Feast Wilmington + Highlights From The Carolina Coast

When you want to taste all the flavors of the south, there’s no better place than Feast Wilmington. This three-day festival has got it all. Join us as we celebrate local food, beverages, culture, and music!

Highlighting over 70 restaurants and 20 breweries, Feast Wilmington is the highlight of the spring season along the NC waterways. From Beef Bourguignon Grilled Cheese to Coffee Stout Ice Cream with Dark Chocolate Brownies and Miso Caramel… this one-stop-food-paradise has got it all. Come with us as we discover everything they have to offer along with bopping around town to support everything local. Cheers to Wilmington NC and all the surrounding coastline has to offer.

LET’S CHAT @ FEAST WILMINGTON:

Established in March of 2024, Feast Wilmington has been the dining destination for all food enthusiasts here in the Carolinas and beyond. Celebrating locally owned and operated restaurants, breweries, wineries, and distilleries, this annual festival brings community together through tastings, sipping, live music, and interactive conversations.

I was invited to attend this year through Wilmington NC River District and Island Beaches and decided to bring my brother with me. He’s not that adventurous when it comes to food and I thought this would be a great spot to bring him out of his bubble. And boy-oh-boy, was I right!

DAY 1 – Craft + Cuisine:

As we approached the waterfront entrance, we could immediately smell the delicious food and hear laughter amongst the live music (which was provided by Dawson Wright). We were greeted at the gates with our passes, Feast glasses, and big smiles from the staff. Today featured 20 local breweries along with 20 incredibly talented chefs… each paired with each other to elevate the entire culinary experience. A few of our favorites included:

Sticky Pineapple Peppercorn Chicken Wings by Pizzeria Don Luca: Seasoned with 14 spices, double-baked crispy, and tossed in sticky pineapple peppercorn sauce.
Kuro Diablo Salsa from Tequila Comida & Cantina: Japanese-Mexican fusion of steak, grilled onions, chili toreado and rice on a tostada with kuro diablo sauce.
Beer Braised Bratwurst by Junior’s Deli: Topped with house-fermented sauerkraut and Düsseldorf mustard, served hot on a toasted potato roll.

DAY 1 Part 2- Pier Party:

Taking place that Saturday evening with live entertainment from Kicking Bird, we sure had a tasty time. I ran into my friend and fellow Charlotte Blogger, Heidi Bilotto, and enjoyed the music while we noshed on some incredibly delicious bites. A few of our favorites included:

Italian Beef from The Half: Slow-roasted beef sliced thin and kept warm in au jus, topped with Provolone and house-made giardinera.
BBQ Pork Buttermilk Biscuit from Salt & Charm: Grilled BBQ pork tenderloin with sweet & spicy orange BBQ sauce on a savory buttermilk biscuit with fennel slaw.
Birria Torta from We are True Blue: Birria-braised beef, queso fresca, avocado, mayo, radish & jalapeno jam on a telera roll.

Day 2 – Brunch Elevated:

Fully equipped with both a Bloody Mary and Mimosa bar (along with creative coffee) + mocktails, this was the best way to start a Sunday afternoon on the coast. With live entertainment from Leme Nolan, she defiantly brought the most fun vibes and everyone was dancing along. A few of our favorites included:

Breakfast Down from Porters Neck Country Club: Butter-toasted brioche bun, maple breakfast sausage, blueberry syrup, dusted with powdered sugar.
Beef Birria Hash from Palomas: In a rich blend of dried chiles, garlic, and warm spices with seasoned potatoes, roasted peppers and caramelized onions.
Maple Brie Cherry Bacon Bites from Grateful Graze: Toasted baguette topped with maple-whipped Brie, house-made cherry compote, and crispy bacon crumble.

OUR VISITS TO LOCALLY OWNED & OPERATED RESTAURANTS IN WILMINGTON NC:

VOYCE BISTRO:

Since we traveled from Charlotte, we showed up around lunchtime on Friday so we could be there bright and early for the events at Feast starting on Saturday. Our hotel check-in wasn’t till 4pm, so we figured we’d check out a local establishment for lunch! Voyce Bistro is a new culinary must-visit from Chef Rhodes which features Coastal Caribbean Cuisine. The space is super cute, the staff was super nice, and the food was super phenomenal.

Their menu changes often, as they try to focus on what’s locally available. I was absolutely obsessed with our appetizer, which included sausage infused with Carolina gold rice, fried saltines, pickled veggies, and mustard. It was such a delightful start to our weekend in Wilmington. Personal note: I ate almost all of our starter plate to myself because I loved it so much. We also enjoyed their Caesar, which my brother said it was the best Caesar salad he’s ever had (“because it is all the crunchy bits of the romaine and no soft leaves” – his exact words). Oh, and my crab cake sandwich was AWESOME.

SEABIRD:

Located on historic Front Street in downtown Wilmington, Chef and Owner Dean Neff focuses on sourcing seasonal ingredients from local farmers along with seafood harvested from fishmongers on Carolina coast. As a James Beard Foundation finalist for “Outstanding Chef” in 2024, restaurant guests can expect an unforgettable meal (which is what we personally experienced!). Trust me, this restaurant needs to be at the top of your list for dining in Wilmington.

We sat down around 7pm on Friday night and each ordered a beverage from our amazing waiter, Jack. He recommended a local beer for my brother and I decided to sip on a glass of Rosé. When we received our drinks we were also greeted with a plate of absolutely delicious cornbread. What does Chef put in that? Magic? It was so good.

We were both drawn to the Brasstown Beef Short Rib on the menu. Oh-my-goodness it was absolutely phenomenal! Chef also brought us out the Sorghum & Chili Lacquered Pork Ribs to enjoy with our meal. YUM. We had made friends with the couple sitting next to us and shared the ribs because you know, sharing is caring. It was their 13th wedding anniversary and they were visiting from Raleigh. Really nice couple who picked a really nice place to celebrate at. They both got the Seared Striped Bass for their entrees and said it was to die for. I’ll have to try that next time! Along with the oysters. Seabird is known for their fantastic oysters program (with options for both raw or baked).

By the time we were finished with our meals, we were absolutely stuffed… otherwise I would have ordered dessert! They offer house made ice cream, pavlova, and a flourless chocolate brownie. Although, I had my eye on the bruléed bread pudding.

Psst: Chef Dean Neff also owns Zora’s Market + Kitchen, Wilmington’s oldest seafood market. You can expect things like fish sandwiches, clam chowder, fish dip, boiled shrimp, cheese grits, corn cob, and boiled peanuts. If you have time, make sure to check it out and mingle with some of the fisherpeople. Here’s a reel of my friend Heidi going over what she ordered during her visit + her recommendations.

OLIVERO:

When a restaurant is so busy that you have to pull some strings to book a spot for two at the bar, you know you’re in for a great meal ahead. Chef Sunny Gerhart specializes in highlighting dishes with flavors from Sevilla, Sicily, Tangier, and beyond. Named after his great grandfather, Jose Olivero, this restaurant’s menu is also influenced by his grandfather’s sails from Spain to New Orleans. There are also hints of North African, Mediterranean, and Middle Eastern throughout their offerings.

Olivero has a very diverse cocktail menu, and I decided to try the “My Second Rodeo”. This drink is shaken up with rye whisky, Cocci di Torino, Mezcal, Amaro Montenegro, Drambuie, and Angostura Bitters.

For starters, it was too hard to decide so we went ahead and got a little bit of everything that stuck out to us.

Warm Dates: Nduja, olive oil, sea salt.
Croquetas: Grilled chicken, melted leeks, peanut romesco.
Crispy Cauliflower: Toum, olives, almonds, poached raisin vinaigrette.
Beignet: Mortadella, fontina fonduta, Calabrian hot honey.

When it came to entrees, there so many options I wanted to try them all! We ended up settling on the following dishes.

House-Made Rigatoni: Fennel sausage pomodoro, aged pecorino, garlic bread crumbs.
Ribeye: New potatoes, espelette aioli, roasted tomato, chimichurri.

Everything was super delicious and I honestly highly recommend sitting at the bar! We chatted it up with our very friendly bartender and I loved sitting in the stools where I could oversee the entire dining room.

OTHER WILMINGTON ATTRACTIONS THAT YOU SHOULD ADD TO YOUR AGENDA:

WRIGHTSVILLE BEACH:

Located roughly 15 minutes from Wilmington, I highly recommend coming here to view sunrise or sunset. Then simply enjoy the beach and look for sea shells!

AIRLIE GARDENS:

We ended up visiting during their “Spring Bloom” and it was absolutely breathtaking. I just loved walking around and gazing at their Azaleas, Japanese flowering cherries, camellias, Magnolias, and of course the trees with hanging moss. Located in Wrightsville Beach, general admission for adults is $10, while children (ages 4 – 12) are just $3. They hold several events throughout the year so make sure to check their website to see what’s going on the next time you’re in town!

END OF DAYS DISTILLERY:

I saw online that you could book a guided tour for free, so I figured this would be a fun spot to visit before we checked into our hotel. We were immediately greeted by mixologist, Natalie Takacs. She recently won Undeniably Dairy Best Cocktail + Mocktail, as well as People’s Choice Awards for Best Cocktail + Mocktail at NCRLA’s Chef Showdown in 2025. We ordered the following before our tour:

Pretty In Pink: Port of Entry Gin, Aperol, Walnut, Honey, Angostura Bitters, Aquafaba, Citrus.
Wild Alchemy: Castaway Barrel Aged Rum, Passionfruit, Aquafaba, Frangelico, Amaro Nonino, Citrus.

Both were super refreshing and delish. Next we meet with Ali Clark, EOD’s operations coordinator, for our guided tour on grain-to-glass distilling. We explored their process of fermentation, distillation, and finishing along with learning about their process for sourcing. At the end of the tour, she guides you through a tasting of all of their spirits. This was a really cool way to start our weekend in Wilmington. Highly recommend.

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CLICK HERE FOR MORE TRAVEL GUIDES!

Our weekend getaway to Wilmington was sponsored by Wilmington NC River District and Island Beaches. Per the usual, all opinions in this blog are mine alone and I would never recommend a travel destination we didn’t immensely enjoy ourselves. Thank you for supporting the establishments that support SliceOfJess.com!