Joseph’s Italian Bistro

Delicious Italian in Southport! Delightful server, Kara (I hope I spelled her name right) made the night extra special. I had the mussels appetizer and eggplant — both superb. Best eggplant rollatini I have had in a long time — if ever!

Wow. Excellent service. Phenomenal menu. Great food. Reasonable prices. And you certainly can’t beat the view!

The service was amazing and the food was GREAT! The spaghetti and meatballs were GREAT! The location is also wonderful and great view if you sit outside.

Had an amazing dinner while on vacation in Oak Island. The grouper special with creamy polenta was absolutely delicious! The waiter was attentive and staff was friendly and personable. I will definitely come back on my next trip!

Very posh/​upitty place. Not a place for a family beach going vacation dinner, not a kid friendly menu. Food okay. Had a view of the ladies bathroom… had to eat our food as ladies lined up around us waiting for a single stall. They don’t take reservations unless you have a huge group. Even at 8:30pm it was a 30 minute wait. We could reach out and touch the table next to us, no privacy/​space. Very disappointing

Great food and great service!!! We had a very large group and everyone was very happy!

Great experience. Tasty food. Sat outside at sunset and it was absolutely gorgeous. We ordered chicken parm & chicken piccata. $ 18.99 per dish. Came with side of pasta, salad and cheesy bread served before meal. Server was amazing. they do not rush you at all. Only complaint was they don’t serve frozen drinks… I wanted a piña colada. They do have mixed drinks and large wine list tho. My husband got a mixed drink with the word «cooler» in it and love it. Dress was nice causal, we wore shorts but could be dressy. Very laid back but classy place. Inside is like the inside of a home, unique and quaint. We’ll go back!

We ate here with a party of 9. They were very accommodating to our large party including five children with crayons to draw on the tablecloth. Beautiful setting right on the water and our food was delicious. I cannot speak highly enough about the customer service. We were supposed to be a private dining room but due to a mixup it was not available after all when we arrived. They very quickly made it right even though there was a long wait and took excellent care of our party.

Great food –horrible wait. We called on Wednesday to make a reservation for Saturday, knowing that the place might be busy. The person on the phone said they only take reservations for groups of five or more, but there shouldn’t be a problem if the two of us just showed up. This was not the case. We waited over an hour only to take bar seats.
The bar was OK, but was not our idea of a romantic evening out. There was Nascar on the TV and people yelling across the room.
The food was terrific. Perfectly cooked veal saltamboca for me and a veal chop for my spouse. Even the salad was dressed perfectly.
We will probably be back for the great food, but not on a weekend. Unless they start taking reservations.

The ambiance was romantic. The food was outstanding and appropriately priced. Our server was incredibly attentive, making the experience even more enjoyable. We vacation to Oak Island each year and we will go back next year for sure!

This was the perfect water front dinner for our 2^nd anniversary. Next time I will be sure the let them know it was our anniversary because a neighboring table got free dessert and we did not. The food was fabulous. I had the filet and mashed potatoes and my Husband had the chicken parm. We are outside overlooking the water and the breeze was fantastic! I would definitely recommend this location for upscale dining while vacationing near Oak Island.

My wife and I are staying in a condo just a few doors down from Joseph’s, so last night we decided to get some food to go. It was great!
I got the lasagna, my wife got penne Alfredo. Both of our dishes were prepared well and tasted fantastic. The meals also came with salad– I got the balsamic vinaigrette, she got Cesar dressing, and we both really enjoyed them. It also came with some bread with melted mozzarella on top which was tasty, but the «to go» portion wasn’t quite enough– my wife and I both love bread! Also I imagine that in the restaurant it is served with olive oil, which I think would take the bread from «good» to «great».
The view from the restaurant is the same as the view from our condo, so I can tell you– it’s pretty awesome. The harbor is beautiful, especially in the evening as the sun is setting.
I highly recommend Joseph’s, and I hope to be returning soon!

My wife is Italian and she enjoys eating here. That should be enough but I’ll continue…
Expect a long wait because the food is awesome.
The lasagna is excellent. The eggplant pasta is excellent. The steaks are excellent.
Don’t skip dessert. This is the one place near the beach that you’ll actually want to get dessert.
If you don’t like this place, you don’t like Italian food.

My husband and I lived in New York for 55 and 58 years, respectively. My husband is Italian and his mother is a great cook. He was raised on the Lower Eastside within shouting distance of Little Italy. We moved to Cary, NC 7 years ago and found one or two Italian restaurants that we like well enough. We NEVER expected to find a great Italian restaurant in Southport.
The ambiance is very mellow and it is situated right on the marina, giving you a relaxing view. In nice weather I would dine outside.
You begin your meal with tasty bites of delicious bread baked with mozzarella. The bread has just the right amount of crispness to the crust. It’s served with olive oil and a mound of grated parmesan on the side. The «gravy» is real homestyle Italian sauce, thick and delicious over pasta. The eggplant was cut about an inch thick and fried to a nice crunch before being baked to melt the mozarella. The linguini with white clam sauce had about a pound of clams on top. The crème brule cheesecake was a great finale to our meal.
Did I mention how reasonably priced their food is?
If you are in the area and love great homemade Italian cooking this is a must.

Been there twice. The first time it was okay, the second time it wasn’t very good. I’m done with this place.
Oak Island/​Southport is a culinary wasteland.

One of the absolute hidden gems along the Carolina coast.
Joseph’s located in Southport, in an out of the way strip mall belies the intimate and tasteful interior which boasts a great view of the harbor.
The service is excellent. More than that, the server we had was absolutely great … personable without being intrusive. Helpful at steering his customers towards the dishes that would really stand out to them. The only minor ding was that he was a Jets fan, but that made me tip him more out of pity ;)
This out of the way restaurant (have to ask a local for directions) is the best food I’ve had in the Carolinas. The southern takes on Italian dishes are brilliant. Everything we’ve had here was absolutely great.
One of the very few places that really blew me away with its charm, décor, food and service the first time out. We’re down in that part of NC twice a year and Joseph’s has very quickly become our must visit stop with each visit.

A hidden treasure. The best meal. Escargot was the best ever. Duck that was perfect. If you ever in the area stop and enjoy. We did.

Amazing dining experience. Everything on the menu ordered by my friends and I has been absolutely delicious. The mussels in butter and white wine sauce appetizer is a must order on every visit. Daily specials include local grouper over polenta or risotto and tuna with wasabi. Eggplant ricotta starter insanely good. Kid friendly, lovely music and a wonderful marina view. Nothing not to love.

Best Italian food and atmosphere any where near OKI. Food is always perfect, pork chop is possibly best I’ve ever had.

Joseph’s has a warm relaxed elegance to it. The location is beautiful with its own harbour. We took plenty of pics at sunset. The waitstaff were very friendly and helpful. The food excellent. The Wine list was stocked with good reasonably priced wines.
We were not rushed thru our meal a true sign of a classy place. Our meals were excellently prepared.
This is our Special Occasion place in Southport/​Oak Island