Such a warm inviting atmosphere. Dinner was so flavorful and the blackened scallop and grits…read more topped with bacon did not disappoint. Dessert was a warm moist brownie served ala-mode with drizzled chocolate, so yummy! Shea slayed the drinks! Staff is so friendly and service oriented. Farm to table and locally sourced- perfect!

Southern, a Gathering Place is a must visit in Southport. Everything from the service to the drinks…read moreand food was amazing. I highly recommend the cocktails and potatoes au gratin. For drinks we tried the Linda Jean 'a Rita, Let's Mule This Over, Take Me To Brown Street and a pour of the tawny port. For food we tried the fried green tomatoes, crab cake, potatoes au gratin, grouper with peach salsa and the crisp for dessert. Just a note about reservations through OpenTable - you will be charged $30/per person for a no show.

Absolutely our favorite restaurant in the area. Excellent service, excellent food and just a nice…read morelaid-back atmosphere. From beach casual to business casual, they welcome everyone. Try the Filet - amazing!

Amazing food and service! By far the best place we ate in oak island! Will not disappointread more

Dined there last night and enjoyed everything about it. We had a reservation and were seated…read moreimmediately at a table by the window. That alone is a bonus since the view of the dunes is lovely AND it's actually less noisy than a table in the middle of the floor. We were 4 and the other couple had not been there in quite a while. 3 of us ordered from the early menu and all the food was very good. I had the petite filet and shrimp. The filet & shrimp were done perfectly. My friend had the nut coated chicken and loved it. Her husband had the crab cake and enjoyed it with crispy onion rings. My husband had the tenderloin medallions from the regular menu and enjoyed them as always. Service was great with Cody and it's not easy in a restaurant so busy and popular. We've been going there for 20+yrs and are thrilled you can finally make reservations on line rather than having to call.

Sometimes you head out for dinner expecting buried treasure, and sometimes you come back with a…read morehandful of seashells. Our evening at Island Way fell somewhere in between! We started with the fried zucchini blossoms (a special) with ricotta cheese, beautifully presented with a balsamic drizzle. For dinner, we had the petite filet with shrimp and the littleneck clam scampi. Everything arrived looking quite impressive. Unfortunately, the flavors didn't quite live up to the presentation. We ate from the dishes on their early dining menu (4:30-6:30). The food wasn't bad by any means. It was simply average. Nothing that made us push our plates away, but nothing that had us wanting to lick them clean either. And trust me, this beard has seen its fair share of memorable meals! We enjoyed a bottle of Seven Daughters Moscato, which was a nice addition to the evening along with a beautiful beach sunset! Now, let's talk about Conner! Our waiter was fantastic! Attentive, friendly, and provided excellent service throughout our meal. Conner definitely brought his A-game, and his hospitality was one of the highlights of our visit. Credit where credit is due! Island Way has a beautiful coastal atmosphere, beach views, great presentation, and outstanding service. The food, however, just didn't quite make the same splash. Final thoughts: The service sailed in on a luxury yacht, while the food showed up in a respectable little jon boat. Both made it to shore, but one definitely had a better ride! Beard Needs Napkins

Shout out to Jodie, the hostess last night at Fizzy Jane's. They were super busy, under staffed…read moreand lots of people were a little salty and impatient. Jodie kept her smile and was very gracious. We learned that she was just here for the summer to help out and was heading back to Jamaica next week. While we did wait a long time for a table and our food, the atmosphere was fun and the food, when it came, was really great. Brian, our waiter, was a champ. We rolled with it and ended up have a really fun experience and will be back. The team pulled off a great evening even though they were on a skeleton crew on a holiday weekend.

We ate at several places the weekend we were in town, and this place is the only one that deserves…read more5 stars. Great menu! Great ambience! Amazing service! Outstanding bartender! And the chef! Whoa!!! Pass the other restaurants and check out this place next time you're in Southport!

This place blows. Went there and the bar tender was terrible and rude. I ordered drinks anyway…read moreincluding the way overpriced beer and some food from next door too. The food was not even close to being any kiind of good (fish and chips) even the tarter sauce was bad. The beer was flat and the bartender was as cold as Sunday morning in bangor maine. Dropped about $150 in an hour and a half. Terrible experience and would never waste my money there again -0 stars

This is the first time I've experienced a beer wall. You bring your own mug or buy one for $1. You…read moreget a wristband and scan it at the wall and pour your own beers. You choose the ounces. There's an outdoor area with seating and cornhole. There are many activities inside and they have bands on certain days. There is also a full bar.

If you love Salty Turtle, you'll love The Cove even more!…read more The Cove is a cocktail bar/event space that is owned by Salty Turtle. They carry a few of their beers to serve as well as wine and liquor. Ever wish you were having a cocktail at Salty Turtle while your partner was enjoying a beer? Well now you can! Hit up the cove and you can have the best of both worlds with no one compromising. The Cove is a "club" so you'll need to sign up for a membership at the bar before you can enjoy some drinks, but don't worry it's free to join! We enjoy coming here on Wednesday nights to play trivia with friends that is hosted by Meeser Eddie. My favorite drink to sip on when coming here is probably the spicy margarita. It's not on the printed menu, but you ask and your wish shall be granted!On Wednesdays they also offer $15 bottles of Prosecco. Yes you read that right $15 for a BOTTLE of Prosecco. Nothing beats coming to play trivia with friends and sharing a great bottle together. The staff here is always so friendly, it's clean, the service is fast & the cove itself provides excellent vibes. We love the cove & salty turtle so the hardest decision is usually choosing which one to go to... and sometimes we just hit up both!!

My friend and I went in here on a whim when we had a ladies night at Salty Turtle. Prior to this,…read moreI thought this was only an event space. Which it is but it is also open a few days a week, one of which being on Wednesday nights at 6:00pm for trivia. The place is smaller but very cozy. The decor inside is super cute and the drinks are great. We got a tequila drink that looked beautiful and tasted very good. They also have beer and wine. Super cool place to check out and really excited for an upcoming event I am going to at their location too!

Stunning view at this bar! Great place for some drinks while waiting for a table at the local…read morerestaurants. Drinks were about $13 dollars each. They were delicious. Highly recommend the Limonada!

Not so sure why this place is called American Fish Company. From what I remember this is an outdoor…read morewaterfront bar with live music. I don't remember any food at the venue either...just drinks. I think this was some sort of cannery or small fishing port and the name just stuck throughout the years. They describe themselves as "SOUTHPORT'S BEST WATERFRONT PUB" - https://americanfishco.com/ Cool place to chill, and enjoy the scenery. Not a lot of seats or shade available during the hot summer months. Still, it's a nice place to grab a drink or two and enjoy some live music. The casual ambiance and the waterfront views are very nice as well. The sweltering Southern Summer heat can be a bit of an issue.

Fun little divey bar! The drinks here were good and it's a super unique place. Really loved seeing…read moreall the fun decor. Service was great as well.

Great divey bar with a solid selection of cocktails. Point off because bartenders didn't care for…read morebartendendering. Drinks were solid and vibe was fun for a Saturday afternoon just wish service was better.

Incredibly unique cocktails made by professional bartenders in a welcoming, cozy environment…read more Membership is $5. This is probably not your kind of place if you want a Bud Lite (no offense to Bud Lite).

The Blind Elephant is a very cool little speakeasy tucked away down an alley in downtown…read moreWilmington. Great atmosphere, cozy and quiet seating, and just an all-around neat place to spend some time. The doorman was also extremely friendly and welcoming. There is a $5 membership fee to join, which we didn't mind. I ordered one of their specialty cocktails from the menu and it was very good. My wife ordered a Cosmo, however, and unfortunately hers was a completely different story. Instead of a traditional Cosmo, it was made with a very heavy amount of lime juice. It was cloudy, extremely lime-forward, and simply wasn't what she ordered or expected. She didn't even finish it. This is one of my pet peeves with cocktails: if someone orders a standard drink--a Cosmo, margarita, etc.--make the standard drink unless they ask for something different. A bartender's personal flair can be great in a house specialty, but it shouldn't automatically be added to a classic cocktail. When the bartender noticed she hadn't finished it, he said, "You should have told me." Fair enough--but once we explained that she didn't like the drink, we were still charged for it. That was disappointing. What makes it more frustrating is that my wife had been here previously and another bartender made her Cosmo perfectly, which is one reason we came back. Overall, the Blind Elephant has a lot going for it. The atmosphere is terrific, my specialty cocktail was excellent, and we really like the concept. We're three-times-and-you're-out people, so we'll give it another shot or two. Hopefully next time Martha gets the Cosmo she remembers, because we'd really like to have a reason to keep coming back. For now: 3 stars.

My husband and I are new homeowners on Holden Beach. One of the first things we wanted to discover…read morewas a local place with great seafood. We were thrilled to find this place! My husband ordered the special Trio: grouper (blackened) with shrimp (fried) and scallops (blackened). It was served with mashed potatoes. The portion was huge! He said it was the best mashed potatoes he's ever had. I ordered the seafood linguini, scampi style - it was delicious with a generous amount of mussels, clams, shrimp, and scallops. There was an option to have the dish "fra diavolo" (spicy red sauce) which I may try next time. My husband shared his giant side-salad with me. It was an extra $2 for the salad that could have been a meal for me. Complimentary bread is served with olive oil and freshly cracked pepper and with single serving pats of butter. For dessert, we shared the housemade brownie with ice cream. It was recommended by our wonderful server, Bailey! It was a great first meal for us in Holden Beach as locals and no longer just visitors!

Bottom line: I liked my first visit to The Cove Restaurant near Holden Beach. Their Fish & Chips…read morewas satisfying and just what I needed that night. Service was good as well. This farm-to-table restaurant supporting local farmers and fishermen is worth a try if in the area with a little something for everyone on their menu. The Deets: A friend of mine drove down from Wilmington while I was vacationing in Holden Beach recently and we decided to get dinner to catch up. Looking at options on the trusty Yelp app, we decided upon trying The Cove Restaurant for dining. It is located just a bit out from Holden Beach, along Hwy 130 going towards Shallotte. It has pretty good parking that was almost full when we arrived. When we went in to place our name on the waiting list, we were told it would be about 30 minutes wait (we were actually seated around 15-20 minutes) and so we used the table and chairs outside the door to relax and talk. When seated at a booth inside, we perused their menu and they have plenty of different selections (not just limited to seafood). The cover of the menu describes The Cove as a restaurant "...featuring all natural ingredients supporting local farmers and fishermen." This farm-to-table format is good to know going in and I'm glad they share that on the menu. We were given bread service to start with (loved the bread!) and my friend got their Homemade Crab Soup to start with, and he liked it a lot. I went for Fish & Chips for my dinner entree while my friend opted for their Chicken Marsala for his meal. I was satisfied with my meal, the beer battered deep fried cod fish tasted great here. I sampled my friend's Chicken Marsala and it was good but was hoping for more flavor to come through on the Marsala sauce. Service was acceptable from the host desk to our server, all went well. I enjoyed the first visit to The Cove Restaurant and would like to revisit them on future trips to the area.