Restaurants in Surf City

“How did we ever survive in on Topsail Island without Maine Lobstah Shack!!! Having spent years in the New England region, I know good from great when it comes to Lobster! The lobster rolls are to die for and the lobster bisk is the best I've ever had. On top of that, it is a wonderful family owned and family run business. At the end of the day, it is the quality of the food that keeps us coming back! Treat yourself!!! Definately a five star experience!!”

“Always a favorite place to have a beer then in town from Pa! Great staff, good vibes and excellent beer!”

“The atmosphere is great and beers are cold.”

“Great food, even better people and atmosphere. As locals, we are weekly visitors. (well maybe more like three times a week on occasion.) We have NEVER not been satisfied. Ask my husband- it’s hard for ME to be satisfied. lol. But truthfully this is a gem of a spot, and consider yourself lucky if they get to know you and your order. Because this is “that kinda place””

“The best meal of the week. Seasoned perfectly and great portions. We even have leftovers for our last night at the beach. Treat yo’self and get a Topsail Steamer bucket!”

“This was delicious. The owner is super nice and answered all of our questions as we are from the mountains of NC so oysters are not an everyday thing for us. Our waitress was very informed and stayed on top of our service. We are very happy with our experience and we will absolutely be back. Thank y’all so much.”

“The Smash Burger hits the taste notes of salty and sweet with a faint hint of heat. The burger is a definite smash laying larger than the toasted bun. The triangle tortillas could use a little more crunch and a touch more taste, but overall, the burger is the star. The atmosphere is clean & organized. I like the operation is visable; very clean and organized.”

“The burgers and sides we ordered were amazing!”

“Best bar around! If you can't have a good time here, it's probably your fault!”

“Great food!! We make it a point to eat there when in Surf City!”

“A great place to hang out and relax. The owners build a great sense of community!”

“Pizza is amazing and the atmosphere is top notch. Nothing like great pizza at the beach”

“Most excellent dinner and drinks! Highly recommended! Waiter was very helpful with food and drink selections.”

“Great customer service & always tasty mega teas for everyone on the go or on the beach! I absolutely love the cactus blossom 🌸”

“We were in walking distance of pelicans and went almost every night. We really enjoyed the wide variety of flavors. The order gentleman could be more personable, but the other staff was wonderful. We tended to look in the windows to prepare our selves for him. My children were always excited try a new flavor. We cannot wait to come back next year!”

“We ♥️ Sundial! We have been visiting Topsail for years and it’s always a treat to stop into Sundial while we are there. Some of our favorite drinks are the bulletproof, The Sundial, and the Vanilla Rose cold brew… My kids always enjoy a cake pop or two! The fun sugar cookies are always a nice addition! I recently had a raspberry peach muffin that was absolutely divine! The staff is always friendly and efficient. The space is always bright, clean, and welcoming. 10/10! Can’t wait to visit again in a few months!”

“delicious coffee and fantastic people. Definitely recommend”

“Best Ice Cream on the Island. Family owned and run. Love love love this place. Highly recommended.”

“Super cute shop,we were excited to browse and purchase, while enjoying a nice cup of coffee. unfortunately, at 4:40 pm on a Friday, the barista was not making drinks for the rest of the evening. Understandable they close at at 5 pm, but why shutting down 20 minutes before? #disappointed”

“This place is the best ! They have such a great selection of food and drinks and the outside seating is perfect on a nice day ❤️”

“Amazing coffee, drinks and food. We love to come in the morning for coffee and breakfast, and now we love to come in the evening for appetizers and cocktails. Staff is amazing, view is perfect, and the vibe is on point. Can’t recommend enough!”

“Great morning coffee and super nice and friendly staff and service. Will be back this week.”

“Sushi was great! Came out fast and with awesome customer service!”

“Restaraunt across the street was hour and a half wait so we went in here. Definitely a dive bar with not much on the menu. Our server/bartender Lisa was super friendly and brought our little man some fries to keep him happy while we were figuring things out. Jalapeño poppers was what you'd expect from a dive bar, but cooked well. We all got burgers and they were pretty decent. Lisa can definitely mix up some drinks. Glad we stopped in and would love to come back without the kid to enjoy some live music”

“Freshest Chicken around & unique Surfin Sauce= extremely favorable ❤️”

“We eat here every time we come to Surf City, we are down most weekends. We’ve never been disappointed. All the food is delicious. We normally pick up supper to go but will dine in on occasion. It’s a family friendly restaurant, I never worry about taking my children in. Highly recommended!”

“Alicia and Adam have a “gem” of business service up great wine and beer with outstanding desserts and charcuterie boards. The “wine club” is Wednesday evening fun, great tastings and recommendations from a wine pro. It is a fun “meet up” with friends! Kerry, Katie, Nancy and Wendy are always pleasant and professional behind the bar and keep the wine flowing. Perusing the local art is fun and Adam Hawley’s big screen videography of Topsail Island is simply awesome - waves, clear water, fish, sharks and Lea Islands view will not disappoint. It is always a great time and fun meet up at Locals! Always on the recommendation “go to list”!!!!”

“Just found this place and absolutely loved it. Light and refreshing meal before or after the beach. Service was fast and the people were incredibly nice. The food is great and exactly what I needed after spending time in the beach. Highly recommend!! Loved the outdoor seating and chill music.”

“Super cute shop,we were excited to browse and purchase, while enjoying a nice cup of coffee. unfortunately, at 4:40 pm on a Friday, the barista was not making drinks for the rest of the evening. Understandable they close at at 5 pm, but why shutting down 20 minutes before? #disappointed”

“friendly staff and great smoothies!”

“LOVE The Peak 2.0! Friendly familiar staff, great food + beach vibes!”

“Super Friendly And Welcoming. Always Fresh Food. Best Hand Scooped Ice Cream AND NOW THEY OFFER KETO FRIENDLY OPTIONS. We Love This Place”

“I purchased a large quantity and shared with my community and it was a hit. Everyone including myself enjoyed the texture and taste tremendously. I highly recommend Cafe Frutta Fresca Gelato. It's first class!!!”

“When the owner asked how our food was, our vocal 4yr old said the fries had too much seasoning and made her cough 😂. A few minutes later we see him come back and they made her new fries without us asking and she was so thankful. Great service and food. Great people. 5 stars from Michigan!”

“Our first time dining here (wish we hadn’t waited so long) and we will definitely be back on a regular basis! Food was great and the service was the best! Our waiter Sam was awesome. We would return just for him! Looking forward to many more of our weekend meals from here.”

“Outstanding owner run tight ship with no ego or greed . It feels as if we eat at home with our family . The meals are out of this world and in which you can tell the pride and love of their sharing of their passion . Thursday nite date nite has been such a treat .Pete is ok too ! We certainly look forward to coming back in October for our 5 month stay .Thanks Tom and Casey”

“After seeing this place many times we decided to try it today. We ordered the white cap pizza and it was delicious! We will definitely be back soon!”

“I found it very pricey, but my perspective on value for money paid should not affect anyone’s decision to try this place out. I got exactly what I ordered and it was delicious!! It was the perfect way to start my day at the beach. My bagel was perfectly toasted and I could taste all of the flavors I asked for. I stepped outside to sit under the sunshine while I waited for my order, and to my surprise they brought it outside for me. Overall a great experience and I would definitely do it again.”

“This is definitely a local’s hidden gem. Their personal size pizzas are perfect with a variety of flavors. I love the taco pizza while Lynn prefers the bacon cheeseburger pizza with pickles. There are so many local restaurants who are closed on Sundays it can be a challenge to find something quick that’s to-go. However, they close early on Sundays and on some nights so don’t wait super late to order.”

“This place has great food! I tried the ribs tonight and so tender and good flavor! Also good service! Definitely recommend!!”

“We went for the first time during Christmas 2025 while it was decorated. It looked like a small Angus Barn. Every inch was decorated for Christmas. Wonderful atmosphere to sit in and enjoy the holidays. The food was excellent and the service was great! Highly recommend!”

“My husband and son and I went Saturday for dinner and as always, it was delicious. The crab dip always spot on and the best around. A special Thank You to Tanner our server, he was awesome and did such a wonderful job and made sure everything was spot on for us to have a relaxing and enjoyable dinner. Tanner you were awesome and your personality and how you deal with your customers was great, please keep that up. My heart went out to you and I felt bad after the table next to us ran you and spent $200 if not more and left you such a crap tip, that was so wrong. But don't let people like that discourage you, keep doing you, because you were great!!!”

“We finally got away from the kids, we were looking for quiet, upscale, on the water ,with fresh seafood. Sears landing delivered all of that with extra creds. The service was attentive, the food was outstanding, and the atmosphere down by the water was very laid back.”

“Everything!!! We love eating here when we’re on the island 🌭🥰”

“We just left and I couldn’t wait to recommend sweet alicious. We had an amazing experience from the moment we opened the door. We were greated as soon as we came in, the music was great, the customer service was even better, and the ice cream was amazing. The store was very clean and the prices are more than fair. I had the pleasure of chatting with the manager and her daughter, they were so kind. I would hands down recommend 10 out of 10.”

“I get the breakfast sandwich, eggs over easy, cheese and a sausage patty. I’ve ordered this before at other restaurants and NYCD is the only place that gets over easy right. Gooey and runny, just the way a perfect breakfast should be! Of all the places on and off island, this is the one to go to. Highly recommended! 💕”

“Cold beer and live music! Friendly staff too!”

“The shrimp po boy, was delicious!! Service is quick!!”

“Stopped in for a sweet treat. The ice cream selection is amazing, you get big scoops too. The employees were friendly and professional. Will definitely stop back in on our next visit to the Island.”

“Awesome food and good prices”

“Great place to eat”

“We had never tried Max's Pizza until today. We arrived about 1145am, we were greeted immediately, seated at a booth as we requested, and we met Jessica our amazing waitress. Kind, courteous, and quick ! We ordered our drinks, and garlic cheese bread as a starter. It was 10/10 hot, fresh and delicious ! Our pies were cheese, and a pepperoni, we asked for light sauce, and a crispier crust. It was done perfectly 👌. Our pies were delicious, excellent sauce ! Jessica made sure we had everything we needed, during our visit, she was awesome. The bill was about $50, which I consider a bargain for good food and a family of four. I read the reviews for the restaurant before we came, and while everyone is entitled to their opinion, some of them are just malicious. A pizza place, at the beach, is going to be super busy, expect some wait time. An overwhelmed restaurant at peak time, might make a mistake, be patient and kind. This pizza parlor is a hit, and we highly recommend you give it a try !”