The food was amazing. My husband and I had the angus burger, "Carolina Burger" and chips. The chips are homemade and DELICIOUS! read more

Pilot House - Seafood Near Me - Wilmington, North Carolina

We ate here last night for the first time and it was wonderful. We had a beautiful view with great and attentive service. The drinks and food were great- I got the heat wave and the scallop/shrimp scampi which was delicious. I definitely recommend! read more

We enjoyed our late lunch. There was a wait but that was no issue and totally understandable. Our waiter was good. Food was good. The fried shrimp, scallops and oysters good. My 13 year old son said best flounder he has had. My crab cakes were good. My suggestion would be to offer on side of greens/salad and not rice. Green beans were awesome. read more

my wife and I had lunch there Thursday. Great atmosphere, the restaurant is beautiful with awesome views of the water. We sat at a table in the bar area which was very nice. Service was fantastic and our lunch was delicious!! my wife had the crab grilled cheese which she is still raving about and I had a tuna BLT which was cooked perfectly and fantastic. The house made chips are the best. We highly recommend and are looking forward to returning read more

Came here with my team this past weekend. They seemed to like their food for the most part. I only had cocktails. This was the worst Old fashioned ever, so I sent it back for a Manhattan...which was even worse. Talk about a hassle & disappointment. Don't order cocktails here. Our server was patient, professional and pleasant. He really did try. read more

One of my pet peeves: restaurants that use false advertising to lure in customers. The 'official visitors guide' of Wilmington, NC, has an advertisement from the Pilot House (page #21) that states they have a $5 appetizer menu from Monday -Thursday, 4-7 PM. However, when I asked my server about this on Thursday, August 11, 2022, at approximately 6:45 PM, she said that they were no longer offering that menu. Then why is it advertised in the most recent edition of the official visitors guide?! (There was no expiration date in the ad either.) The menu I was given still had the checkmark indicators designating which appetizers were available as part of the weekly happy hour appetizer menu. So instead of trying two appetizers, I chose one, the pimento cheese plate. I also ordered a peach wheat beer that wasn't bad but here again, I don't understand why more bars don't offer 8 or even 12-ounce pours; I don't want a pint and it doesn't stay cold long enough to enjoy when you're sitting outside in 90-degree weather! The pimento cheese was decent and the portion was generous; the presentation was nice too. Besides the pita bread, there were a couple of carrot and celery sticks, banana peppers, a few red grapes, and some candied pecans which appeared to be house-made. All in all, a pleasant enough experience. read more

Pilot House - Pimento cheese appetizer. - Seafood Near Me - Wilmington, North Carolina

My husband and I went to celebrate my birthday. Everything was awesome! The service , the food, the ambiance- everything exceeded our expectations! read more

We have been eating at the Pilot House and Elijah's for 30 yrs. No more ! The food was terrible at lunch today. Our 7 yr old granddaughter's Chicken Fingers were so overcooked they were dark brown. She wouldn't eat them and ate her grandmothers calamari. Her grandmother's Caesar Salad was tasteless. I ordered Oysters and Scallops Fried. The oysters were great but the scallops were tasteless and a joke. So tiny the breading fell off each one when the fork was inserted to pick it up. To top it off, the joking and cutting up by the seating staff with other staff members was annoying. Won't waste time going there again. Sad ! read more

We were disappointed in the over all establishment. The food was average and lacking. We also felt no effort was put forth with the presentation of what we were served. Although our server was very attentive and very friendly, sitting inside eating our meal in a bare room filled with windows on a rainy day was not enjoyable. I am sorry to say the restaurant feels dated and tired! read more

We had the nicest dinner here! The sweet potato grouper and the crab cakes were 10/10. Just amazing! Thomas was our server and was attentive and incredibly friendly. I would come back again tomorrow if we could! read more

We dined at The Pilot House a couple years ago and we returned because the food and service were above average back then. This time the service and food were a disappointment. To begin with, our server didn't introduce herself and was totally indifferent throughout our meal. She never checked back to see if we needed re-fills or how the food was especially since another server brought our dishes. The food was over-priced for the amount served. My wife's parmesan chicken was overdone. I ordered the catch of the day which was grouper although nicely done must have been barely six ounces and the rice that accompanied it was no more than a tablespoon. Not worth the $34.00 charged. My wife asked for the desert menu and was given the craft beer list instead. Because our server left so quickly, didn't have chance to exchange it. After several minutes, she came to an adjacent table she was serving but never came to our table before we caught her attention. When we showed her the beer list, she seemed annoyed at her mistake and then took a while to get the right menu. The desert was another disappointment. My wife ordered he peach cobbler with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. Another server brought it over however we asked for another because the ice cream had melted al over plus it took fifteen minutes to arrive. Overall it was one of the worst dining experiences lately and even after talking to the manager left feeling he didn't care either, satisfied he had our money. Based on the above, we cannot recommend this restaurant considering there are many others nearby. read more

Great sheltered outdoor setting for a group on the River. Would not recommend the shrimp and grits. Grits served as pie slice and shrimp small without Flavor. Service responsive for a large group. read more

I can't in good conscience give it more than a 1 star, the only good thing was the crab dip and the views from the patio. Other than that you might as well have gone to Wendy's and got a burger. Service was very slow - like incredibly slow, the food came out completely cold, there were cockroaches everywhere, and for the price it deserves every bit of this 1 star. read more

Food was ok. The ambiance and location is great. I would recommend as a try when in Wilmington, but it is similar to your typical seafood etc. read more

Pilot House - Shrimp basket - Seafood Near Me - Wilmington, North Carolina

Great location Service was just ok Amazing burger Recommend the calamari for an app I wouldn't recommend going in after 8pm as we did. It was made clear by hostess & bartending staff that we were an inconvenience as it was closer to closing time. For a more upscale experience, the service was not wha to would have expected read more

I will start by saying the food is usually good here but I don't know what happened tonight! I know places are crazy during a holiday at restaurants but I've been to other restaurants that were much better than here. Food was mediocre at best. Asked for extra gravy for the turkey and they said we would be charged $1.00 which is totally ridiculous! The food wasn't very hot and the squash soup was more like a stew than a soup and wasn't good at all. Then we get the bill and they charged me $28 dollars for two small glasses of Pinoit Grigio. I told her the bill was wrong and she said "that I pointed to the expensive wine" which was $14 a glass. First off there was only a $7 a glass Pinoit Grigio on the list AND we never pointed to anything! So she goes to get the bill corrected and they took the glasses of wine off ONLY to re-enter in the middle of the bill (I guess hoping we wouldn't notice)! She said the manager fixed the bill! OMG never going there again on a holiday! The service wasn't very good at all either!!! read more

Came here on a Monday, a week after Labor day, no waiting tube seated and easy parking in lot. Its located on water with beautiful views. We were seated under the covered patio overlooking the river. Ordered fried green tomatoes for app which was pretty good; ordered catfish and grits, and fried shrimp for entrees. Topped it off with key lime pie. Food was good. Our wait staff, Carlissa, was outstanding. read more

Love it here! Mac and cheese, spinach salad, crab cakes. Husband requests we come every time we are here! A+++ read more

Pilot House - Inside dining - Seafood Near Me - Wilmington, North Carolina

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Nice spot at the far Western end of the river walk, next door to the (seemingly much busier) Elijah's. We got a nice seat in the covered outdoor area. Plenty of ceiling fans to keep the air moving and bugs away, and Eisenglass style curtains can be drawn in the even of foul weather, as we got for about 10 minutes while we were eating. We were just trying to take a mid-afternoon break before an expected big dinner so had a nice $6.50 glass of Albarino wine, the low country spring rolls, and the grown up grilled cheese sandwich. The low country spring rolls were delicious, soul food in a deep fried wrapper with some tasty hot/sour dipping sauce to cut the heaviness. Problem: The garnish was attractive but stale and inedible. Do not put something on my plate just for looks. I eat everything! The "grown up grilled cheese" had tomato, applewood smoked bacon, fontina and Havarti cheese, on parmesan crusted sourdough. The parmesan on the sourdough was interesting, but with only the tomato to cut the saltiness was almost too much for me. All in all, a nice place to sit next to the river and relax. read more

Pilot House - Low country boil roll. Not a low country boil in a roll but delicious anyway - Seafood Near Me - Wilmington, North Carolina

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We had a great lunch here. We got in the restaurant early and was immediately seated. Our server was very attentive and provided great service. My wife and and I decided we were going to split our entrees so the waiter had the kitchen serve on separate dishes. We started with the Carolina bisque which had a lot of seafood in a creamy rosemary broth. We next split a spinach salad that had the best honey mustard dressing I have eaten. Excellent salad. We finished with Scallop Rockefeller which was a sea scallops seared with bacon, finely diced peppers, hollandaise sauce over sautéed spinach. This was one of the best seafood dishes I have ever eaten. Star of the meal. Great restaurant on the river with a great view. read more

Went to check this place out with family. We had a group 6 adults and 2 kids. We were sat right away and we had a really nice table. We could see the water and this was in their main dining room. A huge party of about 20 people got sat about 10 minutes after us and we shared the same waiter. It took about him about 10-15 mins before greeting us. Took our drink orders and apps. Took a while for the drinks to come out. Another 15 mins and then he finally came by to take our order. We were sat at 6 pm and our diner didn't come out till 7-ish.... we were starving and starting to hangry. The food was good. The ribs were succulent. The salmon was tasty. The linguini and clams left a little to be desired which is why I'm giving his place 3 starts. For the way the 2 parties were handled and the linguini and clams. I'm sure I'll try this place again... eventually. I recommend it however maybe not the best for bigger parties. The 20 top next to us got all friend food so theirs came outta b4 us, but I felt our some of food sat under a heat lamp as the steak was dry for one of our meals even though it was medium-rare. read more

My husband and I reserved our son's rehearsal dinner there and I can't say enough about the staff as well as the food. They went out of their way to make sure we were taken care of in every way possible. We had one that had a shell fish allergy and they made sure we knew which of the dishes were fish so he didn't get near it. The atmosphere was amazing and very warm and inviting. The views of the water the friendliness just everything in general exceeded our expectations. Thank you so much for everything to the management and staff of The Pilot House read more

Had a girls' weekend getaway a little while ago and stopped by Pilot House for a quick lunch prior to checking into our hotel. We were seated outside and service was prompt. I'm not sure they still have the Lobster Newberg (I don't see it on the menu anymore) but a few of us ordered that pasta dish and it was superb! Flavors were spot on. Everyone of who got it loved it and cleared our plates. I would really like to return and try a few more different entrees. It's just that every time I look for a place to dine in Wilmington, I gravitate elsewhere. read more

Garbage, absolute garbage. The food seems microwaved, and none of it really tastes like it is supposed to take. They overcharge for this cheap food because of their location...and im pretty sure they share a kitchen with 1-2 other restaurants that suffer from the same food quality issues. I mean...it just isn't a quality restaurant. That is all there is to it. Go there with someone u don't like and bring your own food from another restaurant. Great location, terrible food and service. read more

I adore this place. It's absolutely beautiful inside and out, has an amazing deck with a view of the river, delicious food, and fantastic service. I visited with my S.O. and cousin who was visiting from out of town on a nice, warm evening last month. I had the southern shrimp and lobster carbonara, my S.O. had the crabmelt sandwich, and my cousin had the bisque and salad. All of food was mouth-watering and cooked perfectly. The carbonara is the best I have EVER had. I would go back and eat it 1000x over. It was creamy, cheesy perfection. The crabmelt was flavorful, with the right amount of crunch from the grilled bread mixed with the creaminess of the crab and cheese. The soup and salad were also delicious according to my cousin. Our server was on point, constantly checking in, and making sure we were enjoying our meal. We will be back again! read more

Pilot House - View from the patio - Seafood Near Me - Wilmington, North Carolina

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We were seated outside, right next to the boardwalk and the view was amazing! There was a private party on the outdoor patio (we think it was a rehearsal dinner) which looked like a great location for it! The food was just okay and the drinks were not as good. That's why I can't give this place a 5-star. It was quite pricey but it's like we paid for the view. Would I go back? I'm not sure if we'd go back for a dinner again but would definitely go back for a special occasion. I would love to host a private party here! read more

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This restaurant is truly one of a kind with delicious menu options. The servers are personable and great in their service! The food was delicious and perfectly prepared to my liking. The cornbread was yummy! The atmosphere was beautiful and the chairs were comfy... They have salads bought by the half so you don't waste all of the extra you don't eat... they had many fresh fish options with different toppings. I would highly recommend them!! read more

This was the first restaurant I tried after moving to the Wilmington area. A good way to start! Awesome location; great large outdoor section; and good food, too! I recommend the crab cake sandwich, but my guess is you can't go wrong! read more

This weekday lunch was just "OK". The service was good and the food was just a notch below that. Fresh oysters were priced fantastically, but they were very small and we had some shell in each one we had (1/2 dozen, $12 MKT). The spicy shrimp & grits were alright- but the collards on the plate were the star. Shrimp were small and tasted like they used to be frozen, the grit cake was good but tasted ordered in, and the collards were seasoned perfectly. Drinks were just "OK" as well. read more

Do not get the bread pudding. Shrimp and grits, crab cakes, grouper = fantastic. Chocolate mouse was so rich. Fruit sorbet was refreshing. Laken was our server and she was great! I forgot to take pics ‍ read more

Wonderful diner right on the river With a nice selection of local craft beers Fried Calimari was was light and tender not at all greasy with 2 great dipping sauces The shrimp and grits had a nice spin being on a grit cake made for a nice change. And the collards were complimented nicely with the sweet tart tomatoes read more

Pilot House - Calimari - Seafood Near Me - Wilmington, North Carolina

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First time here and the food was delicious. I started with the bisque which was great. I also got the catch of the day which I got Tuna. When it came out the food was Luke warm. Overall it was a great place. They don't offer military discounts which is fine. The sanitary score is 92 (A). read more

Pilot House - Tuna with veggies - Seafood Near Me - Wilmington, North Carolina

Everything is delicious a little bit more seasoning on fish would be amazing. Fresh fish taste amazing, lemon shallots vinaigrette dressing perfect read more

Pilot House - House Salad, grouper, samon - Seafood Near Me - Wilmington, North Carolina

I hate to do it, I've always loved the Pilot House, but after a year or two of declining crab melts, and our most recent experience, I have to knock it down a little. First and foremost, as I previously mentioned, we would make special trips here just for the crab melt. But I have noticed in the last couple years that there is less and less crab to my melt. Its still super yummy, but this past visit, it was a minuscule amount of filling. I understand there are cuts to be made sometimes, but the price seems to rise over the years as the sandwich itself declines. I used to take half home for a second lunch, but I easily ate it all and was still hungry. The service this time around was pretty poor. When we arrived, we were one of three parties waiting (a party of two, and two parties of four, including us). The hostess made note of this, quickly sat the first party, returned for the second, and then never came back. As we stood their waiting, my kids became a bit restless, so my husband took them down to the Riverwalk to wait. I waited about 10 minutes, peaking around corners for someone to acknowledge me, but to no avail. Finally my husband, who came in from the back of the restaurant (which is connected to the Riverwalk), said our table is ready. Apparently when he came back in someone stopped him and said it was ready. Thanks for letting me, the person out here waiting, know. The service itself was slow. By the time our waitress showed up, we knew everything we wanted, so we went ahead and ordered drinks and our meals at the same time. This probably was a mistake because the bread she said was on order never came. We asked for it when our food arrived (because we usually LOVE the cornbread), and there was no apology for the delay (or for forgetting it, which is likely what happened), and when the basket did come, the cornbread was cold and hard as a rock. As someone who worked in the restaurant business, I know how these things go. Sometimes there are off days. Will this stop me from coming back? No probably not. But if the food and service is similar in our next visit, we may rethink our annual Wilmington stop moving forward. read more

This place has the best oysters at the best price around $16, you can't beat that and the view right on the water. I've come a few times and the male bartender is phenomenal! Very knowledgeable and super friendly (red beard wish I knew his name). I came on date night a few nights ago since my service before has been great. Instead of the bar we sat in the dining room. The food was delicious and we enjoyed the setting. My only concern was the knowledge of the server. She must have been new or just not as knowledgeable about the food and drinks. We will be back but going to the bar next time. read more

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We had lunch here to celebrate our 10th wedding anniversary. The Pilot House catered our wedding on the River Deck. We were immediately seated inside with a view of the water. Our server arrived and took our drink orders with our appetizer order of their crab dip. Once the drinks arrived we ordered the Shrimp and Scallops Linguine and the Shrimp and Lobster Newberg. Wife ordered a Pacific Rim Riesling as well. Our meals arrived in a timely manner and presented very well. We really enjoyed everything we ordered. Both meals were delicious, but the highlight was the crab dip. Wife also enjoyed her drink. Our server, Jessica, started off strong and fizzled at the end. We were thinking about dessert, but we decided not to drag this out. We had to ask another server for a dessert menu. We looked over the menu, still no server. Once she finally showed up, we just requested the check. We'll continue to visit every year for our anniversary. read more

Pilot House - Shrimp and Scallop Linguini. Very good. - Seafood Near Me - Wilmington, North Carolina

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I've been a fan of the pilot house for 30 years, give or take, so this year when my daughter selected to go there for her special birthday dinner I was all for it. We got dressed up, we were excited, reviewed the menu ahead of time and hope to get there in time for a beautiful sunset. The view is excellent and thank goodness it hasn't changed, however the building is noticeably shifting and sitting by the window your plates would shift to the river. It was a little unsettling but still fine. The food was good. The prices were very noticeably higher, a good $10 at least per plate, which is understandable given the times that we're living in. But the environment had changed, people weren't dressed up, they weren't even really dressed, including one of the waitresses was walking around in a hoodie. It just didn't have the feel of being one of Wilmington's top restaurants. It was loud, it wasn't the dining environment it had been, it wasn't that crowded but it was boisterous, and it's not tourist season so... I think the management should set the tone for the waitress steps a tire and demeanor, as well as if guests are being extremely loud that they gently guide them towards the environment that they would like to have. I'm not saying I won't go back there, I'm just saying that it's not what it used to be. read more

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This place was pretty good. Ate dinner as the sun was setting over the river, so the view was incredible. Food was really good. Lots of good feedback from our crew. Shrimp and grits were awesome. Steak was perfectly prepared. Crab cakes were as good as what you get in Charleston. Little bit pricey, but worth the extra. Wait staff (Mia) was super attentive and a pleasure to have as a server. Hope to visit again soon. read more

Bad services, long wait, small portions, nice river view. Please don't waste your time and money. We had very poor service.

Sunday afternoon at 1pm our family went to pilot house for a glass of Prosecco, pimento dip, and a side of mac and cheese for our toddler. all of the above were decently tasty. We proceeded to order a Cesar Salad with Grilled chicken and a Carolina burger. We had two families sat next to us and were served their food before we were. My husband went in to see what was going on with our food as it had been over 45 minutes, only to witness the server with the outside deck where we were sitting handling the to go orders and using her hands with no gloves to serve french fries whole wiping her face and pants. We are in the middle of a pandemic and we trust that for a $14 hamburger and a $17 salad that the standard would be been higher with more food/safety regulations at this establishment. My husband then proceeded to tell the manager that we are not paying for our meal due to the way it was being handled by a server touching doors, wiping her face, and who knows what else and then handling the food. The manager was upset, rude, unapologetic, and yet he "apologized about the wait and that the food has been ready for a while... not sure why we hadn't gotten it yet.".. what does that even mean?? SO he either saw it and didn't properly prepare/deliver it to our table, or he saw it and told the waitress to prepare a togo order after touching door handles, handling cash and cards, and who knows what else. either way, save your $$ and go to a different riverfront restaurant. Even though the Manager/Server was upset and rude we refused to pay for our to-go food, we did pay for our drinks and and appetizers. it's it is scary to think during a heightened time with covid 19, that the staff was so unaware and neglected common health practices at a high end restaurant. please be aware that this establishment is not taking the necessary and Heightened precautions to protect their own staff and the people dining there read more