• Friday, April 25th - Sunday, April 27th

Head to the beach to catch an incredible live show that’s unlike any other on the Outer Banks with the ESA Mid-Atlantic Regional Surfing Championship. Known as a qualifier for the big USA Surfing’s Prime events and USA Surfing Championships that are held in the summertime, this event attracts talented surfers from all across the region and well beyond to the heart of the Outer Banks for a truly spectacular competition.

The ESA Mid-Atlantic Regional Surfing Championship takes place just off the beach by Jennette’s Pier in Nags Head, and the central locale makes the event easy to attend for visitors staying throughout the central OBX area, and even the northern and southern Outer Banks. The other ESA Regional competitions are held in varying points along the Eastern Seaboard, so this is an exceptional opportunity to catch talented surfers close to home. Surfers can visit the ESA website for information on how to compete and when, and spectators will have a blast at the multiple-day event as well, thanks to tons of talent on full display. Grab a beach chair or a beach towel, and hit the sand for front row seats to one of the best spring shows on the ‘Banks.

Awful Arthur's Oyster Bar

Awful Arthur's Oyster Bar

Welcome to the home of the happy oyster where for over 40 years the oyster has been our world. The Outer Banks only authentic oyster bar is the place to enjoy sensational fare from the sea washed down with your favorite brew or cocktail. We serve by the peck, pound, and dozen, raw or steamed to perfection. Kicked back casual, down to earth friendly staff, and reasonable prices make Awful Arthur’s Oyster Bar the all-time favorite of locals and travelers alike.

The idea wasn’t to set out and establish a new concept restaurant on the Outer Banks, but that’s exactly what Awful Arthur’s owner Jo Whitehead and her late husband, Jay, accomplished more than 35 years ago when they opened the area’s first authentic oyster bar.

 

Awful Arthur’s opened in May 1984 on the Outer Banks. “We embraced the concept of an authentic copper top bar with the idea of it being a major drawing card and it still is,” explains Whitehead. “I get oysters wherever they are local. We follow the warm waters.” 

 

Just across from the ocean, in Kill Devil Hills, oyster season is year-round at Awful Arthur’s. Diners can take a seat at the copper-topped bar to observe the staff shucking oysters, served raw or steamed, along with shrimp, crab legs and clams all steamed to perfection. 

 

It’s not just the raw bar that’s earned Awful Arthur’s both local and national recognition, including being named one of America’s greatest oyster bars by Coastal Living magazine. The restaurant is a seafood-lover’s paradise, offering the freshest catches available.