Be sure to bring your taste buds to the Got To Be NC Seafood Cooking Stage during the 38th Annual North Carolina Seafood Festival! Watch as highly renowned NC chefs prepare NC seafood delicacies for you to enjoy.
Morehead City Waterfront on the corner of 5th and Evans Streets.
Demonstrations open to all, FREE admission and FREE samples provided.
Friday, October 4th (6:00 PM - 7:30 PM)
Tent opens at 5:30PM
6:00 PM - 8:00 PM: Easy Peasy Cocktail Party
Seared Tuna, Broiled Scallops, Oysters on the 1/2 Shell, Shrimp and Andouille Quesadilla
Hallock Howard & Anne Speight, Amos Mosquitos
Saturday, October 5th (10:00 AM - 6:00 PM)
Tent opens at 9:45 AM; presentations start on every hour
10:00 AM – 10:45 AM: Sautéed NC Shrimp and Stone Ground Grits with Andouille Sausage & Texas Pete
Chef Caroline Basnight, Basnight's Lone Cedar Café
11:00 AM – 11:45 AM: Roasted, Spiced Corn and NC Blue Crab Chowder
Chef Dawn Freeman, Private Chef & Former NC Seafood Festival Queen
12:00 PM – 12:45 PM: Bacon Wrapped NC Scallops with Applewood Smoked Bacon, Maple-Bourbon Glaze, Urfa Chile, Carolina Gold Rice Grits and Chevre
Chef Clarke Merrell, 81 Hospitality
1:00 PM – 1:45 PM: Mahi Tacos using Fried Atlantic Mahi
Mike Ogburn, Gaffer’s
2:00 PM – 2:45 PM: NC Crawfish and Carolina Gold Rice Fritters, Fermented Corn Aioli
Chef Chad Blackwelder, NCDA and Chuck Hall, Tidewater Grain Co.
3:00 PM – 3:45 PM: NC Shrimp with Stewed Lyon Farms Butter Beans, Mac's Air Dried Sausage & Cornbread Crumble
Chef Ricky Moore, James Beard Award Winner, Salt Box Seafood Joint.
4:00 PM – 4:45 PM: Braided NC Flounder
Claudio Tepetate and Kris Dykeman, Beaufort Grocery Co.
5:00 PM – 5:45 PM: Sautéed NC Striped Bass with Garlic-Herb Butter
Walker Sullivan, North Carolina StriperHub
Sunday, October 6th (10:00 AM - 4:00 PM)
Tent opens at 9:45 AM; presentations start on every hour
10:00 AM – 10:45 AM: NC Sweet Poblano Biscuits, NC Shrimp Gravy, NC Collards
Chef Kevin Davis, Oceanana Pier House
11:00 AM – 11:45 AM: NC Shrimp & Crab Perloo
Captain John Mallette, Southern Breeze Seafood
12:00 PM – 12:45 PM: Black Sesame & Wasabi Seared NC Tuna with a Mango Chutney
Eddie Lopez, The Boro Restaurant & Bar
1:00 PM – 1:45 PM: Seared NC Scallops, Spicy Street Corn Salsa, Tajin Tostada & Cilantro Crema
Chef Dawn Freeman, Private Chef & Former NC Seafood Festival Queen
2:00 PM – 2:45 PM: Potted Deviled NC Crab, Smoked Shrimp Salt Dusted Pork Rinds
Chef Keith Rhodes, Catch, Wilmington
James Beard Award Nominee (2011, 2023), USA TODAY Restaurants of the Year (2024) and Bravo TV’s, Top Chef, Season 9
3:00 PM – 3:45 PM: NC Sea Bass Crudo with Leche De Tigre, Pecans, Fermented Apple and Fennel
Chef Daniel Murray, Cypress Hall