Cape Fear Coast Seafood owners Tommy Bridges and Brian Hepler are building their business to include more than just fresh local seafood.

“We’ve always envisioned a store where our customers could pick up fresh fish, as well as fresh produce and grab some beer or wine as well,”  Bridges said.

The business partners, who opened their Market Street store in 2012, recently obtained licensing to sell and serve wine and beer. They’ve built an outdoor beer garden, complete with a stage for live music, and currently offer about 40 craft and import beers and roughly the same number of wines.

Bridges and Hepler plan to have live music on the patio on Friday evenings and host a different area food truck each week.

“We’re also looking into the possibility of starting our own truck,” Bridges said. “That way we can serve our seafood both here and at festivals.”

Bridges and Hepler also plan to offer fresh produce. They planted a variety of vegetables on their land this year, but Mother Nature was not kind.

“We just haven’t had much luck,” Bridges said. “We hope to find someone to sublease the land, take care of the farming and set up a produce stand.” 

He said Port City Produce might be a possible partner.

“We’re building the business in phases,” Bridges said. “Last year we opened the bait and tackle shop; this year we’ve secured the license for beer and wine, and now we’ll focus on the possibility of starting a food truck and getting the produce up and running.”

Cape Fear Coast Seafood is at 8130 Market St. in Porters Neck.

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