Dinner on Hilton Head Island, SC: Upscale Casual and Fine Dining
Upscale casual dining on Hilton Head Island means real tablecloths, a serious kitchen and no jacket required.
Fine dining for a celebration
Small, dressy dinner rooms where locals mark birthdays and anniversaries.
Upscale casual bistros and dinner rooms
Upscale dining with a view
About this list
Upscale casual dining on Hilton Head Island means a dinner with real tablecloths or a good bar, a kitchen that cooks seriously, and no jacket required. The island has a deep bench of these restaurants, from small chef-owned rooms tucked into shopping centers to harbor-view dining rooms.
This guide sorts dinner by occasion: celebration dinners, relaxed bistros and rooms with a view. Most of the dressier places take reservations online, and it is worth booking a few days ahead in season. For a steak dinner specifically, see the Hilton Head steakhouses.
More ways to choose where to eat
Steakhouse Hilton Head guide: prime chophouses, an old-school Main Street steakhouse and seafood-and-steak dinner rooms, with phone numbers.
Italian restaurants Hilton Head Island: chef-owned dinners, family red-sauce rooms and pizza and pasta counters, with phone numbers and booking notes.
Hilton Head Island seafood restaurants by setting: creekside docks, casual baskets, special-occasion dinners and Sea Pines, with phone numbers.
The best restaurants in Hilton Head Island, sorted by dinner, lunch and breakfast, with the area, phone number and reservation link for every listing.
Restaurants in Harbour Town, Hilton Head Island, SC: 10 spots by the marina and lighthouse, from waterfront seafood to cafés, with reservations.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does upscale casual dining mean on Hilton Head?
It means a step above a beach-town grill, with a full dinner menu, a good bar and attentive service, but no dress code. Most people wear resort-casual clothes.
Which fine dining restaurants on Hilton Head take reservations?
Sage Room, Alfred’s, Charlie’s L’Etoile Verte, Chez Georges, Michael Anthony’s, Nunzio, Coastal Capri, The Studio and Alexander’s all take reservations online.
Where can I get a special-occasion dinner with a view?
Alexander’s looks over a Palmetto Dunes lagoon, ELA’s on the Water and Bistro 17 look over the Shelter Cove marina, and CQ’s is in Harbour Town.
Where do I find a good steak dinner?
The steakhouses page covers Bowdie’s Chophouse, Chophouse 119 and Frankie Bones, plus the seafood and steak dinner rooms.
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