Pirate&#x27;s Cove

One of the most delicious and freshest sea food I've had in a very long time. Wide range of food,…read morefrom seafood, to children's menu, to steak. Everything we ordered was a hit. As the restaurant did not accept any reservations and we went on a Friday night, we had to wait about 2 hours to get seated (large group of 7). Totally worth the wait though. Definitely recommend visiting this spot if you're visiting New Bern, NC. Order to oyster shot!

Stopped in for lunch and we were seated right away. They have art photos for sale on the walls. As…read morethe mother of an artist I love seeing these kind of opportunities for the artists. The place is a little small inside, but they do have a bar in the back. Bathroom was clean. Model sailboats adorn the top of the booths. We ordered shrimp and grits with hushpuppies to go. Then we had a chopped salad, fried oysters, Calamari and the tuna crisp. All the food was good, but the Calamari were amazing. Perfectly fried, tender and I would highly recommend trying them. My kiddo enjoyed the shrimp and grits but said the hushpuppies were excellent.

Cute bar area

Mj 's Crab Pretzel

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Oyster shot

Morgan's Tavern & Grill

4.3(862 reviews)

0.2 mi

This place always great ! But the best are the people !!…read more The best bartender Evelyn Manza and waitress Rose Always great experiences

We stopped in for a quick bite while on a weekend trip and had such a pleasant experience. Food and…read moredrinks came out super fast & our server was not shy about making craft beer recommendations. The Hawaiian burger - though made more medium well than "medium" - was juicy. Shrimp burger was flavorful all around with perfect seasoning blend! The fries were a strange shape and deliciously crispy. The space inside is expansive - more expansive than it appears since the facade makes the place look like it's a smaller venue. The décor is well done with a perfect mix of rustic charm and comfort. From the bear statues to the wall hangings, there is so much attention to detail everywhere. Though we didn't bring a fur baby. The back of the menu makes it clear pups - and horses - are welcome!

Jalapeño Cream Cheese Burger

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Fish Tacos

Front Street Fish

4.3(38 reviews)

I went with my wife and friend exploring town. Walking in asked by the young man if this was our…read morefirst time. It was, and it was a great lunch. We each ordered something different. The amount of food was great. I had fried oysters and clams. The clams had Kelly's. The hushpuppies perfect. Friendly staff great service a place to go back to the next time in town. Pictures of the town on the walls makes it special.

Popped in for lunch on a Tuesday because I had seen some reviews. This definitely lived up to…read moreexpectations! I had the Mac Daddy which is a soft shell crab, shrimp and crab cake sandwich. Not sure if they offer it grilled vs fried but fried was delicious. And a reasonable price for this amount of seafood. Also had the crab tots, those are not to be missed. The sauce included with the crab tots was amazing as well. Excellent coleslaw & sweet tea too! The person who took my order and the gentleman who delivered it to the table were both extremely nice, and the food came out quickly. The restaurant itself isn't fancy, but it's what you would expect for a quality fresh seafood establishment with a seafood market next door. Plenty of tables spaced well apart so you can have a conversation and the restaurant itself was very clean. This is a great lunch spot and I can't wait to go back to try more.

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Saltwater Grill

4.1(76 reviews)

6.3 mi

We listened to the many raves about the Grill and finally decided to check it out. The raves…read moreweren't wrong. We went there on St. Patrick's Day and had one of the best Reubens ever, along with absolutely the best fries ever. It is such a pretty restaurant and when you walk in and see the water and the boats you totally relax. It's like you're on vacation. Our server Christie, was so, so nice, and didn't blink an eye when I changed my drink. We are looking forward to going back there for dinner. The people at the bar were raving about the shrimp. We gotta try that next time.

***This is a review for Saltwater's seasonal Thanksgiving buffet, open to reservations only***…read more Oh, Saltwater Grill... where do I begin? Let's begin with the gravy, or lack there of. It's Thanksgiving. Unless the chef has UNWAVERING, super-heroic confidence the turkey is going to be ultra-moist, gravy needs to be on standby. Even IF the turkey is perfect, what about the mashed potatoes? The dressing? Gravy is the cohesiveness that brings it all together, the savior lifeblood of the holiday dinner plate. (FYI, the turkey needed said gravy.) Let's check in with the alternate entree offerings: chicken & dumplings or shrimp & grits. They're lucrative ideas for options other than turkey & ham. But... the execution was lacking. The chicken & dumplings had a cloying, sweetish flavor. I couldn't put my finger on it; maybe I was getting undertones of nutmeg & allspice in my bites. It was, um, unique (to be polite). The shrimp & grits. Bless it, I just don't know what to say. The grits be gritting, not creamy & smooth like they should be for this dish. The shrimp swimming in the sauce in the adjacent pan struck me as the tiny salad shrimp most of us have seen before. Speaking of the 'sauce': This wasn't a thoughtful carrier vehicle for ANY type of shrimp, great or small. It seemed to be a thinned out mornay with no thought or attempt at flavor. Ah, wait. There is always dessert batting last to save the day! It's the last thing that touches your palate, erasing all vestiges of earlier misgivings. Except... NO pumpkin pie or variation thereof. NO pecan pie or attempted version. There was red velvet cake, flourless chocolate torte & a snickerdoodle'ish crumb cake available. The crumb cake would have to be my go to to close out this meal. For reserved, timed seatings of patrons the dining area was never overwhelmingly crowded. With that said, overall service was subpar. We never received beverage refills (everyone drinking water or tea, no difficult orders) & plates were cleared slowly. Well, that's that. We know to make better choices next year. However, you don't know what you don't know until you know. Now we know. p.s. - It's a good thing I have pumpkin pie stashed at home.

Dining room

Half. I ate the other half!

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Waterfront view.

Sea & Soul

4.3(63 reviews)

2.1 mi

We went an hour before close and the food was absolutely amazing! All staff was friendly, the…read moreamount of food for the price was more than me or my husband could finish. Overall a great experience we will definitely be back!

If you are in the area and want some of the most amazing food here is your place. We started off…read morewith the crab and spinach dip with pita. Then the wife and I had the Seafood boil for 2. The flavor was top tier. The people are so kind and take great care of you. The atmosphere is full of family energy.

Red potatoes were my favorite!

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Cocktail my waitress said was her favorite. Absolutely delicious

Confluence Restaurant and Lounge

4.2(5 reviews)

We came out on halloween and was pleasantly surprised to see decorations and the staff in costume…read more Love it! We were treated very well and the food was great. I had the fried green tomato salad, raw oyster, crab cakes, and seafood risotto. If I had to make a suggestion I would say add something green to the risotto. Like asparagus or peas, it was all one color and was rich, it could have benefitted from a vegetable. All in all it was a good experience.

We have eaten here three times - once with a party of 16, once with four on the patio, and once…read morewith just the two of us - chef Cedric has made Confluence a new go-to place for us where we can get great food. Love the calamari and shrimp basket, both with such a light almost tempura batter , the fried brie sticks, the tiramisu...all winners! We will of course be back!

Menu

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Menu

Cypress Hall

4.4(240 reviews)

Wow. Great dinner. Great service. Before I forget Samantha was awesome. Charming and informative…read more Did not hover but provided excellent service. Appetizers both oysters. Rockefeller and Raw. Both were excellent. Well seasoned and fresh. Entrees I had the striped bass. Husband had the swordfish. Every bite was perfect. Great flavors. Mixed textures on the plate and mine with a little heat to finish. The food could not have been better. Truly a celebration on a beautiful day in New Bern.

I dined for lunch at Cypress Hall in Downtown New Bern. The decor is great. I liked the exposed…read morebrick and high ceilings in the historic building. It also feels modern. One half feels historic and the other half feels modern with the artwork, mirrors, and finishes. The lighting is dim but you can still read the menu. It wasn't busy while I was there but quiet enough I couldn't hear other conversations. Initially the host wanted to seat me at the bar but when I declined, gave me a seat near the open kitchen. My waitress was friendly and helped me select the strawberry blonde to go with the strawberry salad. This was smaller than expected and just one or two strawberries. There was a little too much dressing for my taste as I forgot to order it on the side. I did like how the flavors came together. I also had the chocolate torte which was rich and decadent. I left here a little squeamish from what I witnessed. After all, I was seated at a booth table with a full view of the open kitchen. I noticed the food runner repeatedly touching his nose then the plates of food. I watched him reset a table and was touching the silverware by the tines, the part that goes in your mouth, rather than the handles. I'm not sure if the hands had been washed when he added by hand garnish to my dessert. I immediately removed the garnish but should have returned the dish to get it remade. Also, a table of six was seated then left a few minutes later and the glasses and silverware were not replaced while I was there, leaving me to assume they were not replaced for the next guests. I also noticed the restaurant had many cameras, so these hygiene lapses were likely recorded. For an upscale spot, these hygiene issues were disappointing. I truly enjoyed the flavors and the atmosphere, and I would be happy to return in the future if I could be confident that basic hygiene and service protocols were being strictly followed. I'd particularly love to come back and try the strawberry cake next time.

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Back of establishment

Persimmons Waterfront Restaurant

3.6(637 reviews)

0.4 mi

I've been dining here for numerous years. My sister and I arrived from Warsaw first seeing a 3…read morelegged ginger cat who was just sublime as we parked. The weather was extremely generous for Feb no jacket sun in 70s with a view you can never buy. Persimmons being on waterfront is huge pull but so much more its the history of a small town which played such a huge history in NC history and all the historical architectural structures and ability to park walk enjoy. The entrance lounge area is so comfortable and filled with local artist portraits for sale. We were quickly seated. My sister thought she reckonized an old family friend they were just ladies who liked our outfits who came over to chat. Toby was our server very gracious and splendid service. We decided to switch previous entree orders plus I added appetizer which was so divine the feta pita was amazing. I am unfortunately plagued by allergies and sensitive to certain spices got a peppercorn during appetizer so had to excuse myself and refresh but the flavor profile of appetizer was worth my fault of chatting too much got pepper rush. Nothing could spoil our time my sister had just had bday day before so it was festive conversation and dining. Her entree of pork chop was a tad rare for her our server was very accommodating and Mananger quickly came over to reassure her that Chef was making her the chicken which I was having fresh to perfection. The plate size here match charger size plus heated and food always arrives extremely freshly cooked even broccoli isn't overcooked so rare. Portions are beyond most dining experiences. I could never eat full entree here always having leftovers is great to bring back to Raleigh. Look at pics there are 3 butterfly chicken breasts buttery mashed potatoes and succulent broccoli the mushroom peppercorn en glaze tie all flavors to a higher taste profile. After dining chatting enjoying as we were leaving I asked staff about ginger cat whom is named Sampson he's quite the legend in marina. Thanks for wonderful time as always will be back soon!

I'm so disappointed with Persimmons on the Waterfront, in New Bern…read more First, the good things: I love that they sell local art in the waiting area, secondly, I love sitting out on the deck. There was a nice breeze off the Neuse, even though it's 86° right now you don't know that because they have these nice shades and there's a nice breeze coming off the water. So what I didn't like first: I feel the menu was really limited, I can get around that, but the red flag right off the bat was their fish tacos and their fish and chips are made with "white fish" I figured they it was gonna be tilapia or something equally horrible. When I asked the what fish it was he said it was Pangasius, which the waiter described as similar to flounder and I also overheard another waiter. Say the same thing to somebody sitting near me so that's the spiel they're told to tell people who ask what kind of fish. I suggest that you look it up. It's Farm raised and not in very clean environment usually... I never eat tilapia and this is actually one rung below tilapia. I wasn't going to get fish. I ended up getting a burger which I normally don't get at a restaurant, but I ordered my burger, medium rare and the waiter said, "We don't do that. We either do pink or not pink." They tried to tell me it was a health department regulation. Nope! Other than fast food like McDonald's and Wendy's and such I've never been to a restaurant especially a supposedly fine dining restaurant where you couldn't order your burger, medium, well medium, medium-rare or rare. I said, try to make it less than just pink please. Then when I cut into my burger. It was well done. Maybe the exact center was slightly pink, but that was just one bite worth. I'm very disappointed, but I have to tell you I would be back just to be able to have the same glass of wine. It was a white wine, a dry white wine from Spain and the appetizer of brussels sprouts while sitting out on the patio, it was a nice experience for that but not for a meal.

Upstairs dinning place

Braised chicken and pork belly pasta

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Outdoor dining on the Nuese River. Stunning.

B & J Seafood

4.1(28 reviews)

1.8 mi

Food... just food from the sea Service... just like yo…read moregrandparents would Ambiance...just like no other I bought some fresh caught crabs, and cooked it at home. You know what? It came out like a champ. I loved it and was so satisfying. Y'all need to come down here and get yo crabs or fishes.

I visited the store two years ago and they were very nice staff filet my fish planning to go there…read morefor the holidays.

Wacha want

Dig-in y'all

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Fresh Salmon & Scallops

The Chelsea

4.2(449 reviews)

0.2 mi

We celebrated our anniversary at The Chelsea. From the scheduling of our reservation right to our…read moredelicious dessert our experience was just great. The must have Cream of Crab soup was so good! My husband had the perfectly cooked and presented Candied Bacon Ribeye. We'd been in town for a few days and he was in search of a great steak dinner and finally struck gold at the Chelsea! I had the Horseradish Salmon which was perfectly prepared and so wonderfully seasoned! Thank you to our fantastic server, Karen, who made our experience all the more memorable! Highly recommend this restaurant!

Disappointing Birthday Experience…read more We chose The Chelsea in New Bern to celebrate my wife's birthday. We've been here once before and had no issues, which is why this experience was so frustrating. This visit was below average. The food overall was overly salty, but the biggest issue came when we were packing our food to go. As my wife was about to box up her chicken bruschetta, we noticed a hair stuck between the chicken breasts. We immediately informed the waitress. Instead of allowing us to document the issue, she quickly took the plate away. No replacement entrée was offered. The manager came over and offered a dessert, but since it was my wife's birthday, we already had cake waiting at home. A replacement meal or removal of the entrée from the bill would have made more sense. For a restaurant that presents itself as upscale, the way this was handled was disappointing; especially on a special occasion. Cleanliness and proper resolution matter, and unfortunately this experience missed the mark.