Restaurants in Hilton Head Island

Nestled in among the trees, sunshine, and ferns of Hilton Head, Nick's Steak and Seafood looks like a friendly local joint from the outside. A simple step through the door, however, teleports diners from the Lowcountry to pure Pittsburgh sports mania. Owner Josh and his wife, Katie, both love the Steel City teams, and they celebrate that love with apparel and memorabilia from the Steelers, Penguins, and Pirates all over the walls. To fuel the fanaticism, their chefs dish up a menu of classic surf 'n' turf, which includes filet mignon, lobster tail, and ready-to-peel shrimp.

The herringbone pattern of the bricks on the street just outside Eclectic Chef seems to point wandering feet right in the restaurant’s direction. In warmer months, the eatery’s patio welcomes guests beneath its large, red umbrellas, which offer shade as customers bite into crisp salads tossed with sliced strawberries or wild gathered greens. Guests can also feed on hot or cold sandwiches comprised of warm roast beef and slow-roasted barbecue pork, or paninis filled with barbecue chicken. In addition to the cozy café’s offerings, Eclectic Chef also offers personal-chef and gourmet to-go services, allowing busy diners to feed themselves and their families hearty, healthy meals.

Red umbrellas and baskets of flowers dot The Red Pepper’s outdoor patio, drawing diners into the fresh air for alfresco meals composed of classic Italian cuisine. In the kitchen, chefs craft sweets and savories from fresh ingredients such as tomatoes, basil, and ricotta cheese. During the evening, the head chef showcases his expertise with specialties such as canguro e speck saltimbocca, a kangaroo tenderloin scaloppini layered with sage, prosciutto, and a splash of cherry marsala sauce. The dinner menu also abounds with seafood and pasta dishes, which come with focaccia bread ideal for soaking up sauce or rolling into a straw for a cool soft drink. For dessert, the owner’s wife handcrafts chocolate-hazelnut tortes from an Old-World recipe her family has cherished for generations. Instead of grilling burgers atop their cars’ radiators, on-the-go diners can retrieve take-and-bake pizzas at the restaurant’s reception desk.

When Skillets Café opened in 1994, its moniker reflected its sole mission: to serve up seafood-heavy breakfasts, made from scratch, in porcelain skillets. The name has stuck, but it no longer does justice to the wide array of breakfast, lunch, and dinner fare that now resides on Skillets’ menu. Servers still dish out seafood omelets and crepes, skillets of potatoes and poached eggs, and stuffed french toast, but they do so at all hours, or at least until the rooster crows at midnight. And at lunch and dinner, morning dishes are joined by sandwiches and hearty entrees such as shrimp and grits, grilled meatloaf, and filet mignon. Out on the patio, humans can dig into comforting meals while seated beside their pooches, which are welcome to chow down on items from the doggy menu.

It's easy to mistake Alligator Grille for a casual comfort-food haven with its menu of alligator gumbo, strip steaks, and sweet-potato fries. But it's the eatery's subtle, sophisticated touches that helped it earn a AAA Three Diamond award. The grills sizzle with lightly seasoned cuts of free-range chicken, filet mignon, and wild salmon, to be paired with everything from wild-mushroom risotto to stone-ground yellow cheese grits. A modest sushi selection features familiar staples while also spotlighting some unmistakably Southern ingredients; the alligator roll pairs its titular meat with sriracha sauce, and a roll of fried oysters and coleslaw takes its inspiration and name from po' boy sandwiches.

White columns and potted greenery welcome diners to the sidewalk patio, while indoors, the tiered dining room's neutral hues and crisp white tablecloths mirror the menu's casual elegance. A chef's bar invites diners to follow their meal from pan to plate as ceiling fans gently rotate overhead, circulating the servers' telepathic conversations throughout the room.

Ta Ca's chefs firmly root their menu of sushi and teppanyaki entrees in Japanese culinary tradition. Although the selection of maki brims with familiar staples, it also features subtly modern specialty rolls with inventive ingredients, such as fried green-shell mussels, calamari, and tomato. The chefs spend mealtimes searing orders of vegetables, chicken, or lobster on the rippling-hot surface of hibachi grills. Wavy pendant lanterns illuminate the gleaming bar running along one of the dining room's orange walls. The shelves bristle with a selection of spirits, Japanese beers, and sake, which bring about endless toasts like a sand grain’s wedding reception.