A & G Bar-B-Que & Chicken – Carolina Beach, NC

June 2, 2014July 31, 2014 / Barbecue Bros / Leave a comment

Name: A & G Bar-B-Que & Chicken
Date: 5/21/14
Address: 800 S Lake Park Blvd, Carolina Beach, NC 28428
Order: Pork BBQ chopped plate with cole slaw, yam sticks, hush puppies, and sweet tea (link to menu)
Price: $10

I don’t really have high hopes when it comes to barbecue at the beach. Even still, as soon as I passed A & G Bar-B-Que & Chicken in Carolina Beach, I knew that I would be checking it out at some point during our week-long stay at nearby Kure Beach, and after a few days it was time to finally do just that to escape the monotony of honey baked ham sandwiches at the house.

Unfortunately, it was no surprise to me that the barbecue itself wasn’t all that great. The meat itself lacked smoke and was clearly cooked in a gas or electric smoker, possibly not even one where you can add wood chips to approximate smoke. Also, the texture of the coarsely pulled chunks was fairly mushy. And once I added the house made sauce, in each bite the meat was overpowered by the vinegar.

The hush puppies come with each barbecue plate and were simply ok but weren’t as sweet as I’d prefer. The cole slaw, on the other hand, had too much sugar and was far too sweet. For my second side, I decided to try “yam sticks” which are more or less like deep fried cheese sticks, but with mashed yams instead of mozzarella cheese. I have to admit, they were just kind of weird.

A & G Bar-B-Que & Chicken is located in a small roadside shack with both window and sit-down service, and in addition to barbecue they serve fried chicken and seafood. Next time I go, I’ll probably forgo the roast pork they call barbecue and go one of those routes instead.

-Monk

Ratings:
Atmosphere/Ambiance – 3 hogs
Pork – 2 hogs
Sides – 2 hogs
Overall – 2 Hogs

Duke’s Old South BBQ – Leland, NC

May 26, 2014July 31, 2014 / Barbecue Bros / Leave a comment

Name: Duke’s Old South BBQ
Date: 5/17/14
Address: 318 Village Rd NE, Leland, NC 28451
Order: Plate special with barbecue, baked beans, brunswick stew, hush puppies, pickles, and sweet tea (link to menu)
Price: $7.50

Just across the Cape Fear River from Wilmington lies the town of Leland. The coast~~al plain~~ of NC isn’t really known for having great barbecue, but Duke’s Old South BBQ is trying to do things the right way, cooking their ‘cue over hickory and charcoal.

Duke’s marks yet another first for me in my barbecue travels – the barbecue buffet. Normally, this would make me skeptical about the barbecue, assuming it had been sitting in a steam tray for hours and getting an iffy texture in the process. On this particular trip, the stream tray ended up claiming victim to half of my order.

The barbecue had a slight touch of smoke but the lacked chunks of bark I like to see. It was also a little on the dry side and needed some of the side sauce. Duke’s Old South offers three sauces – sweet, mild, and spicy – and I opted for spicy, an eastern NC-style vinegar-based sauce. Each table also has Texas Pete, so I used that as well. Overall, the barbecue wasn’t half bad once aided by these sauces.

The sides were another matter. I went for brunswick stew and baked beans and while I didn’t have many complaints with either, they didn’t knock my socks off. My wife got mac and cheese, and it was dry and crusty from sitting in the steam tray too long. The hush puppies had an odd taste to them, reminiscent more of a seafood hush puppy than a barbecue one. Each plate also comes with a choice of dill or sweet pickles, which seems a little weird for a NC barbecue place.

The dining area is basically a large rectangular room with cafeteria-style seating and fluorescent lights. To be honest, it could use some work in terms of atmosphere or ambiance, although the bluegrass/country music playing over the speakers helped a little.

Duke’s Old South BBQ does have some nice things going for it, mainly in terms of the barbecue itself. If it stepped up its game in terms of sides and atmosphere, it could be a hidden jewel. As it stands, its just a nice little joint with a few flaws just off NC-74 heading into Wilmington.

-Monk

Ratings:
Atmosphere/Ambiance – 2.5 hogs
Pork – 3.5 hogs
Sides – 2 hogs
Overall – 3 Hogs

Bar-B-Q King – Charlotte, NC

May 19, 2014August 1, 2014 / Barbecue Bros / Leave a comment

Name: Bar-B-Q King
Date: 5/16/14
Address: 2900 Wilkinson Blvd, Charlotte, NC 28208
Order: Bar-B-Q plate with cole slaw, hush puppies, and Sundrop (link to menu)
Price: $10.95

Bar-B-King is a drive-in on Wilkinson Blvd in West Charlotte and you’ve passed it if you have ever headed to or from the airport. Having myself lived in Charlotte for over 9 years, I must have passed it a hundred times. They’ve been there since 1959 serving barbecue (among other items such as burgers, hot dogs, and fried seafood). Admittedly, it’s been a few years (probably even more than that) since I’ve been to a drive-in, but I enjoyed the heck out of this experience.

The barbecue comes pre-sauced and isn’t all that smokey. The sauce slathered on top is slightly tangy, thick red sauce. I probably would have preferred it on the side, but I understand that the meat isn’t spiced or rubbed (h/t Marie, Let’s Eat!) so it might have been a little plain without it.

The hush puppies were huge and I dug them quite a bit, even though I couldn’t finish the generous portion they gave. The slaw is white and came with a pickle on top.

After my meal, I stepped out of my car and took a few photos (as I do), and the carhop noticed and invited me inside to take a few more photos. And the guys inside couldn’t have been nicer, allowing me to take a few photos and even a couple graciously posing for me.

Bar-B-Q King isn’t essential if you are looking for Charlotte’s best barbecue, but it’s a neat drive-in experience that is worth checking out before the drive-in itself possibly becomes extinct in the coming years.

-Monk

Ratings:
Atmosphere/Ambiance – 4.5 hogs
Pork – 2.5 hogs
Sides – 3 hogs
Overall – 3 Hogs

Backyard BBQ Pit – Durham, DC

May 5, 2014August 1, 2014 / Barbecue Bros / Leave a comment

Name: Backyard BBQ Pit
Date: 4/26/14
Address: 5122 NC Hwy 55, Durham, NC 27713
Order: Seven pounds barbecue, 8 dozen hush puppies, tray mac and cheese, tray barbecue beans (link to menu)
Price: $110 (for approx. 28 people)

For an engagement party Mrs. Monk was co-hosting in Apex, I got to play the role of barbecue consultant (hey, that has a nice ring to it…) and help pick the barbecue for the party. The theme of the party was “backyard bbq” and as it turns out, a joint named Backyard BBQ Pit in Durham is listed on True ‘Cue. So yea, that was an easy decision.

On the day of the party, I went to pick up the bulk order from Backyard BBQ, located in a small shack on NC 55 not too far from I-40, and walked into small dining room covered in handwritten graffiti. The trays of pork, mac and cheese, and baked beans were all ready when I walked in but the staff waited to fry the hush puppies until I got there, which thankfully didn’t cause any timing issues for me and actually is a nice touch when you think about it. One of the very nice and helpful staff helped me load the food into my car and off I went, with fresh hush puppies taunting me from the back of the car the entire 20 minute drive back to the party.

Backyard BBQ cooks eastern carolina style barbecue using pork shoulders a la Allen & Son in Chapel Hill. Thankfully for us the pork retained it’s moisture for a few hours until the party started, aided by us keeping it warm in the oven. I found the the barbecue to have a nice bark as well as a little bit of a kick due to the red pepper flakes and hot sauce used in it. And it seemed to be a hit among the partygoers and thus made the hostesses (most importantly Mrs. Monk) happy.

The hush puppies were light and fluffy and had good sweetness to them. The texture may have been thrown off a little by the lag in serving, but I (and the rest of the guests) still ate them up. The mac and cheese was fantastic, but the beans themselves in the barbecue baked beans maybe could have stood to be cooked a little longer. We opted for Mrs. Monk to make her own red slaw for the party, so I didn’t try their white slaw.

Backyard BBQ Pit has been featured on Travel Channel program Man vs. Food but from what I can tell doesn’t really get as much play as some of the other joints in the Triangle. Why that is the case, I don’t quite know why. With extremely reasonable prices (at least 30% cheaper than other options for bulk orders in the area) and a solid product cooked over wood, Backyard BBQ Pit should be more well known to serious barbecue fans in North Carolina.

-Monk

Ratings:
Atmosphere/Ambiance – 4 hogs
Pork – 4 hogs
Sides – 3.5 hogs
Overall – 4 Hogs