Sugar Shack Seafood

Just ate there yesterday June 29, I’ve been eating here for years. I paid around 9 dollars a bowl for seafood stew, the shrimp where mushy and overcooked, soup was overpowered with vinegar. Won’t be eating here again.

Get the 2 crab cakes dinner… Barely any fillers and loaded with lots of chunks of crab. Being from Maryland, the blue crab state, I enjoyed it. It comes with 2 sides of your choice; I had the cucumber salad and baked potatoes. The side of corn bread cake style was awesome! Got the $ 10 drink that came with a souvenir plastic cup. My 10 yr old daughter had the 8 piece shrimp dinner (lighter fare) and was full. Hubby got the fried shrimp dinner (full size) and ate every bit. My son (13) had the shrimp and crab cake dinner and could barely finish. For party of 4 with 1 alcohol drink, 3 sodas, and 4 meals, it was about $ 120; pretty high. We especially enjoyed the sunset view. Ate around 7pm. They offer coupons when you eat between 4 to 5pm. The coupon books are to the right of the hostess stand.

Back again this year. Food is great, fun little place. Killer steamed shrimp and sweet potato fries. Hubby loves the fried shrimp.

The people at the shack are first class. Best oysters I’ve ever eaten. If you want fresh seafood this is the place to get it.

5 Stars are not enough — the crab and corn bisque was the best I have ever eaten. We went back the next day and took home a quart. It is to die for. Great service, very friendly people. You can’t go wrong with their variety of items and the quality of the food. Very pleased!!!

We called too late in the day to get an already steamed steamer, but they told us we could get one to go. It came in a disposable popcorn bucket– super convenient– with instructions for cooking perfectly. We had a great variety of spicy sausage, shrimp, snow crab, blue crab, clams, and corn & potatoes. It was all delicious. The guy that helped us make the selection was also super cool and friendly. For a last minute steamer bucket craving, this was perfect.

Insanely high prices for run-​of-​the mill beach fried food. ($ 9 for a cup of soup — $ 10 for a bowl). I just wanted a little soup before lunch. But it wasn’t worth $ 9 to me. So I ate the free bread and they made $zero on the soup. Crab legs $ 22 a pound is higher than every other restaurant around.
They have a wonderful view on the waterfront. Our waitress wasn’t too engaged and didn’t have the best of manners. But she wasn’t bad, either.
What ruined it for me was how fast our freshly and steaming hot shrimp orders came out (good) but were served with old, room temperature, soggy French fries. That ruined the experience and the meal as the shrimp got cold while we waited for hot fries.
That’s just a lazy kitchen that doesn’t care about quality.
I was also taken back late afternoon at how many sides they were out of.
I’d return. The food was «ok.» But it wouldn’t be my first choice. I’d be going back if I was with other people who picked it after I suggested the two better restaurants directly across the street.
Lastly, no manager came around to give me a chance to share my experiences. Had the manager stopped over and addressed them, I’m sure my review could have been more positive.
I should probably rate this two stars. But considering how many worse restaurants there are in nags head, I’m giving them 3 stars to reflect how they rate against others nearby.

I previously decided I would use Unilocal for only positive reviews for great food or service. So I will start and end with a positive… on July 29 I visited sugar shack to pick up a bushel of crabs and a couple pounds of shrimp. This is a cool restaurant and seafood market on the sound. Our shrimp was excellent and the staff was friendly. The sound view is epic
The crabs however were less than sub par. And I honestly think it’s a management process problem not the cooks
When you enter the door there is a sign a sign warning customers that crabs were not returnable in hind sight I should have turned around and left
Problems with sugar shack crabs
1. They charge 140 for a bushel and claim they only have #1s
2.we had numerous crabs in our bushel that were very very small and likely illegal in NC picture attached and numerous paper shells
3 I was told I would have to try a crab before I left I was brought a cold crab that appeared to be steamed earlier in the daydream on a previous date
4 almost the entire bushel of crabs was god awful and overlooked
The issue with sugar shack is simple they do not know how to steam crabs. They are steaming them twice and selling them as fresh #1s
If you are a Maryland crab lover steer clear of this place for blue crabs
You are likely safe with other items on the menu

Not sure if it’s the same owners as Sugar Creek. But that meal was horrible. Should have went here instead

Pretty pleased with this place, a lot of other places were closed for lunch so we wound up here. We were grabbing lunch first before hitting Bodie Island Lighthouse down the road. They had very reasonably priced lunch specials around 8.95, my friends had a stuffed ports bells mushroom with shrimp and scampi, another had a chicken salad sandwich while I had the grilled tuna sandwich. Everything tasted great, especially the crab bisque soup! They have a bar and a gift shop if you need to kill some time, we were sat within minutes. They do have patio/​waterside seating too. Think our total tab for three lunch items, two cokes and dessert was around 57 bucks. This is a clean, nicely decorated place. Looked like they are always pretty busy too, but you can always sit at the bar if need be.

This place definitely gives you your money’s worth in food compared to a fancy sit down dinner restaurant. My husband had the grilled swordfish with jerk sauce which he raved about, and I had the coconut shrimp which were great! Great view too! Definitely will be back!

Their website clearly says that it is open daily until 8:00pm. We got there at 7:30 and the doors were locked and the staff inside refused to acknowledge us. That’s a surefire way to make sure we never come back.

Fishmarket that cooks and serves some of what they sell.
Decent selection a little overpriced no surprise for OBX.
Things that stood out was a fish fry for just under $ 15 and a $ 10 hamburger.
One of the folks in our party ordered the hamburger and it was surprisingly a big burger, look fresh and fully dressed.
Fish and chips was two pieces of fish and homemade potato chips.
The place is clean and service was good.
Food was fresh and a nice portion.
They have out door sitting as well indoor, it’s not fancy it’s a fishmarket.

Great food and the friendliest people! We brought 2 young kids (2 yo and 5 mo) and we were well accommodated! The staff were so kind and served us very quickly. It was quiet and had the most beautiful view! The food was very fresh and the beverages were cheap!

Overpriced seafood in OBX. Nothing great to write about this place. The food was ordinary, so was the décor but the price was very high. On the plus side the service was good.

The best Coconut Shrimp I’ve ever had… love the relaxed setting… and the sound view. This will be our «go to» for take out dinners too.

The food was tasty but not served hot. The scallops and shrimp are good, the marinated tuna is excellent and the fries passable with the baked potato being a better choice. The other sides like coleslaw and cucumber salad were very good. The cornbread was almost warm and had been sitting in the basket too long making it somewhat soggy. This place could be a lot better if they put more effort into getting the orders out hot and all together as they have good food. This is my about my fourth time there and it has been consistently mediocre due to the lack of attention to detail on the food orders.
A year later and all is the same. The tuna was excellent and the fried shrimp good but once again the cornbread was barely warm (why serve cold butter with it… you can’t spread it and it won’t melt it). They first served coffee that had been sitting for a very long time and we had to ask for some fresh that was drinkable. The waitress said it was the way it had been made but when coffee is old and burnt smelling from being on the warmer for hours one can tell. My grilled chicken sandwich was good but the fries were stuck together in clumps and not hot which happens to coated frozen fries when not cooked per order.

Ate here based on mixed Unilocal reviews, so here’s another one to throw into the bowl.
ATMOSPHERE:
This place is a seafood market as well as a casual restaurant. The inside is freezing cold like a market, but we wanted to sit outdoors regardless because of the view. There’s great views of the bay under a trellised patio. We saw a shrimper at work too. Expect to be busy shooing flies while eating.
FOOD:
Clam Chowder — It’s not New England nor Manhattan style. It’s brownish in color and tastes like clam beef vegetable soup. Good but not what I was expecting.
Shack Attack Po’ Boy — This sandwich is way too big. I don’t think anyone can open their mouth that wide. I ate with a fork and tossed the bread. It contains fried flounder, shrimp, scallops & oysters on a roll spread with marinara sauce and drizzled with an Italian dressing-​Tabasco sauce and topped with shredded lettuce, and potato chips on the side. Unfortunately it lacked any sort of flavor or personality.
Large Shrimp — 10 or so lightly breaded and deep-​fried shrimp and shoestring fries. The breading isn’t your usual thick & frozen breadcrumb variety which was awesome, because I can cook that at home! It came with a mildly spicy & peppery sauce for dipping. This dish is way better than the sandwich.
SERVICE:
You order & pay at the counter and your food is delivered. The guys in there were very patient and helpful.
OVERALL:
Nice views, prices are average, portions are generous. Pass on the sandwiches and stick to the grilled & fried items.

Tasty shrimp and a large portion for the price, in comparison to Sugar Creek, next door. For $ 12.99, I got 18 large fried shrimp, fries and coleslaw– the same price nets you 10 shrimp and 2 sides at lunch next door. Sure, the atmosphere is much different, but the money is worth it!
Husband had the burger, as he is not a seafood fan. Burger was pretty awful, and expensive at $ 10, but hey– this is a seafood market and shack, not Five Guys.
We enjoyed the view of the sound on a sunny afternoon, and got to enjoy it for quite some time, as our meals took about 25 minutes to arrive. The store wasn’t busy with cooking orders, but considering it was the 4^th of July, there was a constant stream of folks buying fresh sea delights for cookouts and such.
I’ll definitely be back on our next trip to the OBX if I’m looking for well-​priced seafood in a very casual environment, but we’ll make sure that hubby eats before we go so he can skip the expensive and gross burger!

Since someone in the party was obsessed with going to Sugar Shack even though we had already been to Sugar Creek the day before, we made sure we got there before they closed this time. I personally did not find it worth the 8 – 9 mile drive from the Ocean Reef.
The shrimp were actually cooked a little better than the night before at Sugar Creek, they were fresh and tender, but lacked shrimp flavor. The Hattaras style chowder was just OK, very salty with not much seafood flavor. The slaw was inedible. I love slaw and eat it in almost all forms, but not this time. It was hideous, with spoiled sour cream flavors.
I see no reason to go to Sugar Shack unless it would be to pick up fresh seafood to cook ourselves. So two stars for dining in.