine (except no bowl in which to discard mussel shells, so we used the low-rim plates that weren't a great substitute) so we enjoyed that part of our time there. No one checked to see if we had anything we needed, if we needed more drinks, nothing. We literally waved our arms in the air when we were done (having waited at least 15 minutes after the last person finished eating) to get someone's attention and when we did they connected and sent out our original waiter so we could decide if we wanted dessert (we didn't) and to get the bill. I want to be clear that everyone we dealt with was friendly and pleasant but the chaos made the dining experience only so-so. It was my mother's 93rd birthday and she had been very much looking forward to eating at Hello Sailor - I'm not sure if we'll go back. read more

They get 3 stars because it's a beautiful space & the food wasn't terrible. However the food was just that, not terrible. The popcorn shrimp was ok, reminded me of Captain D's, so paying as much as they charge was a little off-putting. The fries were good. The worst part was the service. The place wasn't that busy but it took forever to get waited on and then we had to beg for refills. I would rat out the waiter but he didn't tell us his name... maybe because he knows he sucks‍ read more

This was, unfortunately, the most disappointing dining experiences I've had in the Lake Norman area. We had a 6:15 PM reservation on a Wednesday--typically a slower night--and the restaurant was only about half full. Given how quiet it was, the level of service we received was difficult to understand and even harder to overlook. For context, I have over 20 years of experience as a restaurant owner and VP of Operations, so I'm well aware of the challenges that can arise in restaurant service. I rarely leave negative reviews, but the experience here was poor enough that I feel it's important to share. It took 15 minutes just to receive water after being seated, and an incredible 45 minutes before anyone came by to take our appetizer order. The staff was inattentive, disengaged, and gave no indication they were aware of--or concerned about--our wait. There was no communication, no follow-up, and no hospitality. This wasn't the result of a slammed kitchen or an overwhelmed dining room. It was simply a lack of attention and basic service standards. It's disappointing, because the space has potential, but unfortunately the execution fell far short of what guests should expect read more

Liked it, didn't love it. Aesthetically pleasing? Yes 100%. Great date spot but over priced in my opinion. Came in with a group of friends for lunch. Menu is small but a decent variety. They didn't have the best selection for "lunch" items, a few salads and sandwiches. The food menu was disappointing not having many options. I got the crab Louie salad. Beautiful presentation!! Delicious and fresh. I was disappointed in the lack of crab- it seemed to be mixed in with bread crumbs giving the appearance to big much more crab. My friend liked his Italian beef sandwich. We had a few cocktails. Try their frozen drinks! Very refreshing on a hot day. We had the frose and the margarita. Service was good! Always a plus! Then again we came during weekday lunch hours. Patio was nice- obviously it's overlooking the lake! I recommend sitting outside. Overall- a nice experience but not the go to spot for lunch after spending close to $100. I'd rather go elsewhere and be able to rave about everything ya know?! read more

Hello, Sailor - Frose - Seafood Near Me - Cornelius, North Carolina

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3.4 stars, I tell you, a lot of our people should not be Yelping, I see it is being used for retaliation for a one time visit, I would hope that we start using YELP to provide a Good and notations for improvement. We were Served by Cameron and she was awesome, and me being a US Navy Veteran, I just had to get her to say "Hello Sailor" lol, she was a good sport and a wonderful server. Our food was very good, I ordered a sloppy Spicy chicken sandwich and it got everywhere and I loved it. Everyone else in our party 7 total loved the food. The suggestion for improvement is go to youtube and watch "Give 'Em the Pickle by Bob Farrell - Customer Service Training". My grand-daughter loves pickles and we asked for a small side and they were going to charge for pickles for a 6 year old?! Disappointing. Overall I can not let that one detail bring down the review. We will be back and check the picture of their shirt taking pride in 3.4 stars on yelp, Hilarious! read more

Hello, Sailor - Hilarious - Seafood Near Me - Cornelius, North Carolina

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Interesting place. Felt like we were interrupting a members only restaurant. Food was fine and service was ok.

The food is fine and the atmosphere is passable with the biggest highlight being the view of the water. This biggest thing holding this place back from being an above average experience is their unwillingness to make modifications - it's just wildly pretentious for a place that serves you food on plastic dinnerware to refuse to put tomato on your burger because it "takes away from the chef's intended experience." read more

This place is such a vibe, has cute merch, and the food and drinks are GREAT! We were a big group and Elliot gave us the best service! 10/10, can't wait to go again! read more

unbelievably beautiful place, the atmosphere is kind and friendly, the service was amazing and the food was a total delight, we enjoyed the sunset, very beautiful view of the lake. read more

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