Backwater Jack’s Tiki Bar

A great find! Bartenders were fantastic and they have a nice beer selection. There is a great outdoor bar which makes the experience that much better!

My wife and I discovered Backwater Jack’s by recommendation. My family is originally from the area and my wife and I went to visit and explore for my 51^st birthday, When we pulled up the rugged ambiance was intriguing to say the least. As we entered the establishment we were greeted with a sign reading, «Warmest Beer, Lousiest Service, and worst food.» Let me tell you we couldn’t have been more disappointed even after telling the hostess we wanted the Worst or the worst!
We were given a choice of dining areas. The bar area, inside dining room or upstair outdoors covered patio overlooking the Pamlico. The view was stunning! Within seconds of being seated Davey, our waiter, appeared for our drink order. We both almost left right then, my wife’s glass of White Zinfandel was chilled perfectly and I got a beer that couldn’t have been colder if it had been freshly tapped at the North Pole.
We took a few minutes and decided to place our fate in the hands of their appetizer menu. Starting with the half pound Buffalo Shrimp which were seasoned to perfection and served with a generous portion of celery and bleu cheese I knew we were in trouble! This was seafood at it’s best. We followed this with an order of their cheesy crab dip and ended with the loaded fries. I would easily say our experience was akin to dining in Valhalla!
Would we go back? Two NFL defensive lines couldn’t stop us! Great food, service, staff, view and setting make this a total don’t miss place to visit.

Good bar food. Nothing fancy but fun place to boat too. Bring cash. Cold beer and good prices.

Not impressed. Everyone in town talked about this place like it was the best thing ever. It isn’t. Food was very good, fried shrimp were on point. Service was bad, not god awful, but there was not much pep in the servers step for a rainy Sunday afternoon when they were not busy. Mimosas were only $ 3. It looks like it would be a fun bar to go to at night. 50% chance I would ever go back.

Great fun atmosphere with affordable food. The staff is always courteous and it’s located right next to the water. They make a great Reuben and are great about to-​go orders. They also have a lively bar on weekends and often have music. «Family» friendly atmosphere :)

This place has awesome shrimp tacos! Actually, everything I’ve ever had here was great! The upper deck area is the nicest to sit at, because you can see really far over the water. It’s really pretty. They also have great beer on tap!
I gave this place 4 stars because they only take cash. I know that sounds silly, but I never carry cash, so it’s a little inconvenient to have to drop by an ATM before I go.

GREAT Music… GREAT Location… They serve yummy food and ice cold beers.
I just wish they stayed open later and had more boat parking…
Enjoy!

Stopped for lunch taking a leisurely drive back from the OBX. I could see this is probably a fun place for a few beers and popcorn shrimp. However, we were hoping for more seafood selection (not a crab cake to be found), mostly fried shrimp, oysters. I ordered some peel and eat shrimp (about half were mushy) and my husband got a shrimp «burger» and it was more like a po boy (he ended up picking the shrimp off). Good coleslaw though. I doubt we’ll be back but has potential. Oh, and they only take cash — no debit or credit cards — luckily, they do have an ATM there if need be.

3.5 *‘s if I could. Sat. night around 6 and the place was busy. About a 30 minute wait. we chose to eat at the bar. The bartender was excellent! You could tell she knew how to keep things moving, while still taking time to chat.
I had shrimp tacos (blackened). Shrimp were fresh and cooked perfectly. She had fried shrimp and oysters. Again fresh and done right. Not too much breading.
The reason I’m only giving 3.5 stars, was that it was a little pricey. while the quality and flavors were good, I feel that the portions were small for the price. 2 tacos with about 8 small shrimp each for $ 13. Again, good quality, just a little lite on portion for price.
Oh, yea, cash or check only. They do have an ATM available.

Love this place and try to visit everytime we’re in Little Washington. Best place to sit if the weather’s nice is definitely the upstairs outdoor patio. They also have an upstairs indoor seating area that would be my second choice if the outdoor patio is full or if the weather is less than stellar. Great views of the water & next to a public boat dock which provided for some nice people watching. :)
On my visit Saturday, I got the shrimp basket w/​fries and the shrimp was some of the best I’ve ever had. The fries were pretty good too. A little pricey for a basket though ($ 12), so my only complaint is that the basket should either have a little more shrimp or they should drop the price a couple of bucks.
They have some nice specialty drinks (mainly rum concoctions) for $ 5. Service was really friendly & attentive & food came out fast (granted we were there around 3:00, that weird after lunch, before dinner time). Another small complaint is that it’s cash only, and yes, they have an ATM, but I’d rather not pay a few dollars in ATM fees if I can avoid it. Maybe next time I can remember to bring cash! And, hopefully next time will be very soon!

Some friends and I drove over to Washington this weekend from Greenville to try Backwater Jack’s. We were not disappointed. The atmosphere is relaxing and the top patio has great views of the water. Their drinks are tasty and they have a lot of options.
I think our group tried a good amount of food on the menu. For apps, we got buffalo shrimp which was good and crab dip which was too cheesy and I wouldn’t get it again because all you could taste was cheese and no crab. I had the blackened Mahi which tasted very fresh and light but I wish there was more blackening spice on the fish. The sweet potato fries were also great.
I will definitely be back whenever I visit Washington!

Blackwater Jacks is a great summer time Gem that has wonderful Shrimp Sandwiches and nice deck seating with a cool staff. I can’t wait to get back. The black beans and rice were delicious and had a kick. The Shrimp Burger was outstanding and I wish I had one (or 2) right now. I added a few photos to the site.

Backwater Jack’s is one of the fun spots in Little Washington. The porch seating is a summer treat — a low key kick-​back atmosphere — serving up shrimp tacos and other simple fare with cold beer and cocktails. Its a nice treat after a hot afternoon of kayaking. The location is a little less than scenic (what with the public boat launch out front the Propane farm behind) but the ambiance and crowd is great.

Backwater Jack’s is a restaurant of recently-​increasing popularity located near a public boat-​launching spot in Washington. It bills itself as a sort of «tiki bar» establishment, which is apparently what you get when you hang pirate-​themed decorations and neon stuff on the walls and give the place an impliedly ramshackle look generally.
The food here is solid all around, including the Mahi Mahi mentioned by a previous reviewer. But the drink options are a bit weak for a serious dinner joint. A couple of strong additions to the wine selection would bump this restaurant up to four stars.
Last time I went, service was friendly but a bit spotty (yet perhaps this is forgivable since the dinner crowd was pretty robust for a Washington venue). The outdoor seating options are nice, but sometimes I like to get away from noise; and unfortunately, indoor seating is limited and also on the loudish side.
Note that your view of the Pamlico River is not very picturesque unless you’re seated on the restaurant’s top level; and even then, the horizon is somewhat obstructed by the raised topography of River Road. I also think the «cash preference» mentioned in a previous review makes transactions here a bit tedious. All of that being said, I would certainly recommend you give it a try.

The food, owners, and patrons are wonderful. Lunch service was excellent. Owners were friendly and were happy to discuss their restaurant and the goings on in Little Washington. The menu is a little light on vegetarian options and they do have a cash-​preference policy. If you’re in town, this is a good choice for drinks and some food.

Great food in an even better location. If you ever find yourself in Washington, NC and craving some Mahi Mahi, cold beer, and an amazing sunset, this is your place.