Our first visit to to the Icehouse was when we were looking for a home in the area in 2006,
Kathy, a real estate agent, took us to lunch at the Icehouse Waterfront Restaurant.
We found the food to be great. We even went back on our own before we headed back home.
The restaurant is on the water in the historic fishing port of Swansboro which is about 21 miles west of Morehead City.
Most people think of flounder when they think of fish and the North Carolina coast. My favorite fish is Grouper, and this is the area to find it whether you like it fried or broiled.
The house special is a great way to get introduced to Grouper. They have a great Grouper lunch sandwich.
On our first visit a guy came in and sat down just as mine was being delivered. He quickly told his waitress as he pointed to my sandwich, "I'll have whatever he's having."
It was even good enough for my wife, Glenda, to have twice in a row. That is something that she rarely does. It's the Grouper Grandwich pictured to the left.
I will have trouble investigating the menu more thoroughly since we really like that Grouper Granwich.
I did try their lemon-ginger-chicken soup which was also very good. The second trip, we split an order of coconut shrimp which comes with spicy peanut dip and raspberry dip. Surprisingly both dips were very good.
The dessert tray looked deadly, but you can walk off dinner if you turn the ladies loose shopping in Historic Swansboro which seems to have plenty of small shops that are good at keeping the ladies happy while the guys go fishing.
The Icehouse Waterfront has a couple of outside seating areas and a couple of interior ones .
It also has a bar and some Martini specials for those who care for alcoholic beverages.
The restaurant is located at 103 Moore Street at the corner of Front Street in Swansboro, North Carolina. It is on the water, and we have actually eaten outside in December.
The ocean is a little deceptive in this area. It's actually to the south instead of to the east of you. That's just one of the pleasant surprises of the Crystal Coast.
For more information you can call 910.325.0501.
We ended up loving the area. We bought a place just a few miles from the Ice House. We have been back many times, but the Grouper Grandwich is still one of my favorite meals.
