I was a solo diner tonight and was given the option to either sit at the bar or at a table. I chose a table and from what I could tell there wasn’t a single table that did not have a view of the bay. I was able to watch the ferry come in, and watch the sun getting lower and lower over the water. Stunning. I did not catch my waiter’s name, but he seemed very familiar with the locals who sat at tables near me. I ordered the bacon wrapped scallops off the starters menu and the spinach salad. With that I had a water and a bottled beer. The food was delicious and plentiful. I had already spied the lemon cheesecake on the menu and told him when I ordered my dinner that I was going to finish with that and a coffee. He said he’d make sure that the pot was brewed for me which I thought was nice. When the bill came, there were two prices listed, one for credit and one for cash instead of saying that they up charge for credit sales they were it that they discount for cash sales, smart business!
The parking lot is gravel, plenty of parking and well lit. The restaurant itself is upstairs and as far as I know, you have to climb the steps to go up. I could be wrong, but I didn’t see any alternatives. I can imagine that during busy season, reservations would be required.
We came to Dinky’s Waterfront Restaurant because of the strong reviews, yet the overall experience fell well short of what we expected, especially given the distance we traveled from another island to get there.
The most immediate issue wasn’t the food, it was the bathroom. The door does not latch, and both times I used it, I walked in on another patron. Knocking wasn’t effective due to the noise from upstairs and the crowd waiting below. To make matters worse, the toilet directly faces the outward-opening door, leaving anyone using it fully exposed to the crowded hallway that serves as the waiting area. This is a basic fix that should not be overlooked, and is certainly not new. Simply put, this was inexcusable. There is no way that management is unaware of this problem, and embarrassed guests pay the price.
The second major issue was the wait. Despite a relatively small dining room, it took over an hour and fifteen minutes for our entrees to arrive. I can appreciate “island time,” but that shouldn’t translate to an hour-plus wait for straightforward, non-customized orders.
Service compounded the problematic experience. Our server was, at times, dismissive and even walked away mid-conversation while someone at our table was asking questions. This was not a mistake. The server was looking at our friend, watching him speak to him, and simply walked away.
Given that a 20% gratuity is automatically applied to parties of six or more, it was hard not to feel that the standard of service reflected that guarantee.
Finally, while some of the food was good, the crab, tuna, and shrimp stood out, multiple people in our party ordered the chicken piccata and found it tough and overcooked.
At the end of the day, while Dinky’s has the foundation to be a great restaurant, the combination of poor service, excessive wait times, and easily fixable facility issues makes it difficult to justify the trip. There are simply too many options in the OBX to overlook these kinds of problems, let alone make a dedicated trip down from another island.
Excellent meal and definitely worth the wait! We arrived about 10 minutes before they opened and there were already 15–20 people ahead of us in line. We had a party of 13 and ended up waiting about an hour and a half for a table, but it was well worth it.
I had the Cajun yellowfin tuna special and it was phenomenal! Everyone in our group thoroughly enjoyed their meals. We only had one small hiccup with an overcooked steak, but they corrected it right away with no problem at all.
Great food and a great experience overall. With a group as large as ours, it's not always easy to get everything right, but they did a fantastic job. We'd definitely eat here again!
