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The Lifesaving Station - Sanderling Resort, Duck, NC

The Lifesaving Station - Sanderling Resort

4.3
4.3
783 Reviews
$30 and under
American

Make a reservation

2 people
10:00 p.m.
Booked 1 time today
  • Charming
  • Innovative
  • Great for craft beers
Located in the original Caffey’s Inlet Life Saving Station No. 5, the Lifesaving Station is Sanderling’s casual, three-meal-a-day restaurant celebrating southern coastal cuisine. After the winter renovations, the second level now offers sweeping views of the Currituck Sound and available for large parties with an expansive kid’s menu.

The menu changes seasonally, and specials feature the freshest of the day’s catch. This season’s highlights are Shrimp and Grits, Crab Stuffed Flounder or Pan Seared Duck Breast. Since the restaurant's inception in 1985, the Sanderling Blue Crab Chowder has been a favorite.

The Lifesaving Station maintains an impressive wine list. At the newly renovated No 5 Bar now located on the first level, local North Carolina breweries are featured on tap while specialty cocktails include “Keeper’s Watch” . A new No 5 bar food menu is available all day.

Order delivery or takeout

Additional information

  • Dining style
    Casual Dining
  • Price
    $30 and under
  • Cuisines
    American, Regional American (Contemporary Southern), Comfort Food
  • Hours of Operation
    Breakfast Daily 7:00 am–11:30 am Lunch Daily 12:00 pm–4:30 pm Dinner Daily 5:00 pm–9:00 pm
  • Phone number
    (252) 449-6654
  • Payment Options
    AMEX, Discover, Mastercard, Visa
  • Dress code
    Casual Dress
  • Private party facilities
    We offer private event space for up to 24 guests. Please contact info@sanderling-resort.com for more info!
  • Neighbourhood
    Duck
  • Parking details
    None
  • Additional
    Banquet, Bar/Lounge, Beer, Cocktails, Full Bar, Gluten-free Options, Indoor Fireplace, Non-Smoking, Patio/Outdoor Dining, Patio/Outdoor Dining, Private Room, Takeout, View, Wheelchair Access, Wine

What 783 people are saying

Overall ratings and reviews

Reviews can only be made by diners who have eaten at this restaurant

4.3
4.3 based on recent ratings
  • 4.2Food
  • 4.6Service
  • 4.3Ambience
  • 3.9Value

NoiseModerate

Loved For

  • Coastal North Carolina

    Innovative

  • Coastal North Carolina

    Great for outdoor dining

  • Outer Banks

    Best Overall

  • Outer Banks

    Best Food

  • Outer Banks

    Best Service

  • Outer Banks

    Best Ambience

  • Outer Banks

    Best Value

  • Outer Banks

    Good for special occasions

  • Outer Banks

    Lively

Review summary

AI-generated from verified diner reviews
The Lifesaving Station at Sanderling Resort offers a "beautiful establishment" with a "fantastic" staff and a "casual restaurant with an upscale menu." While some find the food "delicious" and the service "wonderful," others note inconsistencies in service speed and food quality, highlighting the need for improved coordination.

783 Reviews
  1. Jeff

    Greensboro

    6 reviews

    4.0

    6 reviews

    Dined on December 4, 2024

    1. Overall 4
    2. Food 4
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 4
    We enjoyed our meal. The service was great. A bit pricey, though.

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  2. OpenTable Diner

    VIP

    Washington DC

    4 reviews

    1.0

    4 reviews

    Dined on November 27, 2024

    1. Overall 1
    2. Food 1
    3. Service 3
    4. Ambience 4
    We were initially kept waiting at the hostess stand even though the bartender was within eyesight. It took a server walking past to ask him to help us. We were seated next to the server station in a virtually empty restaurant with far nicer tables wide open . (And only one server so not like they had to split the tables amongst servers) Our server was very nice but the kitchen totally dropped the ball. My daughter ordered soup and a salad for her main. I ordered steak and frites. After her salad, I was finally served my steak and she got her soup - one hour after we were seated. Her soup had a thick skin on it from sitting in the kitchen. My steak was absolutely hammered. I cut it in the center and showed my server who apologized and took it back. I was then informed sometime later that they had no more steak but the chef offered me a filet. I asked for a small one medium rare. It came after my daughter was finished with her soup and it was raw and purple in the middle. The manager came to apologize and offered me anything else I wanted. We just called it a day and said “no thanks.” Our bill was still $80, because of the alcohol (including a $20 dirty martini my daughter had!) I questioned how they could justify charging me $80 when I had nothing to eat and my server apologized and took off 2 glasses off, but I shouldn’t have had to ask. Obviously I do not recommend eating here, but if you do, ask for Betty as a server. At least she cared.

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  3. Karen

    New Orleans

    3 reviews

    5.0

    3 reviews

    Dined on November 15, 2024

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 4
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 4
    Excellent food and experience. Service was fast. Food was tasty & hot! The Flounder and grits were great!

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  4. Christopher

    Wilmington

    1 review

    2.0

    1 review

    Dined on October 18, 2024

    1. Overall 2
    2. Food 3
    3. Service 2
    4. Ambience 2
    For the quality of the food the prices were extremely high. I would not recommend and probably never go there again. But we did find a place that was extremely good and it was La Dolce Vita it was priced about the same. We ate La Dolce Vita 2 night in a row and the first night we met a couple while waiting for our table and we showed up the next night they were waiting again for a table too.

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  5. rick

    Richmond

    2 reviews

    5.0

    2 reviews

    Dined on October 7, 2024

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    The Salmon dish was one of the best I have ever had. The manager of the restaurant was amazing with his knowledge of the old Life Saving Station and its history !!

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  6. Dan

    Washington DC

    3 reviews

    2.0

    3 reviews

    Dined on October 6, 2024

    1. Overall 2
    2. Food 2
    3. Service 4
    4. Ambience 3
    We’ve been eating here for years and are sorry to see the quality of the food decline.

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  7. Robyn

    Wilmington

    1 review

    5.0

    1 review

    Dined on September 29, 2024

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 4
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 4
    Food was great. Service was wonderful. Price was high.

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  8. Jeff

    Cincinnati

    2 reviews

    5.0

    2 reviews

    Dined on September 12, 2024

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    Best tasting food. So well done. Fabion was a very good, attentive server. Got to learn about the U.S. Life Saving Station service too. What a cool place. Glad it has been saved for us to enjoy. Can’t say enough about the food quality. I can see how the noise level could get higher with the acoustics in there. But we had a great experience.

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  9. Mark

    Baltimore

    9 reviews

    4.0

    9 reviews

    Dined on September 2, 2024

    1. Overall 4
    2. Food 3
    3. Service 4
    4. Ambience 4
    Liked the place but it was very expensive for size of entrees.

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  10. Sliceoflife

    Washington DC

    16 reviews

    4.0

    16 reviews

    Dined on August 25, 2024

    1. Overall 4
    2. Food 4
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 3
    Very nice. Good service My shrimp and grits were delicious

    Is this helpful?

FAQs

The Lifesaving Station - Sanderling Resort offers takeout which you can order by calling the restaurant at (252) 449-6654.

The Lifesaving Station - Sanderling Resort is rated 4.3 stars by 783 OpenTable diners.

Yes, you can generally book this restaurant by choosing the date, time and party size on OpenTable.

Make a reservation

2 people
10:00 p.m.
Booked 1 time today

Order delivery or takeout

Google Map for The Lifesaving Station - Sanderling Resort

1461 Duck Rd, Duck, NC 27949

Additional information

  • Neighbourhood
    Duck
  • Hours of Operation
    Breakfast Daily 7:00 am–11:30 am Lunch Daily 12:00 pm–4:30 pm Dinner Daily 5:00 pm–9:00 pm
  • Price
    $30 and under
  • Cuisines
    American, Regional American (Contemporary Southern), Comfort Food
  • Dining style
    Casual Dining
  • Dress code
    Casual Dress
  • Parking details
    None
  • Payment Options
    AMEX, Discover, Mastercard, Visa
  • Additional
    Banquet, Bar/Lounge, Beer, Cocktails, Full Bar, Gluten-free Options, Indoor Fireplace, Non-Smoking, Patio/Outdoor Dining, Patio/Outdoor Dining, Private Room, Takeout, View, Wheelchair Access, Wine
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