The Reptile Cantina – Eclectic Bar & Restaurant with Tiki Vibes in Morganton, NC

If Tim Burton and Jimmy Buffett opened a bar together, this would be their fever dream love child. The vibe is equal parts tiki, dungeon, and “should I be worried or just order another round?” (Spoiler: order another round.) The staff was amazing from the first “hey y’all” to the last “see you next time,” and Collin deserves a special shout-out for mixing potions that could raise the dead—or at least wake up Morganton. Friendly, fast, and just the right amount of cute to make you forget the snakes on the wall. If you like your cocktails strong, your décor spooky, and your night out delightfully weird, The Reptile Cantina is your new haunt.

Great place! Amazingly delicious food and the best margaritas I’ve ever had! I had a refried bean taco, steak taco and a chicken taco, fantastic! Their queso is the bomb and the nachos were loaded! Guys working there were on it and the vibe of this place is comfy and interesting!

What an unexpected find! We live in Asheville but we are often at High Rock Lake, and so sometimes when we leave the lake late, and we don’t want to drive 2 1/2 hours without eating, we will stop in Morganton. And we pick places based on reviews. This place looked amazing In terms of vibe. So I initially picked it for the vibe. And it did not disappoint! In fact, it was even cooler than the photos. I was in high school in the 80s, so a lot of the posters and memorabilia were very familiar to me and nostalgic. The music choice was excellent as well. Bartender was friendly, and I had them make me a Mezcal old-fashioned and it was… Perfect. I had three tacos. My husband had a burger special. My tacos were wonderful, creative and priced well. My only complaint was the guacamole. See photo. I would’ve expected about twice that much when you order it as a separate item. This looked more like a side of guacamole. But that’s the only complaint. We will absolutely be back. The tacos were interesting, the bar and the drinks were festive, and again, wonderfully priced. Great vibe. This will be our new stop when we are driving between the lake and the mountains. Hope to be back soon.

Excellent brunch. Full bar. Great service. Cool little dive bar and kid friendly during the day. Awesome food!

The food and drinks were both delicious and the service was attentive and friendly.

This is really a 4.5 because this was a quaint dive bar we visited as a work group late on a Wednesday. It was close to closing time, but our order was taken and food came out quicker than expected for our party size (& small size staff). I had two different types of street tacos and they were well seasoned, but the meat seemed a little tough. There were small serving sizes of beans. The plantains were cooked in crema, but my coworker said it didn't taste bad. There was a moderate selection of liquor, but only two draft beers. Great customer service, as we were leaving the bartended even took our picture outside without a fuss (even though it was closing time).

Our first time here. Shrimp tacos served with chips and salsa were tasty! Hear the smash burger is really good so will try that next time. The atmosphere was different for us - we're old- but staff and patrons were all friendly. Entrance and parking in the back.

This place and people are amazing!!!! They all kept us hydrated and kept the food coming. I definitely recommend everything about this restaurant. Great food , great customer service, the bartenders were on top of it. We had a large crowd probably 25-30 people. Also we had them make a giant shrimp cocktail for our friends birthday. It was a perfect evening thanks to everyone who works there!