A new spot in downtown Wilmington is breaking the seafood mold by featuring what Chef Keith Rhodes describes as “Pan-African flavors with coastal cuisine.” From shrimp wontons dusted with a West African peanut spice to fish collards topped with North African pesto sauce, Rhodes creates a rich blend of culture and comfort with every dish.
Chef Rhodes opened Voyce Bistro with his wife Angela in early 2026. She serves as the restaurant’s general manager, handling behind the scenes coordination and keeping her husband anchored.
“People enjoy her energy, and it’s very genuine, she has a love for the business,” Rhodes says. “I think that really compliments what I do as well.”
At Voyce Bistro, the striking mural and warm tones invite guests to settle in and stay awhile. Photography courtesy of Voyce Bistro
The pair previously owned the award-winning seafood restaurant Catch (now closed). They sought a more casual concept with their new venture, creating one menu for both lunch and dinner service. “We wanted to have a space that no matter where you were from, you could feel cozy,” Rhodes says.
Splashes of color fill the dining room: The red booths take inspiration from French bistros while a large floral mural brings in vibrant hues of purple, green, and red. Along the back wall, a black-and-white portrait gallery features Black culinary trailblazers who have mentored and befriended Rhodes over the years.
“I wanted to give folks a taste of the circle that really inspired me to work hard and show how we all inspire each other,” he says.
Portraits of passionate chefs create a meaningful backdrop and reflect their connection with Rhodes. Photography courtesy of Voyce Bistro
That network of support even appears in the restaurant’s name. “Voyce” is a combination of Rhodes’s grandparents’ names, Virgie and Royce whose beach trips with Keith to casual seafood restaurants in Topsail Beach inspired the bistro’s laid-back atmosphere. Rhodes’s ethos of prioritizing quality, locally sourced ingredients was also influenced by his grandfather.
“We want to make sure that you can ask your server where your food comes from, and we can answer right where,” he says.
They work with purveyors that source locally, such as Feast Down East and Blackburn Brothers Seafood. The ingredients Rhodes uses contributes to the story he wants to tell. For example, the seafood fried rice with egg, herbs, shrimp, lump crab, and shallots (there’s an option to add a crabcake) — uses Carolina Gold rice, an heirloom grain that dominated the South as a cash crop in the 18th and 19th centuries, due in large part to its cultivation by enslaved African-Americans.
Chef Keith Rhodes Photography courtesy of Voyce Bistro
“You can create a dialogue and learn a lot from this, and that is really what this project is all about,” Rhodes says. “The menu, the concept, it’s just an affirmation of culture through food.”
The husband-and-wife team are thrilled with the community’s reception of Voyce Bistro, with more and more guests turning into regulars and praising the menu.
“They’re showing up, and you can’t ask for much more than that. We had a vision, we articulated that vision. And people are picking up what we’re putting down,” Rhodes says.
Voyce Bistro
11 Market Street
Wilmington, NC 28401
(910) 399-3552
voycebistro.com
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