There must be a lot of Red Lobster fans out there, because this seems to be a recurring question Wilmington residents have. The answer, sadly, won’t be the one they’re hoping for.
Opening a chain seafood restaurant in coastal territory was not the best business move for Red Lobster.
Once located on 4126 Oleander Dr. (the spot that now hosts TGI Friday’s), Red Lobster lasted from 1981 to 1984. And according to Lisa Westerfield, vice president of Edelman Atlanta, the public relations firm for Red Lobster, there are no plans to return.
Red Lobster was established during 1968 in Lakeland, Fla., and now operates nearly 700 restaurants. It is a part of the Darden owned line of restaurants, which also includes Olive Garden.
Date posted: July 16, 2009
User-contributed question by:
Anonymous
Coastal communities and the Red Lobster??? – West Palm Beach, Boynton Beach, Ft. Worth, Ft. Lauderdale, FL….. A lot has changed in ILM since the 80’s….. I loved the Faded Rose, now Circa from Little Rock, AK….. Keep asking them to come back, but no such luck – YET!!!
She beat me to the punch. There’s also one in Myrtle Beach that is always busy when we’re there, plus I think there are two in the Charleston area. Not sure what “coastal” has to do them not having a restaurant here.
C’mon “My Reporter”!!! Don’t let the company flack hand you such a load of hushpuppies!
There are THREE in Myrtle Beach alone. Add to that West Palm, Tampa, Virginia Beach, Point Pleasant, Fort Lauderdale, Hampton Beach, Orlando, South Beach, Fort Walton, Daytona, Miami…just type “Red Lobster” and “beach” into Google and hold on. Can’t sell in a coastal community? Fish sticks!, I say!
The REAL reason the restaurant couldn’t make it work in Wilmington back in the early ’80s was due to one issue – product delivery. Remember, there was no I-40, no US 74/76 bypass from the west, and NC 17 was the only true north to south corridor. And they refused to buy regional seafood from local suppliers. The only products they purchased locally were vegetables. Yep, I bussed dishes there in high school, then went to work at Frazier’s Seafood.
Folks around here begged and pleaded for an Olive Garden for DECADES….we ate there last Wednesday night and were practically the only people in the restaurant.
Red Lobster in River City? Thanks, but no thanks.
i guess they ( dardens ) think that all of us “coastal folk” go out and catch our own shrimp and lobster everyday, therefore we don’t need a red lobster here!
Sooooo … where is the nearest Red Lobster?
trust me, wilmington doesn’t need a red lobster. you’re not missing anything but frozen seafood, good lemonade, and cheese biscuits. What Wilmington DOES need however is more clalbash style seafood restaurants. We have so many upscale seafood places, but we definitely need more fish shacks where you can ditch the tie and just get a fresh shrimp and fries basket for under 10 bucks.
Red Lobster was here 20 years ago??
Wilmington has grown so much in the past 20 years.-I think they should reconsider.
What is it with Americans and their obsession with chain restaurants? These restaurants serve nothing but frozen, highly processed food with barely any nutritional value. Wilmington has some of the best locally owned restaurants that use local ingredients not only delicious and good for you, but they also support the local economy. The next time you feel like Red Lobster, why dont you try the Oceanic or someplace like it instead? Keep your hard earned money here in SE North Carolina and out of the big corporate pockets!
we went to red lobster for lunch today in myrtle beach. it was awful. i got coconut shrimp, they were burnt and tough, husband said mcdonald’s had a better fish sandwich. he also got a bowl of soup, he said they must be downsizing becasue there was only one slice of sausage in it… we didn’t compalin just won’t come back, now we remember why we didn’t go to the one here when it was here. they haven’t improved. 30.00 for what??????????
There was a Red Lobster on Oleander Dr. In Wilmington in the 70s – 80s. It was closed because of not having enough business. If there are enough people requesting one to there web site they may consider looking at Wilmington again.
There is a Red Lobster in Fayetteville it was pretty good when we ate there last. Great cheese biscuits, nice service. Only 80 miles from Wilmington.
There is also a Red Lobster in Jacksonville, NC
When Red Lobster previously open here they refused to offer all-you-can-eat snow crab legs. Many locals were familiar with the Raleigh franchise and this offer. Subsequently other places on Oleander Drive did make this offer and Red Lobster never got off the ground. Alienating customers is a sure-fire way to kill a business. The coastal area seafood line is obviously corporate spin. R.I.P.
Instead of insisting that a national chain come to Wilmington, support the local seafood restaurants we already have. Red Lobster is frozen, processed and imported. Why not support your local NC fishermen and foods? There are a lot of great local places and yes, even the biscuits are better. Personally, I hope we never get a Red Lobster and the last thing I want is for Wilmington to be like Myrtle Beach!
Come on Wilmington….support your local community. There’s nothing you can get at Red Lobster that you can’t get at a seafood restaurant in town already. Why would you want frozen, pieced who knows what when you could easily get fresh catch???
If you need a Rd Lobster….go to Jacksonville!
The only good thing that Red Lobster serves is
cheese biscuits, and you can get the recipe online and make them yourself. Why would anyone eat frozen fish/seafood when they can have fresh?????
Durham
Fayetteville
Cary
The 3 I found that were 35-45 miles from Wilmington.
Why with fresh delicious seafood, would anyone want food from Red Lobster?
I yearn to be have food from Sumthin Fishy .. what more could one want .. and there are other good seafood eating places.
If you think about it. Most of the coastal Red Lobsters are in high traffic tourist areas. Us locals in wilmington know better. That’s why Red Lobster will not make it here in wilmington. Due to all of the great locally owned seafood restaruants we have. Red lobster can’t compete. We do not have enough tourist for Red lobster to feed off of……So Red Lobster can stay where they are with their frozen seafood combo’s. LOL
I agree with the poster that we need a large calabash style seafood “shack” ala the old Pier 20 restaurant. Hands down, the best in town now is Pirate’s Table for a fried combo meal with all the trimmings. But the location is not where people from out of town can find it. Hey, I see there is plenty of room at Mayfaire.
Chain vs local? Local wins every time! Frozen vs fresh?
No contest. Can’t see why anyone in the Wilmington area would pine for a Red Lobster!
Honestly, if you have ever eaten the frozen food at Red Lobster, then eaten FRESH seafood from a local restaurant, you’d know why the Red Lobster here closed after only 3 years.
The coastal communities mentioned that Red Lobster is out are all high tourist locations. People coming to the coast thinking they are going to a seafood house with local seafood. That’s the real reason Red Lobster did not make it in Wilmington in the ’80s. Today though it may be different since the tourist population has increase. I went to Red Lobster once while it was in Wilmington and have never been to another. Haven’t missed it one bit. Give me an old fashion seafood house any day if you want good seafood..