Soup’s On!

Posted September 22, 2025

In Fall 2025, Food & Drink

by Jes Gray

Writing this article as the summer season has passed, it’s easy to think that these sunny beach days, with families hunkered under the shade of colorful umbrellas polka dotting the shore, have always been the focus of life on the Outer Banks. Not so long ago, however, these barrier islands were fishing villages, small farms and hunting camps.

Though some form of tourism to the area has existed for over a hundred years, the majority of “bankers” lived life uninvolved with the trade, instead subsisting on what they could grow, raise and catch. The scenery has certainly changed since those times. Some traditions have held strong, however, and can be found in unexpected places. A soup bowl, for example, is where you’ll find the famous — or some would say infamous — Hatteras Clam Chowder. One could forgive the casual summer guest for missing the opportunity — not everyone wants a hot bowl of soup after baking under the sun — but it doesn’t make Hatteras Clam Chowder, or Down East Chowder as it’s sometimes known, any less of a tradition. Based in a time where the peak of summer referred to the heat, the dish was created as a necessity. It brought together staples that almost any Hatteras Islander would have on hand to add after harvesting some larger clams. Basics such as potatoes and onions were generally available and create the majority of the chowder, with the liquid from the clams, salt pork and chopped clams adding the briny, savory flavors.

Basnight’s Lone Cedar Café’s jumbo lump she crab soup in sherry-laced cream. Photo by Britt S. for Yelp.

Like all traditional recipes, this one has many versions and surely each household had their own take on this staple. A few examples of variations include using butter or bacon instead of salt pork, adding green onions or garlic, and mashing a portion of the potatoes to thicken, instead of simply dicing and adding to the broth. The 1955 Carteret County News-Times Fishing Edition included a very simple recipe by Mrs. Alva Hamilton of Morehead City: Fry 1/4 lb. fat pork, remove and add two large onions diced.Chop 1 qt. of clams; dice two large potatoes and two stalks of celery, add potatoes to onions with one qt. of water. When the potatoes and onions are done add clams and cook 10-15 minutes and add 1 tb of flour to thicken before serving.

I am also sharing the recipe from Carolinian Hotel, which was the first and largest hotel in the area for decades. This particular recipe has been shared since at least 1961 when is was featured in the “Ford Times” as mentioned in the May 12th, 1961 edition of The Coastland Times. However, to truly understand the importance of each step of this seemingly simple process, watch Sharon Peele Kennedy’s YouTube video simply titled “Hatteras Style Clam Chowder!” She explains how the recipe was created while showing exactly how to make it using techniques taught by her family.

Frequently seen on stage at Dare County events, she has long been an advocate for the community fishing industry.

Of course you could forgo the whole cooking process and leave it up to the experts at the local eateries. On Hatteras Island, try versions by Sonny’s Waterfront Restaurant, Diamond Shoals (theirs has a touch of cream), Tavern on 12, Rusty’s Surf N Turf and surely a few more. On the Northern Beaches Sam N’ Omies received the most mentions on a recent Facebook questionnaire, with Basnight’s Lone Cedar and Sugar Creek being popular choices as well.

Pigman’s Brunswick Stew is a hearty, slow-cooked Southern dish featuring a combination of meats, vegetables, and savory barbecue flavors. Photo by Corey Connors.

With so many versions of such a simple dish, chefs can really take advantage of the opportunity to be creative when cooking up seafood chowders, clam and otherwise. It was this impulse that, according to local restaurant historian Bruce Crouch, lead a group of restaurant owners and chefs meeting at the the now closed Coastal Cactus way back in 1995 to come up with the idea of a Chowder Cook-Off. They decided it was a success if it broke even, and they would repeat the endeavor. Well, from the parking lot at Ocean Boulevard to the backyard at The Outer Banks Brewing Station 30 years later, some version of this cook-off has occurred almost every year since. Now held in the spring, this year’s Taste of The Beach Chowder Cook Off Judge’s Choice winner was Justine Lachine from The Outer Banks Brewing Station and People’s Choice went to Tim Gard from Blue Water Grill and Raw Bar. Somewhat full circle, as Mr. Gard was sous chef at Ocean Boulevard for many years.

Hatteras Island also hosts an annual Chowder Cook Off at their Day at the Docks, an annual event to celebrate “The Spirit of Hatteras” with entertainment, educational and cultural activities. The cook-off supports the Hatteras Island Cancer Foundation, which over the past 20 years has raised hundreds of thousands of dollars from the event.

Blue Water’s creamy clam chowder with smoked bacon, potatoes and
onions topped with fresh herbs and dry sherry. Photo by Olga G. for Yelp.

While chowder cook-offs only occur once a year, that does not stop our local chefs from doing exactly what those early islanders did with Hatteras Clam Chowder, getting creative with local ingredients on hand. The “off seasons” are when we’ll begin to find these soups warming up the specials lists at our local restaurants, and rediscovering that section of the menu under their house specialties.

One of these specialties is so ubiquitous one wonders if it’s also as local as Hatteras Clam Chowder. I am of course referring to She Crab Soup (or Bisque—if you’re being fancy). While you can get amazing versions of this dish from Ocean Boulevard, to Basnight’s Lone Cedar, and down to Hatteras Sol, the crab may be local, but the origin is not. Born from a visit by President Taft to the Mayor Of Charleston, South Carolina’s residence, the butler, William Deas, was tasked with fancying up a traditional Irish Crab bisque known as Partan Bree, which he did by adding crab roe. Though quite the opposite of Hatteras Clam Chowder’s humble origins, both have found their place in the hearts- and stomachs- of locals and visitors to the Outer Banks alike.

So whether you’re looking for something simply good or a bit more elevated, the chefs on the Outer Banks are well adept at using the bounties of our local waters and other quality ingredients to create the comforting tradition of sharing a bowl of soup at a table with friends and family. For the traditional experience though, try one of the recipes yourself and invite the whole family over. Actually, on second thought, I’ll meet you at Sam N’ Omies. Soup’s On!