08/22/2026
Six years ago, we opened the doors to Gaffer’s here in Emerald Isle. ❤️
After bringing Gaffer’s from Ocracoke to Emerald Isle earlier that year, we had no idea what this next chapter would look like. We just knew we wanted to create the same kind of place we had always loved: good food, live music, familiar faces and a place where everyone who walked through the door felt like they were sitting down in our home.
And of course, 2020 had other plans.
We opened in the middle of a pandemic, during one of the most uncertain times imaginable to open a restaurant in a new community. But Emerald Isle welcomed us with open arms from the very beginning. This community showed up for us when we needed it most, and that’s something we will never forget or take for granted.
Over the last six years, Gaffer’s has grown in ways we never could have imagined. We created a Sip & Shop right next door, our catering side continues to grow and grow, and then we took our biggest leap yet by opening our event center and Gaffer’s sister restaurant, Birdies, just across the bridge.
But when we think about these six years, it’s really the people who mean the most.
Liz, Paul and Sam have been with us since the beginning and have been part of so many chapters, changes, long days and big moments along the way. We truly could not have built what Gaffer’s is today without the people who have poured so much of themselves into this place alongside us.
And then there are our kids, Malli and Jayden, who have grown up right alongside Gaffer’s. They’ve seen the long days and late nights, celebrated the wins with us and been along for this crazy ride every step of the way. Gaffer’s is part of their story just as much as it is ours.
Through all of the growth, the heart of Gaffer’s has stayed the same. It’s our team, our family, the locals whose orders we already know, the families who come back every summer and make Gaffer’s part of their vacation, and this community that continues to support us again and again.
To everyone who knew us in our Ocracoke days, everyone who welcomed us to Emerald Isle during such an uncertain time, and everyone who has supported every crazy idea and new chapter since, thank you.
Six years later, we’re still dreaming, still growing and still incredibly grateful that we get to do it here.
Cheers to six years in Emerald Isle and everything still to come. 🍻
- Ashley, Red, Jayden & Malli
