Charlotte has plenty of great restaurants, but if you venture 30 miles north to Lake Norman, you’ll find Seaboy Restaurant & Bar, arguably one of the best new restaurants the area has seen in a while.
Seaboy opened in March of last year, and by December, Esquire magazine had named it one of the best new restaurants in America.
The restaurant is the brainchild of Jonathan Cox, a chef who spent years working in acclaimed kitchens around Charlotte, such as Dogwood and Fin & Fino. He’d harbored visions of owning his own spot for years, but kept trying and failing to find somewhere in town with the character and charm he wanted.
Cox thought he’d finally found it, but the deal fell through at the last minute. That same weekend, though, he got a call from an old friend about a location in Lake Norman, and suddenly his dream became a reality.
“I always wanted a smaller, intimate place with really good food where it’s not overly pretentious,” he says. “A place where guests know most of the ingredients when they read the menu and the whole staff genuinely enjoys hospitality.”
Cox says the name, which he had tattooed on himself right before opening, just felt right.
THE SPACE
Cox turned an old house in Cornelius into a cozy 10-table restaurant. His goal was to make it feel like you’re dining at a best friend’s house. Little bouquets of wildflowers sit on each table, as if a friend picked them from the backyard, and the walls are dotted with photos and illustrations.
The food shines brighter than the decor.
Because of its limited seating, it’s best to make a reservation before driving from Charlotte. But there are nine additional tables on the patio and 10 seats at the bar reserved for walk-ins. The Chef’s Table, which offers a clear view of everything happening in the kitchen, can also seat four guests.
THE MENU
Not surprisingly, Cox’s menu is seafood-heavy, with an emphasis on fresh, local ingredients.
“I try to cook only food I would eat if I went out,” he says.
Cox says some non-negotiables are the tuna crudo to start, followed by the lamb ragu, crab and chorizo croquettes, and blackened swordfish. Fresh oysters are also always on the menu, available raw or as a Creole-style grilled option with bacon and Fresno chili. The flavors are big, and every dish on the carefully curated menu is a standout.
Like the food menu, the cocktails on offer rotate. Most recently, options like the “Mint Condition” with Brazilian rum, cucumber oleo, lime and mint offer a refreshing sip on a hot day.
Cox says part of Seaboy’s success comes from not trying to make it any one category of restaurant. He’s let it develop organically into whatever people need it to be. Whether you’re in the mood for oysters and cocktails on the porch or just want the perfect spot to celebrate an anniversary, Seaboy is worth the drive, and then some.