pork

Killer Q (food truck)

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Name: Killer Q (food truck)
Date: 9/19/15
Order: Pork platter with beans and coleslaw
Price: $9

When it came to food options at the Southern Sauce BBQ Festival back in September I could have gone with a sure thing in Boone’s or safer options from Sauceman’s or Moe’s, but ultimately (potentially foolishly?) went with a truck I had never heard of.

I can’t find too much on Killer Q other than a Facebook page but it appears they are a very new food truck in Charlotte with the food truck only becoming operational in early September shortly before the festival. Since then, they’ve added a BQ smoker to their impressive mobile rig.

Whichever of their smokers they used that weekend, they produced some smokey pork with some decent bark. They also managed not to serve dried out pork, quite a feat during service for a day-long festival. If this was one of their first food truck services, they are off to a pretty damn good start. As for the sides, they  were standard and thankfully did not taste as if they came straight out of a can. They do a version of a barbecue sundae which combines all three and while I did not partake on that day, based on the individual foods I imagine it to be quite tasty.

When it comes to barbecue food trucks, all I ask for is quality smoked meat and sides that aren’t an afterthought. Killer Q manages to check both of those boxes, and can be added to the list of above average barbecue food trucks in Charlotte.

–Monk

Ratings:
Pork – 3 hogs
Sides – 2.5 hog
Overall – 3 hogs

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Henry’s Smokehouse – Greenville, SC

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Name: Henry’s Smokehouse
Date: 9/26/15
Address: 1842 Woodruff Rd, Greenville, SC 29607
Order: Pulled pork and rib combo, fries (link to menu)
Price: $10

Speedy: Long ago, in my pre-Barbecue Bros days, I used to do quite a bit of work in Greenville, SC – a very fine city. One of my go-to lunch spots was Henry’s Smokehouse on Wade Hampton Blvd. Despite being a classic SC joint, I remembered it fondly, so when I stumbled upon the Woodruff Road location, I knew I had to try it.

Monk: Like Speedy, I too had spent a fair amount of my pre-Barbecue Bros days in Greenville but sadly had not checked out Henry’s. I’m sure I was never very far from either location, since I spent a lot of time on or near both Wade Hampton and Woodruff Road.

Speedy: This location looks quite different than the Wade Hampton locale. And by that I mean it looks clean and modern. Maybe that takes away some of the mystique for some but overall, I liked this location better.

I remember loving Henry’s ribs while not being too enamored with the pork, but a $10 combo meal made the choice to get both pretty easy. And because I didn’t feel like even pretending to be healthy, I just went with a double portion of fries.

Well, turns out the pork was even better than I remembered. Tender with nice spots bits of brown thrown in, I did add a little bit of sauce for flavor (they have both mustard and a spicy vinegar/tomato sauce; I obviously went with the latter). I was definitely glad I ordered it again, and would recommend it. It’s not the best I’ve ever had but it was good, especially for South Carolina (burn).

Monk: …sick burn. So the pork was dry with optional table sauces? How does the spicy vinegar tomato compare to a NC sauce?

Speedy: Not dry really – I just wanted a little more flavor. And the sauce is a little spicier and sweeter, but lacks the tang that I like.

The ribs were what I thought they were, which is a good thing. Meaty and perfectly seasoned. My only complaint is that this batch was a tad overdone, but not so much as to ruin them – the bone did not fall out. They’re served wet, but not overly sauced. Henry’s is definitely a great place for ribs.

Monk: Speedy, Mrs. Monk, and I almost went to Henry’s on our way back from Atlanta a few months ago before ultimately deciding not to. Based on Speedy’s review, I hope to make it to either location next time.

Speedy: Overall, Henry’s Smokehouse is a solid old-timey joint. You pretty much know what you’re getting coming in and I’d recommend it to anyone passing through.

Ratings:
Atmosphere – 3 hogs
Pork – 3 hogs
Ribs – 3.5 hogs
Sides – N/A
Overall – 3.5 hogs
Henry's Smokehouse Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

Kings Restaurant – Kinston, NC

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Name: Kings Restaurant
Date: 9/7/15
Address: 405 East New Bern Road, Kinston, NC 28504
Order: Pig-in-a-Puppy combo with fries, slaw, and a drink (link to menu)
Price: $8

As it turns out, the last barbecue I tried on Labor Day weekend ended up being the best of the bunch. To be honest, after a weekend of eating and drinking, barbecue was kind of the last thing I wanted to have on our 7 hour drive back home. Nevertheless, I try to be a team player when I can (many times much to my wife’s chagrin), so we stopped at King’s Restaurant in Kinston.

Outside of Wilber’s in Goldsboro, the other barbecue restaurant I’ve heard come up the most in the region was King’s. People tend to speak fondly of it with memories of how they would stop there on the way to and from the beach growing up. Plus, they have a barbecue sandwich in a giant hush puppy. I repeat: a barbecue sandwich in a giant hush puppy. This is not a drill, people.

Even without the novelty of the sandwich – the hushpuppy “bun” was kind of weird but I got over it pretty quickly – the pork was nicely smoked and more than held up on its own. After I finished my combo, I snuck some away from my daughter’s kid’s meal (not that she was eating much of it anyways) because I found it to be that good. Or maybe it was in comparison to the lackluster barbecue I had eaten earlier in the weekend. 

I wrote in an earlier review for McCall’s that next time I would rather just go to Wilber’s (particularly since they are 0.5 miles apart) and while Wilber’s does edge out King’s by a bit, they are separated by 22 miles on highway 70. Depending on which way I’m headed to or from the beach in this theoretical example, I could see myself going with either and being quite content.

–Monk

Ratings:
Atmosphere – N/A
Pork – 3 hogs
Sides – 3 hogs
Overall – 3 hogs
King's Restaurant Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

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Big Oak Drive-In & Bar-B-Que – Salter Path, NC

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Name: Big Oak Drive-In and Bar-B-Q
Date: 9/5/15
Address: 1167 Salter Path Rd, Atlantic Beach, NC 28512
Order: Pork barbecue sandwich with slaw on top and hush puppies (link to menu) Price: $6

Big Oak Drive-In and Bar-B-Q is an institution for folks who visit the Atlantic Beach area and make the short drive to Salter Path. Its a bit of an unassuming building just off the main road dissecting Bogue Banks but routinely has long lines and a crowded parking lot. Even a downpour didn’t deter folks from queuing up to order from the takeout window. They simply started to bring umbrellas or rain jackets with them and braved the elements.

The shrimp burger is really the main attraction at Big Oak and while the barbecue isn’t an afterthought, it’s also not all that great. I’d call the sandwich a slightly below average one with not a lot of smoke and heavily reliant on cole slaw to give it moisture. The hush puppies are a bargain at $0.89 for a bag of six, but unfortunately they weren’t much better than the pork sammy.

I didn’t have high hopes for the barbecue from Big Oak Drive-In and Bar-B-Q and my expectations were more or less met. Next time I’ll definitely just go for the shrimp burger.

–Monk

Ratings:
Atmosphere – N/A
Pork – 2 hogs
Sides – 2 hogs
Overall – 2 hogs
Big Oak Drive In & Bar-B-Que Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

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