Harkers Island Restaurant Guide

This place is awesome. If you want some great seafood, definitely check out the catch of the day...it literally is! The salad bar is cold & fresh with unicue things...not your standard boring old carrots, but fresh spinach as well as lettuce...red grapes...eggs...real bacon...the list goes on. And the buffet had tons of fresh veggies, the standard fried shrimp/oysters/flounder/deviled crab...and some great clam chowder! My husband got deliciously seasoned (huge) ribeye for probably a third of the price we would have paid in Morehead. Sure there were not the typical gourmet smashed by a chef potatoes to go with it...but the baked potato with toppings of his choice rocked! This place is definitely worth the stop. Do yourself a huge favor & eat at the Captain's Choice!

YUK!!! This was the worst "seafood" we have ever tasted. The food was NOT fresh by any means. We ate broiled seafood that was extensively overcooked. Don't waste your time or money!!!

My husband and I just returned home after a great weekend participating in the "Core Sound Decoy Festival". Places to dine on Harkers Island are limited to say the least, but we discovered an absolutely wonderful little restaurant on the main drive. We had fully intended to try each restaurant on the island, but after dining at Captain's Choice we knew there was no need to venture any further. We enjoyed the seafood buffet both Friday night and Saturday night, and felt like old friends when we were greeted by the host on Sunday night. This is a very clean establishment with excellent food. For a relatively small restaurant the extended salad bar was excellent, and the oysters were second to none (the best we have ever eaten). Everyone there seemed to work together in perfect harmony. What a great place to kick back and relax after a busy day! I'm so thankful we ate there before we read the reviews on this site. I can't believe there could ever be a legitimate negative letter about Captain's Choice Restaurant.

Food was greasy, portions were small, and about half of it was cold while the other half was hot.

When asked by our friendly waitress were we were from we told her and she said that the owner's family was from there. This makes me wonder who the other review I see given from our town came from? Our experience was polar opposite from that one.

If you are ever in the vacinity of Harkers Island, do yourself a favor by visiting Captain's Choice Restaurant. My party was welcomed at the door by the owner who made us feel like family. The entire staff worked tirelessly to be sure we enjoyed our time there. If you like fried seafood you are at the right place. Oysters, shrimp, bay scallops, flounder, all lightly breaded and fried just right! We have never eaten seafood any better anywhere. To add to our pleasure was the fact that the price was very reasonable for all we cared to eat. Seafood done right at a great price! What more can you ask?! We can't wait to go back.

Captain's Choice


Let me begin the review by stating, unequivocally, that I have NEVER had such a horrible dining experience. This establishment located on Harker's Island boasts a "seafood buffet". Someone should give the owners a dictionary. Their definitions of "seafood" and "buffet" are clearly lacking.

The offerings on the buffet, served only on Friday and Saturday evenings, consisted of, what I consider, store-bought fried shrimp, fried scallops that were so bad my daughter GAGGED on them, clam chowder (that would insult ANY New Englander) which was watery, and tasted HORRIBLE, like dish-water, and a few other side items: frozen corn on the cob, canned baked beans, and stuffed clams that had NO clams.

My company and I were in the restaurant for a total of FOUR minutes, before we asked for the check. You'd think these people would have wondered why people who ordered the buffet were leaving after FOUR minutes, but, they didn't ask. What they DID ask was if we planned to leave a tip on the bill! IMAGINE THAT!

Clearly, the staff could not have cared less about my party having a pleasurable dining experience. We reluctantly paid the bill, but it is my hope that anyone who plans to visit the Crystal Coast of North Carolina will read this review and steer clear of the "Captain's Choice" -- this place certainly is not in THIS reviewer's opinion considered a WISE dining choice. Save your money, protect your pallet, and go ANYWHERE else but this place.