Food · Myrtle Beach · United States
What to eat in Myrtle Beach
The dishes, drinks and food experiences that define Myrtle Beach, and where locals actually eat them.
Updated By the AMZBooking editorial team
Pictured: She-crab soup · Photo: Jo Anna Barber from Hillsborough, NC, USA, CC BY-SA 2.0
Quick answer
Start with Calabash-style seafood, Seafood buffet and Shrimp and grits. Murrells Inlet's MarshWalk links seafood restaurants and bars over the salt marsh; walk it at dusk and pick a deck with live music. Early-bird specials before about 5:30pm are common and can save a lot on dinner.
Key facts
- Signature dish
- Calabash-style seafood
- Vegetarian-friendly picks
- 4
- Tipping
- Tip about 18–20% at table-service restaurants, a few dollars at buffets, $1–$2 per drink…
- Food experiences
- 3
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10 foods to try
Dish
1.Calabash-style seafood
Shrimp, oysters, flounder and scallops in a light, crisp batter, fried quickly and served in heaped platters with hushpuppies and coleslaw. The style is named after the fishing village of Calabash just over the North Carolina line.
Where: Seafood restaurants along Kings Highway and in Calabash itself, about 40 minutes north.
Dish
2.Seafood buffet
Huge all-you-can-eat buffets of crab legs, fried shrimp, oysters and Southern sides are a Myrtle Beach tradition, especially along Restaurant Row on North Kings Highway.
Where: Restaurant Row and Kings Highway; go hungry and check whether crab legs cost extra.
Breakfast
3.Shrimp and grits
Local shrimp sautéed with bacon or sausage, peppers and onions over creamy stone-ground grits — eaten at breakfast or dinner across the Lowcountry.
Where: Southern restaurants and breakfast spots, especially in Murrells Inlet and Pawleys Island.
Dish
4.She-crab soup
A rich, creamy soup of blue crab meat and crab roe, finished with a splash of sherry; it comes from Charleston but is on many Grand Strand menus.
Where: Seafood restaurants on the MarshWalk and in Murrells Inlet.
Dish
5.Lowcountry boil (Frogmore stew)
Shrimp, smoked sausage, corn on the cob and potatoes boiled together with spices and tipped out on a table to share — a beach-vacation meal for groups.
Where: Seafood restaurants, and seafood markets that sell it to cook at your rental house.
Snack · Vegetarian
6.Hushpuppies
Deep-fried balls of cornmeal batter, sometimes with onion, served free with almost every seafood plate. Some places serve them with honey butter.
Where: Every seafood restaurant on the coast.
Snack · Vegetarian
7.Boiled peanuts
Raw green peanuts boiled in salty water until soft — South Carolina's official state snack — sold plain or Cajun-spiced in paper cups.
Where: Roadside stands along US 17 and the highways inland, and gas stations.
Dessert · Vegetarian
8.Saltwater taffy and fudge
Chewy taffy in dozens of flavours, pulled in shop windows, and slabs of fudge are the classic Boardwalk treats.
Where: Candy shops along the Boardwalk and Ocean Boulevard and at Barefoot Landing.
Drink · Vegetarian
9.Sweet tea
Iced black tea brewed strong and sweetened heavily while hot; it is the default drink in the South. Ask for 'unsweet' if you want it plain.
Where: Every restaurant, served by the glass or the jug with free refills.
Dish
10.Oyster roast
Clusters of local oysters steamed under wet burlap over a fire and shucked at the table — a cool-weather Lowcountry tradition.
Where: Seafood restaurants and festivals from autumn to early spring, when local oysters are in season.
Travelling around United States? What to eat in United States covers the dishes to try in each of our 44 destinations there.
Food experiences
Sunset dinner on the MarshWalk
Murrells Inlet's MarshWalk links seafood restaurants and bars over the salt marsh; walk it at dusk and pick a deck with live music.
Restaurant Row buffets
The seafood buffets of North Kings Highway are a Myrtle Beach rite of passage; go early in the evening to avoid queues.
Calabash day out
Drive to the fishing village of Calabash, North Carolina, for platters of lightly fried seafood in the restaurants by the docks.
Quick bites and street food
- Shrimp and grits — Southern restaurants and breakfast spots, especially in Murrells Inlet and Pawleys Island.
- Hushpuppies — Every seafood restaurant on the coast.
- Boiled peanuts — Roadside stands along US 17 and the highways inland, and gas stations.
Vegetarian options
Of the 10 foods in this guide, 4 are usually vegetarian: Hushpuppies, Boiled peanuts, Saltwater taffy and fudge and Sweet tea. Check preparation with staff, as stocks and fats vary.
Eating out: tips and etiquette
- Early-bird specials before about 5:30pm are common and can save a lot on dinner.
- In summer, popular restaurants do not take reservations; expect a wait or eat early.
- Ask whether seafood is local; shrimp from South Carolina waters is in season from late spring to autumn.
- Sweet tea is the default; order 'unsweet' if you do not want sugar.
- Many restaurants close earlier or shorten their menus from December to February.
Tipping
Tip about 18–20% at table-service restaurants, a few dollars at buffets, $1–$2 per drink at bars, 15–20% for taxis and rideshares, and a few dollars per day for hotel housekeeping.
Questions travellers ask
+What food is Myrtle Beach famous for?
Calabash-style seafood, Seafood buffet, Shrimp and grits and She-crab soup. Shrimp, oysters, flounder and scallops in a light, crisp batter, fried quickly and served in heaped platters with hushpuppies and coleslaw.
+Is Myrtle Beach good for vegetarians?
Several local staples are meat-free, including Hushpuppies, Boiled peanuts and Saltwater taffy and fudge.
+Do you tip in restaurants in Myrtle Beach?
Tip about 18–20% at table-service restaurants, a few dollars at buffets, $1–$2 per drink at bars, 15–20% for taxis and rideshares, and a few dollars per day for hotel housekeeping.