Moved here summer 2020 and after double vacs am finally venturing out to local haunts. This place is as prepackaged and loaded with preservatives as a restaurant can get. I don't think anything is made in-house. I'm grateful they were out of oysters. I'd probably have gotten sick. I'd avoid this place at all costs. read more

I was in the mood for breakfast for lunch (served til 2) had an omelet and grits YUMMMMM! Best grits ever and a great omelet. Excellent friendly service from the entire staff. Def will be a go to breakfast place read more

On December the 3rd, 2022,my sons and I went to the sawmill Grill to eat lunch. We ordered two cheeseburgers and a spicy chicken sandwich. When we got the cheeseburgers, they weren't made right they didn't have lettuce, tomato mayonnaise, onions pickles anything on them so I waited a few minutes and then I got the waitresses attention and told her I said this is not what we ordered on it she said oh the computer must've messed up. So.one kid ate his hamburger and said it didn't have the stuff he wanted on it but he was hungry so he ate it anyway. She brought me out some awful looking Tomato and lettuce and a a container of mayonnaise. By that time I was so disgusted I just said if I need to fix my own food then I'll do it when I get home I'm not gonna sit here and put all the stuff on my hamburger when I wanted it on it to start with because I like my tomato and lettuce warm. about that time the so-called manager came out of the back a short man with a big mouth name Henry that said take just one of them off of there and I said to him why are you taking this one of them off of there not they weren't done right. I said I've been coming here for years and this is the worst meal I've ever had here. I said I won't be back and his response was good. I explain to him I'm a local I'm not a tourist if he can afford to lose locals like that good for him. Oh, he said yeah I can afford to lose them and I said my food wasn't right why do I have to pay for something that's not right. I told him social media is something that I will go on there and I will tell what he did and how he acted and has no customer service skills whatsoever. He just kept right on right on right on till I felt threatened and decided it was time to go Kids have been very upset sis this incident and I feel like I should call the police and reported it.What was supposed to have been a nice lunch-out turned out to be a disaster. I will never go there again. No wonder they can't keep help that Man's managing that place. As we were leaving, he screamed. I love you. Have a nice day. read more

The greeter was very rude on Sunday morning plenty of seats at counter said she needs to ask everyone but never did very rude

This is a casual place with an extensive breakfast menu. We had to wait outside for 20 minutes on a Sunday morning but the weather was good and the others that were waiting were friendly. Once we got inside, there were plenty of workers but they were all very busy. Some of the other reviews indicated that the workers weren't very social and I'd agree. If you are looking for good food and don't mind a little wait, this is a good choice. If you are looking for friendly workers that like to chat, you may want to look elsewhere. read more

Good food. Solid home style local menu. Usually fast service! Meeting room available for reservations.

We used to like Sawmill Grill. The waitresses and management are surly. The food is underwhelming and almost all of it is from a can. The portions keep shrinking while the prices keep going up. They will get an attitude with you if you say anything. Underwhelming and mediocre and they could care less.... read more

It's your typical greasy spoon. Went for breakfast and we're content. And a shout out for Kayleigh (don't remember if that's the right spelling). She was attentive friendly and kind. We will be back read more

Friendly service. Oysters flavorful, prepared perfectly. Shrimp and catfish tender and delicious. Will eat here again.

Sawmill is basically a locally owned version of Crackle Barrel located on the outskirts of Hampstead. Breakfast all day and most of the entrees consist of a land or sea based protein and two sides. The interior is clean, country, and mostly mundane. The obligatory farm mural and crop tools adorn the walls. Unlike the normally tasty Crackle Barrel, here the food ranges from barely passable to okay. My parents raved about the seafood, so before deciding to go with that, I questioned the waitress about the origin of the fish and shrimp. After reading way too much about Taiwanese sourced seafood, I won't touch anything from non-local sources. I was told everything was fresh and local, but something about the brushed off response and the size of my shrimp (tiny) make me think I was fibbed to. Regardless, my grilled shrimp weren't seasoned with much of anything and tasted pretty bland. The brussels sprouts were boiled but flavorful and the pickled beats seemed to be out of a can. Pretty lackluster. Everyone else at my table seemed to enjoy their food, although none of the dishes were culinary feats (BLT, fried shrimp, scrambled egg). To sum things up, you probably won't have a great meal here, but you probably won't have a bad one either. If you're trying to entertain a wide variety of tastes (i.e. picky family), Sawmill might not be a bad choice. read more

Sawmill Grill - Seafood Near Me - Hampstead, North Carolina

I don't like to give anyone a single star, but in my opinion, this is one place that deserves it. This review is for breakfast only. Maybe they do other meals better. We stopped by here for breakfast on the way out of town. Although we tend to gravitate toward one-off places and stay away from chains, I wish in this case we'd continued on to Cracker Barrel. The service was increadibly sloooooowwww, and they didn't appear to be terribly busy. The person who cleaned the table we sat down at brought our drinks, and I finished a whole cup of coffee before the waitress even showed up. Did I mention the servcie was slow? She didn't seem overly concerned with keeping us waiting. I ordered the corned beef and eggs. It's hard to mess up an egg, and they did manage to cook it how I asked for it, but that was the only good part of the meal. I ordered the potatoes as a side, figuring they were like most places; seasoned and with something tasty added. They were nothing more than cubed potatoes. No seasoning, no onions, nothing. They tasted like they were cooked in a deep fryer like french fries, but with less flavor. From their taste and appearance, it looks like they bought them frozen and already cubed, not fresh. The corned beef was in a round patty that looked like it was sliced off the end of a big can and dropped on the griddle. Mushy. Very little flavor. The cheap stuff I'd cook myself at home is better quality. My wife had a "ham and cheese omlette sandwich". It seemed to be made with cubes of processed ham, a slice of processed cheese, and put on greasy toast. She also had the potato cubes, which she didn't eat either. Between the really lousy service and way-less-than-average food quality, we won't be back here for sure. read more

"Are you going to write a Yelp review of this place?" - Patrick Riddle Absolutely. I'm a little bit shocked that it's rated this low. I came here today for lunch with some of my co-workers and the food was great - got the lunch special of hamburger steak & gravy and got banana pudding and peach cobbler and I think I'm about to take a nap. About on par with Cracker Barrel except I'm a big fan of supporting local businesses (and if Cracker Barrel gets 4 stars, this deserves at least 3). Service was a little slow like other reviewers have stated but we had a big group so I think they did a great job for the number of people that we had. Waiters were very friendly and good about refilling drinks. My coworker Steve Davis said that the breakfast here is good so I will have to come back to get some waffles with fresh strawberries. read more

Sawmill Grill - Hamburger Steak w/ onions + gravy, Peach Cobbler & Banana Pudding - Seafood Near Me - Hampstead, North Carolina

Okay so I've heard some much about the biscuit and gravy until I decided I am going to swing by and try. Upon walking in we were greeted and seated very quickly even with the crowd they had. Our waitress was very friendly and helpful with the menu if we had any questions. I was in such high hopes that this would knock me off socks off, but it didn't sadly sigh... The biscuit was very dry and hard and the gravy for me just wasn't creamy enough it was a bit like cement :( The environment is very family friendly menus are well put together. They serve country food so if u are in the market for collard greens, yams then this will be the place for you to go. I haven't had the opportunity to try any of their other foods and I am sure it's good. I will have to update this review upon trying lunch/dinner. All in all what I had was ok just didn't knock my socks off like I'd hoped it would. Lovely place though! read more

It was...fine? We wanted brunch that was close to our U-Haul pick up location and still open around noon, and this did technically provide that. A lot of people online seemed really into the corned beef hash, so I ordered it. It tasted honestly pretty similar to the stuff you can get in a can. Which I happen to enjoy as the occasional greasy treat, but, y'know, I can open a can myself a lot cheaper. The waffle was quite tasty, I'll give them that. The service was middling. They were rushing us and seemed annoyed at our existence. Not sure if there's a link between that, Fox News blaring on the TVs, and us being an openly queer couple, but even if there wasn't it didn't make me feel very welcome. read more

Our go to since before we moved to the area. Excellent quality, quantity and value. Service is always welcoming. Plan to be here a couple of times a week. read more

Went here for breakfast this morning. Was clean, smoke-free and had a packed parking lot. Looked like a lot of locals there which is what we look for in a restaurant. We came in shortly after a peak of morning rush so they were still catching up on orders but the food was worth waiting for. Will come back. read more

Sawmill Grill - Full parking lot, smoke free restaurant, very clean, smiling folks at tables. Can't wait to dig in! - Seafood Near Me - Hampstead, North Carolina

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Apparently this restaurant makes too much money, and they don't need mine anymore. I have rarely seen such rude management in my life. We've been to the sawmill a couple of times before and had no problems, but today changed all of that. We got there about a quarter after 12, and the place closes at two. We were informed by the waitress/manager that they had no biscuits. When I asked why they had no biscuits, she copped an attitude with me, and said because they were almost closing. Really, an hour and 45 minutes away from closing and they're almost closing. So after we had ordered our food, she came back with our food, and dropped my plate right behind me with a crash so loud it scared me to death. So I had to wait for a new plate to get to me, while we were waiting for my food to get to me the other two people that were with me started eating theirs and his eggs weren't made the way he asked them to, they were undercooked, and her eggs were also undercooked and she asked for crispy bacon and she got bacon that was limp. The waitress/manager never came back to our table until she was bringing my plate back at which time the other two guests told her what was wrong with their plates, so she had to take their plates back and have them re-cooked. The whole time we were there any time we needed something we had to ask someone that was walking by, because she never came back to our table to check on us. If all that wasn't bad enough when I got my check and went to the cash register I told the lady at the register not to think I was cheap, but I wasn't leaving a tip because of our servers attitude. Then she got an attitude with me and told me that we just don't understand because they get people with attitude all the time so they have to put up with it. Like, telling me that I have to put up with their attitude, because they had to put up with other people's attitude. That's when I found out that my waitress was actually the manager and she actually said that she didn't care. We walked out and she came out behind us and close the door cussing. Don't waste your time spending money there unless you want bad service. If I were giving them a rating between one and five they would get a 0.0 read more

I live in Hampstead and so wish Sawmill Grill was a better option. I gave them 2 stars just because their breakfast is ok. Please don't make the mistake of trying their seafood, it's horrible. Low quality, lots of breading and no flavor. Their banana pudding is also one of the worst things I've ever been served. There are other much better places so don't waste your money here like I did. read more

My fiancé and I were looking for a homestyle breakfast spot while on vacation and stumbled upon Sawmill (thanks to google) and we were delighted with the service and food options. Eggs and potatoes were cooked to perfection and our waitress was prompt with our requests. Food came out quick and hot. If you're in the Hampstead area and looking for good food for a good price then this is your spot. read more

This will be our go-to breakfast spot. Unfortunately we have now gone there two weekends in a row and I have forgotten to air pictures of the food. You enter into a banquet room however I feel the waiters and waitresses cannot see the entrance door well because you do wait quite a bit. The tables are spaced out nicely due to Covid and all wear masks and customers wear masks to get to their tables and then can take off. The atmosphere is awesome, very homey and warm. Country music videos play on the tv along with news on another and which ever sports game on another. The main dining area is open to the kitchen like a typical diner. Each table has its own syrup bottle/ sugar bottle/ and hand sanitizer which I feel is just perfect; especially with kiddos. I got the lumberjack special this week and upgraded my pancakes to chocolate chip pancakes with two eggs over medium, bacon, grits. Loved it! My girls split a lumberjack special with french toast which was 3 pieces, bacon, eggs and potatoes. The hubby got the logjam omelette which is online but not on the menu. This thing is HUGE. I got it last week. It's a meat lovers, veggie and a deluxe omelette all rolled into one. It's substantial and worth it. When I got it I ordered no bell peppers, no sausage, no American cheese. The coffee is perfect black. They do have real butter but also margarine. The restroom are easily accessible but you'll need to lock the main door because there locks on the stalls are too high for kids to reach. It's definitely going to be our local go-to. read more

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First time eating here. Passing through and stopped for the early bird dinner between 3-5 PM on a Tuesday. The restaurant was busy and appeared to be mostly locals from the immediate Hampstead area. I got the turkey & dressing and squash casserole. My companion got the small shrimp and fried okra. Neither of us were wow'd by the food and in fact it was barely just ok. The early bird special was cheap enough and the wait staff was courteous and attentive to their tables. Unfortunately we went hoping for good food and left disappointed. Hard to find good restaurants in Hampstead. read more

Need to correct my entire of their hours. Their are from M-S:6am-9pm Sun: 6am-3pm. (A good - GREAT place to eat.) Need to give this place a visit. We'll be back. See ya their. To the review. DINNG AREA:This is my 1st time at this location & it's 100% better than the old location. It has better lighting, cleaner floors, roomer area to move around without bumping into other people or tables like at the old site. They even have flat screen TVs (3 or more). Their last place didn't have any to my memory. FOOD: Are first 2 meals at this location were (mine) sweet ice tea, fried shrimp, baked crab, fried clams, wild rice, & cold slaw. The meal was better than what I was expecting. Nothing from my plate tasted like it came from a freezer. I take my hat off to the chief. (My wife's) Coke, chicken fried chicken with mashed potatoes, white gray, & cherry cobbler. The meal tasted good just what she expected. However, the chicken size & portion is perfect which has my wife thinking it came from a box. She said, her food did not taste like it came from the freezer and is looking forward to returning for another meal. Even on this cold rainy evening, the locals still came out this Monday to eat dinner. We both are looking forward to our next visit. read more

Sawmill Grill - My 1st meal is fried shrimp, backed crab, & fried clam strips with wild rice, Coke slaw, ice tea. Smells & tastes good. - Seafood Near Me - Hampstead, North Carolina

Good breakfast, large portions and quick service. Large breakfast menu and they have yummy daily specials.

Stopped here on the way home hoping that we were going to get possibly a home cooked meal. Nope. I ordered fried cod dinner with two sides mashed potatoes and peas and carrots. Husband ordered chicken fried chicken with two sides mashed potatoes and gravy and green beans. Both meals were frozen patties and the vegetables came out of cans. The potatoes I had were Luke warm and the cod oh my they were fried in old oil on top of being out of a box of frozen patties. I actually could have gotten a better meal from long john silvers and boring. My meal was $9.99 and husband's was $7.99 as specials. The people were SUPER SUPER nice so that is why the two stars. I wish someplace around here actually had home cooked type of southern food. I have yet to experience it. read more

Sawmill Grill - First pic: cod, mashed potatoes, and peas and carrots. Second pic: chicken fried chicken, green beans and potatoes and white gravy. - Seafood Near Me - Hampstead, North Carolina

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For breakfast this is the place in Hampstead area. Country style food prepared perfectly and friendly service! The sausage gravy is excellent, the veggie omelet was just right, the eggs and grits are cooked correctly, the coffee is okay and the service is prompt and friendly even when crowded as it was this morning. It is not a trendy place for the more exotic taste buds but the menu is large and varied full of home style cooking! read more

One of the breakfast I have had! Definitely worth leaving the island for. Gabe and Will had the Log Jam Omelette made with 4 eggs , Jessie had Sawmill Benedict, James had chicken and waffles with eggs and I had a western omelet. So delicious ! read more

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Their food is perfect and, while service was a bit slow due to staffing issues, once we ordered it was amazing. I really want to go back and try the breakfast burger. read more

Good down home southern breakfast...they even have hash and liver mush. Great southern food overall

Great for breakfast, the food is classic diner style food with southern flare of course. It can get really busy and you may have to wait for a table. The only downfall was our server was stretched very thin and I didn't get a coffee refill the whole visit. Otherwise, great experience. read more

So great! This is a stand-out because of the service and the peanut butter chip pancakes. There were 8 of us and we didn't have reservations. Yet, the staff didn't blink. Our waitress, Kathryn, didn't just take our orders but also pointed out options that we hadn't considered. The coffee was a cut-above typical restaurant coffee. The service was excellent throughout. And did I mention, peanut butter chip pancakes! read more

Good old fashion breakfast - you can't go wrong here for food or price. Always busy & always fresh. read more

Good food but watch out for their price changes on the take out. I ordered their 4 piece chicken box that the menu showed as $6.99 and a side of collards shown as $4.49. The register totaled the chicken $7.99 and the greens $5.99. Took a hit for $2.50! When I questioned them they didn't know what to do since I'd already paid cash. I finally got frustrated and told them never mind- but they should update their online menu! With the increase its a little too pricey! read more

The Lumberjack Special is awesome. All I needed later was a lite lunch, allowing me to enjoy the reason for my trip: the beach.

Worse service, bad attitude and GREASY food! Hushpuppies were cold. Ask for fresh hush puppies and when delivered they we're. From the same batch.. Took forever to get our food! Upon check out no one ever came so thank God I had cash. Don't waste your money or time! read more

Great place for breakfast but Yelp calls it a seafood place. Please correct. Good food and service was excellent. I come here every time I am in the area. read more

We've been traveling to Topsail Island for over 10 years and never would have thought to stop here. Glad we did. Servers were friendly and the food is pretty good. Ambiance is diner like but what would you expect for a strip mall on a highway? Stop in and have some good food. read more

My kids and I went in for breakfast this morning. The restaurant was one in a handful that was open due to Hurricane Florence. The staff was buzzing around likes Bees to ensure everyone was taken care of. So many town members headed in for a nice hot breakfast (including our family) while the power was still out around town. They did not disappoint! read more

I've been here a couple of times. The food is okay at best and service is often slow. The servers are really spotty... sometimes great, sometimes AWFUL. The food is quite salty and special orders are often ignored. The hush puppies are pretty good though. They have lots of slices of cake to go which are good. I've never eaten breakfast here, so I'm not sure! All in all? I'd choose another place first. read more

Yelp offers users a chance to make a difference - a small difference, but a difference nonetheless. As a Yelp crusader for the greater good, I must say that Sawmill deserves better reviews. And so, here is one. My partner in crime and I had visited the Sawmill at Monkey Junction for a breakfast a few times, and we had been satisfied. We decided to try out the Hampstead location, hoping to be as impressed as we were with our previous visits. We were not disappointed. This review is for breakfast only; I can't speak for lunch or dinner. I can say that the cakes and pies in the display case by the front door looked quite tasty, and we may return for a slice. However, we only took a shot at the breakfast this time. Our breakfasts came pretty quickly, considering how busy the place was that Sunday morning. The coffee was good, and the service didn't miss a beat. My wife had the Bacon Egg and Cheese Breakfast Biscuit, and I had the Western Omelette. Both breakfasts were very good, and the portions filled us up. Sawmill doesn't pretend to be anything it's not. Others have compared it to Cracker Barrell, which I suppose is fair. But, I think Sawmill blows Cracker Barrel out of the water. It's local, for starters, and the quality of the food just seems to be one or two notches above Cracker Barrel. Also, I'm an omelette kind of guy, so I really appreciate their omelette selection. Service is fast and friendly, and the price is right. Check it out if you're in the area. read more

First Experience: Couldn't wait to try the food. Heard a few good reviews. Crab cakes were flat, cold, and had an awful flavor. The fries and hush puppies were so greasy. Maybe we caught the chef during his downtime, it was 3pm after all. Flash Forward to a few months later. Have been back several times for breakfast. Staff is friendly and service is quick. If you're looking for an affordable locals joint that serves real Southern food, SMG is the place! read more