Cape Fear Seafood Company - Monkey Junction

Wow. Just a great dining experience. Our server Leslie was fantastic. The drinks were great, the food was outstanding. We all got something we loved. By the time desserts arrived we were on such a roll I forgot to take pictures! I had the daily special salmon, my wife had the Calabash style shrimp and both were awesome. Creme brulee, cobbler and brownie desserts were all delicious. Very glad to find there are other locations for us to try near home.

This restaurant ticks every box. You wouldn't know it from its location in a strip shopping center, but step inside and the decor is beautifully done. It's airy and open and very comfortable. The hush puppies are a filling appetizer. The salad is in the top 5 salads I've ever had! The green onions and pecans really make it, and the dressing was clearly homemade and sooo good! I got the crab risotto, which was decadent with the sauce made from boursin. It was an appetizer but I got it with the salad and couldn't finish it, it was too much, but loved every bite. My boyfriend got the fish and chips, they were also delicious. Our server was excellent even though they were busy. Definitely make a reservation, though, we were lucky to get one in the bar area. The place was hopping!

I ordered the lemon scallops and they were perfect. The fried risotto cakes on the side were a great touch. I was really impressed with my whole meal and my hibiscus margarita was delicious! My sister ordered the grilled shrimp and she liked her meal too.

Everything from the service to the food to the atmosphere was superb and up to par. The shrimp and grits was very good as was the calamari and Cape Fear chowder soup. I definitely recommend checking them out if you haven’t been before.

My first visit here and was impressed by the server Cassidy; she timed my food orders so that everything came hot, in spite of being busy; her cheerful personality and service to the table made my meal enjoyable; had plate of 3 crispy fish and seasoned chips with Cole slaw, also bowl of clam chowder; the portions were hefty and delicious; the price fit the overall experience and I will return; what a nice place to come enjoy a meal where you get the 5 star, 3 ways, food, service , atmosphere; also I will join the Sand Dollar rewards membership and birthday discount!

We’re staying at Kure Beach on vacation and got lunch here after seeing the great reviews. They did not disappoint. Our server Erica went above and beyond to make our experience top notch. She was super attentive and super sweet. We got hush puppies with whipped butter for an appetizer, and my husband got “The Whole Boat”. I got fried shrimp tacos and a watermelon margarita. We also got crème brûlée for dessert. Everything was cooked to perfection and absolutely delicious. My husband’s scallops were so soft and buttery. We also didn’t have to wait at all since we went around 2:00 in the afternoon, it wasn’t packed like I’m sure it would have been if we’d went later in the evening. I would definitely recommend this place.

My wife and I first ate at the new Raleigh location, but while we were at the beach this past week, we decided to try the local one as well. Needless to say, the quality is superb at both! The first time I had calabash style seafood which was excellent. This time I had the figure 8 flounder and it was so good! I am not usually a baked fish eater, but this was well worth my experimentation! We will return to both in the future for good food and great hospitality!

Cape Fear Seafood Company really impressed me. I started with the crab cake appetizer, and while the portion was a bit smaller than I expected, the flavor more than made up for it – absolutely fantastic and left me wanting more. I also tried the crab bisque, which was rich, flavorful, and comforting. For the main course, I went with the lobster and shrimp risotto – and I demolished it. Creamy, well-seasoned, and loaded with seafood. I didn’t have room for dessert, but I did snag a bite of my wife’s key lime pie, which was solid – tart, sweet, and a nice finish to the meal. Bonus points to them for offering a selection of mocktails on the menu – a thoughtful touch that you don’t see everywhere. All in all, a great experience and one I’d definitely recommend.

This is my second time coming and the food was still amazing. I had the shrimp scampi and my husband had the shrimp risotto special and the flavor was great! Amelia was a very kind and attentive server. Make a reservation because they do fill up! Also, the blackberry lemonade was so yummy.

Wonderful service from the lady with the short blonde hair and glasses who was also running the bar like a champ (sorry we forgot your name). The food was incredible. We loved the crab dip and risotto. The cocktails were lovely. We considered coming back a second day in a row lol. Couldn’t recommend enough.

First time visiting Wilmington and this restuarant was highly recommended by a friend. I had the lobster and shrimp risotto, hubby had the crab cakes. We had the crab dip for appetizer. For drinks, hubby got the peach lemonade and said it was too sweet, he had to dilute it with water. I had the berry mojito (no alcohol). The food came out quick and we both really enjoyed it. The size serving was large. The food was flavorful and well done. Hubby said the rice was okay, overall we both agreed we would come back. Our server was excellent - very attentive. I couldn’t really comment on atmosphere since we were by the door and tucked away from the main seating area. Lastly, price was really reasonable - very cheap.

This is an average location but very nice interior so its good. The food is truly worth it!!! The flavors and freshness are all 100%. And then combine with really attentive serving staff, thank you, Jodi, you will be glad you chose this spot!!!

Came here with a group of friends for the first time and had a blast! We made a reservation ahead of time. The food was all delicious and drinks very enjoyable. We all ordered offering seafood dishes and tried each others. I would highly recommend this place. Also, come here with a group of friends and be prepared to have a delicious meal.

First visit to CFSC to try some local seafood flavors and compare against many others I have also tried in The Port City. This evening's visit was in the Monkey Junction area of Wilmington, off of College Road. FOOD: Crab Dip Appetizer; Shrimp & Grits; Figure 8 Stuffed Flounder and the day's Fresh Catch, Grilled Swordfish. Our son was craving either swordfish or grouper so he ordered the fresh catch, grilled with fries and rice pilaf. He thoroughly enjoyed the swordfish and fries, but then his picky side didn't care for the rice. I tasted all 3 and thought the flavors were fantastic. My wife ordered the Figure 8 Stuffed Flounder and was very impressed. I took one bite and could immeditely tell how thick, flaky and fresh the flounder was. Each filet was wrapped around a crab fusion that makes your mouth smile as you chew. It's really that good. Then, my journey to taste the Carolina Coast's shrimp & grits continued as I prepared to dive into 1 of the top 5 best-voted and must-try shrimp & grits in NC. My top place for shrimp & grits up until this evening, also hails from Wilmington, so this was a true test. I took a bite...I looked down and continued to chew slowly, savoring the flavors. The taste was so similar to that of my favorite shrimp & grits in town! The 2 are so eerily close to one another that I have to vote a tie for now until I can get a blind taste done, side by side. These shrimp and grits are no joking matter and has the perfect balance between land and air. The shrimp was blasting with fresh juices packed inside the tails. The mushrooms and creamy grits gave the dish wonderful earthy tones and then the sauce!!!! The sauce is defined as a low country cream sauce. It tastes sooooo good...mouthgasm!! There is some reduced white white in the sauce that gives it this aromatic flavor throughout and marries well with the shrimp and grits. The only opportunity for improvement that I would recommend is to help make the crab dip more crab-centric. The flavors of the dip taste exactly like a wonderful, deconstructed crab cake with tangy remoulade sauce, but the consistency of the dip was comparable to a fluffy puree rather than a thick dip with larger chunks of crab. SCORE: 4.75 STARS!! SERVICE: We were served within 1 minute of sitting down by our server, Maddie. Maddie was doing her part during the COVID-19 era by practicing social distancing while communicating with us and wore a surgical face covering throughout the evening. Other staff members were also noticed wearing face coverings and being thorough about cleanliness. Maddie excelled by allowing properly timed visits back to the table, was very efficient, super friendly and carried herself as a professional. The dining area was clean and all went according to expectations. SCORE: 5 STARS!! OVERALL SCORE: Cape Fear Seafood Company offers up some fresh seafood for an acceptable value but will blow your tastebuds away when you see how they have selected the finest ingredients. Don't be fooled...the exterior doesn't do this place justice for what awaits on the other side of the doors. Incredible food and service. I look forward to dining with you again. 4.85 STARS!! IG: @ ILM_Foodie

Went here for my stepdaughter's birthday dinner. Granted we waited an hour before being seated, the food was amazing. Our waitress Summer did an excellent job making sure we were taken care of. We were the last party for the evening so you kinda expect the food and service to be blah. Exact opposite.

Best Seafood I have ever had! It was all delightful! The prices were fair, the portions were big, and the service was great! Please sure to ask about all of the sauces they have and try them all! This is in a shopping center but it is the best food in town and it is locally recommended. I'm so glad we did not drive away.

Food was delicious, our waitress was fantastic and the restaurant was clean, and classy in its decor and layout. It was a slow night after new years, so it was nice and quiet, but they do have a separate bar, so I imagine the place can be lively as well.

Best crab bisque ever had. Scampi was fresh and light but great flavor. Theresa was fabulous as a server. Coming to Southport soon for me. Also, bistro sauce was the bomb!

Awesome place! They made one of the best steak dinner with potatoes & spinach for someone allergic to both of the main oils they cook with. I stopped by days before just to talk to the manager & he told me how they take food allergies very seriously & have trained kitchen staff to acuminate people with them. I will diffidently going back!

Wife and I out and about decided to grab lunch. First time at this location. Regulars at another location. Menus were identical prices identical. Quality of food and service was just as expected. We both ordered one of our favorite meals. Noticed no difference in the taste or presentation of the food. This organization does a great job at making sure the food is fresh, warm or cold as needed.

Great job Cape Fear Seafood! Wanted to send a shout out to Manager Jordan, she stopped by to say hello, and make sure everything was good with us. She was a delight! Funny, professional, and made our experience that much more amazing. Never have I had such a welcoming experience with a member of management. She’s a keeper! Thank you again!

With so many awards and rave reviews, we HAD to visit. From door to dining, CFSC delivers a wonderful experience. This is my favorite restaurant in Wilmington.

Beautiful restaurant and great food. My sister and I had a side of hush puppies (so light and delicious) and the shrimp baskets. Made to perfection and served so quickly. Our server was Hope and what a gem she is. Lovely and friendly and a great asset for the restaurant.

Every time I’m in Wilmington I come here and I’m never disappointed. The shrimps are outstandingly delicious! The fries have a great seasoning and the coleslaw is very good too. What can I say….everything I had so far was good!

Stopped in today for an early dinner and everything was delicious and hot the spot ! Jason was our bartender/server, he was very friendly and checked on us throughout our meal.

We drove from out of town just for seafood and the options available did not disappoint. My husband ordered "the boat" and was very pleased with his order. (I do think for an upcharge you should be able to switch some things around, I would of been willing to pay extra) the seared spinach and asparagus was very good, cooked perfectly. I got the blackened chicken with roasted potates it was great. My son got the back cheeseburger it was a little overdone and the bacon was burnt, which he picked off and then after that said it tasted good. Kathy was our waitress. She was very friendly, observant and attentive. If we come back to the area we would definitely be back. The restaurant is SMALL and intimate, I would definitely call for reservations beforehand

The service was good and the mahi mahi was very good. The creme burle was very good too. What i did not like was that the menu was sticky and old and looks neglected. This was at location closed to 421 on junction. A little price for location look, tjey may need to update a little bit. Restrooms were clean. Thanks

Overall a good experience here. The swordfish I had was very good as well as the appetizer we shared. The hostess area was pretty chaotic as we had a reservation for 5:15 and came in and told them we were here. We were asked to wait a minute and said that fine. The party directly behind us came up and said they also had a reservation at 5:15 and were seated promptly. Thought that was odd. We were seated a few minutes later at a small wobbly table when plenty of booths were available. Definitely a weird interaction that brought down the environment of the place especially for the price we paid. 3.5 stars I would say.

We enjoyed the food—we had the fried fish platter. The dining room was bright and comfortable, which added to the overall experience. The prices are reasonable. However, the service was a letdown. The hostess at the entrance seemed uninterested and made us wait several minutes for no apparent reason, even though the restaurant was empty. Our server also couldn’t tell us if the fish on the platter was fresh or frozen, which was disappointing. The food might bring us back, but the service definitely needs improvement if the restaurant wants to keep its high rating.

Cute and clean restaurant with a friendly staff. Food was good—risotto was decent and the filet mignon with lump crab butter was delicious. The hush puppies were good too and it was a large basket. We would come here again

At bar with buddy - Feb 2024. Mentioned a touch of celiac disease in an effort to have them remove the sauces from the vegetable and fish - unfortunately, came out completely unseasoned (gun shy) - nevertheless - the fish (salmon) was very good, and the asparagus was cooked properly - so all in all - very good and recommended - just ask for them to remove items you don't want but DO NOT tell them you may have an aversion to such items - as they go over the top. Still very recommended - with only reservation towards the mentioned... Had they done as I asked - oil and salt on asparagus and simple dry seasonings on the salmon - it would have been near 5 star. Buddies meal - Saltimbocca - was exceptional... See photos.

Make a reservation. We arrived later in the evening without a reservation and were made a reservation 40 minutes later not put on a wait list… so we came back later. So that was fine but interesting. The food was good, kids enjoyed the kids options, the adults had: Calamari: Kinda plain, with a basic marinara sauce. (You can skip it) Salmon: which they wanted completely plain(which was cook great) Broiled Seafood Platter: was a bit less food than I was expecting. What was on it was delicious Salad: It was large, and the greens were fresh. The service was also decent. I would say that dinner was good, but nothing completely blew away my expectations. So would I recommend it? Yes I would, 4/5 is still good. But again. Just nothing really WOWed me. Maybe I missed the menu item that really could have pushed me over the edge.

We kept hearing about this seafood place , good and not so, so we dropped in to try it out. It's a cute and cozy restaurant on the smaller side so I can see why reservations are recommended. But, it's not so great that we'd wait longer than 10 minutes for a table. The sweet tea is good and I would suggest not too much ice. The oysters (which are in season now) were average however the Shrimp Diablo dish was very good with just the right heat. They give you a few hushpuppies on your plate instead of bringing a basket ahead unless you buy a basket (listed under the appetizer selection). Overall, I wouldn't go out of my way to eat here again.

Tried Cape Fear Seafood Company after reading great reviews yesterday.. food was absolutely delicious and lived up to the hype. However, our experience was dampened by an elderly server whose cold and unwelcoming attitude gave off negative vibes. Great food, but the service left something to be desired.

Return visit after few years. Wife had a craving for some good seafood and this is her favorite go to place. Same restaurant but, their menu had shrunk, serving size also shrunk and price increased quite noticeably since our last visit. Both of us ordered seafood broil. What a disappointment when plates came to us. Serving size was less than half of what used to be. Personally, NOT worth the neatly $22 a plate! To their credit, the food itself was tasty but, still VERY overpriced for quantity...you can pay for quality but, NOT that much! I think we'll skip this restaurant permanently, just because of the price. With 2 diet cokes, total came out to be over $55+$6 tip, which was well deserved by our waitress. A $61 lunch is not what anyone can call "affordable" lunch menu. UPDATE: August 25, 2022. Back after pandemic panic state and found everything about the same or got little more disappointment with price, taste and quantity. Got the aforementioned plate, now they're @$30. We both had clam chowder and tasted "different" from what we remember on previous visit. Overall nearly $70 with 2 drinks. It'll be another few years before we go back, if we can afford to dine out here again.

First time dining at one of the Cape Fear Seafood Company's locations tonight. We were seated right away and our waiter and the hostess were friendly and helpful. My dining companion ordered the Covina fresh catch entrée. The fish was very fresh but it lacked any complex flavor. It could be significantly improved with just a little seasoning. For a $35 dish we expected more. Portions were on the small side but the potato and asparagus sides were cooked well. I ordered the fried shrimp tacos. The meal came with two tacos and lots of shrimp. Unfortunately, the shrimp were tiny popcorn Calabash style shrimp and not at all what I expected. The mango salsa and shredded cabbage added a bit to the flavor, but the low quality of the shrimp did not do the meal justice. If you want popcorn shrimp versus crispy shrimp you may like this meal. Service was outstanding.

I'm visiting Wilmington NC to see my parents and decided to visit Cape Fear Seafood Restaurant on College Rd. The restaurant employees we're very welcoming. We were all very hungry and we're looking forward to a good meal since we received many good recommendations to visit. All five of us ordered the Broiled seafood platter sounded like a smorgasbord of seafood! Upon receiving it I was very surprised of the portions size but didn't want to make a stink. I decided to go ahead and eat it and it was very tasty!! However I was very disappointed that I was still very hungry, considering it was 4 tiny mussels, not even green lip, the fish looked like it was filet super thin and maybe two scallops and the three tiny shrimp. The whole platter was fanned out to appear like a full platter. Considering the price it should have been a better selection of seafood. It was the chef that should be praised because it was very tasty. I don't know if I would consider coming again or recommending. We as a family frequent restaurant on a daily basis, either breakfast or lunch and many times all our meals. We're always trying the next best one but always loyal to our favorites!!! I was looking forward to adding this to my list!😩☹️!!

Everyone from our family did not enjoy our meal from here. The shrimp and grits were like soup and had practically no grits. The risotto was very bland and had huge chunks of tomatoes in it as well as the shrimp and grits. The fish & chips were good but the fries were old. The atmosphere and cleanliness of the restaurant were great unfortunately the food wasn’t.

I’ve eaten here one time at the porters neck location years ago no problem. Tonight I wanted to take my husband and kids to dinner for once so we came here to the monkey junction location. We were sort of greeted when we walked in at 7:15 and immediately sat, but the vibe I got from the hostess was that we got there 5 minutes before they closed. I even checked the time on my phone just to make sure I wasn’t mistaken. We proceeded to sit there for the next 20-25 minutes totally and completely ignored. Mind you we weren’t the only ones there or in that section. Plus two kids, we weren’t quiet. After this we quickly realized no one was interested in providing service and or doing their job. On our way out the door, we were told to have a great night 💁‍♀️ What a bummer !

I wish I had a photo of the cockroach that ran across our table last night. It was disgusting and ruined our meal. Manager did the best she could to apologize but where there is one cockroach, there are more. Food was so meh…fries cold and fish under-cooked. Won’t be back.