opened on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard in 1990 as one location of a regional chain. The chain faded; New Bern's didn't. More than three decades later it is still open, kept going by the people who eat here every week and the family that runs it.
That family is the Stranges. For nearly 40 years the family's other business, Strange & Sons Catering, has fed weddings, Marine Corps Balls, reunions and fundraisers across Eastern North Carolina, from 25 guests to 10,000. Same kitchen standards, same hospitality, whether you're at a table here or at a tent in Beaufort.
What hasn't changed
The kitchen still does the classics right: hand-cut Black Angus steaks aged 28 days, fresh coastal seafood, burgers ground from chuck, short loin and sirloin, and homemade everything, from the BBQ sauce and ranch to the chili and the quiche. And the staff still knows your name.
Birthdays, business lunches, a Friday night Prime Rib, or a plate of Hot Crab Dip at the bar: come on in.