Kelly’s Outer Banks Restaurant and Tavern

Waitress was nice (which is why I gave one star). After overlooking the black mold on the menu, we decided to wait it out and try the food. We ordered a nice dinner… but it was clear the grill needed to be cleaned, since the filet tasted like char. Husband went to the bathroom, and there was mold on the ceiling in the bathroom. I went to the ladies restroom, and as I was getting ready to wash my hands, the soap dispenser was empty. It was loose, so I was hoping to find a little to wash my hands. Instead, I found a dirty dispenser that clearly hasn’t been filled in quite a while. No other soap in restroom available. I’m curious where employees wash their hands after using the restroom (heaven forbid the patrons have clean hands when they’re about to eat that food prepared by those who didn’t wash their hands). Also, there were so many flies, one ACTUALLY got caught in my hair. Long story long, do not go here. Way expensive for such a disappointment.

Always great seafood, although it is a little pricy for what it is. The staff is so friendly and it has a great atmosphere. Get the crème brûlée it’s so good. I had the Shrimp and Scallops Scampi and it was really good

Sorry. Stopped in for drinks and fun on a Monday night with a group of 8 but business was lost because of the cover. Went down the street and had a great time!

Wow, awesome dinner, great service. Had prime rib, soft shell crab app, raw oysters local caught, crab soup and sweet potatoe biscuits. Everything was amazing. Not sure why anyone would have a bad review of this place. Must have just been a bad night or maybe there has been a change in cooks here cause it was great. Awesome job! See you soon!

Food was very good. Little to no wait. However they are very big and persistent about you ordering a drink. We had a regular waitress as well as a cocktail waiter and they ask more than 5 times about getting a cocktail.

We had the best meal! Our waiter was super attentive and every single dish we ordered was delicious. Our favorites were the seared scallops and the crab-​topped Cajun flounder.

Based on other reviews I tried the crab cakes and they did not disappoint. Now I’m not much for seafood but these super meaty creations were flavored just right. The sweet potato biscuits were a close second in being my favorite. The other 3 I dined with all got seafood dishes and all were very pleased with their food. Our waitress was pretty amazing as well.

Easter dinner brought us to Kelly’s. After a great experience last year we decided to go again. We arrived and were seated after about a three minute wait. The ambiance is nautical and everything from fishing gear and inert bombs make things interesting.
Jenny was our server and immediately took our drink orders. We ordered a grilled shrimp appy to share and it was good. All four of us ordered the house side salad with the vinaigrette and feta dressing. Fresh and good. The dressing nice and tangy. My wife and I ordered from the Chefs Special menu: pan seared rockfish and the mixed grill platter, respectively. The former was perfectly prepared and delicious. The latter consisted of Tuna and Mahi filets atop a bed of red beans, rice and what was purportedly Cajun sausage which tasted more Italian to me. Andouille or chorizo would have made this really good dish spectacular. Topped with a drizzle of sweet chipotle BBQ sauce, too!
Daughter ordered the Mediterranean salmon which was perfectly prepared and placed atop a bed of green beans and feta. Son ordered the Gulf Shrimp platter. Delicious sautéed shrimp with fries and green beans.
Jenny was incredible refilling drinks and removing plates, etc.
We declined on dessert and the check, after taxes, was slightly above $ 115. Not bad for four adults. Highly recommended.

Very fancy atmosphere in this restaurant. As soon as you walk in, there are so many gadgets hanging everywhere to admire. Although this is a pretty restaurant, my reasoning behind giving this place 3 stars is based simply on the food.
For appetizer, we ordered the coconut shrimp. It was pretty good, but not worth how much it costs. We were given 4 pieces of fried coconut shrimp with this sweet and tangy sauce on the side. The bread basket was on point. I, and I think others, favor the sweet potato biscuit, which is a special for this restaurant.
My parents and I each ordered the prime rib. I ordered mine medium rare with a side of rice and mixed vegetables. It came with horseradish and a bowl of au jus. Don’t get me wrong; the food was DECENT, but it has potential. We came for the early bird dinner, so the prices were cheaper than normal.
My opinion is that the food was good, but should be better for the prices they’re asking. I’m happy that we came earlier for dinner for the cheaper prices. If we came later on in the night and had to pay the full on actual price of the prime rib, I would’ve been displeased.
Otherwise than that, service was nice; typical southern hospitality found here in the Outer Banks. Easy access from the highway, and plenty of parking. This venue even has a dance floor and bar in a separate area. Found a hot date while vacationing at the beach? Treat that special someone here for that good first and last impression ;)

Great food and service! The sweet potato biscuits were fantastic! I’ll definitely be coming back. :)

Extremely disappointed with my last visit here. The hostess told us that the wait would be 30 minutes and we waited over an hour before leaving without getting seated. We understand that reservations come first, but be truthful about the wait. The hostess lacked any concerned about the wait. We won’t be coming back.

We go there every time we go to the OBX! Never disappointed with our meal. We brought our friends last year and they loved it and the waitress so much we went back the next night.

On Friday they have a special dozen oysters for $ 6, topped oysters are also on special, and free chili which is actually pretty great. all in all my family dined for under $ 50 including drinks and the service was friendly and extremely helpful. It also keeps me coming back that Kelly’s is one of my grandmas favorite places.

This is one of our top three Outer Banks restaurants! From the time you enter Kelly’s, there is never a shortage of something to catch your visual interest. From the lovely nautical prints that adorn the walls of one dining area, to the mounted game fish in another, to the fishing paraphernalia located here and there. Part of the ambience is the table dressing — while linens, with gleaming glassware, nicely set, but welcoming to even the most casual patron.
The food — Oh, the food! Locally caught seafood is the heart of the Kelly’s menu, and our favorite (oysters on the half shell) are of a lovely size and served in a pewter plate, over ice. Their grilled local fish is perfectly done and never, ever overseasoned. My adult daughter travels with us and loves Kelly’s She Crab Soup. Preceding the meal is a wonderful basket of bread varieties that we look forward to.
Despite the excellent quality of the meals and the terrific ambience, Kelly’s is priced to please. Their gift shop is also a mandatory stop, before you leave.

We have been here numerous times the past 10 years. The crab cakes are very meaty with little filler and are a favorite of mine, usually served with rice pilaf and green beans. Tonight’s specials included a jumbo soft shell crab entrée that my husband loves, and we both had the fried green tomato appitizer, breaded with panko served steaming hot and not at all greasy. Dinner with tip and no drinks came to $ 66 for 2.

I’ve been coming here for the past 10+ years every summer. It’s been tradition to end a week at the beach with a dinner at Kelley’s but a new tradition will be starting next summer. I don’t know what happened but over the last handful of years, the food has gone so far downhill. We were here last night and the food was tasteless. The crab cakes were small and mushy. The shrimp and scallop pasta was supposed to be a bit spicy but instead it come out soupy with very little flavour. The shrimp in the pasta tasted like it came out of a frozen bag.
I wish I could write this one meal off as a bad night but the food has been consistently poor for the past few years. The menu never changes or gets updates; and neither does the eating area.
I would give Kelley’s one star, the food was well deserving of that score, but the dinner rolls are great and the service was solid. Save yourself from disappointment though; much better food can be found elsewhere in the Outer Banks.

So odd. So, we made 7:30 reservations, at 8:05 the hostess had to «check with Mr. Kelly» to see if our table was ready, sat down at 8:08. R.E.S.E.R.V.A.T.I.O.N.S. It would’ve been great except we got a sitter and waited for Mr. Kelly to say that we could sit… the 5 people who came in after us, got sat 1^st. The food was good, service was good BUT no consideration for the customer. Who is Mr. Kelly and why did he have to ok our sitting at his table. Also, you can order from the tavern menu (sandwiches) but they won’t bring that menu to your table unless you ask.

I’ve never been to the actual restaurant, so my review is only for the catering. By catering, of course, I mean the sweet potato ham biscuits. In fact, I’m not sure they even make anything else. Wouldn’t matter if they did, because I’d already be full from biscuits before my food for to me.
This is the second time I’ve been lucky enough to eat the sweet potato ham biscuits, and the second time I’ve been thrilled with the experience. I’ve had to stop writing this, twice, to go eat another one and come back.
Seriously, though, eat them. Eat most of them. Then, drive to Raleigh and drop the rest off at my house.
Thanks in advance.

Go if a band you like is playing, otherwise stay away.
Horrible bar service, they gave me the wrong beer then were stunned when I asked for the one I ordered. Their bartender described «extensive» bottled beer selection had 15 beers most of which were the typical domestics.
All of the game machines are a rip off. It will cost you $ 2 to play a full game of Foosball and you get one pinball per 50 cents. The pool table stole my dollar and the shuffle board pucks didn’t slide worth a damn.
To top if off the miniature Stone Cold Steve Austin security guy walked around mean mugging everyone all night.

Restaurant AND «Tavern» a TwilightZone-​ish experience for me having dined here another time in 1996 and NOT knowing about the Tavern side (it could be missed depending on where you are seated in the Dining Room)! I guess?
Certain Charm! From the Outside Architecture to the use of space inside, it was impossible for me not to appreciate how smart they were designing the interior and intelligently assigning each inch of space to maximizing capacity without making it feel crowded ! Second Story Dinning Room and at least one Table with the Sun or Stars on the Third Story! In the Tavern Area: the Stage, Dance Floor, Disco Ball and Popcorn Popper made it feel dream like, then they had an area of Pool Tables off to one side and at least one Private Dinning Room for rehearsal Dinners or other special occasions! Reminded me of the Jazz Tavern under the Pink House in Savannah in a way and that Steak & Seafood Restaurant in Winston Salem I LOVE so much!
Incredible Service! All the Servers were Polite, Friendly and Helpful! Our main Server Timed each «course» Perfektly! (I asked her to) So we had time to enjoy it and relax a few minutes before getting the next dishes! We noticed the patrons in the Tavern enjoyed being treated like Royalty! Many Regulars were addressed by name by Staff and it was a Very Warm and Welcoming vibe! Most of the regulars were Very Well Dressed though we were treated just as well coming right from the Beach were Hoodies and Trainers (I was Wearing Jeans and my Bride wore a skirt) we were dressed Very Causally)!
Food: :
From Yesterdays Dine ONLY I rate the best Dishes at 4 Unilocal stars and Not consider the ones we did not like, because if we dined here again we would be fine tuning our ordering and they still had some options I would be happy to taste!
Some GREAT Food :
Coconut Battered Shrimp
French Onion Soup, seemed better the first time, still very good yesterday
Complimentary Bread and Butter (three kinds of Bread)
Some Good Food :
Crab Bisque was Good though too Old Bayish
Some Real Misses in the Food :
Lobster Mac & Cheese was Very Lacking in flavor and OVERLY Greasy!
Clam Chowder was the Biggest Miss! Tasted like Canned Clams in Clam Juice with Potatoes, lacked character and Seasoning