I love spotting first-timers at Provision Company. They are skeptical about the rickety outdoor bathrooms or hesitate to open the door because they don’t know what’s going on or where to put in their name.
Meanwhile, I strut in as if I’m not an obvious tourist myself, proudly answering with an enthusiastic “yes” when a worker asks if I’ve been there before.
Called like a moth to a flame, I’m always heading straight to the beer fridge. It’s the honor system, so you grab what you want, when you want. Just tell them what you netted at the end when you’re paying your bill. The LandSharks hit different at Provision. Maybe it’s the fact you open them with a community can opener hanging off the fridge or that you grab a lime from a similar communal paper cup. The fact you’re probably sweating bullets at this point also plays a role.
You are signing on to sweat for at least the next hour if you’re eating at Provision in the summer. As soon as you hop in line, it’s hot. Their tiny kitchen is right in the front, donned with heroes cranking out pounds of shrimp and crab cakes. I have a deep appreciation for an open kitchen concept no matter where I’m eating. It humanizes the experience and makes you appreciate the meal that much more.
A worker will ask how many in your party, then ask for some inanimate object from you to put down on the table. When you’re done ordering, just look for your sunglasses or hat claiming a table as your own. When you order at the counter, there are these endearing displays of each of the specials saran wrapped, for the visual learners.
At this point, you’ve had a personal item taken from you, you’ve hopefully grabbed a beer from a communal fridge, and maybe you took a chance on the bathroom, praying to God the lock holds. A server will shout your party’s name loudly when you’re food is ready and run through the list of orders, plopping down countless paper plates and boats.
The messy chaos of eating a Provision meal is what makes it so special. The napkins, while readily available, are paper thin. You have to use no less than twenty to get through the meal. Speaking of the meal - here are my must-have orders:
Baguette - We order about ten of these for the table. It’s literally just a warm baguette with dipping oil. I turn into a different person eating this warm bread.
Conch fritters - I had to Google “what is a conch fritter?” while writing this because I honestly didn’t know and I’ve been consuming these religiously for nearly a decade now. It’s a seafood hushpuppy. They are delicious and that’s all you really need to know.
Thee special - 1/2 lb of shrimp that requires peeling, a crab cake, half an ear of corn, served with tartar and cocktail sauce. It’s a nuts plate of food. I really didn’t know me, or any of my loved ones, were capable of eating so much shrimp in one sitting.
Crab cake dinner - Three deep-fried crab cakes, served with potato salad, cucumber salad, and tartar sauce. This is a close competitor to Thee special. The cucumber and potato salad always draws me in.
Onion rings - I can’t really explain much more other than they are really good onion rings.
I love looking down the table and seeing different people’s strategies while eating. My husband will peel and eat the shrimp as he goes, while my brother will peel 1/2 lb of shrimp first before digging in. It’s always communal, everyone grabbing for a little bit of everything. It’s making me smile ear-to-ear right now just thinking about the memories this place always evokes.
But no matter how full I am after this glorious meal, I am always going to walk across the street to Flava’s Ice Cream for dessert and Provision apparel. The banana pudding ice cream is simply the shit. And no matter how many items of Provision apparel I already own, I will purchase another item and at least two more koozies.
So yeah, summer is ending, but if you find yourself on the North Carolina coast any time soon, it’s worth the trip. I could do a whole other post about how simply charming the town of Southport is, even if it didn’t have this crown jewel.
Life is really hard sometimes, so when you find a place that makes it all feel really simple, it hits the spot.