Middle Of Wilmington Choices

As you go towards Wrightsville Beach, you’ll find another group of restaurants that are worth trying. As you turn onto Eastwood Road from Market Street, you’ll see Hiro’s Japanese Steakhouse on the right. Hiro’s specializes in food cooked right in front of you on huge hibachi tables. It is a party atmosphere as tables are filled before the show begins. You’ll watch the chefs slice and dice shrimp, steak, onions, and other vegetables with a speed and dexterity that’s always entertaining. Hiro’s offers a la carte sushi and sashimi and has a lively specialty cocktail and martini bar. The restaurant is open daily for dinner and is open for lunch on Sunday from 11 to 4.

Breakfast All Day

Just east of Racine on Eastwood Road is one of Wilmington’s newest restaurants, Chris’ Cosmic Kitchen. Owned by CIA-trained Chris Lubben (that’s the good CIA – Culinary Institute of America), diners can choose fluffy omelets, homemade, very light biscuits and delicious gravy, eggs served the way you order them, and really fresh fruit, among many other choices. At lunch and dinner they serve terrific seafood bisque, crisp salads, overstuffed sandwiches and the best cheesecake you’ll ever find. Unlike so many of the leaden cheesecakes that feel like a stone when you’ve eaten them, Lubben’s are wonderfully flavorful yet without the denseness of so many others. Try the pumpkin, white chocolate, Andes mint, or any of the other varieties – they are superb. The restaurant is open Monday through Thursday from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Friday and Saturday from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m.