Friday, Dec. 23, 2011

Myrtle Beach Restaurant Notes

By Becky Billingsley -

Most Grand Strand restaurants will be closed on Christmas Day, but here are a few that are willing to take over the holiday cooking for you.

• The Brentwood, 4269 Luck Ave., Little River, 249-2601, will be open from 1-7 p.m. This fine dining restaurant is in a big old house with several Christmas trees and fireplaces.

• Cafe Amalfi inside the Myrtle Beach Hilton Resort, 10000 Beach Club Dr., Myrtle Beach, 449-5000, will be open for breakfast, lunch and dinner until 10 p.m., and a holiday dinner featuring many gourmet dishes is $32 per person.

• Greg Norman’s Australian Grille, at Barefoot Landing, 4930 U.S. 17, North Myrtle Beach, 361-0000, will be open from 2-10 p.m. on Christmas Day. In addition to its regular menu, several a la carte holiday dishes will be offered such as Roasted Goose.

• Preston’s Seafood and Country Buffet, 4530 U.S. 17 S., North Myrtle Beach, 272-3338, will be open starting at 11:30 a.m. offering traditional holiday dishes and more. The buffet price is $23 for ages 13 and older; $11 ages 7-12; $5 ages 3-6; and free ages 2 and younger.

• All three Grand Strand locations of T.G.I. Friday’s (500 U.S. 17 N., North Myrtle Beach, 663-3333; 7515 N. Kings Highway, Myrtle Beach, 497-8888; and 3202 U.S. 17, Murrells Inlet, 651-8888) will be open from 4-10 p.m.

• Thorny’s Steakhouse & Saloon, 600 S. Kings Highway, Myrtle Beach, 448-2333, will be open starting at 11 a.m. and serving its regular menu.

• Waterscapes at the Marina Inn at Grande Dunes, 8121 Amalfi Place, Myrtle Beach, 913-2845, will be open Christmas Day starting at 3 p.m. with a final seating at 8 p.m., serving a special gourmet menu that is $38 ages 13 and older; $16 ages 5-12. For reservations call 913-2845.

• Patty’s, in the former Herbie’s Dew Drop Inn at 1268 Surfside Industrial Park Dr., which is an alley off S.C. 544 beside Dick’s Pawn Shop, was opened by owner Patty Nuth, who formerly owned Chick ’n’ Bull in the plaza on the other side of Dick’s. The menu is typical bar food - hot dogs, pizza and soft pretzels - but Nuth says she also provides complimentary from-scratch dishes on the weekends for her patrons such as chili, tacos, beef stew and pulled pork. Well drinks are $2, vodka is $1 on Tuesdays, bottled beers are $2.25 and cans are $1.50. There’s karaoke from 8:30 to 11 p.m. on Fridays, and billiards are free from 7-11 p.m. Saturdays. The phone number is 828-4732.

• A third location of Sharkey’s Bar and Grill (the first is oceanfront in Myrtle Beach, and the second opened this year at Broadway at the Beach) opened Nov. 30 at 1900 U.S. 17 Business N. in Surfside Beach, in the former location of El Patio and Cabana Club Bar & Grill. General manager Rhonda Gilfillan is overseeing the spacious establishment that has many televisions, two pool tables and a DJ booth. The menu is creditable and inexpensive with dishes such as Bruschetta, Meatballs, Oysters Rockefeller, Honey Ribs and White Chicken Chili. Well drinks are $2, bottles of beer are $2 and drafts are $2-$3. Sharkey’s is open daily from 11 a.m. to 2 a.m., and the number is 222-6663.

• Sharkey’s at Broadway at the Beach in Myrtle Beach, 712-1988, has started “Dolla Fridays” when from 10 p.m. to 2 a.m. Friday nights, vodka and rum drinks and draft beers cost $1. There’s no cover charge.

• Big Daddy’s Roadhouse Grill, 1610 S. Kings Highway, Myrtle Beach, 448-3819, has started seasonal hours when it opens at 4 p.m. Wednesdays through Saturdays, through January.

• Chef Sean Thomas, who was one of the original chefs at 21 Main in North Myrtle Beach when it opened in May, has a new position as a chef at Capriz Italian Feast at Broadway at the Beach. Chef Thomas graduated from the culinary arts program at Horry-Georgetown Technical College and has worked at Divine Dining Group and at Pomodoro’s Trattoria. In January he placed second in a Myrtle Beach Seafood Challenge.

• John Dabrowski is the new executive chef at 21 Main. He graduated from Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts in Chicago and has country club experience including at Pawleys Plantation in Pawleys Island. Most recently he was executive sous-chef at Bliss Restaurant in Murrells Inlet.

• Ronnie Stevens is the new general manager and executive chef at Boom Boom’s Raw Bar in North Myrtle Beach. He is a graduate of Johnson & Wales University when it was in Charleston and has worked in several Myrtle Beach area restaurants (including Bimini’s and the former Old Pro’s Table) and owned four restaurants in the Winston-Salem and High Point areas in North Carolina.

• Longtime Myrtle Beach restaurateur Sam Lauren (Soho, Kansas City Steakhouse) did away with Buddha Lounge and turned it into King David: The Kosher Moroccan & Mediterranean Cafe. The menu is extensive. In addition to appetizers ($4-$8) of Stuffed Grape Leaves, Tabouleh, Hummus, Falafel and Baba Ghanoush, there are Matbucha (spicy vegetarian dip), Pastels (pastries stuffed with a potato/mushroom/beef mixture) and Kube, which is “cracked wheat and flour stuffed with rice, ground beef, cilantro and parsley.” King David is open for lunch, and lunch combos for $6-$11 include fries and a fountain drink. A few are Chicken or Lamb Shawarma Gyro, Schnitzel, Burger, Hummus and Falafel. Entrees are $10-$20 and come with pita, salad and one side dish, but you can also opt for almost all of the entrees to come inside a pita, and then the price is $5-$10. In addition to Turkish Coffee, ethnic beverages include Moroccan Hot Herb Tea and Malt Star, which is root beer. There’s also a full bar. King David is open from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. and 6-10 p.m. Sundays through Thursdays, and 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Fridays. On Saturdays it’s open from 6:30 to 10 p.m. It’s at 1711 N. Kings Highway in Myrtle Beach, and the number is 712-2507.

Becky Billingsley serves daily restaurant news at MyrtleBeachRestaurantNews.com.