Sandpiper Seafood House & Oyster Bar

The fried flounder at Sandpiper is always top of the line and delicious. My most recent visit was for a to-​go order which I was taking back to the far side of Kinston. When I arrived home with the food, the fish was still hot so I knew it had been cooked while I waited. I usually opt for fries as my side dish, but this time I went for the creamy potato salad. Everything was very tasty and almost as good as if I were sitting in the restaurant. Definitely one of North Carolina’s best seafood houses.

You ain’t a man until you take the rooster challenge. If you don’t know what that is, go and find out. My wife and I eat here regularly. Food is always good and price is right. Mostly fried but the tuna steak is great blackened. Oysters are always great as well. Weird days they are open so check before you go. Worth the drive from the surrounding counties.

Every time I’ve been here the service has been excellent and the oysters were perfect in size! I love that the guys shuck the oysters for you. All the sides are yummy too! They are open Wednesday-​Sunday so you have to plan when you want to go, but its very worth it.
Don’t forget to try the Rooster!

Amazing! Would go here everyday if I could! Oysters were fresh and the service was awesome!

I love, love, love this place. Every time I go back home to the Goldsboro area I always make time to go The Sandpiper. I initially ate in the restaurant area until I discovered the oyster bar in the back. It’s just a fun atmosphere. And yes, it’s always packed and you will probably have to wait, but grab a beer and talk to everyone else that’s waiting. It’s worth it! Steamed oysters and spicy shrimp are my favorite, but I have also had the crab legs, friend shrimp and oysters and the clam chowder. Never been disappointed. (They shuck the oysters for you.)

Not what I had expected after hearing such good reviews from locals. Being from Massachusetts I expect my seafood to be good, not the case here.
While I can overlook décor, and plating presentation, I can’t overlook bad food.
We started out with raw oysters and I have to say they looked lackluster. They weren’t big and plump but flat and covered with extra juice from I don’t know what. They didn’t taste terrible, but definitely not the best raw oysters I’ve ever had.
My husband ordered the sampler dish with scallops, shrimp, tilapia, crab and fries. It all was fried and overdone. He is not a even a picky eater and was dissatisfied.
I ordered the flounder and asked for it broiled, they said I had to get the senior citizens portion because that is the only way they serve it broiled. The portion size when it came out was more than enough, but aside from some paprika for seasoning they did nothing else to it. It came out bland and lacked flavor. Also to note that the side of green beans was canned not fresh. No seasoning added to that either.
My kids ordered fried shrimp, and shrimp Alfredo respectively. The shrimp came out on a tiny plate and was covered in fries, you couldn’t even see the shrimp. But, there was plenty of it underneath his fries, and he did seem to enjoy it. My daughter was not pleased with the Alfredo, even at ten years old she knows when pasta is overcooked. They gave her marinara instead of Alfredo and the sauce was also bland.
Needless to say we will not be repeat customers. Guess it’s home cooked seafood from now on!

Been there several times, Always Great service at the bar and great food.

I ‘m usually in the oyster bar which is around back of the building. This is the first time I sat it the restaurant and ate. It ain’t nothing fancy more like a enclosed picknick area. The wait staff was great and the food was marvelous it was that good. I had the blacken tuna, wife had the hamburger steak and the granddaughter had fried flounder. The wife and the young’n both had to get doggie bags. But the oysters in the oyster bar are steamed to your liking and shucked in front of you. So if you are on Hwy 70 in La Grange NC stop in and give them a try.

The Best Seafood in Wayne or Lenoir County for sure.

I’ve only ever had take-​out, so I can’t vouch for the experience of dining in, but I can say that the food is delicious!
I ordered steamed oysters (which came in their shells), fried shrimp, cole-​slaw and hush-​puppies. I recommend it ALL and can’t wait to try other items on the menu.

B11 -«Bingo! Oh ok, so we aren’t at bingo,» but walk into Sandpipers and you’d think you were, but what the décor lacks, the food and especially the service more than makes up for.
We came to Sandpipers on the recommendation of my avuncular coworker Ray, «D’ya like oysters?» he chuckled. Did I mention he has a long ponytail? Intrigued, I had to try this alleged locally renowned best kept secret.
You get a basket of hushpuppies, but I came for the oysters. I usually like all things seagoing, but these little mollusks, not so much, or so I thought. We ordered 6 oysters; 3 raw and 3 steamed. With a little bit of cocktail sauce they weren’t bad. Since I’m not an oyster connoisseur I can’t effectively comment on the quality of said mollusks though.
Feeling the free spirit inspired by Cinco de Mayo, we decided to drink (so we thought) Sandpipers infamous Rooster. Order and finish 3 and you get a free «I Survived the Rooster» shirt. How bad can 3 little shots of raw oyster, jalapeño pepper, Tabasco sauce, horseradish, black pepper, and beer be? Cock-​a-​Doodle-​Doo! The Rooster is not a shot, it’s a bite, a rather large really hot bite on a saltine that burns fire from your nose and tears from your eyes. The many elder patrons around you will be very interested in your, erm, well being, yes that’s it. But hey, we got a shirt out of it!
It’s all fun and games until someone chokes on a bone. I ordered the sea trout for dinner and my huge fish was riddled with his (or her), erm, skeleton still. They warn you on the menu, but I thought that was the standard if-we-write-it-you-can’t-sue-us-when-you-almost-choke-to-death warning. Other than bones, my sea trout was a tad bland, but my fries were good, my coleslaw not to my liking (chopped too fine). Mark’s grilled salmon however was firm smoky perfection. Yummo!
Sandpiper has a dive bar-​esque oyster bar (a bar where they serve alcohol and shuck the oysters in front of you — how’s that for fresh?) on the backside, which we obviously missed hence the B11 bingo hall.
Kind of like an actual oyster, the Sandpiper is quite ugly on the outside, but go on in and gasp there’s a pearl in there. Maybe one day Ill order a peck of oysters at Sandpipers, but not a Rooster!
PS — I forgot to mention the service was awesome! Our waitress was very attentive and helpful navigating the rather lengthy menu. She also was prepared for the Rooster debacle with more water and more hushpuppies.