WILMINGTON — It’s the most delicious 10 days of spring — OK, sorta spring — as Port City Taste Restaurant Week continues through Sunday, March 8.
With more than two dozen menus to choose from, diners are treated to a hotbed of flavors across the Port City, as local restaurants have devised specialized offerings at approachable price-points. In fact, that’s the best part of this week: No menu option exceeds $20, $35 or $50. Plus, plenty of cuisines and styles are covered.
READ MORE: Check out Port City Taste menus
Italian? Check.
French? You betcha.
Fondue? Mmmm.
Asian, Latin American, Southern flair, and American? Yes, yes, yes and yes.
Why participate? Aside from getting delicious food at even more delectable deals, Port City Taste is about supporting local. The nonprofit Business Alliance for Local Living Economies breaks it down like this: For every $100 spent at a local business or restaurant, $68 stays in the community, as compared to $43 retained by a national chain’s footprint.
Plus, who doesn’t like dining with friends and loved ones? Make a night of it and dress up when heading to plenty of fine-dining options, such as Brasserie du Soleil which has a three-course meal for $50. Featured is pan-seared tuna or gnocchi and you can even upgrade it with a wine pairing for another $25.
YoSake, a restaurant week staple since it started back in 2008, is pulling all the stops with four courses for only $35, with choices including sushi, ramen, firecracker shrimp, curry and more.
There are also more cazh options for folks who don’t need white tablecloths and fine china. Jax Fifth Avenue’s Cuban sammie or Blue Surf Cafe’s gaucho brisket with chimichurri, asparagus, roast potatoes both are solid choices. It also won’t break the bank, as both restaurants offer $20 options.
While Port City Taste provides the chance to support your fave haunts, it’s also an opportunity to try new restaurants. For instance, the recently opened Pine Valley Market Wrightsville Beach is offering a $20 breakfast special featuring homemade cinnamon rolls and a whopping traditional Southern platter (eggs, protein, grits, pancakes, etc).
Only a few miles down the road, La Duna Paradiso in the oceanfront Trailborn Surf and Sound Hotel will transport diners to Capri, with a $50 three-course dinner (don’t skip the cavatelli con rapini — charred broccolini, shaved garlic, red pepper, pecorino Romano, lemon).
Other newbies joining the 2026 event include Driftwood Craft Kitchen and Cocktails in Hampstead, an experience in refinement that will appeal to vegetarians, pescatarians and meat lovers alike with menus at all three prices.
Pie’s On, an Italian eatery with roots in New York, is going the extra step to help diners save the bucks at its midtown eatery in Wilmington. They are offering dinner for two for $50, as well as a family feast for $50.
Downtown’s The Dough House is highlighting the best of Sicilian pies, feeding one, two or four people for $20 to $50, while King Neptune in Wrightsville Beach is also rolling out the stops. Tuna poke tacos and yuzu vanilla crème brûlée with a coconut oat streusel are part of its $50 three-course meal.
Of course, longstanding participants Oceanic, Bluewater, Rx, Bridgewater Wines + Dines, Solstice at Lumina, Coquina Fishbar, Nineteen, The Little Dipper and Ruth’s Chris Steak House are returning to tempt the taste buds, too.
No matter the cravings, everyone’s palate will be sated during restaurant week, and diners don’t need coupons, special passwords, or tickets to participate. Just head to one of the listed businesses and ask for the restaurant week menu.
Topping it off — besides dessert, of course — all Port City Taste participants are engaging in a bit of friendly competition. Diners are encouraged to text in their favorite restaurant during Port City Taste, with the number and keyword representing each eatery located on the menus published below.
Be sure to click on the photo to see what each restaurant is offering. But, most importantly, enjoy the last four days of Port City Taste — eat, drink, indulge!
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