Best restaurants in Duck, N.C.
Though you can prepare your own meals from the convenience of your suite’s fully-equipped kitchen, when you’re ready to explore the Duck area, you’ll find a wide variety of dining options within close proximity to Ocean Pines. From the freshest local seafood to tantalizing desserts and impressive gourmet offerings, the barrier island town of Duck features something pleasing for every palate. Read the following list to discover a few of our favorite local spots.
1. Best Breakfast: Lifesaving Station Restaurant
We’ve all heard that breakfast is the most important meal of the day, and as such, we suggest visiting the Life Saving Station restaurant one morning during your stay at Ocean Pines. The dining spot is located in the Caffey’s Inlet Life Saving Station No. 5 and features a menu that celebrates southern coastal cuisine crafted with seasonal, locally-sourced ingredients. When it comes to breakfast, you’ll find traditional standards like eggs, grits, and pancakes, as well as more unique offerings such as duck sausage hash with dried blueberries and hollandaise. Griddle items include various types of hotcakes, French toast, and waffles. Hearty sides like Suffolk sausage gravy and biscuits and home fries with caramelized onions and peppers round out Lifesaving Station Restaurant’s scrumptious breakfast menu.
2. Best Local Seafood: Dockside N’ Duck
Locally owned and operated in Duck since 1987, this family-run business boasts what it considers to be the freshest local seafood available in the Outer Banks. This market-style establishment offers both onsite menu items and sells everything you need to cook your own steam pots or boils at your vacation home. Choose from selections that include lobster, crab legs, flounder, grouper, tuna, shrimp, clams, oysters, and much more. Dockside N’ Duck also sells delicious sides, such as crab cakes, she-crab soup, and potato salad, as well as desserts like key lime pie and apple pie. Whether you have Dockside prepare your feast or take it home and cook yourself, you’ll be more than satisfied with the menu items available here.
3. Best Gourmet Restaurant: Paper Canoe
Marketed as a wood-fired oven, ale house, and wine bar, Paper Canoe offers an upscale, gourmet dining experience that emphasizes southern cuisine with an ethnic twist. The restaurant’s menu changes daily to reflect seasonal offerings and includes handmade pasta, locally-caught Outer Banks seafood, and rustic selections like wood-fired duck confit pizza. The presentation of the food is as satisfying as the taste, and the selection of specialty drinks is equally palatable. The restaurant overlooks the Currituck Sound, making it the perfect spot to enjoy a romantic dinner during your Ocean Pines vacation.
4. Best No-Frills Restaurant: The Cookshak
The Cookshak is a no-frills dining spot that features a short menu that packs a punch. You won’t need all day to decide what you want, as there are just a few choices. Their half-bird includes four pieces of fried chicken (wing, leg, breast, and thigh), while their whole bird includes eight pieces of fried chicken. Sides include coleslaw, French fries, and mac and cheese. Stop in for lunch for their special that includes either two or three pieces of chicken, coleslaw, and a fountain drink. Locals and visitors alike rave about this restaurant that uses simplicity to produce a truly delicious comfort meal.
With both dine-in and take-out options abounding in this small coastal community, you won’t have a problem finding a scrumptious meal during your stay at Ocean Pines.