a61morris

We just recently made another trip to Oak Island for a couple of weeks, and we typically fix supper ourselves from the local shrimp. This was the first time we had been down there during the Fourth of July week, and it was crazy with people wall to wall everywhere. So we had even more incentive to stay out of the local eateries, and we even missed going back to the Yacht Basin Provision Company, much to my disappointment. We thought that one way to miss some of the most crowded conditions and still get out for an evening was to wait until Wednesday evening, when some of the revelers from the Fourth may have returned home, and to hit Calabash *early*. Whoops. That didn't work out too well. We didn't get there until 5:15 or so, and we ended up waiting for 20 minutes or so, with all kinds of interesting people providing conversation starters in the blistering heat. With two small children, I find myself especially intolerant of "adults" who allow their children to run amok in public places, but I digress. We've only been coming to Calabash consistently over the last 5 or 6 years or so, and we typically hit Capt. Nance's (though I am intrigued by wcmckinney's recommendation for the Calabash Seafood Hut). I'm not sure how we developed this semi-loyalty, but it's always OK, and my parents typically "take" us, and excercise the power of decision. This time, the hushpuppies arrived hot and delicious as our waitress took our orders. They were slightly sweet, and cooked perfectly. Most of us got fried shrimp, mainly because we very rarely ever eat fried seafood, and going to Calabash and ordering grilled/broiled seafood seems a little like going to IHOP and ordering a steak. Some people do I guess, but to me it just makes sense to stick with what they do best. While the shrimp were OK, the fries were pitiful and soggy, and absolutely flavorless. The tea was passable, and for once was not sweetened enough to bring on sugar shock. I'm not sure I've done enough to accurately convey the complete mediocrity of what we had, and afterwards we openly debated whether the drive and the crowds were worth it. I'm not sure that we will return next summer. As someone said earlier, there are other places up and down the coast where we can find fried shrimp just as good. Rather a long winded "me too," but I thought some might appreciate some recent observations and opinions. Dave

I've worked in Davidson County for the past 12 years and would wager that the furniture plants and textile mills which have been the economic backbone of this county for the last century have done a lot more environmental damage than Mr. Monk and his barbecue brethren in Lexington. At any rate, I would rather smell the restaurants' emissions than those of the factories or mills. Of course, as the factories and mills continue to downsize and outsource, there may not be many left to blame for our air pollution woes. The Triad in general has become semi-notorious for poor air quality. I seem to recall several reports from the Greensboro News and Record (claims to be a newspaper) that the EPA or someone had ranked us among the twenty urban areas with the worst air quality in these whole United States. If memory serves, we were ranked worse than even L.A. I'll have to research that and see if I can dig up an article for verification. Dave

I forgot that I had other suggestions for the trip up. If you are going to be coming through Litchfield (Hwy 17), I really like the Litchfield Fish House, look for the gas station looking restaurant with a big (fake) shark sticking out of the roof. It looks like a dive, and at first glance the menu seems pricey when compared to the decor, but the fresh grilled fish is amazing, and I had some shrimp dish there that made me want to weep. Highly recommended. Of course, there a lot of place on 17 near Murrell's Inlet which are supposed to be really good, but I have nevery eaten at any of those, but you could Google some help there I bet. Across the line into NC is Calabash. They excel in lightly breaded fried seafood. I don't generally like fried seafood, but if everyone fried shrimp like that, I could change my mind quick-like. I think we usually eat at Captain Nance's, but any of the three or four restaurants that back up on Calabash Creek are OK, I think. We usually drive down from Oak Island (hour or so each way), just for our once a year fried shrimp fix from Calabash, so I recommend it highly, too. I think that's it, this time.

I have got to second the recommendation for Southport's Yacht Basin Provision Company. If you are going to be eating in/around Southport, you cannot do any better. It is very laid back, ok, like Andrew Fenton says...it's a dive. But the food is exceptionally fresh and simple in preparation. You sit right on the water, and everything I have ever had there has been excellent. Also in Southport, there is a place called Mr. P's (I think) that is just up the street from the Provision Company, and I had two dinners there that were pleasant, with fresh seafood and good service. It was not AMAZING, but it was good both times I ate there. If you are going to be in the area for a couple of days and are looking for some other interesting options, there is a small store in downtown Southport, I think it is called the Trolley Stop, that has a myriad of hot dog choices, and they are pretty good, there should be a dog there for everyone who will even eat dogs.... Also if you leave Southport and go toward Oak Island, there are two good dives on the right hand side of the road. One is a tiny, tiny, hamburger stand in and old shack with a window air conditioner taking up a lot of room on the front porch and the miniscule waiting area inside. More than three or four people waiting for an order is an uncomfortable crowd in the tiny space, but the hamburgers are pretty good. The second dive on the right hand side of the road down there is a place called the Lucky Fisherman. It's in an old Western Steer building, or something like that. I did NOT want to go there, it looks like a typical seafood buffet place from anywhere in the Carolinas. But I wasn't paying, and the inlaws wanted to go there, so we went. Even after we got there, I was skeptical, with the cheap nasty looking interior and flimsy flatware. I generally do not enjoy seafood buffet places, but the quality and variety of preparations (not everything was fried) impressed and surprised me. Not great, but a lot better than it looks like it will be, and better than most places in that area. Hope that helps.