The Beach House: In North Carolina, a beach house means more than a home by the ocean. Whether a coastal cottage where we stay, a soundside spot where we shop, or a water-view restaurant where we dine, it’s always a place made for dreaming. Click here to view related articles.
On a recent night at Parrott’s on Eleventh, in the historic Promise Land district of Morehead City, one of the five dinner specials was Chicken Roulade, a chicken breast pounded in the manner of scallopine, then stuffed with a crab cake, rolled and seared to form a crisp crust, and served with a red pepper coulis.
Upon hearing this, my wife, Julie, pushed back in her chair and crossed her arms.
“Well, that really messes me up!” she huffed, smiling. “I knew what I wanted a week ago, and now this. Thanks a lot!”
Butch Moore photograph by Stacey Van Berkel
Butch Moore, who has captained Parrott’s as manager for more than 20 years, laughed a deep, rich laugh, which has become as much a part of the Parrott’s terroir as crossing your fingers and hoping you can get a reservation even though you’re calling three weeks out.
“And I haven’t even mentioned the collards yet,” Butch grinned. “They are so good. The best. But please don’t tell my mama I said that.”
We’re not going to do anything to cross Butch. A table at Parrott’s is not something to be trifled with. We love that such fine dining has found a home in an old Morehead City house. Julie and I can walk there from our home, three blocks away. Our favorite spot is the porch, with its floor-to-ceiling curtains that billow in the breeze like spinnakers sailing off the bow of a ketch. Half columns on brick bases hold up haint-blue beadboard ceilings. The salt breeze from the downtown waterfront is perfumed by the magnolias that shade the house. It’s as peaceful a spot as Morehead City has to offer. Until Butch shows up and makes life very difficult for us, indeed.
Just two blocks from the waterfront, Parrott’s embraces its coastal location with outdoor dining and seafood specialties created by Chef Michael Perry. photograph by Stacey Van Berkel
Built in 1898 and named for the first two owners of the home, the Bell-Phillips House sheltered a succession of families during its first 81 years. In 1979, it took on new life — first as a dress shop with an upstairs apartment, then as a variety of restaurants. Parrott’s owner and chef, Michael Perry, remembers much of the transition. He grew up a few blocks away, riding his bike to school nearby, all the while harboring an early love for food that would take him to school at New York’s Culinary Institute of America and to fine kitchens across North Carolina.
He and restaurateur George Parrott opened the eponymous eatery in 2014. Five years later, Perry jumped at the chance to buy the business — and the house — just in time for the Covid pandemic. But, thanks to its elevated cuisine and welcoming atmosphere, Parrott’s has thrived. No regular is surprised.
Chef Michael Perry photograph by Stacey Van Berkel
Making a historic house function as a high-end restaurant is a tricky feat. Halls and doorways are a maze to navigate with platters and trays. There’s little room for refrigeration. The kitchen is tiny. On most nights, it’s all run by Perry, sous chef Josh Barnhardt — another 20-year veteran — a salad prepper, and a dishwasher.
Still, in a four-hour evening shift, they will feed up to 100 people with dishes that celebrate Morehead City’s maritime heritage. My favorite is the Scallop BLT — tender scallops, halved, dressed like tiny sandwiches with bacon, spinach, and cherry tomatoes, then drizzled with a soy-tamarind sauce. On that most recent visit, I was crushing hard on the Jalapeño Crème Shrimp, made with an in-house salsa of roasted veggies, and served on a seared cheddar-grit cake. And Butch still had three more specials to unveil.
“It’s an old house with all of an old house’s quirks,” says Perry. “Somehow, we make it work.”
And work like a charm.
Parrott’s on Eleventh
105 South 11th Street
Morehead City, NC 28557
(252) 773-0532
facebook.com/profile.php?id=100063613872116
On a remote island, a family of storytellers preserves local lore and neighborly traditions, beginning with one iconic thoroughfare.
From the expanses of needlerush at Cedar Island to the lush spartina feathering the shores of Bodie and Roanoke islands, our salt marshes are the threshold to a watery world — the heartbeat of our coastal ecosystem.
From remote beaches to sunsets that dazzle before they sink into the sound, here’s where to splash, dine, and cast a line in this Outer Banks town.
Amid planning seafood spreads for friends and family, our recipe developer finds isolation and inspiration Down East.
