The Wharf, Worth the Trip
The Wharf at Holden Beach has a memorable mascot, but it’s the food coming out of Executive Chef Emile Chagnon’s kitchen that’s making this ICW staple worth the trip by land or sea.
Zythos Horhay Stefan de Woccocan, a.k.a. Whitey Bolger is not a real dire wolf in the Game of Thrones sense, though, at first glance he could be an intimidating sight. He’s just a huge, friendly, playful white German shepherd whose unchallenged domain is the grounds of the Wharf Restaurant in Holden Beach.
Which, in itself, is also an intimidating site. The sprawling, 200-seat building sitting right on the ICW close to the end of Ferry Street has gone through at least three other iterations in its existence.
First, it was Betty’s Waterfront Restaurant, run by a genuine “flapper girl” who was a legend among the local gentry. Then it became Lou-Lou’s, and after that SmacNally’s.
Enter Tom Burruss, former silent partner of SmacNally’s who saw the potential of this perfectly situated site.
Speaking of characters, he’s been through a few iterations himself. He was a brewer at Ocracoke Island’s 1718 Brewery, but that was only after he achieved some moderate fame as an actor.
He had regular roles on many of the most famous daytime soaps, like General Hospital, Days of Our Lives, All My Children, The Guiding Light and others.
He studied with Lee Strasberg and other giants of the field, and he has “trod the boards” in many places across the country. These days, however, he trods the boards of The Wharf trying to make his place a destination.
He knows that the power of his magnetic personality alone will not do that, so he has smartly surrounded himself with those who have talents in other areas. Like 23-year-old Anna Fields, who manages the place. Coincidentally, Betty was her great aunt, and she worked as a server in both Lou-Lou’s and SmacNally’s.
Anna may be young, but she knows her stuff and brooks no nonsense. And why would she? She grew up hunting ducks and geese with a double-ought shotgun. And one of her Missouri hunting partners happened to be Keith Berciunas, owner of the wildly successful No Name Lounge in OIB.
Anna saw his place featured in the widely read South Brunswick Magazine and asked him how he managed to get his business on one of the most iconic magazine covers ever. Keith replied simply, “I know a guy.”
So SubScouts Keith, Father Dave and I traveled to Holden Beach to see what Tom and Anna were building on the banks of the ICW.
No matter how magnetic an owner’s personality, or how managerially solid his overseer, a restaurant does not make it unless the food that comes out of the kitchen is consistently good and well-presented every time.
Enter Executive Chef Emile Chagnon, previous owner of four restaurants in the Pittsburgh area, who retired to southeastern NC at the age of 40. He walked in to meet Burruss and offered to cook for him for free for a week. After just two days, he was hired.
Chagnon, who has cooked alongside the likes of Paul Prudhomme and Emeril Lagasse, has “celebrity” written all over him, and he loves to cook. I watched his eyes and face light up, and for one brief, shining moment, I thought he was talking about beer or Harleys, but he was just talking about his food.
His M.O. is to take regular, everyday foods that people know and love and tweak them to make them shine a bit brighter. If the food my team and I saw during our visit is any indication, Chagnon can consider his mission accomplished.
At his suggestion, we had a Tuna Poke Bowl, a Crab Dip, a Blackened Shrimp and Bruschetta on toast points dish, Crab Bites and even a Soup Flight.
Then he brought out what looked to us lot be a Filet Mignon atop a bed of Mashed Potatoes stacked high with delicate onion rings and held together with a steak knife.
But it wasn’t Filet Mignon. It was Meat Loaf. It was certainly an everyday food that not only shone, but sparkled. And it, too, was delicious.
Look. I’ve never eaten Tuna Poke in my life, but I did this night — and i liked it. The Crab Dip was exquisitely done, the Blackened Shrimp and Bruschetta was uniquely and deliciously different and the soup — brought out as samples — morphed into the idea of a Soup Flight right before my eyes, as Burruss’s “wheels” were turning.
The soups, by the way, were incredible and included a stunning Sweet Pepper Soup, a New England Clam Chowder and a Mushroom/Chicken concoction that blew my doors off.
The Meat Loaf Dish did the same — for all of us.
But Chagnon was not done. He brought out a sinful homemade cheese cake and a tiramisu that I’d consider among the best in the county.
There must be something in the name Emile that predisposes one to fine cooking, as my middle name is his first name, and I can heat up a can of Bush’s Baked Beans as good as anyone.
So it appears the trio of Burruss, Fields and Chagnon have all the angles covered in terms of setting the foundation for success. And, from what I could observe, the service was both fast and friendly.
The Wharf, accessible by land and sea, also has a small, cozy bar for those who just want to grab a drink. The beer menu won’t wow any beer geek, but it does serve Pernicious, so there’s that.
Burruss wished he could get some 1718 beers down from Ocracoke, but they don’t distribute down here. So Pernicious will have to suffice, along with Michelob Ultra and other commercial light lagers.
But if you’re going to The Wharf just to drink, or even just for the magnificent views, you’re making a big mistake, because it’s Chagnon’s food, the vision of Burruss and the oversight of Fields that should see the place packed out enough in season to sustain it comfortably through the off season. Not to mention the sunset views from the outdoor decks. I will definitely be back.
And regardless of season, rest easy in the knowledge that you are guarded by a direwolf named Zythos Horhay Stefan de Woccocan, a.k.a. Whitey Bolger. Who pretty much just wants to play.
Want to go?
The Wharf at Holden Beach
1045 B Var Road SW, Supply
(910) 842-9999
Thewharfinhb.com
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