Kure Beach

 Kure beach is a quaint beach town that in my opinion is THE best beach in the Carolinas.for a relaxing getaway and to enjoy the natural beauty of good clean beaches, good food. Now, don’t get me wrong when I say Kure is the best beach in the Carolinas. I know we have TONS of great beaches and so many amazing coastal cities to visit. So I know how big of a statement I am making, but I stand by it. When it comes to the best beach, Kure is it.

Located in between Fort Fisher and Carolina Beach, Kure Beach is a laid back zone between the even more local Fort Fisher and the slightly more touristy Carolina Beach. Kure Beach has everything you could want within walking distance of many of the locally owned hotels, motels and properties available for vacation rentals.

During my stay at Kure Beach my wife and I enjoyed an ocean front room at The Admiral’s Quarters. The Admiral’s Quarter’s is a great place to stay at Kure Beach. It exemplifies the laid back, friendly and relaxed vibe of Kure Beach. It has ocean and street view options, and rooms ranging from just a bed for the night to suites with a kitchen. Most importantly, the rooms are kept very clean, good people operate the place, and it is pet friendly! (For a small fee of course)
This is not the place to go to feel fancy if you are going for that, but this is honestly so much better than that. It’s so welcoming. There’s no uptight feel. You can just relax and be happy at Kure Beach in general, and this place makes that even easier. That’s exactly why we love Kure Beach in general and why we loved The Admiral’s Quarters so much. If that is not your vibe, there are also really cute cottages available for rent, and a plethora of airbnb options as well. Personally I love the view of the pier from the angle Admiral’s Quarter’s provides in the morning, and it is just a wonderful start to the day.

From the hotel you can walk anywhere you need. There is direct beach access from Admiral’s Quarters and it is close enough to the pier and restaurants that you can take a stroll on the beach and be there in minutes, or even quicker by walking down the street. Once you get to the pier, you can grab an ice cream cone in the pier house and walk out to get a breathtaking view of the shoreline, or you can grab your fishing gear and get your permits right there, along with pretty much anything else you need to turn your trip into a fishing trip if you happen to have decided to do so on a whim. It also has a small arcade with pool tables and like everything else in Kure Beach, the friendliest atmosphere you could imagine.

K Avenue running right up to the pier has an arcade, restaurants and a an excellent coffee shop, Happy Hippy’s Java Hut. For a relaxing trip to the beach to get away from fast paced modern life, everything you need is right here, and really you don’t even have to get in your car once you check in until you leave unless you want to.

When it comes to the food in Kure Beach, all I have to say is WOW. We didn’t have a bad meal the entire time. Not only that, but almost everything we had was some of our favorite food of alltime. This was something totally unexpected and such a wonderful surprise. You can just tell the community operates as a…community, and locals like to eat at the restaurants around town too. They aren’t overly touristy or commercialized at all, these are good, local restaurants that of course cater to visitors frequently. That was the vibe in contrast to the typical “tourist restaurant” vs “local restaurant” that you have at many vacation destinations. Genuinely better food that I felt better after eating than even fine dining locations at many vacation spots.

It seemed like you almost couldn’t go wrong with the restaurant selection in Kure Beach, but we found that starting our day with a delicious biscuit from Southerly Biscuit and Pie or Chicken and Waffles from Brunches/Federal Point right up the road in Carolina Beach was our favorite way to start the day.

The biscuits from Southerly’s are next level. Rich, filling and hearty biscuits to fuel you up for a day on the beach that you can get plain, with jam, pimento cheese, or the way I suggest it. One with sausage and cheddar, one with fried chicken and one with gravy! If you enjoy chain spots like bojangles or biscuitville on occassion, grew up with a grandma who made excellent biscuits, or wish you did, then this place will take those flavors to a different level. The grits were excellent too! I wanted to get around to the pies, but the biscuits were so good I never made it past the biscuits and grits. The fried chicken comes with sriracha mayo and hot sauce, and is a flavorful bit of heat to start the day.

If you are wanting more of a sit down breakfast instead of an “I am going to eat a biscuit or 3 on the beach” type of breakfast then Brunches/Federal Point is the place in Kure/Carolina Beach. Whether you want an omelette, a burger, chicken and waffles, or almost anything you can imagine on a standard menu they have it! We are not drinkers, however this also seemed like the place to turn up at the beach, as they offered massive mimosa and bloody mary offers for the table or I suppose some brave individuals.

My wife isn’t big on typical breakfast foods, or we likely would have ended up at Ocean View Restaurant for their Omelettes to start the day with a Kure Beach sunrise a few more times. It is a great spot right by the beach and pier to grab a bite for breakfast or lunch. You won’t run out of spots to fuel up for the day ahead!

For lunch and dinner I enjoyed top notch seafood at both Jack Mackerels and Big Daddy’s, located close to the pier and many hotels. There is convenient parking on the street if you need to drive, but in most cases getting to and from these spots is extremely walkable. Jack Mackerels is an excellent spot for an awesome beach aesthetic and friendly atmosphere that serves excellent and fresh food. The Shrimp and Grits were by far the best I have ever had, and it is one of my favorite dishes so I try to have it often at restaurants I think will execute it well, and they did not disappoint. Perfectly seasoned and perfectly cooked. Strangers making friends at the bar, good food, and you know places with a cute little old lady walking around keeping things in line are always good! After you play that meal off in the Ocean or just walking around, come back to K. Avenue for a big seafood dinner at BIG DADDY’S!

Big Daddy’s was an awesome beach restaurant from start to finish. As you walk in you are greeted by a really cute gift shop with friendly staff. I had the crab legs and my wife was just in the mood for some basic chicken tenders. The fried pickle appetizer was excellently executed with the perfect crunch and right amount of juiciness to the pickles. If you like fried pickles, you know exactly what I mean. Both of our entrees were exactly what we ordered and executed well! The crab was cooked perfectly, seasoned well and to a degree I think it would be a large crowd pleaser. Good meaty crab too, no skimpy legs here. Perfect after playing in the sun and ocean.

The wonderful thing about Kure Beach is that if you just want a place to relax, a bed to sleep in, a beach to sit on, a pier to walk out on, and good food to eat while you are there, it has it all. A small bar and a few places to socialize and meet people? Got it. Everything you could really want for a relaxing day is within walking distance, and if you want to go somewhere with a little more active boardwalk, some rides for the kids, and more restaurants, Carolina Beach is so close you will likely end up in it by accident at some point anyway!

It was actually in Carolina Beach that we had the best meal of our entire trip, and one of the best meals in our life! We know good food, with both of us having eaten at many fine dining and even Michelin Star level restaurants, and although we expected a solid meal from the reviews, Puffy’s Magic Dragon exceded any expectations by miles. When you enter, you cannot help but take note of the eccentric interior design, with dragon decorations everywhere. It was unique with a vibe of self authenticity, and was an interesting aesthetic that had us taking note of the highly intricate details until we recieved our first course.

The gyoza and rangoon were killer appetizers. Perfect texture, sauce and vegetable compliments on the gyoza, the best quality Crab Rangoon I’ve ever seen or had. The crab rangoon was packed with crab meat and flavor, and was fried to a beautiful golden. We were relishing in the flavor of the appetizers, and then the entrees came out. Perfectly cooked filet and chicken for the wifey and I enjoyed wonderfully flavorful Mongolian Peppered Steak which was filet cooked with the perfect spice blend, peppers, and all in a sauce over a bed of rice. Chatting with the waitress about how perfect the rice and lo mein texture was we discovered the reason everything was SO good as she described how many noodles they tested as they were opening. It’s a clear dedication to excellence and attention to detail here. That is clear from tedious ingredient selection, a well thought out menu, perfectly executed simple dishes, and bringing that same level of execution to dishes with rich layers of flavor. Great vibe, great food! This is NOT your standard casual restaurant for Japanese food. Sure, the vibe is casual, you can stop in wearing your beach clothes, but the food is nothing short of world classs. Seriously a must stop location for any foodie coming up the East coast!

There were several really interesting spots we did not get around to trying on our most recent trip. Chatting with both locals and seasoned Kure Beach enjoyers I discovered that Freddie’s is also one of those restaurants you HAVE to eat at if you have the chance. Though unable to secure reservations this time, the staff reached out efficiently and did their best to get us a table, however we were leaving the next day so we couldn’t fit it in. You read that correctly, while most places here have no need for reservation, you better have your reservation for Freddie’s at least a few days ahead of time! Though I did not get to experience it this time, the word on the street is that it is some of the best Italian you will ever have, and it is served authentically with plenty of time to socialize and enjoy your food. People consistently said to plan on a several hour experience.

We also went to the SeaWitch which had such a friendly and welcoming vibe, and seemed to be the “happening spot” around town. We were starving and it was a popular spot so the wait was a bit longer than our stomachs allowed, so we put this one on the list for next time! We ended up at Butts n Stuff, and enjoyed an excellent country style meal of Fried Chicken and Barbeque Pork, along with mashed potatoes and gravy and collard greens. The collards were so satisfying and the Fried Chicken was so good I had to compliment it several times.

Kure Beach has everything you need for a great time, but as you may note some of the places I listed were technically in Carolina Beach. Everything is so close that it is within minutes in a car to any of the spots mentioned, and getting around this area is so low stress. One directions you can ride up the road and be at the Carolina Beach boardwalk, and enjoy the fun activities they have to offer. There of tons of amazing shops, fun carnival style rides including a Ferris Wheel that is perfect for couples to get a romantic view, or for the whole family to enjoy an exciting adventure on. Along the boardwalk there are also several restaurants that smelled great, and it wasn’t a crazy hike from parking either. On the way back to your hotel in Kure, don’t forget to grab a pizza from Uncle Vinny’s for a nightime snack. This pizza had a great sauce to crust ratio, flavorful sauce, and was so satifying after sweating and having so much fun on the boardwalk.

Just down the road in the other direction is historic Fort Fisher. A destination for confederate blockade runners, the Fort still has signs educating people on the events that unfolded there.

All around, Kure Beach is NOT your destination for a wild time, or not one at a club anyway. It is not the place to go for a fancy upscale resort. It is not the place to go for commercialized tourist restaurants. That is why it is so special. It is the place to go with family, friends, lovers, or by yourself to laugh and cut loose with your toes in the sand. Kure beach is THE perfect beach to relax at. There are many other “low key” beaches along the coast which offer a quiet and serine place to hang out, but Kure is by far the most relaxed and friendly of them all. It just has the best vibe. Sunset Beach, Cherry Grove, Emerald Isle, Wrightsville beach and all of the North and South Carolina beaches are amazing and you should visit them all and explore the different vibes the Carolinas has to offer! That being said, Kure is my pick for best NC Beach, hands down. It has by far the best food. Kure Beach is the place you can kick back, not worry about a thing. Everyone from staff to fellow beach goers are very “go with the flow”, and it just creates a wonderful atmosphere to unplug from fast paced life and do what a vacation is meant to do! Relax! And it has the best actual beach and beach related activities. It has convenient accessibility to Carolina Beach and Fort Fisher within minutes, while still having everything you need within walking distance. Whether you want to enjoy a book on a quiet beach, go fishing off the pier, have a safe and clean beach to play with your kids, and enjoy some amazing people, views and food while you do it, Kure Beach is your next destination.

It is family friendly, couple friendly, solo traveler friendly, and friendly to pretty much anyone that is friendly it seems. It really is a wonderful place where you can let your kids run around still, where people watch out for each other in the community and are just generally friendly.