The Ultimate North Myrtle Beach Restaurant Guide: Where to Eat for Every Craving
It’s 6:15 PM. The shower sand is still circling the drain. Someone’s sunburned, someone’s starving, the kids want pizza, your partner wants seafood, and you’d honestly settle for anything with a cold beer and air conditioning. You open your phone, type “restaurants near me,” and drown in 200 options and contradicting reviews.
We’ve been there — which is why we built this North Myrtle Beach restaurants cheat sheet, organized by craving, from someone who eats at these places year-round and lives minutes away at 601 Hillside Dr N. No more 5 PM arguments. Just pick your mood and go.
Walk to Dinner: Main Street Restaurants
The biggest dining perk of staying at 601 Hillside Dr N is the walk. Walk out the side of the complex to 2nd Ave N and you’re just two blocks from Ocean Drive’s Main Street (~0.4 miles, about 7 minutes) — loaded with restaurants, bars, and live music. No car, no parking, no designated driver.
Soho on Main Street (214 Main St) — My go-to for sushi. Over 16 years on the Grand Strand, Soho does sushi, steak, hibachi, and seafood all under one roof. The sushi bar is award-winning — jewel-red tuna nigiri, tight specialty rolls, and sesame-crusted ahi with a golden crust and ruby center. The vibe works for date night or family dinner. 4.4 stars on Google with 286+ reviews. This is where I take friends when they visit.
NY Pizza Kitchen (227 Main St) — Real New York-style brick oven pizza. Thin crust with a satisfying char on the bottom, bubbly mozzarella, and garlic knots warm enough to melt the butter drizzled on top. Regulars have been coming for 30+ years. Great for a quick casual meal with the kids, cold draft beer for the adults.
Hoskins Restaurant (405 Main St) — A North Myrtle Beach landmark since 1948. Family-owned Southern cooking — fried chicken with a crackling crust and juicy dark meat, seafood platters, and homemade peanut butter pie dense enough to require a moment of silence. Every meal feels like Sunday dinner at grandma’s house. Expect a line at dinner. Worth every minute. 444 Yelp reviews.
Fenway Grille (206 Main St) — Fenway-style hot dogs on split-top buns, lobster rolls, and burgers in a casual walk-up spot right on Main Street. Quick, affordable, and about a 7-minute walk from the condo via the 2nd Ave N exit. Perfect for a post-beach lunch or a low-key dinner before hitting the bars.
Read the full walkable restaurants guide →
Seafood Buffets Worth the Drive
The Grand Strand is famous for its seafood buffets, and the best ones are worth the 5-8 minute drive:
Captain George’s Seafood Restaurant — The gold standard. Over 70 items including snow crab legs that crack clean and slide out steaming, blackened mahi, prime rib, and authentic Greek pastries dripping with honey. The dining room smells like melted butter and Old Bay. ~$50/adult. Sunday “First Catch Special” offers discounted pricing 12-4 PM.
The Original Benjamin’s Calabash Seafood — Iconic Calabash-style buffet with lightly battered, golden-fried seafood that shatters at first bite. Massive themed dining rooms. A Grand Strand institution.
Captain Jack’s / The Giant Crab — You can’t miss the two enormous red crabs outside. Hot buffet, cold raw bar with fresh oysters and peel-and-eat shrimp, DIY pasta station, carved prime rib sliced pink and juicy. ~$50/person.
Read the full seafood buffet rankings →
Hibachi & Japanese
Miyabi Kyoto Japanese Steak & Seafood — The full teppanyaki experience: onion volcanoes, flaming shrimp, and the smell of garlic butter sizzling on a flat-top right in front of you. Massive portions — the filet mignon is tender enough to cut with chopsticks. Kids love the show. ~$25-40/person. Arrive early — no reservations.
Soho on Main Street — Hibachi plates plus their award-winning sushi bar — tight rolls, silky nigiri, and torched salmon — all walkable from the condo. Two dining experiences in one.
Sakura Hibachi Buffet (523 Hwy 17 N) — Best value Asian buffet in NMB. All-you-can-eat Chinese, Japanese, sushi bar, and a hibachi grill where sesame oil and teriyaki glaze sizzle as you watch your custom plate come together. ~$14 lunch, ~$18-20 dinner. 5 minutes from the condo. 4.1 stars with 2,800+ reviews.
Bars & Nightlife (Walkable!)
Sky Bar (214 Main St) — Multi-story rooftop bar with nightly DJs. The premier nightlife spot on the Grand Strand. Walk from the condo, grab a drink on the rooftop, walk home. No designated driver needed. 21+ venue.
Fat Harold’s Beach Club — The cathedral of shag. South Carolina’s official state dance was born on this floor. Beach music, cold drinks, and dancing every night.
Duck’s (229 Main St) — The other essential shag club. Live bands and DJs spinning beach music since 1953. Welcoming to newcomers — regulars love teaching beginners.
Read the full nightlife guide →
Family-Friendly Favorites
LuLu’s at Barefoot Landing — Lucy Buffett’s massive restaurant with ropes course, beach arcade, and sand playground for kids. Coastal cuisine with Southern twist — the Crispy Grouper Sandwich is outstanding and the Key Lime Pie is legendary.
Sakura Hibachi Buffet — Something for every picky eater. The hibachi grill station keeps kids entertained while they watch their noodles and shrimp dance across the griddle.
NY Pizza Kitchen — Quick, casual, and universally loved. Foldable thin-crust pizza and warm garlic knots glistening with butter. Kids never say no.
Molly Darcy’s Irish Pub (1701 S Ocean Blvd) — Right on the beach in Crescent Beach. Walk through the sea oats from the sand directly onto the back porch, ocean breeze still on your skin. Game room with pool tables. Kids welcome for lunch.
Read the full kid-friendly guide →
Barefoot Landing Dining
A 10-minute drive south puts you at Barefoot Landing — a dining and entertainment complex on the Intracoastal Waterway:
Greg Norman’s Australian Grille — NMB’s premier steakhouse. Dry-aged ribeye with a seared crust, fresh seafood, and waterway sunset views that turn the whole dining room golden. Upscale but not stuffy.
Flying Fish Public Market & Grill — Fish market meets restaurant. Blackened grouper so tender it flakes at a glance, fresh oysters on ice, creative cocktails. The freshness is visible from the seafood case at the entrance.
House of Blues — Live music venue with Southern-inspired menu — jambalaya thick with andouille, shrimp and grits in peppery gravy. Sunday Gospel Brunch is a must.
Read the full Barefoot Landing dining guide →
Calabash: 15 Minutes to the Seafood Capital
Just across the NC border, the tiny fishing village of Calabash invented its own style of lightly battered, golden-fried seafood. Dozens of family-owned restaurants line the waterfront. A must-do day trip — especially after a round at Crow Creek or Meadowlands, both in Calabash.
Read the full Calabash guide →
Quick Bites Near the Condo
All within a 3-5 minute drive on Hwy 17:
- Chick-fil-A — Reliable, fast, always a line that moves quickly
- Mellow Mushroom (1101 Hwy 17 N) — Creative pizzas, good craft beer, funky vibe
- Buffalo Wild Wings — Wings, beer, big screens for game day
- Outback Steakhouse (1721 Hwy 17 N) — When you need a break from seafood
- Carrabba’s Italian Grill (1015 Hwy 17 N) — Solid Italian for a family dinner
- The Crazy Mason Milkshake Bar (801 Main St) — Over-the-top milkshakes and desserts, walkable from the condo
Sushi Tonight, Crab Legs Tomorrow, Pizza When You’re Tired — All from One Address
Walk to Soho for sushi. Drive 5 minutes to Sakura’s $14 all-you-can-eat lunch. Spend an evening at Captain George’s working through 70 buffet items. Then cook local shrimp in your own full kitchen because some nights you don’t want to leave the condo. That’s the week at 601 Hillside Dr N in Ocean Keyes — a 3BR/2BA home base where Main Street dining is walkable, the Grand Strand’s best restaurants are minutes away, and the beach is 0.65 miles from your front door. Every craving on this page, one address.
Check Availability & Book Your Stay
For the complete guide to what’s nearby, explore our beach guide and golf course guide.
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