These 12 NC bucket-list joints make barbecue the old-fashioned way

The great barbecue boom is upon us.

For decades, an obsession has been building, with barbecue growing in respect and prestige until today it sits as one of the most admired and beloved culinary traditions.

This isn’t a North Carolina barbecue bucket list, it’s a jumping off point. If you’re new to whole hog or Lexington-style shoulders, or just remain a North Carolina barbecue skeptic, these 12 joints make the case for the local ‘cue.

On any given day (and sometimes only on Saturdays), each of these North Carolina legends and modern torchbearers keep a centuries-old tradition tasting shiny and new.

B’s Barbecue

751 State Rd 1204, Greenville. 252-758-7126

For nearly 50 years, this whole hog joint on the edge of Greenville has been lifted up as one of the state’s very best barbecue restaurants. But while the pork itself is revered, the first item to sell out each day is the pit cooked chicken. This isn’t barbecued chicken, it’s smoked and charred in the same pit as the pigs, wearing a lattice of grill marks as a kiss from the coals. The skin is crisped and the chicken is spritzed with a bit of B’s vinegary barbecue sauce.

Bum’s Restaurant

566 3rd St., Ayden. 252-746-6880 or bumsrestaurant.net

In downtown Ayden, Bum’s often finds itself in the shadow of the neighboring Skylight Inn, but the restaurants couldn’t be more different, aside from the exceptional whole hog barbecue. Bum’s is more of an all-day diner than a barbecue joint, believing in breakfast and a wide menu of country sides in addition to the smoked pork.

Skylight Inn

4618 Lee St., Ayden. 252-746-4113 or skylightinnbbq.com

The Jones family’s version of whole hog is famous for its crispy, crackly bits of pork skin chopped up in the barbecue. Its slaw is on the sweet side and its cornbread is controversial, but with Skylight turning 75 this year, this jewel of pork perfection hasn’t lost its luster.

Stephenson’s Bar-B-Q

11964 NC 50 Hwy, Willow Spring. 919-894-4530

Despite being the closest historic pit to downtown Raleigh, Stephenson’s is sometimes overlooked in the conversations of North Carolina’s great barbecue joints. It needs to be there. Perhaps the half hour drive to Johnston County isn’t far enough of a journey for the barbecue road trippers, but the 64-year-old Stephenson’s rewards anyone who makes the drive. Floor to ceiling windows make Stephenson’s one of the more striking dining rooms in barbecue, but your view will mostly be on the plate, where pork shoulders are chopped, seasoned and dressed with vinegar sauce so exacting you likely won’t be reaching for the bottle.

Sid’s Catering

455 S. Railroad Ave., Beulaville. 910-298-3549

You might miss Sid’s the first time you try to find it, as the restaurant sits behind Owner Sid Blizzard’s house. On the second pass look for the line of cars in the backyard, inching toward a restaurant and smokehouse and Sid Jr. taking orders on notebook paper (that’s your receipt). Sid’s opens at 8 a.m., and regulars know to get there early at this Saturday-only spot. You might hear diners make a point to ask for extra pork skin with their whole hog barbecue, which will be the first thing to run out. The handwritten menu is simple: pit cooked chicken, plates of barbecue and sandwiches. Meals arrive with hushpuppies made on the sweeter side, bringing funnel cakes to mind, as if Sid’s backyard was a barbecue carnival.

Lexington BBQ

100 Smokehouse Ln., Lexington. 336-249-9814 or lexbbq.com

What is sometimes called “Western style” or “Piedmont” is often just called “Lexington Style,” likely for the city most connected to it, but also for this standard bearer of North Carolina’s other brand of barbecue. The Lexington pits tower as tall as the restaurant itself and waft smoke well into the afternoon, summoning diners to its place on the hill at all hours of the day. Inside it’s all pork shoulders, smoked very low at around 200 degrees for at least 10 hours. The pork comes chopped, sliced or “coarse-chopped,” which is a popular way to go with the somewhat larger chucks leaving much of the barbecue’s texture intact. Like a secret password, Lexington loyalists know to ask for theirs “outside brown,” which adds in more of the smoky, caramelized bits into the plate or sandwich. This is the good stuff.

Grady’s Barbecue

3096 Arrington Bridge Rd., Dudley. 919-735-7243 or facebook.com/gradysbbqnc

Grady’s is currently the only Black-owned whole-hog barbecue restaurant left in North Carolina. Married couple Steve and Gerri Grady opened the restaurant as a retirement project and more than 30 years later, it stills stands as one of the finest examples of traditional wood-cooked barbecue in the country. Steve is one of the most revered and respected pitmasters in North Carolina. And early each morning Gerri Grady cooks the finest barbecue sides one is likely to find, often porky lima beans, black-eyed peas and steamed cabbage. Worth the road trip or detour no matter where you are.

Wilber’s BBQ

4172 US 70 Hwy, Goldsboro, NC. 919-778-5218 or wilbersbbq.com

This is Wilber’s 2.0. Rescued from a possible demise, this Goldsboro icon was purchased, renovated and reopened in the middle of the pandemic. The heart of Wilber’s is still whole hog barbecue, but look for specials like chopped brisket and chicken and pastry.

Southern Smoke BBQ

29 Warren St., Garland. 910-549-7484 or southernsmokebbqnc.com

The barbecue is fiercely traditional at Southern Smoke, but everything else ain’t. Despite the east of I-95 locale, Southern Smoke deals in pork shoulders, cooked overnight and served only two days a week. The pork’s seasoning is assertive and confident in ways some bites of barbecue aren’t, and the foodies will find lots to love in the ever-changing offering of sides, including creamed corn, a garlicky mac and cheese and black-eyed peas done in the style of refried beans.

Sam Jones BBQ

715 W. Fire Tower Rd., Winterville. 252-689-6449 or samjonesbbq.com

502 W. Lenoir St., Raleigh. 984-206-2555

Owned by one of the country’s top whole hog pitmasters, Sam Jones BBQ is practically the same barbecue as Skylight, but with the addition of spare ribs, mac and cheese, a double burger and beer. Here the oldest methods of barbecue are served in a modern space, including a location in downtown Raleigh.

Picnic

1647 Cole Mill Rd., Durham. 919-908-9128 or picnicdurham.com

This Durham restaurant serves up one of the Triangle’s best chicken sandwiches, has boozy frozen drinks and even sliced brisket. But make no mistake, Picnic is built to serve whole hog, cooked in honor of the church pig pickings where owner Wyatt Dickson says barbecue is best.

Bar-B-Q Center

900 N. Main St., Lexington. 336-248-4633 or barbecuecenter.net

If you’re sitting at the right booth, you can peer through the kitchen and into the brick pits of the Bar-B-Q Center, where Piedmont-style pork shoulders are the claim to fame. Fans of Lexington red slaw will find a distinctive version here, with a sharp bite of ketchup. Beyond the barbecue, this Lexington legend is famous for its banana splits, which you might see float through the dining room and land on a table, ready to feed five.

This story was originally published July 1, 2022 at 6:00 AM with the headline "These 12 NC bucket-list joints make barbecue the old-fashioned way."

Drew Jackson

The News & Observer

919-829-4707

Drew Jackson writes about restaurants and dining for The News & Observer and The Herald-Sun, covering the food scene in the Triangle and North Carolina.