If you have lived here more than a season, you already know the oceanside rhythm. The pier, the swim flags, the parking scramble on Roland. What is worth paying attention to this summer is happening a block west, on the sound. Between April and June, three new restaurants opened within a short walk of Soundside Park, a fourth reopened after renovation, and the town's free programming stacked itself squarely around the same waterfront. The center of gravity has moved.
The soundside restaurant cluster, mapped
Four openings this spring share a stretch of Roland Avenue and New River Drive that used to be quieter than the ocean side. Here is what is actually new, with the details a local would want before making a Friday plan.
| Spot | Where | Status this summer | Worth knowing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Marina Joe's | 209 N. New River Drive, on the ICW | New for 2026 | Two-story build with roughly 170 seats, thirty of them on outdoor decks facing the sound. Partners include the Wilmington team behind Proust, Anne Bonny's, and The Rift. |
| Coconut Cove | 418 Roland Ave, across from Soundside Park | Ribbon-cutting June 26 at 11:30 a.m. | Dining and cocktails, positioned as a locals spot rather than a tourist funnel. |
| The Patio at the Surf | Downtown Surf City | Ribbon-cutting June 26 at 3:30 p.m. | Same-day opening as Coconut Cove, which is why that Friday will feel busy on Roland. |
| Surf City Line | 2112 N. New River Drive | Reopened after renovation | Closed for upgrades ahead of its five-year anniversary and reopened March 17 for the 2026 season. |
Four sound-facing operators launching or relaunching inside a three-month window is not a coincidence. It is a bet on where residents and second-home owners actually want to sit down in the evening now that the high-rise bridge has changed the traffic pattern into town.
For the ICW seat that is already established, JM's On The Water at 602-B Roland Ave went to seven-day full-time service starting May 25. If you have not been since last summer, the operations side has changed hands within the founding family, with Monty Moseley now running day-to-day as general manager.
None of this makes Daddy Mac's or the pier grills less relevant. It means that on a Saturday in July, the honest answer to "where should we go" is no longer only oceanside.
Free at Soundside Park, June through August
The town has been quietly building Soundside Park into a full summer programming venue. If you have been treating it as a place to walk the dog, you are underusing it. The 2026 lineup that has actually been announced:
- Meet Me at the Sound concert series. The Clamslammers headline the June 26 date, running 7 to 9 p.m., with local food and drink vendors on site. The series is run by Surf City Parks, Recreation and Tourism.
- Shop the Sound Craft and Farmers Market. June 26 from 8 to 11 a.m. at Soundside Park, free admission courtesy of Surf City Parks and Recreation, with local artisans and food producers. The same-day pairing with the evening concert is the reason June 26 is the single busiest date on the calendar this summer.
- Kid's Freshwater Fishing Day. Free catch and release at the pond at the Surf City Community Center, bait provided.
Two things follow from this schedule. First, if you live within walking distance of Roland Avenue, the June 26 combination of morning market, midday ribbon-cuttings at Coconut Cove and The Patio at the Surf, and evening concert is functionally a neighborhood block party without being labeled one. Second, the vendor rules the town publishes for the concert series are useful context even if you are not vending. Setup runs 3 to 5 p.m., the event runs 5 to 9 p.m. That is the window when Soundside Park parking tightens, so plan accordingly.
Turtle Talks and the hospital, without the tourist framing
The Karen Beasley Sea Turtle Rescue and Rehabilitation Center is on every visitor guide. What locals actually get more out of is the free program most visitors miss.
Turtle Talks are held at 9 a.m. on Mondays and Tuesdays, June 1 through August 31, with no talks July 6 or 7. Monday mornings meet behind the Assembly Building in Topsail Beach. Tuesday mornings meet at Soundside Park in Surf City or at Town Hall in North Topsail Beach. Free, donations welcome.
That is a standing weekly reason to be at Soundside Park at 9 a.m. on a Tuesday, presented by the volunteers who actually walk the beach at dawn during nesting season. Nesting season runs May 1 through October 31.
For the hospital itself at 302 Tortuga Drive, a few practical points worth knowing so you can host out-of-town guests without a wasted trip. Tours are guided and by online ticket only, and you should plan to arrive at least ten minutes before the scheduled time. They sell out daily. Admission is $7 general, $6 for military and seniors, $5 for children ages 3 to 12, plus tax and a small processing fee. If you have visited in the past and remember it as smaller, note that the current facility runs about 13,600 square feet.
Later in the season, mark the fall calendar for the return of the Surf to Sound 5K, which starts in Soundside Park and heads across the Surf City Bridge and back, 3.1 miles. The pairing of a run on Saturday and the Haunted Hundred cycling event hosted by Salty Turtle Cycling Club on Sunday, starting and ending at the Salty Turtle Beer Company with a post-ride event at The Cove next door, is the shoulder-season weekend most residents forget to plan around until it is on top of them.
A resident's summer week, if you want one
Not a listicle. A single working template you can steal.
- Tuesday 9 a.m. Turtle Talk at Soundside Park. Bring coffee.
- Thursday evening. JM's On The Water deck if the wind is right, Daddy Mac's if you want the oceanside crowd.
- Friday. Try one of the four new or reopened soundside spots. Rotate. The whole point of a cluster this dense is that you get to compare.
- Saturday morning. Shop the Sound market when it runs, or the beach before the parking fills.
- Saturday evening. Meet Me at the Sound on the scheduled dates. Bring a chair and cash for vendors.
- Sunday. Sea Turtle Hospital tour only if you have a guest in town. Book two weeks out.
What this means if you own here
For homeowners, the practical shift is that soundside walkability is now doing real work for property values in a way it was not doing three summers ago. A house within a comfortable walk of 400 to 600 Roland Ave has a materially different summer than one that requires a car for every dinner. That is not a listing pitch. It is the honest read on why the June 26 openings matter beyond the food.
If you have been thinking about what your place is worth in this market, or whether the soundside shift changes the timing on a sale, that is the kind of question worth a direct conversation. Gwenergy works this corridor every day and can tell you what buyers are actually asking about right now, not what a portal estimate says. Reach out for a free home valuation when you are ready.
