While the seventh floor dining room's wall-to-wall, floor-to-ceiling windows offer a fantastic view of Topsail Island's northern strand, this restaurant offers more than just a great view. Appetizers include the delicious Crab Stack, crab cakes layered with roasted corn salsa and avocado mousse, plus the seared Black Sesame Ahi Tuna and Caribbean Pot Stickers. Entrees range from the traditional broiled King Neptune’s platter to the grilled Atlantis fillet crusted in espresso and served with red onion marmalade and the Golden Tilapia with Thai chili sticky rice and red miso pineapple salsa. A children's menu is available. Located at the St. Regis Resort, The Atlantis can easily accommodate large groups and is an ideal location for special events such as reunions, weddings and corporate affairs. The restaurant has full ABC permits, and reservations are recommended. The Atlantis is open every day for dinner during the summer season.

The Beach Shop and Grill in Topsail Beach has been an island tradition for generations. The island's first soda shop, Warren’s, opened at this location in the 1950s and it has been a popular gathering place ever since. Sit at the counter or slide into a booth to enjoy fresh-squeezed orangeades, burgers, hot dogs, salads and club sandwiches. Popular for breakfast and lunch, the restaurant has recently ramped up its dinner menu and now serves upscale entrees in the evening. Dinner is served only during the summer and entrees range from $15 to $30. Beer and wine are available, and you can eat in or take-out.

The menu at Beauchaines 211 offers a contemporary twist to traditional beach cuisine. Oysters are Cajun fried, the alligator tail is grilled, and the chicken is Key West Satay. That’s just the appetizers. The tantalizing menu of entrees includes shrimp and grits, Baked Pistachio Salmon and Island Ahi Tuna, as well as Gone South Rib Eye and a grilled beef tenderloin. II Beauchaines has all ABC permits, and the upstairs dining room and bar overlook the beautiful Intracoastal Waterway. Homemade desserts and a children's menu are available. Beauchaines 211 is open seven days a week during the summer, and reservations are strongly recommended. It's open Thursday through Monday during the winter months.

An upscale oceanfront bistro serving lunch and dinner, Bella Luna serves authentic Italian cuisine. Special menu items include Penne Tuscana, a grilled chicken breast with sun-dried tomatoes, prosciutto and arugula, and the Filet Di Manzo, a grilled Black Angus filet brushed with roasted garlic oil served with a Gorgonzola and chive potato cake. Bella Luna serves a variety of pastas, chicken and veal dishes and steaks. Enjoy a tropical cocktail at their cabana bar or choose a fine bottle of wine with dinner. The restaurant is located at Villa Capriani Resort, one mile north of the high-rise bridge. Bella Luna is family friendly and offers a children's menu.

Southern low-country and Caribbean cuisine are what you'll find at the Crab Pot. Specialties of the house include spicy seafood gumbo, jerk chicken, ribs smothered in sauce, oysters on the half shell and Key lime pie. The screened-in dining room and bar offers great old-time Topsail fun. Food can be packaged to go, and a children's menu is available. The Crab Pot has a full bar, plenty of shaker cans and beach music. Shag lessons are offered on summer evenings. The Crab Pot is closed from Thanksgiving until March.

Bright blue walls, splashes of lime green and lots of beach-themed art create a cool island vibe inside Crabby Mike’s. Their lunch menu features homemade soups and chowders, Angus burgers, grilled turkey burgers and Crabby BLTs. Fresh local steamed shrimp and crab legs are always a popular choice for dinner, as are their homemade crab cakes. In addition to the full menu, Crabby Mike’s offers a chalkboard full of seasonal specials. Beer and wine are available at the Tiki Bar. Crabby Mike’s is open for lunch and dinner Tuesday through Sunday during the summer. Give them a call for their off-season hours.

This oceanfront restaurant is a favorite with locals. The restaurant’s ocean views and covered deck, warm wood tones and terra cotta color scheme create an instantly inviting atmosphere. Daddy Mac’s serves steaming bowls of Cajun jambalaya, tender Caribbean crab cakes, fresh grilled seafood, tasty ribs, pasta and steaks. Daddy Mac’s menu features appetizers, soups, salads and sandwiches, and daily specials are offered. The full bar serves mixed drinks and domestic and imported beer and wine. A children’s menu is also available. The restaurant has an elevator and is handicapped accessible. Daddy Mac's opens nightly at 5 PM. Reservations are not accepted.

Dr. Rootbeer's Hall of Foam, located in a vintage 1950s gas station near the waterfront in Sneads Ferry, sells root beer made from Jerome Gundrum's own recipe. Choose between old-fashioned fountain favorites like birch beer, cream soda and lime ricki while listening to their 1953 Seeburg jukebox. With root beer floats, milk shakes and 16 flavors of hand-dipped ice cream, everyone will be happy. Dr. Rootbeer also serves delicious pot roast sandwiches, sassafras barbecue, homemade chicken salad and tuna salad sandwiches and hot dogs.

Pub-style appetizers, side orders, salads and sandwiches complement the specialty of the house — big, bold buffalo wings, served mild, medium or hot. This is a fun and cozy place to enjoy a bite. Meal choices of ribs or steak are also available. 'Em R Wings has a full bar, which is separate from the dining room. Take-out orders are welcome, and the restaurant is open all year.

This cafe on the bay overlooks the picturesque New River and specializes in seafood, steaks and pasta. Green Turtle offers creative entrees such as shrimp diablo, linguine pescatore and Cajun oysters. Family-friendly, Green Turtle offers a children's menu and is open daily. The restaurant has all ABC permits, and reservations are suggested.

If you are looking for authentic, slow-cooked, eastern North Carolina barbecue, this is the place. Open for breakfast, lunch and dinner, this well-known restaurant offers home-cooked food, and barbecue is the specialty of the house. A children's menu is available. Holly Ridge Smokehouse is open year round, but is closed Mondays.

Everyone feels right at home in the warm and cozy dining room at Home Port Restaurant & Pub. The theme here is definitely and deliciously Italian. The chicken, meatball or sausage parmigiana sandwiches are lunchtime favorites, along with burgers, great subs and fresh salads. The dinner menu includes steaks, seafood, homemade lasagna, baked ziti, chicken Marsala, pasta, pizza and calzones. Home Port has all ABC permits, and the lively pub side of the building has pool tables, a wide-screen TV and live entertainment on Saturday nights.

Return to the 1950s and the days of the soda shop with a trip to Island Delights. The eatery specializes in burgers, sandwiches and fries, as well as fountain-style milk shakes and sundaes. Vacationing families enjoy returning here year after year for their evening ice cream treats. It's open all year.

The name says all — Long Island Pizza makes great New York–style pizza. It's hard to choose between all of their specialties, including Margherita pizza, calzones, stromboli, eggplant Parmigiana, manicotti or baked ziti. If tiramisu is on the menu when you're there, be sure to order it. Beer and wine are available. You can eat in, take-out or have your meals delivered to your door. It's closed on Sunday and Monday and during the winter from Thanksgiving until March.

If you are hunting for a juicy homemade hamburger and a tall cold one, head to Lo-Re-Lei’s behind the Big Shark at Four Corners. Daily lunch specials run $4.95 and include tax and sweet tea. Calabash-style seafood and hand-cut steaks are on the dinner menu. Enjoy mid-week Karaoke, pool and dart tournaments, or kick it up a notch on weekends and check out the live bands and drink specials, including chilled Jägermeister on tap. Lo-Re-Lei is open daily at 11 AM.

The well-balanced menu at Mainsail is bound to please everyone in your group. Their creatively prepared appetizers include grilled Margarita shrimp, sea scallops in garlic sauce and hearty bowls of the low-country classic, cream of crab soup. Entrées include mahi mahi with Mediterranean salsa, Cajun Alfredo shrimp, grilled fish, steaks and fried seafood platters. Reservations are recommended, and take-out is accommodated. It's open daily, year round, for dinner.

This casual and friendly restaurant located just over the swing bridge serves pizza, spaghetti, salads, burgers and fresh hot-oven subs, along with beer and wine. Take-out orders are welcome. It's open year round, but it's closed on Wednesday during the off-season.

Start your day off right with breakfast at Mollie's. The full breakfast menu includes omelets, pancakes, biscuits and their signature Crab Cake Eggs Benedict. If you're looking for lunch, you'll be thrilled with their salads and sandwiches, including one of the tastiest burgers in Surf City. In addition to the menu, numerous specials are featured each day. The dinner menu offers a wide variety of fried and broiled seafood, from the Captain's Platter with six different kinds of seafood to Caribbean Mahi. Mollie's also serves a variety of pasta, steaks and chicken dishes. For those successful fishing types, Mollie's will clean and cook your catch for a very reasonable fee. Mollie's also has a nice selection of beer and wine.

Montoro’s Italian Grill and Deli is all about family tradition. Vintage family photographs adorn the walls, and the meatball and sauce recipes have been passed down from Ray Montoro’s two great grandmothers. They offer all of the deli standards and then some. Sandwiches are thick and served on fresh-baked breads. Soups are hot and homemade. The deli case is filled with overflowing platters of homemade lasagna, meatballs, sausage, pasta salads, cured olives and Boar's Head meats. In addition to NY–style pizza, the dinner menu features such classics as penne Bolognese, chicken picata, veal Sorrentino and shrimp scampi. Stop by on a Wednesday night and enjoy the all-you-can-eat buffet with live entertainment. Montoro's serves beer and wine, and they are open for breakfast, lunch and dinner. So “Fugedabowit” and leave the cooking to Montoro’s.

From da Bronx to da beach, this deli is da real thing. New York Corner Deli serves authentic deli sandwiches piled high with real New York City pastrami, salami and corned beef. Bite into their fresh rye bread, bagels and homemade salads or try a slice of their New York–style cheesecake and you will think you are in the Big Apple. New York Corner Deli also serves the only lox and bagel plate you will find on the island. Diners can eat inside, outside at patio tables or call ahead for quick take-out. New York Corner Deli hosts and caters private parties and prepares take-home decorated deli trays and party-sized hoagies. The restaurant is open Monday through Saturday from 7:30 AM to 7:30 PM and Sundays from 8 AM to 5:30 PM.

The menu at Quartermasters Restaurant & Tavern features creatively prepared American cuisine. The grilled Pork Loin Acadia basted in a sweet molasses, whole grain mustard and garlic glaze is a favorite, and the Causeway Crab Cakes are fresh and homemade. New York strips and rib eyes are char-grilled, and the seafood etouffee is loaded with shrimp, crawfish and Andouille sausage. The dining room has cozy booths and is smoke-free. The Tavern offers "lite eats," daily drink specials, fine wines and spirits, imported and domestic beer and a late-night menu. The Tavern's wide-screen TVs are tuned to Direct TV sports and there is live entertainment on Friday nights. Open nightly at 5 PM, Quartermasters Restaurant & Tavern is on the Causeway in Heritage Square. Reservations are accepted.

The Riverview Cafe has been a locals' favorite for decades. Overlooking Courthouse Bay in Sneads Ferry, diners can watch the shrimp boats come in while feasting on some of the freshest seafood around. Plates are heaped high with fried seafood, hushpuppies, french fries and slaw. Save room for a slice of their homemade pie. There is a bar, separated from the dining room, that offers beer and wine. It's open year round for lunch and dinner.

Drive up or drop anchor at this soundside restaurant and enjoy fresh grilled fish, soft-shell crabs, peel-and-eat shrimp, sandwiches or the chef's famous Beach Dog. Diners can sit inside or laze about on the waterfront porch and enjoy the view. Beer and wine are available, and the restaurant is open for lunch and dinner. Sears Landing has deep-water access with boat slips available for rent by the day, week or month. While there you can also stock your boat with beer, soft drinks, water and ice.

Aromatic chilies, fresh lemongrass and vibrant curries flavor the authentic Thai dishes served at Thai Grille. Skewers of satay, handmade spring rolls and Massaman and Panang curries are made from scratch from family recipes. Curries can be spiced to taste and range from mild to atomic. Traditionalists will enjoy the grilled pork loin with an Asian twist or the Bangkok NY Strip Steak. The desserts include Thai Fried Bananas, Caramel Toffee Ice Cream and Thai Fried Donuts and Sticky Rice with Fresh Mangoes in Coconut Milk. Thai Grille has a full bar, a wine list and a nice selection of beer on tap. It is open for lunch and dinner Monday through Saturday and is located in the Surf City Gateway Plaza.

The Pasta Grille treats diners to a variety of interesting pasta dishes, including angel hair pasta with shrimp, penne with chicken in pesto, and a selection of pizzas ranging from classic to Chicken a la Rosa. The Pasta Grille also has a full bar. There are daily early bird specials and a children's menu. The Pasta Grille has a small meeting room and a large banquet room that holds up to 120 people. The restaurant opens at 4 PM for dinner. Reservations are accepted, and take-out is available.

Finish off a day exploring the Pender County countryside with a meal at Holland's. Known for its fresh seafood, Holland's offers hearty platters of catfish, oysters, deviled crabs and frog legs. For those who prefer country cooking, the restaurant has some of the area's best barbecue and pork chops. Dine in a rustic atmosphere with a view of the river and relax with a cup of homemade catfish stew or shrimp Creole. Holland's has beer and wine, seniors' specials and a children's menu. It is open year-round for lunch and dinner.