We tried to get a table here almost every day of our 5-day trip, but it was packed! We finally…read moresmartened up and called a day ahead for a reservation. It might have just been the holiday rush, but I always figure "busy means good," so my expectations were high--and The Local didn't disappoint. We started with the nachos; they were delicious, though I do wish they came with a bit more meat. For mains, the burger was outstanding--probably one of the best we've had in the entire area. We also ordered the Brazilian steak, which was cooked perfectly and came with great plantains. The quinoa with tofu was good, too, though it was a little dry and would have been perfect with a sauce. The service really stood out. Our waitress was incredibly attentive and refilled my water at least four times without me asking. Great ambiance and an all-around good experience. Definitely worth the wait!

I was visiting my son in Boone, as we move him into college... Ordered the wings, I had what I…read morebelieve was a blackened goat cheese, and fig burger with caramelized onions, which was off the charts, my son had the Salmon. Ratings- He gave the salmon a seven I give my Burger a nine, and the wings were about a seven(dry rub). That said, sitting at the bar was absolutely a treat... Erin was fantastic. Will 100% return and this is definitely a spot not to be missed. Also fantastic beer selection!!!

Have to say I'm local but never went here because of old mixed reviews…read more Went last Sunday, and have to say service and food was fast. The portions are huge for a very reasonable price. Had the flounder, oysters and shrimp. Plus hush puppies. Could only eat half at lunch. Air fried the rest for dinner. Was excellent, thought I was at the coast.

Food is good.. you can't beat the way it staff!!! They also have breakfast buffet and Monday…read morenight!!

A hidden gem in Boone for great seafood taste, service, nautical restaurant. First time going…read morethere and now a beginning of a destination routine . Everything had flavors. Down to the green beans. If you don't like it, that just means more for me and family and friends.

Wonderful, delicious seafood, and a good value. The nicest staff you can imagine. Just a friendly,…read moregood place to eat. Very similar to the quality and preparations of dishes you get at the North Carolina coast (but in the mountains!) Service here is warm and excellent. Very highly recommended! A local favorite.

Took a little day trip while visiting our daughter in Charlotte, and her boyfriend highly…read morerecommended The Speckled Trout Restaurant and Bottle Shop. It's definitely a bit of a drive from Charlotte, but well worth it if you're exploring the mountain towns and scenery in the area. The restaurant has a really cool upscale mountain vibe that feels relaxed and comfortable without being stuffy. Great atmosphere, friendly service, and the whole place just had that quality mountain town feel to it. My wife and I both ordered trout, which felt like the right move here. I had the almond crusted trout with basil potatoes and garlicky grits, and it was excellent. Everything tasted fresh, balanced, and thoughtfully prepared. The garlicky grits were especially good. My wife ordered the smoked trout, and let's just say they do not mess around with the smoke flavor here. It was seriously smoky. A couple hours later she was still burping little smoke rings on the drive home If you love strong smoky flavor, you'll probably love it. They also had a really solid craft beer selection that fit the mountain atmosphere perfectly. Overall, high quality food, great service, fun atmosphere, and absolutely worth the drive. Easy five stars from us.

On our annual trip to Blowing Rock in May, we had to visit Speckled Trout twice. We love their…read morelow-carb options combined with their custom crafted cocktails, this place is a must-visit for every trip to Blowing Rock. Their cocktails are crafted with homemade syrups, and change seasonally. I had the Garden in Tibet--a delicious drink with gin, Prosecco, sugar snap pea syrup (!), green elixir syrup, elderflower liquor, and lemon. You'd think this could be a too-sweet drink, but it was PERFECT. My husband had the Which Damascus the first time, with rye whiskey, cherry basil syrup, hickory syrup, Amaro Montenegro, Tiki bitters, Peychaud bitters, and orange. He enjoyed it, but I thought it was definitely too sweet. He had a Garden in Tibet on our second visit, and preferred the Tibet to the Damascus drink. We love their unique smoked trout deviled eggs as an appetizer. This dish has two eggs filled with smoked trout, and three filled with a deviled egg mixture. The accompanying house hot sauce is so good! For our entrees, we both had hickory-smoked trout on the first visit Mine was definitely saltier than his. We had three sides--collard greens, smoked Gouda grits (our favorite), and corn, hominy, yellow squash & chile hash (so fresh and delicious!). On our second visit, I had the almond and cornmeal-crusted trout with the smoked Gouda grits, and my husband tried their fried chicken sandwich with slaw. He absolutely loved the sandwich--the chicken was thick, juicy, and very tender. He'll definitely get the sandwich again. Service is always good at Speckled Trout, and I love that we can pay with ApplePay at the table via the Toast handheld. We can't wait to return.

On vacation at Sugar Mountain over Memorial Day Weekend and I got a craving for a steak. My wife…read moreand I left the kids at the condo and snuck away to have dinner at Stonewalls. Without reservations we were seated outside without a wait, I'd recommend making a reservation though. We split a NY Strip medium, a baked potato with all the fixings, & creamed spinach. I opted to top the steak with blue cheese butter and sauteed mushrooms. It hit the spot.... Perfectly. Looking forward to our next opportunity to sneak away from the kids and have a steak at Stonewalls.

We got sat immediately despite there being no reservations online left. Our server quickly came…read moreover and filled our waters and took our drink order. My son's sprite came out quickly, and the bar drinks followed. I loved my holiday punch drink! The restaurant was still decorated for Christmas, but it made it more charming since we are in town to ski for the weekend. She brought out bread, but it wasn't warm, so that was odd. My son and husband still ate it; I did not. The escargot was ok ; not as good as other places we have had it. The fried deviled eggs were INSANE. We loved them so much. My son got the ribeye and a baked potato. He ordered it medium rare, and it was more on the rare side, but he still enjoyed it. As he kept eating, it cooked up a little bit. He ended the night with a cinnamon roll bread pudding with ice cream and caramel. The server lit a candle in it. Overall, we had a great time!

This place is an original steakhouse where they cut your meat at the table to then send it to the…read moregrill. Great salads, great prices and the best staff I have met in all my travels through this nation. Highly Recommended!

The manager, Tristan, was exceptional to deal with at The Peddler. He made sure to communicate, and…read morewas incredibly kind about our experience. We look forward to trying the Peddler again when we visit the Boone area!

Make reservations months in advance for this gem! Located in an old stone manor, the Best Cellar is…read morethe best restaurant in Blowing Rock! The rack of lamb and buttermilk chicken are some of my favorites. The staff are very professional and seem to continue working there for years. The renovated the gathering area to make a rustic, yet upscale bar. Parking is not a problem because they offer valet.

First night in blowing rock we got a rez here. Such a beautiful inn and restaurant and great…read moreservice. I had the halibut and chose acorn squash (all entrees come with mashed potatoes too). Delicious! One got steak au poivre and it was highly peppered but so tasty. One got steak and crab cake. One got Parmesan crusted chicken. Everything was so good! We brought home their signature banana cream pie and a peanut butter pie. Both great!

Kim seafood shack is fantastic. Has a lot assortment of seafood as well as some sweet tooth…read moreoptions. I'm definitely a person that likes little mom and pops place and this is definitely it in central South Carolina beautiful location.

Why would a Seafood Restaurant be closed at 7pm on a weekend night? Absolutely crazy....read more

Oof! This place is top notch yummmyyyy! After a long day on the slopes of Sugar Mountain, Puerto…read moreNuevo was conveniently located right on the corner as you exit. My family and I were hungry and are also TexMex lovers, so we had to stop in. We all agreed this place was great! We ordered fajitas and two quesadillas (chicken and cheese only). The quesadillas were probably the best I've ever had, and the fajitas were delicious. Everything was seasoned on point. Service was great. Very attentive and made sure we always had chips and our beverages filled. Food also came pretty quickly, especially considering they were pretty busy. The restaurant is also decorated very nicely! It had a really cute bar, and I loved the salsa bar!! Prices were reasonable, as well. If you like good Mexican you MUST try this place out. You can thank me later ;)

After tubing at Sugar Mountain, almost every restaurant in the area was closed due to a snow storm…read more We happened upon this place and were seated immediately. They brought over waters and a complimentary bean/cheese dip. My husband ordered a margarita the size of his head; he loved it! The decor was really pretty and had a lot of local artwork. I got steak and shrimp fajitas and they were great! My son enjoyed some ribeye tacos and rice and beans. My husband had the chimichanga and also loved it. Our server was so sweet and helpful. The salsa bar was such a fun addition to the experience. Very cool place!

The food is amazing, i swear they have somebody straight from the motherlands cooking back there!…read moreThe service is great very comforting and the inside is very cozy.

We chose Bella's Italian Restaurant after seeing positive reviews while traveling with our family…read more Unfortunately, the experience was uncomfortable and not appropriate for families. There was about a 30 minute wait. We briefly stepped out and returned, only to learn our table had been ready but the text notification did not go through due to a phone number error. Not a big issue, we waited patiently with our two children ages 8 and 10. While we were waiting, the hostess went up to a man working the bar wearing a hat to speak to him about our table. She appeared apologetic and uncomfortable. His response and body language came across as irritated and dismissive. While still nearby, we overheard the same man speaking loudly to a bar customer and referring to a woman as "one of those crazy b***** online." It appeared connected to the table involved in the interaction that followed. After we were seated, the same man, who had been working the bar, came into the dining area and approached another table, a group that appeared to be in their 60s to 70s, regarding a receipt or refund issue. Based on his role and how he handled the situation, I initially assumed he was a manager. The discussion became tense. The woman at the table shook her receipt and said something to the effect of listening to him was making her more upset. At that point, he raised his voice and shouted profanity, telling her to "get the f*** out of my restaurant." As he walked away, he turned back and began shouting again, saying additional things about his integrity and honesty, then again told her to "get the f*** out" before storming into the kitchen. This occurred in the middle of the dining room with children present, including our own and another nearby table with young girls. From the back of the restaurant, loud banging could be heard, and it appeared he struck a wall or object while shouting additional profanity. The table he addressed appeared shaken and quietly left without further argument. The entire restaurant went silent. The servers themselves were professional and kind throughout the evening, but the outburst clearly affected the atmosphere for everyone. Overall, the food was about a 7 out of 10. The lasagna was good. Other dishes were mixed. The spaghetti marinara was very bitter and unbalanced, the shrimp scampi was heavy, and the amount of butter served with the rolls was excessive. Later, I was told by staff that the man involved is the owner's son. Later that night, my son told me that as he and the same man reached the single occupancy restroom door at the same time, the man told him to go first, but did so in a sharp and impatient manner that came across as aggressive. After witnessing repeated profanity and outbursts earlier in the evening, having my child spoken to in that manner by the same individual was completely unacceptable. Regardless of internal issues, repeated profanity, raised voices, and aggressive behavior toward guests, especially with children present, is not appropriate in a restaurant setting. We will not return and would caution families before dining here.